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Australian natural history, birding, snorkeling and scuba diving with the Cheesemans eceod
Please, note! This Tour is no longer offered
by InfoHub. Find similar tours here.
Key Information:
Tour Duration: 31
day(s)
Group Size: 1
- 14
people
Destination(s):
Australia
Specialty Categories:
Birdwatching
Scuba/Snorkeling
Season: March - April
Airfare Included: No
Tour Customizable: Yes
Minimum Per Person Price: 7850 US Dollar (USD)
Maximum Per Person Price: 8325 US Dollar (USD)
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We have redesigned this itinerary and are really excited about this tour! The trip highlight (among highlights): In Western Australia we’ve chartered the beautiful, new "True North" for a 6-day reef trip from Exmouth to Broome in an area richer than the Great Barrier Reef at the peak of the Whale Shark appearance. From snorkeling and scuba diving in the west and on the Great Barrier Reef to birdwatching in the tropical rainforests of Queensland, our resident Aussie naturalists know where to find indigenous wildlife, the rare birds and the unusual and endemic marsupials. Join Cheesemans' Ecology Safaris and Doug and Gail Cheeseman for an amazing Australian nature tour!
Your Itinerary
Day 1:
March 11 - 12, Sunday - Monday. Flights to Sydney and Hobart
Departing Saturday, flights from San Francisco to Sydney on United and from Los Angeles on Qantas or Air New Zealand all arrive early on Monday, losing one day crossing the international dateline. Please let us know if you would like us to assist with your international flights. We will make the reservations for all the domestic flights beginning on March 2 to Hobart. The Air New Zealand flight departs LAX at 8:15 pm and arrives in Sydney at 6:05 am. The United flight leaves San Francisco at 11:15 pm and arrives at 8:40 am. Qantas flight times are similar to United, but depart from Los Angeles. You might like to depart earlier for more time in Sydney. If you would like to join us in New Zealand, the dates are February 24 through March 11. We will have dayrooms available at a hotel in a good location for sightseeing in downtown Sydney on Monday. Lunch will be on your own. Return to the airport on August 12 and fly to Hobart at 6:10 pm, arriving at 7:55 pm. Overnight at the Pacific Vista Hotel in a wonderful location overlooking Hobart.
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Day 2:
(see day 1)
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Day 3:
March 13, Tuesday. Avian endemics and marsupials near Hobart
Meet Nick Mooney, our outstanding bird and mammal guide for the next 4 days. Our outfitters, Wildspot Tours, is owned by Simon Plowright who arrived in Australia in 1981 from Wales and is dedicated to wildlife observation. Wildspot is run by people whose interests include bird study and Tasmanian nocturnal carnivores. Simon Plowright and Nick Mooney are directly involved with promoting and protecting the Tasmanian Devil. Nick works fulltime for the Tasmania Parks and Wildlife Service to further protection for Tasmanian native species. His specialties are raptors and Dasyurids (carnivorous marsupials), which need all the help they can get to enlighten land owners and the public about their important ecological roles. We are very fortunate to have him as our guide in Tasmania. Today walk in a gum forest beside a lagoon, near Hobart, a good place for the endemic Forty-spotted Pardalote. All twelve of the endemic Tasmanian birds are found in Hobart’s surrounding native vegetation. After lunch drive up Mt. Wellington for some great alpine flora, scenery and birds. After a break and a fantastic dinner join Nick nightspotting an hour or so for bandicoots and bettongs.
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Day 4:
March 14 – 16, Wednesday – Friday. Woolnorth Ranch in the north
Depart after breakfast with a picnic lunch for the drive northwest across Tasmania to Woolnorth Ranch in the remotest corner of the island. Echidnas and both Wedge-tailed Eagles and White-bellied Sea Eagles are some of the incredible species we may encounter today. Waterbirds we could see today are Musk Duck, Black Swan, Australian Shelduck, Pacific Black Duck, Australasian Shoveler, Chestnut Teal, Hoary-headed Grebe, Australasian Grebe, White-faced Heron, Purple Swamphen, Dusky Moorhen and Tasmanian Native Hen. We’ll stop at Fernglade near the small towns of Sheffield and Beulah. The park at Fernglade provides habitat for many birds, including Pink Robin, and very good chances for viewing Platypus along a meandering stream. Tasmania is rich in parrots. Possibilities include Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoo, Little Corella, Sulphur-crested Cockatoo, Eastern Rosella, Swift Parrot and Blue-winged Parrot.
The accommodations at Woolnorth Ranch are very comfortable rooms with very nice Aussie ablutions. This is the best place in the world to do Tasmania Devil nightspotting, due to the abundant population of Devils on this huge ranch property. Our guides, Nick Mooney and Simon Plowright, plan to nightspot all 3 nights, so we can divide up in small groups of 5 at a time in the blind. All are assured of seeing Devils, as well as perhaps the beautiful Spotted-tailed Quoll, another carnivorous marsupial. We will not have to drive back and forth to Smithton from Woolnorth, but just stay right at this remote paradise beside the ocean where a number of Tasmanian Devil and Spotted-tailed Quoll (Native Cat) from the wild should make an appearance in their quest to feed. The Tasmanian Devil interactions within the species are very interesting, especially at a feeding site. This allows us to use a blind for viewing the Tasmanian Devils with a small group in an absolutely still hide, big enough for photography. Simon finished filming a documentary for British T.V. at this spot. The two evenings we’re not in the blind will be with Nick spotlighting for Southern Brown Bandicoot, Eastern Barred Bandicoot, Wombat, Common Ringtail Possum, Brushtail Possum, and the two species of macropods, Bennett’s Wallaby (a sub-species of the Red-necked Wallaby) and Tasmanian Pademelon (also called Red-bellied Pademelon or Rufous Wallaby). There is a very good chance of seeing Masked Owl, Southern Boobook and Tawny Frogmouth. We’ll first have an outstanding dinner before dividing up to spotlight .
One day we’ll walk the magnificent coastline and visit local bird spots for endemic passerines. Off the coast we could see Shy Albatross, Short-tailed Shearwater, Little Pied Cormorant, Black-faced Cormorant, and Great Cormorant. Other birds we’ll look for while on "Devil island" are Swamp Harrier, Grey Goshawk, Brown Falcon, Bar-tailed Godwit, Eastern Curlew, Common Greenshank, Ruddy Turnstone, Pied Oystercatcher, Sooty Oystercatcher, Pacific Golden Plover, Hooded Plover (a species of special concern), Banded Lapwing, Pacific Gull, Silver Gull, Caspian Tern, Crested Tern, Little Tern, Fairy Tern, Brush Bronzewing, Green Rosella, Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoo, Pallid Cuckoo, Fan-tailed Cuckoo, Shining Bronze Cuckoo, Azure Kingfisher, Superb Fairy-wren, Spotted Pardalote, Striated Pardalote, Tasmanian Scrubwren, Scrubtit, Brown Thornbill, Tasmanian Thornbill, Little Wattlebird, Yellow-throated Honeyeater, Strong-billed Honeyeater, Black-headed Honeyeater, New Holland Honeyeater, Eastern Spinebill, and White-fronted Chat.
The second day we’ll travel through the Duck Valley to the Arthur River stopping at beautiful Lake Chisholm in magnificent tall eucalypt forest. Along the West Coast we’ll drive through large tracts of coastal heathland. Some of the special birds are Red-capped Plover, Blue-winged Parrot, Yellow-rumped Thornbill, Crescent Honeyeater, Tawny-crowned Honeyeater, Flame Robin, Scarlet Robin, Pink Robin, Dusky Robin, Olive Whistler, Grey Butcherbird and Black Currawong.
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Day 5:
(see day 4)
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Day 6:
(see day 4)
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Day 7:
March 17, Saturday. O’Reilly’s Guest House in Lamington NP, QueenslandAfter a hearty breakfast, we will reluctantly have to leave Woolnorth’s tranquillity to catch a flight from Burnie at 10:00 am to fly to Brisbane. The flight arrives in Brisbane at 1:20 pm. Meet our driver, Graham, from Allstate Scenic Tours at the Brisbane Airport. for the ride to O’Reilly’s Guest House. O’Reilly’s is 75 miles southeast of Brisbane in Lamington National Park on the border of Queensland and New South Wales. The town of Canungra is at the foot of the Lamington plateau. Ascend the Lamington eucalypt plateau at 3000 feet. Then on the edge of the rainforest arrive at the famous O'Reilly's Mountain Resort, run by the O’Reilly family, and situated right in Lamington National Park. At O’Reilly’s the atmosphere and hospitality are wonderful. Meet our incredible naturalist, Glen Threlfo. Glen is an outstanding recording artist and photographer and knows all the natural sounds that we can hope to hear in Lamington National Park.
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Day 8:
March 18 - 19, Sunday - Monday. O’Reilly’s in Lamington NP
With two full days at O'Reilly's, enjoy bushwalking (woodland or forest). Visit the waterfalls; enjoy the enchanting pademelons as they graze near the lodge and the incredible resident birds. Seek out the more secretive birds in the prime forest at the edge of the lodge where excellent tracks offer many choices to walk. Relax in this wonderful spot high in the MacPherson Range Mountains in the Lamington National Park. In the evening go spotlighting for marsupials and owls, even for glow-worms! The nocturnal wildlife from the forest, such as Mountain Possums, Coppery Brush-tailed Possum, and Sugar Gliders, visit O'Reilly's fruit table after dark. The mound-building Brush Turkey, Regent Bowerbirds, Crimson Rosellas, Red-necked Wallabies, and Red-shouldered Pademelons are easily photographed. Albert's Lyrebird, the Noisy Pitta and the Red-legged Pademelon are among the shy, rare endemics, which only allow glimpses in their forest habitat. One of the highlights is a walk through the rainforest to Tooloona Creek, the lushest and wettest area with waterfalls, ferns, orchids and huge trees, the home of the endemic Rufous Scrub-bird. Another incredible highlight is a walk down the Kerry Track in eucalypt forest to have a picnic at the bottom of the valley and the afternoon searching for Grey Kangaroo and other great species in the surrounding fields
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Day 9:
(see day 8)
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Day 10:
March 20, Tuesday. Fly to Cairns
Our last morning at Lamington, depart the plateau looking for Pretty-faced Wallabies, also called Whiptails, which are abundant on the road down to Canungra in the early morning. (The difference between wallabies and kangaroos is mainly size. This species is called a wallaby commonly, although it is large enough to be considered a kangaroo.) We’ll have a picnic lunch early enroute to the Brisbane Airport. Fly to Cairns at 1:o5 pm and arrive at 3:20 pm. Overnight at Fig Tree Lodge near the famous Esplanade, extraordinary mudflat and beach habitat, with especially good birding at high tide on the protected edges along the city's waterfront. It’s only a 15-minute walk from our lodge. If time permits, we will walk to the Esplanade after checking into our rooms. Dinner on our own this evening to choose from the many restaurants along the Esplanade.
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Day 11:
March 21, Wednesday. Michelmas Cay on the Great Barrier Reef
We'll have a full day out on the Reef at Michelmas Cay aboard the "Ocean Spirit", departing at 8:30 am and returning by 5 or 5:30 with 4 hours at the Cay. The snorkeling is great from shore and diving is also possible. Masks and fins are provided. The diving costs extra, including intro-dives. An Oz trip is not complete without seeing the amazing world of tropical fish, soft corals and other spectacular invertebrates, such as giant clams, on the Great Barrier Reef. There is a sub-sea viewer as well. Michelmas Cay is a tern paradise with Sooty, Crested, Lesser Crested terns and Common Noddies nesting there. We may walk on shore, but most of the Cay is restricted to avoid intrusion on the nesting grounds. Several other species of seabirds frequent Michelmas, including some of the rarer terns, such as Roseate, Bridled, Black-naped and Little. While returning to the dock in the late afternoon, watch for Bottle-nosed Dolphins. If it’s high tide when we dock, you may want to walk back to our lodge along the Esplanade, which takes about an hour walking slowly. At high tide many species of waders feed very close to shore all along the Esplanade. Or you may choose to return to Fig Tree Lodge via a shuttle bus from the boat. Dinner on our own again this evening.
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Day 12:
March 22 – 24, Thursday - Saturday. Atherton Tablelands.
Meet our incredible Northern Queensland guide, Jonathan Monroe, this morning. We’ll decide our route up to the Tablelands based on the best birding and marsupial viewing that Jon Monroe will recommend at the time. Locate a bat camp with a busy nursery of flying foxes. Granite Gorge, located in a dry area where a rain shadow makes a dramatic change in habitat, is an excellent location to see the Great Bowerbird's bower and look for the Unadorned Rock Wallabies in their natural rocky surroundings. Drive to Chambers Rainforest Lodge on the Tablelands, located very close to Lake Eacham, for 3 nights in lovely cabins with a wonderful central dining area where a large extended family of Red-legged Pademelons join in at dinnertime. Walk at both Lake Eacham and Barrine, beautiful crater lakes with magnificent trees and wildlife. Chambers Rainforest Lodge is famous for the large number of rainforest birds, plus mammals and other creatures, to be found within its grounds. We’ll look for Red-necked Crake, Wompoo Pigeon, Victoria’s Riflebird, Tooth-billed Catbird, Grey Whistler, Pied Monarch, and Bower’s Shrike-thrush, just some of the species found in the surrounding forest. Look for many of the fascinating reptiles, such as Leaf-tailed Gecko and Boyd’s Forest Dragon. Visit the famous Cathedral Fig Tree, a beautiful strangler fig. Hastie Swamp is the place for great waterbird viewing, especially Saurus and Brolga cranes, then on to Mt Hipapamee National Park with a visit to a Golden Bowerbird's bower. With time to rest in the early afternoon, enjoy evenings spotlighting in an excellent area for owls and marsupials, including Herbert River Ringtail Possum, Green Ringtail Possum, Lemuroid Ringtail Possum, Coppery Brushtail Possums, and Tree Kangaroo.
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Day 13:
(see day 12)
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Day 14:
(see day 12)
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Day 15:
March 25, Sunday. From Cairns to Kangaroo Island
There is an Ansett flight at 11:25 am, arriving in Adelaide at 5:55 am to connect with the midday 30 minute Emu Airways flight from
Adelaide to Kangaroo Island. Prepare a small bag for these three nights if your luggage, not including your photography equipment, field
guides, and binoculars, exceeds 25 pounds. Plan to leave whatever exceeds 25 pounds, the allowed weight on the Kangaroo Island flight, with
Astra Transport, at the Emu Airways terminal in Adelaide. We’ll check in at the lovely Ozone Hotel on the ocean in Kingscote, about 14 km
from the Kangaroo Island Airport. After dinner walk across the street to a beach where Little Penguins are arriving at their nesting burrows
from foraging at sea. We give every consideration to the Little Penguins, as they are quite shy.
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Day 16:
March 26, Monday. Macropods, sea lions and birds, Kangaroo Island
Meet incredible naturalist, Ken Grinter, who will join us throughout the western part of our adventure as well. Today depart at 9 am for a full
day in Kangaroo Island bush (forest) with a wonderful Aussie barbecue at noon. The coast here has a protected beach site for Australian Sea
Lions coming ashore to rest. Their breeding strategies and life style are extremely interesting. This is great habitat for possible encounters
with Superb Blue Wren, Dusky Woodswallows, Striated Pardalote, and a range of honeyeaters. We’ll seek out the Kangaroo Island
subspecies of the Glossy Black Cockatoo at Latham Conservation Park where biologists have taken steps to expand the breeding
opportunities of this endangered species. This is an excellent area to see Tammar Wallabies and Grey Kangaroos. We should see large
numbers of kangaroos at D’Estrees Bay. Dinner at a wonderful, small gourmet restaurant and overnight at the Ozone.
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Day 17:
March 27, Tuesday. Flinders Chase National Park, Kangaroo Island
Travel to Flinders Chase National Park, which covers the entire west end of the island. The breeding site for the rare Cape Barren Goose is in Flinders. Along the beautiful coastal landscapes, stop at several spectaclar locations. At Cape du Couedic a fur seal colony is doing well where they can be observed from the rocks at Admirals Arch, a spectacular coastal grotto. Flinders is famous for an overabundance of Koalas and late in the day we will walk into "Grassdale" to look for wild kangaroos.
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Day 18:
March 28 - 29, Wednesday - Thursday. Perth and Learmonth in Western Australia
Enjoy a late breakfast before flying to Adelaide on Emu Air from Kangaroo Island. Lunch on our own at the Adelaide Airport. The Ansett flight departs at 2 pm from Adelaide to arrive in Perth at 4:15 pm. (Flight times are based on present schedules and could change.) Overnight is at Sullivans Hotel beside the famous Kings Park. Dinner on our own Wednesday evening. Enjoy a walk in the Botanic Gardens at Kings Park Thursday morning before driving to the airport. The feature species of Kings Park are White-cheeked Honeyeater and Little Wattlebird. The variety of Western Australian shrubs now planted in the original bushland at the Botanic Garden has increased the diversity of bird life here. South-west of Memorial Lake, the gardens are usually alive with honeyeaters. Return to the airport and fly at 1 pm to Learmonth, very close to Exmouth on the Coral Coast, 1300 km north of Perth. Arrival is at 4:15 pm in Learmonth. On the way to our hotel in Exmouth, take a drive up Shothole Canyon Road and Charles Knife Road, two scenic canyons that run up into the Cape Range, located about 15 mins south of the Exmouth, between the townsite and Learmonth Airport. Both roads are approximately13km in distance and unsealed, although in good condition. They are spectacular at sunset and at dusk are excellent habitat for Red Kangaroos and the Euros or Wallaroos (a dark robust kangaroo that lives around the hill areas). Dinner together at our lodge in Exmouth.
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Day 19:
(see day 18)
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Day 20:
March 30 - April 5, Friday - Thursday. A Week on the True North
Morning free. We will board at noon and embark on the True North by early afternoon. A diagram of the new True North is on the last page of the itinerary. It is a spacious modern craft boasting the highest standards of comfort and safety. You may choose to dive (if you are checked out) or to snorkel. We are chartering the True North from North Star Charters, a company leading cruises in the north of Western Australia since 1987. Excellent snorkel and dive equipment is available. Before we begin cruising, if you are a diver, plan to test your gear at the Exmouth pier where there is a safe dive area.
Our center of attention for the next two days will be Whale Sharks and Ningaloo Marine Park, the longest fringing coral reef in Australia. The difference between fringing and barrier is the closeness to the coast of a fringing reef, whereas a barrier reef has a large body of water between it and the coast. We’ll cruise approximately three hours to Tandabidi, the best area for Whale Sharks. The reef, only 100 m (3.1’ = 1 m) from the shore in some places, extends 260 km along the coast and covers over 700 square kilometers. The Park itself encompasses over 5000 square kilometers of ocean. Being the nearest point of Australia to the Continental Shelf accounts for the incredible abundance and variety of fish and other marine life in the surrounding waters. This is the world’s best Whale Shark viewing environment. Each March the corals spawn, shrimps swarm in to feed on coral larvae. Then the Whale Sharks and other very large fish converge for a rich feast. The True North uses a plane to direct Craig Howson, Skipper of the True North, to the surface feeding Whale Sharks. This means much more time swimming with the Whale Sharks and less time searching. The pristine waters are home to over 200 species of coral and over 500 species of fish. Dolphins, Dugongs, Orcas, mantarays and Green and Loggerhead turtles are sometimes sighted.
On Monday we wake up early at the Montebellos, a group of more than 100 islands, now a gazetted Conservation Park. These flat limestone islands are located 20 km north of Barrow Island and 120 km north, north-west of Dampier. The largest is Hermite, about 1000 ha to several small islets of less than one hectare, which have been separated from the mainland for more than 8000 years. They support over 100 species of plants and at least 50 species of birds are known, with 10 species breeding there. Marine turtles nest (at least two species) and the Legless Lizard, Aprasia rostrata, is known only from Hermite Island. With also 200 species of inshore mollusks, undisturbed coral groups, and a vast array of reef fish and crustaceans, it is a wonderful area for birding, snorkeling and diving. Tonight we overnight anchored at the Montebellos.
Rowley Shoals becomes our center of attention for diving and snorkeling on Wednesday. The tranquillity and beauty of these magnificent coral atolls at Rowley Shoals, 300km (180 nautical miles) off the coast of Broome, must be seen to be believed. With a day and night of steaming (approximately 30 hours total with opportunities for marine mammals and seabirds), we will arrive early Tuesday morning. The Rowley Shoals boasts Western Australia's clearest water and diving and snorkeling equal to the best in the world. Potato Cod, sharks and other pelagic fish are abundant. The water temperature is approximately 25C; on the surface the air temperature is over 30C. The Rowleys have the reputation of being better diving and snorkeling than the Barrier Reef. Three atolls, Mermaid Reef, Clerke Reef and Imperieuse Reef, comprise the Rowley Shoals. Due to their remoteness and pristine condition, they enjoy marine wilderness status. There is a dramatic five meter tide pouring massive volumes in and out of the coral framework. The turquoise lagoons are filled with coral "bommies" (unbelievably colorful formations layered over thousands of years to the surface). Gorgonia coral are plentiful. Over 600 species of fish or two thirds of Australia’s tropical species are found in the Rowleys, including Maori Wrasse, Barracuda, Coral Trout, angelfish, morays and turtles. A pristine beach here is a wonderful setting for a sunset barbecue. Wednesday we will steam overnight to Broome.
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Day 21:
(see day 20)
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Day 22:
(see day 20)
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Day 23:
(see day 20)
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Day 24:
(see day 20)
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Day 25:
(see day 20)
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Day 26:
Thursday – Saturday, April 5 - 7. Broome in the remote North West
Arrive in Broome in the morning on the True North and meet our guide, George Swann, owner of Kimberley Birdwatching. The prime birding for Broome is now when waders and terns attain breeding plumage prior to their northerly migration to Siberia. April offers spectacular birding with thousands of migratory waders congregating in the North West. These huge mixed flocks loafing on some of the most beautiful beaches with the back drop of bright red Pindan (soil) cliffs and an aqua blue ocean really are phenomenal. Flocks contain an average of about 20 species of migratory waders. Grey Plovers and Red Knots and others in almost full color along side young and adults still in non-breeding plumage allow for great comparisons. Identification is made easy with plenty of time to observe shorebirds at high tide roosts. George will have the optimum tides worked out for the best shorebirding at the spectacular wader roosts along the coastline. The number of wader species that can be seen in the Broome area is quite astonishing with 46 species recorded, including several sought after species like Long-toed Stint and Asiatic Dowitcher. Tern species are well represented with eight and sometimes nine species regularly seen loafing with the waders. One of the four Australian bird observatories, the Broome Bird Observatory, operated for avian research, is located about 25 km from the town of Broome. North-west Australia is regarded as the most significant site in Australia for shorebirds. As many as 800,000 birds use the area annually, including numerous species of raptors: Swamp Harrier, Spotted Harrier, White-bellied Sea-Eagle, Brahminy Kite, Whistling Kite, Black Kite, Peregrine Falcon and Osprey.
George Swann has been guiding bird tours in the Kimberley for many years and has an extensive knowledge of the bush as well. Access to the Kimberley itself at this time can be difficult, as it is the end of the "wet" season, plus it is a huge area, larger than the Australian state of Victoria. Broome is located at the south western end of the Kimberley. We will be using Toyota 4 WD Landcruisers with air-conditioning. George enjoys of the region’s plants. He will guide us to the top birding sites of Broome in a wide range of habitats. In addition to the huge intertidal mudflats and the bush, explore grassy plains, Pindan woodlands, freshwater lakes and marshes, mangroves and others. Pindan is the dominant vegetation type throughout the region, a basically dense Acacia woodland interespersed with Eucalypts and Bauhinia. Common birds found in this woodland include Long-tailed Finch, Double Barred Finch, Grey-crowned Babbler, Black-faced Wood Swallow, Red-backed Wren, Black-faced Cuckoo Shrike, and White-winged Triller.
Two important coastal habitats are vine thickets with about 10 fairly common birds, including three species of cuckoos: Oriental, Brush, and Little-bronze. Dense Melaleuca thickets hold Variegated Wrens, Rufous Whistler, Mongrove Gerygone and Sacred Kingfishers. Mangroves in the Broome region are very rich with an exciting selection of specialists: White-breasted Whistler, Mangrove Golden Whistler, Red-headed Honeyeater, Dusky Gerygone, Kimberley Flycatcher (race of Lemon-breasted Flycatcher), Broad-billed Flycatcher, and Mangrove Fantail. It is very hot in the middle of the day, so we will arrive early. Also the mosquitoes in this area at certain times of day are akin to those of the northern east and mid-west USA. Temperatures from October to April vary from 20 – 35+ Celsius. We will overnight two nights at the Mangrove Hotel, a lovely air-conditioned lodge overlooking Roebuck Bay. We’ll depart on the Saturday Ansett flight at 2:10 pm, arriving in Perth at 5 pm for overnight again at Sullivans Hotel.
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Day 27:
(see day 27)
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Day 28:
(see day 27)
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Day 29:
April 8, Sunday. Fly to Ayers Rock, Uluru National Park
Fly to Ayers Rock at 6:40 am, arriving at 10:40 am. Drive to air-conditioned lodging at the Emu Walk Apartments, located beside the Visitors Centre in Yulara, the village for the national park, 20 km from Uluru National Park and 53 km from Kata Tjuta, the Olgas. Ayers Rock, Uluru, has deep cultural significance to the local Anangu and the national park is now officially owned by them. This afternoon meet our resident guide, Matt Pearce, and visit the Aboriginal Cultural Centre beside the Rock and walk at the Rock before sunset, the grand finale of the day as the Rock turns a deeper red just before 7 pm.
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Day 30:
April 9, Monday. Kata Tjuta, the Olgas, and Mt. Connor
We’ll be on the road at 5:30 am after breakfast at 5:00 am in our kitchens. Arrive at the Olgas by sunrise, about 6:00 am. The optimum time to see wildlife at the Valley of the Winds is at dawn. Lunch is on your own today. Later in the day the kangaroos and the birds will be sheltering in a cool place when the temperatures soar. The scenic photography is wonderful early in the morning and we will have time to walk the six-km loop or stay put with tri-pod and camera without walking far. The tallest rock, Mt. Olga, at 546 m, is higher than Ayers Rock at 348 m. Return to Yulara by late morning with time for lunch and a rest. By mid-afternoon depart for our search for Red Kangaroos and Euros. Euros are slightly smaller than a Red and are the permanent macropod residents of this area. Red Kangaroos are normally found in this area only after good rains. Travel the 80 km to a cattle station at Mt. Connor with permanent water, which gives us a very good chance of sighting Red Kangaroos, although we cannot promise them. Also view the ecological effects of cattle farming in an arid zone. Have our farewell dinner in the rustic outdoor restaurant at the old Mt. Connor homestead and return to Yulara about 10 pm.
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Day 31:
April 10, Tuesday. Walk at Uluru and fly to Sydney and Home
This morning if you would like an early walk, arrive at the Rock at dawn to go part way for some great birding. Or you may walk all the way at a fast pace, a total of 9 km around the Rock, with its series of strange caves and eroded gullies. Depart from our lodging to arrive at the airport in time to check bags home. The flight departs at 1:00 pm from Ayers Rock to Sydney, arriving at 4:35 pm, which connects very well with the Air New Zealand flight to LAX at 5:35 pm. Gain the time back today on the return, arriving in LAX at 12:15 pm (if flying Air New Zealand) still on Tuesday. Other flights are available as well, depending on your choice of airlines.
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Notes:
Airfare is not included in the tour price.
Also see tour packages in:
Australia and Oceania
Australia
Nature & Wildlife
Birdwatching
Scuba/Snorkeling
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