Sweet Wayfaring

I'm fascinated by the daily changing canvas on the sand ... so different from the slow changes I see in the bush.

The early morning is so gorgeous by the water. Come on let's head down to the beach.

This time we were camped by the lagoon. Looking across its still water out to the sea.

Dawn isn't usually my time of day but there is something mesmerising about the tranquility of early morning at the beach.

We have been to the beach a number of times recently, each time to our favourite camping spot in Kiama. These trips were not so much about wayfaring, more about rest and reflection in the warm sun. I do hope you will enjoy the rest and tranquility with me.

East's Beach, Kiama Today is ANZAC day - our national day of rememberance for those who have fought in wars. For me this dawn shot on a cliff by the sea evokes memories of the stories told about Gallipoli and the first ANZACs, many young men who did not see the dawn of another day.

Portland Cement Works At the nearby town of Portland there is another major heritage industrial site, this time a cement works. Built in 1890 it closed down in 1991. As it is a large site situated right in the centre of the town, I imagine the shutdown must have had a big impact on this small (population 2000) community. I'm going to leave it to your imagination as the entire site is fenced off making it rather difficult to get good photos even though there are many buildings including workshops, offices, homes and the factory itself. That's it for industry for now. But if you are interested in another significant industrial ruin, over at Blue Mountains Journal we've just finished visiting the Shale Oil refinery ruin at Newnes -- well worth the trip.

Shed by railway, Wallerawang I can't stay away from old stuff for long, at Wallerwang I saw this old railway shed up from the railway station. Also, as I've built up quite a backlog of photos so I'm going back to daily posting for a while.

Wallerawang Power, Station The abundant coal fuels power stations which also need copious amounts of water for cooling. The man-made Lake Wallace not only provides water for the power station but also a nice amenity for the local community.

Coal Mining, Lithgow Around Lithgow today there is plenty of coal mining action tucked among rural scenery.

Railway bridge, Lithgow Out in the "today" world we can still see elegant evidence of the great era of steam. I'm going to show you some more "today" industry next.

State Mine Heritage Park & Railway, Lithgow A steam train that isn't belching steam doesn't have quite the same alure but it was fun to photograph nonetheless.

State Mine Heritage Park & Railway, Lithgow The railway plays an important part of the heritage of industry in Lithgow. Today we still hear long coal trains rumbling on the track over the Blue Mountains towards the sea. There are more heritage carriages down at the local Railway Station (shown below). Yes it was a very grey day. Railway station, Lithgow

Bath House, State Mine Heritage Park, Lithgow I could show you squillions of other images from the mining museum but will stop at these taken in the bath house where miners changed from the street clothes to mining gear and vice versa. It previously housed Lithgow's first power station. Out the window on the bottom right you can see a railway car. The Heritage Park is also home to railway heritage items, were looking at them next.

Miner's Lamps, State Mine Heritage Park and Tourist Information Office, Lithgow Mining is still big business in this area so I guess the choice of an old style miner's lamp seems appropriate for the local 'big thing'.

In workshop, State Mine Heritage Park, Lithgow I am sure many a worker has warmed up in this cosy corner of the workshop, it can get chilly in Lithgow. We were there on a wet summer's day.

Carpenter's Workshop, State Mine Heritage Park, Lithgow