Discovering the Landing Place of Endeavour

The day was going to be nice and warm even though it was still technically winter. I know, I whinge a lot about the cold but it is only because I feel cold a lot faster these day. The autoimmune disease seems to have flipped the thermostat switch in my body. I was used to the cold and actually enjoyed the cold weather. After living for a couple of decades in a cold country I was used to looking for a fan when temperatures hit 25C. The flip of my thermostat means 20C and out comes my fleece and warm socks and even a woolly hat if it’s lower than 17C! However, I can happily sit around without breaking a sweat till 30C and think about a fan only when it gets higher than that. Oh but I digress!!

Since it was a nice sunny and warm day and I was feeling reasonably good we decided to go out for a drive to some south beach. We had not been to Cronulla beach since we came here but had been there when we visited in 2009. I remembered that it is a much bigger bay and beach than the famous Bondi. Being a working day we thought it would be better as it would be less crowded. The drive was good and we got to the turning to Cronulla. It was a smaller road and as we went past a roundabout I thought we had missed turning right. My husband thought not. 

Anyway we carried on this Captain Cook Drive and the road became narrower. The sides had grasses and shrubs with the smell of brine in the air. We seems to be going right to the sea and not sure exactly where. I had a quick look at the road map and identified we would be reaching the end of the road at some point on Botany Bay at a place called Kurnell. The town has 2 streets and it curves out to run along the bay. The houses are really nice and the place looks cheerful in the sunshine. There were a couple of shops and a café / restaurant. We parked in front of the café with a little grassy strip and then the tiny strip of sand and the waves of the bay lapping there. There is a nice promenade to walk along the length of the street with benches to have picnics.

“Kurnell is considered to be ‘the birthplace of modern Australia’, as it is the place where Captain James Cook landed on 29 April 1770, making first contact with the original inhabitants of the area, the Gweagal Aborigines whilst navigating his way up the East Coast of Australia on Endeavour” (according to Wikipedia). From New Zealand, Cook had orders to find this ‘rich southern continent of Terra Australis’. The captain aimed to reach the coast of Tasmania but the gales took the ship to the south east coast of Australia hitting Victoria. They continued northwards along the coast and came up to a shallow but extensive inlet and the ship was moored for the first landing of the crew in this continent. At first the bay was called ‘Sting-Ray Harbour’ but later called ‘Botanist Bay’ as the botanists Joseph Banks, Daniel Solander and Herman Spöring found many new plant specimens. This was later shortened to ‘Botany Bay’. 

The end of the road leads into the Kamay Botany Bay National Park. The ‘Burrawang walk’ has a board to welcome the visitors all with a kookaburra on sitting on the sign. The path goes along the water’s edge, most of the time with a very tiny strip of beach now and then. 

There is a stone bollard like marker that signifies the place where the ship had been moored. There is also a memorial obelisk on the land. This place is called the Sutherland Point after a ship’s crew who is buried there. He was the first British person to die (due to TB) in Australia. 

There are also commemorations for botanists Daniel Solander and Joseph Banks. There is a small area where the path is across a narrow outlet of water going into the bay. On one side there is a curved seating area dedicated to Banks. 

Along the path on either side there is vegetation and actual information plaques about the local flora and fauna. The day we went there was a tremendous noise made by the frogs but could we even see one? No. There are ferns and grasses and many really old trees. 

Also along the edge there is a small wooden pier and with memorial plaques about the events of Captain Cook’s landing and their interaction with the aborigines. You can stand on the pier and look at the clear water gently lapping on the rocks or when it turns windy there are a lot of small choppy waves.

There was an oil refinery here that closed down in 2014. The day we were there we saw a big tanker and the platforms still being used. This is now going to be used as a terminal for importing petroleum. Across the bay and beyond the cranes is the Sydney skyline, the high rise blocks around the Circular Quay. Just round the corner from the bay is the Sydney airport and so during the day time there is a continual traffic of planes landing and taking off. The only thing that jars the usual twittering of birds and croaking of the frogs is the sound of these airplanes, particularly when the direction of the wind it inland.  

The path takes you to the Cape Solander (named after botanist Daniel Solander) which is the best place for watching whale migration in Sydney. There is the Solander Monument with plaques to commemorate the botanist. There is a lovely walk that takes you around the sand dunes and one sees a wide variety of plants which would have fascinated those botanists. All in all a very pleasant visit rounded off by a nice cup of hot chocolate and piece of cake at the café. Then we went off to find the Cronulla beach which was our original destination.

Walk in the Parramatta Park

Parramatta is the second settlement in Australia after Sydney in 1788. It is about 14 miles west of central Sydney. The British Colony arrived in the First Fleet at Sydney Cove. They only had enough food for a short time and the soil around Sydney Cove was too poor to grow the amount of food that 1,000 convicts, soldiers and administrators would need to survive. So Governor Arthur Phillip reconnoitred several places before choosing Parramatta as the most likely place for a successful large farm. Parramatta was the furthest navigable point inland on the Parramatta River and also the point at which the river became freshwater and therefore useful for farming.

In November 1788, Governor Phillip with a detachment of marines and a surveyor, made his way upriver to a location that he called The Crescent, a defensible hill curved round a river bend, now in Parramatta Park. As a settlement developed, Governor Phillip gave it the name "Rose Hill" after George Rose, Secretary for the British Treasury. In 1791 he changed the name to Parramatta, approximating the term used by the local Aboriginal people. 

Parramatta Park is a large park adjacent to Parramatta Stadium and a World Heritage Site. It was formerly the Governor's Domain, land set aside for the Governor to supply his farming needs. Originally the grounds were much larger than the today’s Parramatta Park. I usually enter the park by the Queens Road Gatehouse that is just off Park Street and walk clockwise. There is a path that goes round the park (about 2 miles) and also a couple of paths across as seen on the map. There are many historical monuments dotted along the park. There are nice big trees on one side of the path which has lanes for cars and cyclists and pedestrians. While on the inner side there is open grass where on weekend you can see children having football lessons. Further up there is children’s playing area with swings and climbing frames. Most mornings especially in cooler weather, children are brought by mothers and carers, to have a run about and play. 

Just past these is the Domain Creek coming off the Parramatta River. It usually has a few ducks and coots wandering about. The outer side there is the Coleman Oval where fairs are held. Last year there was a medieval fair. There was enacting of some fights; there were some birds of prey and booths selling wood crafts. Sadly it was a wet day and the field was a muddy mire. 

Walking further along there are the Wisteria gardens, only open for a few weeks in spring when the Wisteria and the many cherry trees are in full bloom. This is right at the edge of the river and part of the garden is over the bridge and across the river too. The path moves along the river and the trees on both banks of the river are full of fruit bats. These are a large species of bats and this is a fairly substantial colony. There are also a couple of trees which are home to the Ibis. The river gushes past and you can cross over it via the Button’s Bridge, which carries on as Ross Street Causeway that takes you to the Parramatta Stadium. 

The bridge is a nice spot to see the bat colony. When it is not too warm like on a late winter morning, you can see a few bats taking to air and moving to a new spot. I have never seen bats flying about in  day light so it is always a fascinating experience each time I see them. Once or twice something had disturbed them and large numbers were taking to the air and making that squeaking kind of sound. You can also see the ibises perched on a couple of trees just at the bend of the river. There are some ducks and coots swimming near the banks and also some cormorants. The flowing water is a pleasant sound in the peaceful scene. 

On the left is the dairy cottage and on the right the band rotunda. Dairy Cottage was built from 1798 to 1805, originally a single-room cottage and is one of the earliest surviving cottages in Australia. It was built for ex-convict George Salter. Between 1814 and 1816 it was converted to a dairy.  There is also a café and event centre here. The road curves along the river bank and land rises up. You can also climb down from the car park and walk along the riverbank. There are soaring trees, grasses, ferns and numerous lizards along this small path. 

This joins up with the road when you reach the Crescent.  Across the river next to the Parramatta Stadium and practically the opposite bank of the river is the Old King’s Oval. This used to be race course originally, I seem to have heard. There is a bench just under the trees where one can sit and enjoy the peace and landscape of the Oval. There a particularly some trees that I love looking at.

Moving along on the left is a natural amphitheatre located on one of the bends of the river, named by Governor Philip as "the Crescent", which is used to stage concerts. He built a small house for himself on the hill of The Crescent. In 1799 this was replaced by a larger residence which, substantially improved by Governor Lachlan Macquarie from 1815 to 1818, has survived to the present day, and was used as a retreat by Governors until the 1850s. Governor Brisbane made it his principal home for a short period in the 1820s. The house, Old Government House, is currently a historic site and museum within Parramatta Park and is Australia's oldest surviving public building.

The road along the Crescent is lined with Oak trees. It is strange to have this European tree, which in winter are probably the only trees without leaves, leaving the sunlight to warm walkers on the road. In summer the leaves from good canopies that provide the much needed shade for humans and the fauna. There is a second bridge over the river called the Noller Bridge. This is another place to stand and watch the river. This is also the area for the government farms where wheat, barley, oats and some maize was grown. Moving further along the walk on the left is a pavilion where shows can take place. Once I saw the Elvis Appreciation Society holding a music show there. There is a Tudor Gatehouse, on O'Connell Street, was erected by the Park Trust in 1885 and designed by Gordon McKinnon. It was restored in 1980.

Past the George Street gate house on the left is the bowling green and also Rumsey Rose Garden. The coming of spring starts all the bushes budding. There are so many varieties of roses from all over the world. There are both new and old species to be seen, with so many colours and perfumes. Suring winter the bowling green can hold entertainment events, like a movie being shown on a screen on the side of a large van, a couple of stalls set up to sell tea and sandwiches. People can picnic while watching movies and warming in the winter sun.

Further up the road on to the right of the road is the Boer War Memorial. The pillars and plinth of the memorial are supposed to be from the original post office building. The memorial has 3 cannons, one on either side and a smaller one on top to the plinth. Then one walk right up to the spot where the remains of Governor Brisbane's private astronomical observatory, constructed in 1822, are visible. Astronomers, who worked at the observatory, discovering thousands of new stars and deep sky objects, include James Dunlop and Carl Rümker.

Next is the Bath House designed for Governor Brisbane, in 1822 Colonial Architect S L Harris and built the following year. Water was pumped to the Bath House through lead pipes from the Parramatta River. Then it was pumped out and downhill to a duck pond on the slope below. The Bath House was sophisticated having a heated plunge pool and a domed roof surmounted by a cupola lantern. By 1886 the Bath House had become dilapidated and the Park Trustees converted it into a pavilion which is used as a picnic shelter. On the left side of the road the park boundary ends fairly close as there is a railway line running next to it.

The right side had open grass which used to be cattle paddocks. This was also the place where the first airplane landed in 1911, on 4 November. William Ewart “Billy” Hart, made one of the earliest and longest flights in New South Wales, when he flew a Bristol Box-kite aircraft from Penrith to land at Parramatta Park. In this first cross country flight in New South Wales, Hart astonished the community by travelling a distance of 18 miles (29km) in under 20 minutes, and his aircraft reached an altitude of 3000 feet. This flight was acclaimed as a remarkable performance and Parramatta celebrated his achievement, which was credited with taking Parramatta “a leap into the future”.

Continuing further you complete a full circle back to the Western Domain and the gate house we entered near. There are a variety of eucalyptus such as Tallowoods, Swampy Mahogany, New England Peppermints, Lemon scented Gums, Red Forest Gums, Argyle Apple and Broad Leaf Ironbarks; Jacarandas, Pin Oaks, Stone Pines, Oleanders, Weeping Willows at the end of the river, Kurrajongs, Agathis, Camphor Laurels, Araucarias and various Palms are all growing around the park. Over 120 bird species have been recorded in the park such as fruit bats, parakeets, lorikeets, blackbirds, ravens, pigeons of different species, ducks, cormorants, geese, coots, and so many more that I can barely register before they disappear.

This is the best way of taking exercise, as it provides the physical work out and at the same time relaxes and de-stresses you with the calm environment and gently sounds of the birds, breeze and water flowing.