Wednesday, October 21, 2009

How Big Is Australia?

 

This gives you a good idea of how big this "patch of red dirt"  actually is. Wide open spaces indeed! Interesting huh?

I had this map sent to me in an email.

I think it explains much about the size of our country but for the most part Australia is inhabited most densely on the eastern seaboard. There certainly is reason for this and to help you to understand our climate click here for a poster on the

Predicted

Climate changes within Australia.

Click on photo below to see the image larger.

 

As a matter of interest often I am asked if kangaroos do hop around the streets and although it is not common, last week as my daughter in-law backed her car out of the driveway she was alerted to a big grey kangaroo just sitting behind her car on the road. She chased the roo in her car with my grand daughter aboard, who incidentally was loving this encounter with the big grey roo, along the street until it jumped off into the paddocks near to the beach and out of harms way, we hope. Sorry no photo because I was not with them..

Lately there have been many kangaroos found in the park-lands in the city too. My closest encounter came while out walking on a remote bush pathway leading through a national park near the seaside. Concentrating on my walk along this red dirt track abounded by thick native vegetation, I heard branches breaking and a big thump just as a huge big red kangaroo broke through the thicket right in front of me. I am not sure who got the biggest shock, the kangaroo or me. Anyway it was all over in a bounding flash as he turned and jumped back into the bushes on the other side of the track. We do have many Kangaroos living locally, however it is more unusual to see them so close into the built up areas as they are doing right now.

Sign below taken from the net and I will need to take some sign photos myself soon.

Kangaroo Warning Sign Clipart

The photo below is of a colony of kangaroos living in a paddock very near the main road and a place that you can usually see kangaroos at any time of the day or night. Which brings us to those Kangaroo's ahead signs. Not to be take lightly.

Click on photo to enlarge it.

Photo above take by my friend Janette.

Milli 09

96 comments:

  1. How odd would that be to have a kangaroo in your way? lol I cannot even imagine. Very interesting blog, Milli. Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
  2. thats a fabulous way to show us that size matters..even I was surprised!!

    ReplyDelete
  3. one of the qualifying rides for the RAAM is in Aussie...should I wear Kangaroo repellent??

    ReplyDelete
  4. Well you wont need kangaroo repellent Dana but you will need Fly repellent..shu! shu! flies LOL. Especially up in the dirt country.

    ReplyDelete
  5. It is really difficult to explain Australia Heather because like so many think before they reach here..everything is close by..It is not.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Best not to say any more Dana LOL!!!

    ReplyDelete
  7. It's not called a continent for nothing, Milli! LOL1

    ReplyDelete
  8. I like the fact that you live on a big continent. gives you more places to show me.

    ReplyDelete
  9. very cool blog, I neeed to go visit my relatives out there one day

    ReplyDelete
  10. CONTISLAND...I like that! LOL!

    ReplyDelete
  11. LOL yes that will fix it Teri LOL!!! Good one.

    ReplyDelete
  12. You absolutely do need to come here Baz...you will so enjoy the uniqueness of Australia and your photos..well I think would be amazing.

    ReplyDelete
  13. i heard that even the flies are big...chuckles

    ReplyDelete
  14. LOL Heather Africa has the biggest flies as you would know... I think. Its not so much the size issue here. It is that the Aussie flies are so sticky..they stick around too long and stick to you too!

    ReplyDelete
  15. Welcome back home Lynda..oh you have horse flies don't you?

    ReplyDelete
  16. LOL....absolutely seems to be a given in this Big Outback Land.

    ReplyDelete
  17. got to laughing so hard I almost spilled my wine

    ReplyDelete
  18. Milli...did she just call me a hic? ; )


    (night ladies)

    ReplyDelete
  19. Hence the great Aussie salute.....LOL.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Enjoyed this read..

    I had somewhat the same problem explaining the US to folks back home..."It is really difficult to explain Australia because like so many think before they reach here..everything is close by..It is not." They couldnt believe, I stopped walking to the Store cause according to them, the store is a stone throw away...and I had to use the catapult to throw that stone :P.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Night Dana and noo!! don't spill the wine over these big flies..never.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Wow indeed it is big! Thanks for sharing!

    ReplyDelete
  23. LOL its catchy in fact I would say its infectious! ...Laughter.

    ReplyDelete
  24. I used to leave Sydney on Friday afternoon, in the truck, and drive non-stop to Perth....and arrive Sunday evening.....thats no stopping anywhere, just drive straight through.....(east to west, coast to coast).

    I would leave Adelaide On a Sunday night, and drive to Darwin, getting there Tuesday afternoon...(South to North...coast to coast).No stopping, just drive straight through.

    Both of these driving bits were AFTER the main roads connecting the respective cities were sealed all the way.
    When I first started the Sydney to Perth run,it would take normally five days and nights....because of the poor road conditions....
    Adelaide to Darwin was about four days and nights....because of poor roads.....

    ReplyDelete
  25. LOL i understand and mmmm can't really throw a boomerang now can I Rashmi...it would return and leave me in about the same position..LOL.

    ReplyDelete
  26. And if it rained.....forget it!!
    There was no way of getting through, until the roads dried out......
    Now, of course, its easy on the sealed roads, unless flooding knocks out the road..............

    ReplyDelete
  27. yair....a boomerang that doesn't come back, is just a stick....lol

    ReplyDelete
  28. I was waiting for you Pete because you certainly know the beauty and the beast of our huge expanses of outback...

    ReplyDelete
  29. yair....it was nothing to be drivin along, boomers jumpin out onto the highway, and flattening them with the bullbar of the truck....
    I did a count one trip, between Port Augusta and Meckering, I actually hit and killed twenty seven roos, one wambat, two koala's, and nine emu's.......
    And thats just an average trip......

    ReplyDelete
  30. Awww that always makes me so sad....I do know its a part of the road life out there though.

    ReplyDelete
  31. But the scariest night, ........
    It was a full moon....in about the middle of the Nullabor, I saw this huge white roo, hip-hoppin down the middle of the highway...I'd move right, it'd move right.....I'd move lefty...it'd move left....then all of a sudden, it just vanished........
    Scared the livin f**k outta me...
    I never used a pill after that night......................

    ReplyDelete
  32. But sittin up high in my Lousville, on a moonlit night, lookin out over the desert.....
    It truly is anawesome sight, seein over top of the saltbushes.... watchin the gumtrees swayin in the gentle breeze.....and on the sides of the roads, seein the liddl critters scurryin about, doin their nightly chores.....
    Yup, it did have its good side out there......................

    ReplyDelete
  33. Fascinating visual Milli! I knew Australia was huge, I think I was more surprised by how small the other countries are. Have you ever been to Ayers Rock? I would like to see it one day. Thanks for sharing.

    ReplyDelete
  34. I have not been to Uluru as yet John but wish to go there soon. It is awesome however there are other places up there that are even more amazing and those I wish to see as well.

    Some info for you gleaned from the Ayers Rock site.

    Ayers Rock is the most commonly used name, especially outside Australia.
    Uluru is the Aboriginal and official name.
    Uluru does not mean "waterhole", as you might have read. It is simply an Aboriginal place name, referring to both the rock itself and the waterhole on top of the rock.
    Kata Tjuta (the other rock formation in the national park) does have a translation. It literally means "many heads".
    The commonly used English name for Kata Tjuta is "the Olgas" or "Mt. Olga".
    The Aboriginal owners of Uluru call themselves Anangu, and ask you to do so, too. They are often referred to as the Yankunytjatjara and Pitjantjatjara people, Yankunytjatjara and Pitjantjatjara are actually the two languages spoken by the Anangu.
    Yulara is the name of the Ayers Rock Resort just outside the park. The name means "crying", "weeping". (Nasty tongues say because that's what visitors do when they see their bill...)


    Read more: http://www.outback-australia-travel-secrets.com/ayers-rock-facts.html#ixzz0UY2A99QD

    ReplyDelete
  35. Johnoh....
    Ayers rock (proper name ULURU), is nothing special during the day, its just a big red lump of rock in the desert.
    It is reportedly a meteorite that crashed into the Earth's surface a long time ago.
    The spectacularity is at dawn, and sunset, when the first and last rays of sunlight bounce off it, creating a formidable rainbow of colours and (if you believs Aboriginal folklore) the images of many creatures that lived around the rock over the centuries.
    I've never seen the images, but the lighting show, I've seen many times.
    There is nothing on this earth that compares to it.............
    On days when theres a bit of cloud about, the colours reflect back onto the clouds, creating some really surreal sunsets or dawn mornings.,

    ReplyDelete
  36. i'm contemplating a job in a catholic school in perth. i will have to seriously think about it. i don't want to get lost. your country is sooo huge. imagine, korea is only 100,000 sqms. just a speck compared to an australian city.

    btw, what do you call that animal who pretends to be dead on the road? an aussie teacher i met in this seminar told me about it but somehow i can't remember how it's called. i couldn't quite get past through the accent. is very confusing.

    ReplyDelete
  37. I have never seen a Roo in real life even though I have seen so many photos of them and they really facinate me. I am no stranger to having animals intruding into residential colony as we have to navigate around cows, mules, horses, dogs, pigs, etc in certain areas. Sometimes, the cows decide to sleep right in the middle of a major intersection and bring traffic to a standstill. No amount of pushing and persuation can make a sleeping cow move. U gotta trust me on this. Also....It's no fun being chased by one either....lol

    ReplyDelete
  38. I see room where you could probably add about 20 states from here as well. Very good depiction of Australia's size.

    ReplyDelete
  39. Johnoh.. I think Pete explained everything perfectly here....got to get up there with the camera.

    ReplyDelete
  40. Take the job MJ and you will never look back....

    ReplyDelete
  41. I wonder if you are referring to a wombat? No not the teacher pretty girl LOL but the animal on the road...not to sure about a possum..they live in trees and are nocturnal and they scamper around mostly at night. I will find out for you what it is that pretends to be dead on the road. Mind you so many animals would not really be pretending.

    ReplyDelete
  42. Great and informative post Milli, thanks! Yes, Australia is very big for sure. I've played golf with kangaroos, well, it was more like they were watching me play lol. And we all can play possum he he he...

    ReplyDelete
  43. Milli, pretending to be dead is called "playing possum". Maybe it's a NZ expressions then, as they are the most common road kill here...

    ReplyDelete
  44. LOL I can imagine how stubborn those Bovines can be...funny image comes into mind. Thanks for visiting too!

    ReplyDelete
  45. Miadelight......
    "playin possum' is a colluquium here too.....
    But not heard all that often anymore..............

    ReplyDelete
  46. Yo know what Mia..I think that could be what the teacher meant. We say the same playing possum. When you drive at night which is a foolish thing to do anytime in the outback..you see all kinds of nocturnal creatures by the road side. But the big danger in the out back are the bigger animals, cattle, horses, buffaloes,camels to name a few. New Zealand is quite different. Do you have a type of kangaroo there too?

    ReplyDelete
  47. yair...thats why Mum had recipe's for....
    possum pie...
    possum stew...
    bbq possum....
    possum soup....
    minced possum....
    Possum Bourne......whoops...he was a rally driver.....sorry.....

    ReplyDelete
  48. Pete did any specific animal play dead on the road before you changed its state of being forever?

    ReplyDelete
  49. Gosh that sounds scary indeed. Last time we drove in the South Island we hit about 7 rabbits and that was scary enough. We have no kangaroos here, but there are wallabies on Kawau Island and in the South Island, brought over from Australia at some stage.

    ReplyDelete
  50. bloody snakes!!!!
    I used to line them up, so all 31 wheels, down one side of the roadtrain, ran them into the road......

    ReplyDelete
  51. LOL Pete, no idea why he was called possum though...

    ReplyDelete
  52. Don't forget
    Broiled Possum
    Baked Possum
    and a favourite
    Possum scones..LOL

    ReplyDelete
  53. theres only one sound better than the POP as you run over a snake......
    thats the BANG of a cane toad.....
    Lmao.....

    ReplyDelete
  54. Possum scones Milli, the mind boggles. I love possum fur though, they make great bead spreads...

    ReplyDelete
  55. possum scones?????????

    I used to love minced possum on toast, with cheese melted under the griller over it........

    ReplyDelete
  56. As you know Mia Peter Was once a Kiwi LOL

    ReplyDelete
  57. No, I didn't know he was once a bird lol

    ReplyDelete
  58. I sprouted wings and flew to Australia....lol

    ReplyDelete
  59. coz he killed more possums rally driving in NZ than any other driver.....lol

    I'm only guessing......

    ReplyDelete
  60. You have no snakes in New Zealand so Peter has made up for that in Aus...LOL..nah he is no Birdie...

    ReplyDelete
  61. He he I thought that might be the case ...

    ReplyDelete
  62. Thanks Bill, we could add those states but at the moment they would not be sustainable..if you can ever google our centre it is fascinating try the Ariel view around Katherine in Northern Territory and the Katherine Gorge..fascinating..

    ReplyDelete
  63. Very interesting post Milli. I had no idea of the size of landmass there. Thanks for the info and the comments too, very informative.

    ReplyDelete
  64. so it's not possum? lol. guess am not paying attention to the aussie teacher.
    i want the job but it's in a catholic school. i might burn you know. burn as in like body and hair in flames.lol.

    ReplyDelete
  65. A BBQ team from Aussie is coming to Lynchburg, Tennessee this weekend to compete in the Jack Daniel's World Championship Cook Off. Teams from all over the world will compete. Each year about 50,000 people show up for the event and to eat some great BBQ. The teams from abroad are required to give samples of their meat to the crowd. Long lines form when they are giving their samples. Many times when you get to the head of the line they run out. You get in another line and if you are lucky there is something for you. Your invited!!! Hugs>>>>>>>>

    ReplyDelete
  66. ...But I cringe at seeing so many possum recipes. HEEEEELP!

    ReplyDelete
  67. This would scare the jeepers out of anyone. I would yell GHOST!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  68. God I do love visiting your site hon...........your pictures and words always make me feel so homesick for my Australia............now I am a blubbering wreck.........sniff

    ReplyDelete
  69. How'd you like2meet THIS kangaroo?:







    Or what about THESE kangaroos that pump our gas for us here in Canada?:


    ReplyDelete
  70. size does not matter, really speaking...look, Carol...a small country UK...was ruling over the most of the world nations...Switzerland is small, but the people are smart....that really matters much....thanks for the nice blog...Sanat.

    ReplyDelete
  71. hi thats great idea to show u r size of country thnks for info

    ReplyDelete
  72. We just finished bricking a house in Plenty (sorta a little north of Melbourne) and we had a few Roos coming through regularly. It's a green area but they'll be forced on soon enough...

    ReplyDelete
  73. hi, Carol...i need your picture...let me meazure your size, pleeeeeeeeaasssseeeeee...SANAT.

    ReplyDelete
  74. How'd you like2meet THIS kangaroo?: I loved those two little videos John LOL. I did see that movie BTW, however the Gas pumping Kangaroo is totally new to me...Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
  75. Yes there will be plenty of houses in Plenty so less than plenty roos..Glad you dropped over.

    ReplyDelete
  76. If there are two distinct opposites in the World it has to be Australia and Europe for two single reasons.
    The Road System and Population Numbers.
    Yes it is beautiful in places but really naturally hostile everywhere.
    Half a ton of Roo hopping around is not my idea of fun and as for the Outback, that friendly name for danger everywhere, that is only beaten by the sea near Cairn? where for hundreds of square miles even paddling is too dangerous.
    Move out of the Population areas and it's Creature Bandit Country with nature in charge.
    Give me the Smoke any day.

    ReplyDelete
  77. I just love roos but I guess it would be a bit of a problem if they were as plentiful as mice. Bit bigger and all.
    About the only place that can compare to Australia is the US and we are broken up into a bunch of states

    ReplyDelete