24 September. We decide that we need to push further north to try to avoid the high density of people here and give us a better chance to find a bee-rich region. So, today is a driving day. Along the way, we spot an Emu keeping its distance from the road. A few other, less cautious animals are now feeding the many raptors that feast on the roadkill: kangaroos, wallabys, equidnas, snakes, birds… Roads impose a high toll on local wildlife. The landscape is very nice, sometimes flat expanses with pastures (cows seem to be revered in some towns that erect endless statues of bulls and cows), others forests of tall Eucalyptus, and still other times hills with steep sides and thick forest cover. As we continue travelling north, some white cockatoos appear near Rockhampton, and a kokaburra watches pensively from a power line.
We have crossed the Tropic of Capricorn and are now officially in the Australian tropics.
In the afternoon, we reach the town of Yeppoon, and look for a place in the outskirts of another very touristic town. We stay at a busy beach caravan park. The beach is endlessly long, with dark yellow sand. We find a few flowers in the sand dunes, but is perhaps too late for bees. In the evening we eat some delicious rice and veggies that Daniel prepares and make plans for the next day. We hope to stay local tomorrow and spend the day walking in the search for bees.
