Peaks of Australia List with Photos

In the following, I have assembled a list of all major and some minor peaks in Australia, ordered by state. I give a short description, show a photo or two and list the official elevation. Besides, I provide the coordinates and altitudes that I measured using a GPS device when climbing the mountains.

James takes a photo behind the summit cairn on Mt. Jerusalem.
James takes a photo behind the summit cairn on Mt. Jerusalem.
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Photos of Australian Animals (part 3)

This is an update of two of my older posts about Australian animals, mainly focused on animals that live close to the water. The first two parts are here: part 1 and part 2. I have added a few more photos of animals that I stumbled upon on bushwalks, or close to home, in parks in and around Melbourne.

A Gibbsland water dragon sitting next to a river.
A Gibbsland water dragon sitting next to a river.
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Why carry a personal locator beacon while outdoors?

Personal locator beacons (PLBs) are satellite devices that transmit a distress signal to search and rescue organisations once they are activated. Because they transmit the signal via satellites, they can be used in remote locations, where no cell phone access is available. Here I explain how they operate and why they are important to have in remote wilderness areas.

The back of a PLB that I hired some time ago. The text describes its activation in detail.
The back of a PLB that I hired some time ago. The text describes its activation in detail.
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Climbing Frenchmans Cap in Tasmania

In early 2015, I organised a bushwalking trip to Frenchmans Cap, which is the most prominent peak in the Franklin-Gordon Wild Rivers national park in Tasmania. The white quartzite of its summit dome, which looks a bit like a French beret from a distance gave the peak its name and is visible from far away.

Our group on the summit of Frenchmans Cap. You can see the smoke from bushfires in the distance.
Our group on the summit of Frenchmans Cap. You can see the smoke from bushfires in the distance.
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Hiking in Canada’s National Parks

In 2014, I spent a few weeks in Alberta, Canada, specifically in and around Banff national park. We scrambled and hiked up various peaks near Banff town, such as Tunnel Mountain, Mt. Rundle and a few others in the close vicinity. Later I visited Mt. Assiniboine on a longer trip.

View of the Assiniboine Valley. From left to right: Lake Magog, Mt. Assiniboine, Sunburst Lake, Sunburst Peak and Cerulean Lake.
View of the Assiniboine Valley. From left to right: Lake Magog, Mt. Assiniboine, Sunburst Lake, Sunburst Peak and Cerulean Lake.
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First Experience with Night and Astrophotography

Over the last months, I have experimented a bit with night and astrophotography. By astrophotography I mean landscape photography of the night sky with different objects in the foreground, see the photos below.

The Molonglo radio telescope in front of the Milky Way and the South Celestial pole.
The Molonglo radio telescope in front of the Milky Way and the South Celestial pole.
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Photos of Australian Animals (part 2)

Since my last post about Australian animals at the end of 2013, a lot has happened, and I have seen many more Australian animals either in the wild or animal sanctuaries. While most of them are quite friendly, some can potentially be very dangerous.

Here is an updated list of animals in Australia that I have tried to match up with photos that I have taken.

Two kangaroos fighting.
Two kangaroos fighting.
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Blog Moved to Pelican Blogging Software

Date Tags tech

In the last few days, I moved the blog over from the Perl-based blogging software blosxom, for which I had written various plugins to add missing functionality, to the Python-based static site generator pelican.

The decision was mainly motivated by the fact that I do most of my …

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Scrambling up Mount Rundle in Banff

I scrambled up Mt. Rundle in Banff national park in Canada.

Trip Overview

  • Name: Mount Rundle
  • Height: 2949 m
  • Prominence: 1304 m
  • Location: Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada
  • Date: 2014-06-21
  • Conditions: Early summer. Snow starting about 200 m below the summit.
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