October 3rd 2013 - Crocs and crash site revisited
We got back on the rocking horse today to drive the same road on which we crashed 6 days ago. We didn't spot the crash site on the way out but did later as we returned. Fo got a bit weepy but, as any of you who know her can attest, there's nothing new in that. She's otherwise fine and soon shook off the heebie jeebies.
![]() |
Salties can lunge half their body length out of the water. All this effort for a rotting chicken carcass and a boatload of tourists. |
Our trip today was to Hartley's Crocodile Adventure. The school holidays are still in full swing here
so the place was busy. This did not, however, spoil our day; rather it helped us to get into the right frame of mind for some truly juvenile and cavalier capers with Queensland's apex predator.
so the place was busy. This did not, however, spoil our day; rather it helped us to get into the right frame of mind for some truly juvenile and cavalier capers with Queensland's apex predator.
Contrary to popular belief estuarine crocodiles, or salties as they are called affectionately, only manage to eat 1.8 people a year or, as our devil-may-care guide Duncan said, "one Australian and one Tasmanian". It seems that all Queenslanders have nothing but scorn for anybody from another state. POMS he held in lower regard and once we were exposed, were I not able to throw recent Ashes results at him, I suspect the ragging we got would have been much worse. The latest 3 - 0 drubbing really did take the wind out of his sails.
![]() |
Cuddling a python at Hartleys. I'll have some of whatever she's on. |
Predictably, the first thing we did on arrival was have a cup of coffee. As we sipped our long blacks a 3 metre Croc surfaced in front of us and swan lazily towards the restaurant deck (see opposite). We weren't in any danger, there were protective barriers everywhere, but it did feel surreal. Maybe Costa Coffee could improve its service delivery by releasing Bengal tigers into cafes unexpectedly. From there on, being in close proximity to these truly amazing creatures became commonplace. And that, I suspect, is a key part of the purpose of the centre, to educate the public about the real level of threat from these incredible animals as opposed to that portrayed by media scaremongering. Its owners are keen to create a positive attitude to crocs and hopefully avoid a repetition of the wholesale slaughter that took place in the 60s and 70s, when over 500,000 animals were killed. Its other purpose is to make money and it was very good at that too.
![]() |
Koalas can, apparently, drain the intelligence from your brain if you stare into their eyes for too long. They really ARE that cute. |
![]() |
Sound advice for a night out in Newcastle. I suspect that these performing cockatoos are much safer. |
During the course of the day we saw crocs being fed, from land and from a boat. They can strike very quickly and their jaws snap together really loudly. We also saw crocs attacking guides, crocs rolling, crocs snoozing, croc nookie and crocs being farmed, as well as being turned into bags, boots and burgers. We got some great video footage of much of this and, as soon as I can work out how to make it available online, I will let you know. Hartley's uses every bit of the croc unashamedly and, when you realise that the crocs would have no compunction about doing the same to us, you come away thinking quite positively about the place. So much so that we would happily return to catch the things we missed, feeding cassowaries, cuddling koalas and learning more about native bird life.
We drove back via a seafood market to pick up some squid and scallops for our pasta supper. Accompanied by a well-chilled bottle of Aussie white wine, this saw us to bed knackered but happy.
No comments:
Post a Comment