Our boat is now 20 years old and starting to be looking a bit old and tired (I didn’t know aluminium could rust). Before we could go, we had to do a few things including installing a new sounder, filling the holes from the old one and fixing the trailer.

This being the Christmas period, the boat ramp was absolutely packed with people, boats and pelicans.

The first job was to pump saltwater pink nippers from a nearby sandflat.

(photo below from http://www.dreamfish.com.au/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=57:how-to-catch-nippers-saltwater-yabbies&catid=34:fishing-articles&Itemid=54)

To get to the fishing location you pass by Milsons Passage. Nice place to have a holiday house but a bit inconvenient since you can only get there by boat. At any time, about half of them are for sale.

Around the corner and you are in the middle of nowhere.

Caught a fish for dinner

and then we had to find a camping spot, pitch our tents and get some firewood. Had steaks and pan fried bream for dinner.

Got out early the following morning. For the first few hours we didn’t do very well but then got into some fish. The next hour was one of those times where you catch a fish every cast.

I wish they wouldn’t allow trawlers to fish the Hawkesbury.

For dinner, we had fresh fish and baked potatoes cooked on the coals.

That evening we had a perfectly clear night. Part of the Orion constellation appears near the bottom of the photo.

This was a 1 minute exposure, taken on the beach at our campsite.

Next day was a clear, sunny day. We knew where to go and got straight into more fish. Here is Warren hooked up.

Another fish

Our fishing spot was also the runway for float planes.

By mid-morning we had enough in the keeper net and decided to call it a day.

A crowded boat ramp at Mooney Mooney.

That was the end of a wonderful  fishing trip. Only thing left to do was to clean the day’s catch, boat, outboard, rods, reels, cutlery, pots, …

Bream steamed with shallots and ginger.

Here is a video of Warren landing a fish:

A great place to see two of Sydney’s major landmarks, the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge is from Mrs Macquaries Point. This is part of the Royal Botanic Gardens.

From the same spot you can see the city skyline.

Ottawa is the capital of Canada and is on the border of Ontario and Quebec. The Ottawa River defines the border and in the photograph below, Ontario is on the left and Quebec on the right.

Their parliament was built in Victorian times in a gothic style and the buildings are beautiful. This photo is of a policeman warming himself up outside the building.

Here is another panorama with parliament in the foreground and Quebec across the river.

Canadians are generally very nice people but out on the ice hockey rink they show their true colours. In hockey, fighting is encouraged and it is sort of like kendo on ice. The other popular sport is curling which looks about as much fun as mowing the lawn. It was so boring I didn’t watch it long enough to see a fight.

The world’s longest skating rink at 8km in length is formed in Rideau canal. I’m told that students skate between Ottawa University and Carleton University to attend their classes.

While skating, they like to eat their own version of fried dough (“you tiao”) called “beaver tail” which I tried at “Beavertails”.

Eating outside in the freezing cold is never a good idea but even taking that into consideration, the beaver tail tasted about as good as it looks in the photo i.e. absolutely terrible.

Here are some ice sculptures which are part of the Winterlude, Canada’s Winter Festival.

Here is a wide-angle view of the Three Sisters, Mount Solitary and Jamieson Valley from Katoomba.

The most easily recognisable rock formation is the Three Sisters. Legend has it that three suitors were not allowed to marry three beautiful sisters as they were from a rival tribe. A war ensued and the sisters were turned to stone by a witchdoctor in order to protect them. Unfortunately, the witchdoctor was killed and could not turn them back as he originally intended. The stone monument is a reminder for future generations.

You can walk down the 900 steps of the Giant Stairwell at Echo Point and across to the Scenic World train. On the way, you pass Katoomba Falls.