travel dream

[WombleHerp]

hey everyone

i have a goal. its a big one, and i think many of you will probably share it with me. i want to travel australia, checking out the herpetofauna and flora, (and other animals etc aswell). so, anyone who has a great recomendation for all the reptile parks, and other animal parks/zoos in Australia!

aswell as this, i also want to check out the wildlife! so, arid, rainforest, desert, and northern QLD especially (maybe to see a cassowary, or a wild GTP!)

any places that are great to stay up there, please dont hesitate to share
this dream of myne will stay with me till it happens, so i have a loooong time to plan it
thanks all, regards,


Nat

 

[WombleHerp]

anybody stayed in northern QLD? seen a cassowary or what-not? im very intrigued at the moment!

 

[MoreliaMatt]

i'd love to travel around Australia at a leisurely pace and see all the wild herps etc! (and all the other animals!) and all the great scenery etc etc! i think 6 to 12 months would be a good trip!

 

[Serpentes_15]

I'm coming. Salties, Perentie, Taipan, Scrubbies, Sharks... bugger travelling their, mate i wanna live all over Australia, or Africa. Thats the **** i think about every day.

 

[Radar]

I tried to post this last night, but my comp was stuffing me around:

Yeah, Im gonna get there one day too, probably in about 2 years time.
NQLD: If you want to see a cassowary, go for mission beach (although most of the rainforest in this area is being cleared for houses, there are still quite a few around) and other places around Cardwell. The Daintree rainforest (northen rainforest block) is much nicer and has many more animals then the 'southern' rainforest block (paluma, just north of townsville) if you are gonna have a look through the wet tropics world heritage area.

If you get a chance to do some serious bush travel go to the Iron Range, up Cape York, its a Nat. park and shares many species with PNG (eclectus parrots, palm cockatoos, some cool snakes). Its more of a monsoonal/seasonal forest then rainforest, but some parts are the same as the wet tropics forest.

Lakefield national park (also on the Cape) is def. worth a visit if you get your timing right, otherwise its full of tourists, plenty of crocs, goanna’s etc as well as the smaller stuff.

Billabong sanctuary is the only park in T'ville, and while they do have a fair few animals, its not really the best park IMO, but would be worth a single visit (and they've got a Cassowary).

I have access to 2 houses at paluma, but Im not sure if there is tourist accomadation??? you'll have to check up on that.

Lawn Hill National park (QLD and NT boarder) is def worth a visit, just cause its so remarkable.....

Dont just dream about it, actually set yourself goals (moneywise, ect) and work towards them, then you will actually get a chance to do it instead of just dreaming

 

[WombleHerp]

cool everyone thanks! i really want to travel Aus, (and yes i was dreaming about africa aswell! coincidence? lol) i want to see everything i possibly can. i will set myself a looong trip, i especially want to go north QLD, and WA. but i want to see it all! so those are all just starting points. thanks for your replies, they are really helpful.
regards,

Nat

 

[Radar]

Let me know when you get your stuff sorted.....there's every chance we'll have a spare seat in the Troopie on one of our future trips. Planning on a LOOOOONNNGGGG trip (as in, a few years working around Aus.) in the future.

 

[Serpentes_15]

Well Herps, i bet u watch animal planet constantly like i do. That only makes it hurt that much more that im stuck in this boring school, with boring ppl who don't know a thing about the wild. Just a few more years and i'll be their. By the Way does anyone know about those Earthwatch expeditions with scientists.

 

[WombleHerp]

all i watch is animal planet and discovery channel!!!!!!!! my parents think im weird lol (not the usual things for a teen to be watching )

 

[Radar]

Well Herps, i bet u watch animal planet constantly like i do. That only makes it hurt that much more that im stuck in this boring school, with boring ppl who don't know a thing about the wild. Just a few more years and i'll be their. By the Way does anyone know about those Earthwatch expeditions with scientists.

Go to uni and become a scientist, then you get paid for it (and there are ALWAYS PhD students, etc, looking for volunteers to do field work with them, they put notices up around uni's so you don't even have to wait till your out of uni to start doing real work in the field).

Im heading to the the Wet Tropics World Heritage Rainforest on wednesday next week, in a uni owned landcruiser troopcarrier, for the 5th week in a row, to do my own research........not a bad deal, they even cover fuel costs . Research my not be the highest paid job (by a long shot) but its more interesting then any 9-5 office job

 

[lizard_lover]

id say got to the nt and see all the reptiles up there

 

[cracksinthepitch]

Dear Herpsrule, i havent done alot of travelling but i went to Tassie for 2 weeks and drove around the whole island. Its awesome . Im really into Birds of prey as well as snakes and spiders. The had a tiger snake farm there that was well worth the visit. Going caving to see the cave spiders is awesome.South Bruny island was the pick of the bunch. we had to stop half way down on a narrow peice of road between two main bits of island because there were thousands of frogs on the road. We had a wedge tailed eagle nest on the property we stayed at with fledglings. i definately recommed tassie

 

[$NaKe PiMp]

damn where do we start

 

[WombleHerp]

hmmmm all these suggestions sound sooo great! i agree, where do i start! well obviously ill have to set aside more than a few months lol