I am spending a few days in Townsville with my cousin Trish before heading south. Trish and I don't see each other very often but we are the same age and have lots of shared experiences as kids. As a young teacher I shared a home for a couple of years with her mother, (my Aunty Ag who was Mum's eldest sister) and also with Nana. Our paths crossed often in those days when she had young kids. Her kids and grandkids are mainly in Townsville or fairly close. She has her second great-grandchild due this month - a bit of a start on me as my grandchidren range from 2 to 12. It will be a while, if ever, before I see great-grandchildren.
Last night I attended a Toastmasters meeting - by phone. I connected to Healthy Chatterers meeting at Redcliffe and was General Evaluator for the meeting. It was quite a different process, listening but not seeing what was happening. On the previous weekend I hooked up for an executive meeting of Peninsula Club, also at Redcliffe. These are mixed blessings, of course, as it means I can be part of the club and the club meetings but it also means that I can't totally switch off from my club roles while I am travelling.
This trip I haven't been to meetings of any other club as I haven't been in towns when meetings were held - except one club here in Townsville that meets at 6.30am. As early mornings and I are incompatible, I gave that club a miss. Over the next few weeks I expect to get to an occasional meeting of other clubs and I will be at my home clubs in late July and early August.
My home clubs have just had executive elections. Although I plan to be away most of the year, two of my clubs have asked me to serve on the executive. So I am Vice President Public Relations in SeeChange and I am Secretary in Peninsula Club and will act as assistant to the Treasurer in Healthy Chatterers when the Treasurer is out of range. Like me, she is motor-homing around Australia. I have to say that I like being on the executive as I know what is happening and have some say in the direction of the club. As mentor for Peninsula and Healthy Chatterers, it gives me a closer link with the members.
Cory has been faithful with his blog, not much writing but a lot of photos. You can check it at coryss.blogspot.com and leave comments on his email cory.scottsmith@gmail.com
Thursday 11 June 2015
Dinosaur Overload
We have done the Dinosaur Trail. Winton was an eye-opener to the process of excavation, preservation and reconstruction of fossils. Richmond had the most amazing collection of marine fossils, entire skeletons of ancient monsters and more being dug up each day. Hughenden has a different emphasis, with more information and fewer actual fossils, To add to the overload, Cory borrowed books about dinosaurs from every library we visited, returned them to the next town and got more - all of which he shared with me!
Winton has enough bones at the Age of Dinosaurs Museum. of Banjo and Matilda to recreate the entire animals and bones of others which will probably eventually be identified, A film gives details of each find and fascinating background information. A hundred metres away is the laboratory where staff and willing volunteers work on items. When fossils are uncovered, they are carefully excavated with a trench around them to ensure that all the pieces are included. They are wrapped and then enclosed in plaster with details and dates. Later they are opened and the slow process of removing the bones from surrounding residue begins. Paleontologists identify each part, some merely a chip off a tooth, recreate where possible and catalogue all finds.
When I went to the Kronosaurus Korner museum in Richmond, I asked which displays were real bones and which were replicas. I was surprised to find that everything was real. If a part was missing, there was no attempt to recreate it. The fossil was laid out just as it was found. This was all part of an inland sea and apparently sediment covered the creatures rapidly, resulting in dozens (maybe hundreds) of almost intact specimens. Most of them have been found in the very recent past so the whole story of recovery is recorded. Most of the finds began with an accidental discovery of a bone on one of the local properties. When it was identified a team moved in to excavate the area.
One of the largely intact spines was uncovered by a family (Wilson I think) in a public digging site just out of town. Apparently the 10 year old girl was fossicking by herself and found a large vertebra, The family went on to discover the whole backbone of a marine creature which was named after them - WilsonSomethingosaurus. We went to that area on a Dig at Dusk tour and everyone found fossils of some sort. I found what the paleontologist identified as part of the jawbone of an icthyosaur, He had recently found others in that area and seemed to be disappointed that he had missed that one. Although I could have kept it, I gave it to him for the museum,
Hughenden is widely advertised for dinosaurs. I was disappointed to find that most were replicas or artistic representations. The museum had a few cases of fossils and bones but more information was provided through static displays. Some of these have been posted to Cory's blog: coryss.blogspot.com
Winton has enough bones at the Age of Dinosaurs Museum. of Banjo and Matilda to recreate the entire animals and bones of others which will probably eventually be identified, A film gives details of each find and fascinating background information. A hundred metres away is the laboratory where staff and willing volunteers work on items. When fossils are uncovered, they are carefully excavated with a trench around them to ensure that all the pieces are included. They are wrapped and then enclosed in plaster with details and dates. Later they are opened and the slow process of removing the bones from surrounding residue begins. Paleontologists identify each part, some merely a chip off a tooth, recreate where possible and catalogue all finds.
When I went to the Kronosaurus Korner museum in Richmond, I asked which displays were real bones and which were replicas. I was surprised to find that everything was real. If a part was missing, there was no attempt to recreate it. The fossil was laid out just as it was found. This was all part of an inland sea and apparently sediment covered the creatures rapidly, resulting in dozens (maybe hundreds) of almost intact specimens. Most of them have been found in the very recent past so the whole story of recovery is recorded. Most of the finds began with an accidental discovery of a bone on one of the local properties. When it was identified a team moved in to excavate the area.
One of the largely intact spines was uncovered by a family (Wilson I think) in a public digging site just out of town. Apparently the 10 year old girl was fossicking by herself and found a large vertebra, The family went on to discover the whole backbone of a marine creature which was named after them - WilsonSomethingosaurus. We went to that area on a Dig at Dusk tour and everyone found fossils of some sort. I found what the paleontologist identified as part of the jawbone of an icthyosaur, He had recently found others in that area and seemed to be disappointed that he had missed that one. Although I could have kept it, I gave it to him for the museum,
Hughenden is widely advertised for dinosaurs. I was disappointed to find that most were replicas or artistic representations. The museum had a few cases of fossils and bones but more information was provided through static displays. Some of these have been posted to Cory's blog: coryss.blogspot.com
Sunday 7 June 2015
Water in the Outback
It is hard to imagine places where rain is so rare that even children talk about it. I am not complaining at the moment as I have lost a panel on my roof and I really don't want to see rain before I get back to the coast.
Although the Great Artesian Basin underlies vast areas of the state, the land is dry and dusty, with cracks and holes a hazard for walkers. Most of the inland rivers are dry river beds with an occasional twist of water or an odd puddle. Where there is water though, everything is lush and green. Towns which seem to have unlimited bore water have green open spaces and parks and house yards which end abruptly with the dusty outskirts of town.
In contrast to the browns and reds of most of the landscape, the green areas and blue expanses of water are fresh and inviting.
Although the Great Artesian Basin underlies vast areas of the state, the land is dry and dusty, with cracks and holes a hazard for walkers. Most of the inland rivers are dry river beds with an occasional twist of water or an odd puddle. Where there is water though, everything is lush and green. Towns which seem to have unlimited bore water have green open spaces and parks and house yards which end abruptly with the dusty outskirts of town.
In contrast to the browns and reds of most of the landscape, the green areas and blue expanses of water are fresh and inviting.
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| Lake Moondarra, Mt Isa |
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| Lake Moondarra |
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| Chinaman Creek, Cloncurry |
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| Chinaman Creek blue water, red soil |
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