World Toilet Day was November 19, and I forgot.

Bummer!

Forgetting the biggest event on the loo lover’s calendar is a dunny detective’s disaster! A toilet tragic’s tragedy!! A convenience chaser’s catastrophe!!!

BUT …

… then I think about the 4.2 billion people without safely managed sanitation facilities and the 673 million people worldwide who practice open defecation. The 2 billion people whose drinking water is contaminated with faeces, the 432,000 diarrhoeal deaths per year, and the children in conflict zones 20 times more likely to die from sanitation-related illness than violence.

That makes my dunny disaster look like a s**t-storm in a teacup.

World Toilet Day

Check out the World Toilet Day official fact sheet HERE for some even more scary facts that’ll make you realise how lucky we are in Australia.

So while you’re admiring 10 All-Australian amenities, with the 10 amazing All-Australian adventure hot spots that go with them, spare a thought for those for whom doing their ‘business’ is SO not a pleasure. Then keep reading for ideas about how YOU can help!

1 Timber Creek, Northern Territory

Afloat on a small (and relatively unstable) structure surrounded by crocodiles on Australia’s wildest river is enough to make you want to – well, YOU know! Luckily, this croc-proof (we hope!) purpose-built pontoon has ALL the amenities to survive a Victoria River Crocodile Cruise – drinks and snacks while enjoying a Northern Territory sunset AND crazy-cool crocodile cruise conveniences if nature’s call gets a little bit too much.

That’s a relief in more ways than one!  Read more about cruising with crocodiles HERE!

2 Bruny Island, Tasmania

Bruny Island isn’t just the last stop off the Tassie coast before Antarctica! Dress up in some (REALLY unfashionable) heavy weather gear for a wet and wild ride over heaving seas, through keyhole rocks, past rugged islands adorned with seals and right under the second highest sea cliffs in the southern hemisphere before reaching the Great Southern Ocean!

En route to the cruise departure point, don’t miss this loo on the Neck (are you wondering why it’s called that?) far below Truganini’s Lookout!  Discover Beauty and the Beasts on Bruny Island Cruises HERE to see why it’s one of my favourite Australian adventure hot spots!

3 Mt Kosciuszko, New South Wales

Climbing Australia’s highest mountain is embarrassingly easy – you heard it here first!  It’s only 2228 metres (7310 feet) above sea-level, making it lower than the height above which lots of people live! BUT … ‘mountaineers’ like me who climb it can bag their first (and in my case only) ‘Seven Summits’ peak.

Although I don’t know from personal experience, I bet it’s the ONLY Seven Summits peak with a view over the highest Public Toilet in the land!!  But I’ll let the REAL mountaineers prove me wrong!  Go HERE for more about how I climbed Mount Kosciuszko!

4 Head of Bight, South Australia

Head of Bight – highest point of the distinctive bite-shaped coastal curve along the southern Australian coastline – isn’t easy to get to. But you’ll drive right past it on the 4100+ km (2500+ mile) road trip across the Nullarbor Plain between Sydney and Perth! At the 2300 km mark, just over half-way from Sydney, take a pit stop to watch whales cavorting with their calves under the longest line of sea cliffs in the world!

And visit the Head of Bight loo that overlooks it all!  Check out my story about seeing the Whales at Head of Bight HERE!

5 Point Quobba, Western Australia

Killer king waves, shipwreck stories, blowholes and extreme water sports make Point Quobba one of the wildest stretches of rugged, rocky coastline in Oz (above and top) – and one of the most picturesque!

If action adventure with a massive dose of danger isn’t quite your thing, just find a vantage point (away from the edge!) and you’ll probably see a whale.  When you’re not being distracted by the thrill-seekers getting a drenching at the blowholes, that is!

Alternatively, just take in all the action from the vantage point of this classic Aussie dunny overlooking the famous blow hole.  I promise that you won’t miss anything while you’re doing your business – because the door doesn’t close!

The famous Quobba Blowhole at Quobba Point is just one of the many superb Australian Coastal and Beach Holiday Destinations you can read about HERE!

6 Mt Hotham, Victoria

Whether it’s summer or winter, the view over this part of the Australian Alps is white.  Visible in summer, the white-bleached tree trunks killed by bushfires outline the many-layered mountain ranges surrounding Mount Hotham. In winter, they’re covered in snow.

It’s likely to be significantly cooler than the plains below at any time of year, so when you get there, admire the white view from the ski lift transit lounge loo AND appreciate the civilised conveniences plumber who installed just one tap – HOT!

Read all about the Mount Hotham loo (and surrounds!) HERE!

7 Richmond, Queensland

If you’re a keen prehistoric fossil-fossicker, the chances of striking it lucky on the Outback Queensland Dinosaur trail are better than average.  Especially at Richmond, where the soft Toolebuc formation on what was once an inland sea under 30-40 metres of water has given up world famous fossil relics like the Richmond Pliosaur, Minmi and Kronosaurus.

Even the dunny gets in on the act – but while you can make your ‘deposit’ at the future coprolite drop zone (aka the loo), chances are good you won’t be around when it’s unearthed as a fossil!

Discover more about Queensland’s famous Richmond fossil fields HERE!

8 Warraweena, South Australia

For a taste of what’s on offer in one of the top Australian adventure hot spots, the ancient wonderland us South Aussies call the Flinders Ranges, head out to the privately owned Warraweena Conservation Park.  In the less well known northern Flinders Ranges you’ll find rugged 4WD tracks, mountain climbing, wildlife, stunning scenery, historic sites and eco-tourism all in one handy location.

You’ll also find the only combination scenic public toilet/visitor information centre I’ve ever seen at the historic Sliding Rock Mine site!

But that’s not all!  Go HERE for a LOT more things to do throughout the amazing Flinders Ranges.

9 Lord Howe Island, New South Wales

This tiny sub-tropical paradise 600 km (370 miles) off the east coast of Australia has so many world exclusives it’s hard to know where to start. First up, there’s Balls Pyramid – highest volcanic rock stack in the world. Then there’s only golf course on earth on World Heritage turf and world’s southernmost tropical reef. Even the wildlife gets in on the act with the endemic Lord Howe Island Woodhen and Phasmid, a large stick-insect.

And then there’s this awesome view – clearly visible from what has to be one of the most scenic loos downunder! Australian adventure hot spots don’t get much better than this!  A Lord Howe Island Holiday can be awesome – read about mine HERE!

10 Tunnel Creek, Western Australia

Although the Gibb River Road has claimed countless tyres, axles, windscreens and suspensions over its 660 km (410 miles) length full of tyre-shredding rocks, perilous creek crossings, red dust and bone-jarring corrugations.  But it’s still a popular Aussie road trip, most likely because of the stunning Kimberley natural attractions scattered along its length!  Take a short detour to Tunnel Creek and go underground for a different perspective of the Kimberley Region.

And while you’re there, detour into the even more welcome attraction you’ll find under the rocky cliffs.  There’s more about the amazing Kimberley region HERE!

We’re very lucky down here to have so many Australian adventure hot spots with amazing attractions and awesome amenities in some of our most remote and adventure-filled locations.

So while it’s easier for us (read: me!) to forget World Toilet Day even though it’s been an official UN day since 2013, we can contribute to the impact it’s having around the world on any day!

How to get involved:

World Toilet Day is about working together to eliminate the life-threatening hazards caused by poor sanitation in places where the ‘adventures’ many people face in doing their business are a lot less welcome.

If you’re not sure how you can help, here’s a few ideas:

• Who Gives a Crap:  Buy your toilet paper (and/or tissues and kitchen paper) from this innovative company, and 50% of profits are donated to building toilets for those in need (the other 50% mostly goes to growing the company).  Get in quick and you could order the wicked Gift Edition Loo Paper to make Xmas REALLY fun!
• Toilet Twinning:  Your £60 donation (about $AUD114 on 20/11/19) funds a community loo project, and you’ll get a pic and the coordinates of your toilet ‘twin’ to hang in your own amenities! Can’t afford that?  Check out the website for other fundraising products and ideas.
• Sanitation First:  Send a Shitty Gift (their words, not mine) for any occasion – check out the graphic range of gift cards – and you’ll be helping this organisation tackle poverty one toilet at a time (again, their words, not mine)!!
• TEAR Australia:  Sanitation is just one of several initiatives this organisation has to reduce poverty.  Check out their collection of Really Useful Gifts!
• World Toilet Day official website: more information and ideas, don’t forget to mark the date on your calendar for next year.

Got more ideas?  Put them in the comments below!

The post TOP 10 All-Australian Adventure Hot Spots for World Toilet Day! appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.

Australian Country Towns don’t come much smaller than some of these! But each town on my A-Z list within my Aussie ABC punches above its weight with attractions you probably won’t find anywhere else. My list of HOT Aussie Towns from N-Z here in Part 2 have attractions so COOL you’ll want to see them all.

And if you missed my selection of Australian Country Towns from A – M, then take a look at Part 1 of T is for Towns HERE!

Nimbin, New South Wales

This vibrant village in the heart of Northern New South Wales’ Rainbow Region is a alternative lifestyle magnet – think communes, cannabis and colourful creativity – amidst a spectacular natural rainforest.

Which is still there thanks to a sustained – and successful – protest against logging that reached a head at nearby Terania Creek, now known as Protestors Falls, in 1979.

Orroroo, South Australia

Near the Goyder Line – surveyed to determine the point at which agriculture in South OZ isn’t viable – Orroroo is a stepping off point for the Flinders Ranges.

But detour to nearby Magnetic Hill, described by Wikipedia as a gravity hill optical illusion! It’s not unique to Australia – but the bizarre sensation of rolling uphill on a downhill slope makes it a tourist magnet, haha!

Portland, Victoria

Non-birdos might not find the prospect of seeing the only mainland Australian Gannet colony at Point Danger near Portland – oldest European settlement in Victoria – so thrilling.

Luckily, the other attractions – like the Petrified Forest and Blowholes at Cape Bridgewater; and Enchanted Forest, Yellow Rock and Lighthouse at Cape Nelson – have more universal appeal. And how could anyone resits the Bonney Upwelling Festival?

Quobba, Western Australia

More of a locality than a town, Quobba makes up for its lack of infrastructure with a stunning coastal landscape complete with campground, beach, lighthouse, whales, blowholes (both the rocky AND whale types), wildflowers, monster waves – and one of the best Aussie dunnies anywhere EVER!

Yes, it’s in MY BOOK: Aussie Loos with Views!

Richmond, Tasmania

Nearly every Aussie state has a town, suburb or locality called Richmond. The Tasmanian Richmond boasts Australia’s oldest bridge built in 1823. Between Hobart and World Heritage site Port Arthur, picturesque and historic Richmond makes a perfect base from which to explore.  Especially when you consider its fine collection of eateries!

Besides, everyone’s already got the shot of Australia’s MOST photographed bridge!

Swan Reach, South Australia

One of the first South OZ river ports, Swan Reach marks where Goyder’s Line crosses the Murray River.  It’s 30 km below the first of the 13 completed locks along the biggest river system in OZ.

Explorer Edward John Eyre made his home here, and nearby Big Bend (can you guess why it’s called that?) has the highest cliffs on the Murray!

Tully, Queensland

Tully’s Golden Gumboot shows the height of its annual rainfall. But it doesn’t show the rivalry between Tully, Babinda and Innisfail.  Each year they vied for the ‘honour’ of being Australia’s wettest town and scoring the ‘Golden Gumboot’ award!

With average annual falls of 4000 mm (160 inches) AND highest recorded annual rainfall in a populated area (7900 mm in 1950) sugar town Tully claims the title!

For now …

Useless Loop, Western Australia

Unless you get a job mining the purest salt in the world, you won’t see the Useless Loop township because no tourists are allowed in this closed community, westernmost town in Australia.  But it’s still my favourite Australian Country Towns name!

You CAN access the Shark Bay World Heritage area surrounding the town from closest town Denham.  It’s also the official westernmost town with Australia’s westernmost caravan park!

Victoria River Roadhouse, Northern Territory

A fully self-contained roadhouse with fuel, food, accomodation is what passes for a town in parts of the Northern Territory. With a scenic campground setting below the Stokes Range right next to Australia’s WILDEST river, the roadhouse is worth a stopover.

The Victoria River Roadhouse is a chance to experience wild Outback Australia at its best if you like your scenery full of staggering views and your landscapes with a rugged edge.

Wycheproof, Victoria

It’s not such a long way to the top of Mt Wycheproof, a “metamorphic boss”.  At 43 metres above the plain (237 m above sea level) it is also the world’s (self-proclaimed) smallest mountain!

Visible from Broadway below in the township, the mini-mount is a tourist drawcard.  Especially when coupled with endemic flower Correa Glabra, unique mountain quartz Wycheproofite AND a cool scenic loo.  YES, it’s in my BOOK!

eXmouth, Western Australia

I can’t tell you why there aren’t many OZ towns beginning with X.  But I blame an unimaginative language that fails to use the letter X to its full potential!

That doesn’t mean Exmouth on the tip of North West Cape isn’t worth seeing.  It’s between the ocean and the outback with Ningaloo Reef on one side (guess which!) and Cape Range National Park on the other!

Yowah, Queensland

This remote opal mining town shares its name with the Yowah Nut, a geode-like nut shaped rock with an opal core found nowhere else on earth.

They’ve got matrix opal too.

Come for the opal festival and find yourself a Yowah Nut either on the opal field or at one of the many opal outlets.  Or just experience the awesome Aussie outback at its best!

FitZroy Crossing, Western Australia

Visit during the dry season and you’d never guess that the Fitzroy River has the highest volume of water in Australia. That’s when it’s in flood with an estimated 30,000 cubic metres per second flowing along a 15 km wide flood plain.

When it’s not being flooded out, visit Fitzroy Crossing for the awesome Geikie Gorge, the closest mainland Australia has by way of icebergs!

Well, that’s just a tiny town teaser! With thousands of small Australian Country Towns there are a LOT more to discover out there.

And if you want to discover them for yourself, take a look at some cheap flights to get you started!

Want MORE?

• T for Towns Part 1 A-M
• Australian Towns, Wikipedia
• MORE Photos of Australian Towns on Flickr
• MORE Aussie ABC 

The post Aussie ABC: T is for Towns Part 2 appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.

The superb double entendre of 70’s conservation poster slogan ‘Save the Poor Bustard’ gave my childish mind what I can now identify as a salacious thrill. It could actually be repeated without the speaker being accused of swearing!!

All the same, it shouldn’t have come as a complete surprise when, after testing the slogan out once or twice, I was strongly ‘discouraged’ from saying it again …

Perhaps that’s why Google insists that ‘bustard’ is a misspelling – which may or may not say something about the linguistic abilities of those who google ‘bastard’.  Whatever.  But whether the reason I couldn’t find the poster is because a) Google is too puritanical or b) it just doesn’t exist in cyberspace or c) I just imagined the whole thing is academic because the result is the same!

The stately and measured pace of bizarre Australian Bustard (Ardeotis australis) as it moves across the grassy plains that its preferred habitat is deceptively slow!

And such a large bird with its oddly proportioned shape and clearly defined colour blocks, like an inept child’s drawing of an emu crossed with an alien should be easy to spot, right?

But despite it’s 1.2 metre height, and the open plains on which it travels, when threatened the bustard freezes into a cryptic posture pose or simply continues its slow and deliberate pace and disappears into the landscape.

As this Australian Bustard, spotted near Western Australia’s Quobba Blowholes did, leaving an unexpectedly almost-too-small photographic window for this amateur photographer!
Maybe there’s something to the alien connection after all …

Want MORE?

• More about Quobba
• MORE RedzAustralia Birding Adventures!

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