Christmas Bells

Christmas Bells
Christmas Bells - Blandfordia nobilis

Saturday, June 10, 2006

Roll on Global Warming. Hello "Harbour Views".

Every so often, the Kangaroo Valley is filled with a white-topped fog, but the hills above it are clearly visible, thus defining the view of the Valley. Such a fog occurred this morning.

Although the far hills are partially obscured by general cloud, you can clearly make out the area of the Kangaroo Valley.


The fog also clarifies something which had me puzzled for ages. To the left-hand end of the fog is a large hill, which has always been clearly visible from my place. I worked out at one stage that it is the tip of one of the ridges which define the Kangaroo Valley.


But today you can make out that there is a whisp of fog between what is clearly two different hills (they normally look like one hill). One of these ridges is on the far (south-east) side of the main Kangaroo River. The other is the next ridge over, probably where the creek runs down from Gerringong Falls. So, in other words, despite appearances, from this distance, these two hills are separated by a steep and narrow valley running between them. The various creeks and the Kangaroo River have all eroded the valley which is known as Kangaroo Valley.



<>On a clear day, such as in the photo at left, I try to explain to people that we are looking out over the top of Kangaroo Valley. They usually just nod politely. Trouble is, because the valley has been carved out from a relatively flat sandstone plateau. When looking across it, from that means there is relatively little to see.



The far side of the valley is in fact the southern edge of the Shoalhaven River valley. In fact, on a very clear day, one can make out the tips of the Buddawang Ranges, and a few rounded basalt caps in the Sassafras area. That is about 60 kilometres away.


When I am feeling in a certain mood (as today) I like to think, wouldn't it be great if Global Warming really kicked in. I would have harbour views - over "Kangaroo Harbour". Imagine, instead of the white fluffy stuff down in that valley, a deep blue harbour, looking brilliant in the sun. Roll on Harbour Views.


Kangaroo Harbour would look far nicer than Sydney Harbour, with these spectacular cliffs surrounding it, as you can see in the photo of Jim on a bushwalk (left). He is standing on a cliff top, overlooking just one part of the valley. It has many "arms", just as Sydney Harbour does today.


Incidentally, the hill in the background of the bushwalk photo is the same one as the first hill you see in the more detailed "foggy valley" photo (2nd top). You can see what I mean about a series of steep, narrow valleys.


Now, about those Harbour Views: I am not being totally selfish, I'll have you know. The people of McGuinness Drive and Mt Murray (just above Macquarie Pass) would be the biggest winners, as they would have cliff-top locations, directly overlooking the Ocean. We could re-name Robertson, as Robertson-super-Mare.

So, folks, I want you all to fire up your gas heaters, your wood fires and even your electric heaters (which are powered by burning coal in the Hunter Valley, and other places, after all). It doesn't matter where the power stations are located - they all add to the total carbon pollution of the atmosphere. And that'll all help me get those harbour views.

Roll on Global Warming. Hello Harbour Views.

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