Cairns

Australia’s Amphibian Apocalypse

13 June 2025 / 5 Comments

Ninety years ago this month, Australia embarked on an ambitious but ultimately ill-fated experiment in biological control.

In 1935, Queensland sugar cane farmers faced a relentless enemy—the cane beetle. These voracious insects burrowed into sugarcane roots, devastating crops and threatening an industry vital to the nation’s economy. Desperate for a solution, scientists at the Bureau of Sugar Experiment Stations (BSES) looked to overseas biological control methods for inspiration.

The engineering giant that helped build Queensland

30 May 2025 / 5 Comments

Nations are not built by those who sit down and ask for doles or alms, but by the daring and the bold. They are not built by the timid, but by the dauntless and adventurous.

R. S. Maynard

Maryborough was truly an essential industrial city in Queensland’s early history. It served as a pivotal distribution centre that supported three major industries: agriculture, manufacturing, and timber.

Hostages to fortune – soldiers and civilians lost and forgotten in the fog of war

19 July 2024 / 5 Comments

Rabaul and its strategic military importance

Rabaul, a town of striking beauty nestled on the north-eastern tip of New Britain in Papua New Guinea, boasts magnificent deep-water harbour encircled by a stunning volcanic flooded caldera three kilometres wide. This natural fortification, combined with its strategic location, made Rabaul a coveted prize for colonial powers and, eventually, a significant battleground in the Pacific theatre of World War II.

The rise and fall and rise again of a valley’s Rattler

10 May 2024 / 2 Comments

As settlers moved into the rich, fertile areas of the Mary Valley in the 1860s, they wanted a railway to connect them more readily to the outside world and markets for their produce.

The government ignored their early calls, but all that changed when prospectors discovered gold at nearby Gympie in 1867.

Special ANZAC stories

25 April 2024 / 8 Comments

I have decided to write this blog to commemorate and remember the men from settlements in and around Surrey Hills who fought in wars.

In Chapter 10 of my book, “Fires, Farms and Forests”, I outlined some of the war service by men from Guildford Junction. This blog goes into more detail and includes stories about men from Parrawe and Bulgobac.

Special ANZAC stories Read More »

Killing koalas to “save” polar bears

1 December 2023 / 6 Comments

“They are farming us of our money, not farming the wind or solar.”

“Queensland will be covered in glass and steel to meet ambitious renewable energy targets”

In a previous post, I wrote about the mad scramble by federal and state governments to force a rapid transition to renewable energy despite insurmountable engineering constraints, costs blowouts by a factor of 20 from $78 billion to $1.5 trillion in 2030 and $9 trillion by 2050, and the refusal of our federal minister, Chris Bowen to face up to reality, even after a relentless stream of delays to major renewable projects hits the news each month.

Z Special Unit Part 1 – Operation Jaywick, the remarkable mission behind enemy lines

8 September 2023 / 4 Comments

Introduction

This month 80 years ago, a small, unassuming ex-Japanese fishing vessel was pivotal in an audacious and successful secret commando operation by a handful of courageous Australians against the mighty Japanese war machine during World War II. Its history and how it got into Australian hands is remarkable. So is the bravery of its crew.… Read more

Z Special Unit Part 1 – Operation Jaywick, the remarkable mission behind enemy lines Read More »

Training for bombing raids that never came

23 June 2023 / 2 Comments

In September 1939, at the start of World War II, Japan was embroiled in its invasion of China, and Australia committed its troops overseas to help Britain. By early 1941, Australia had sent three infantry divisions and substantial air and naval resources to the Mediterranean and European theatres. Thus, in December 1941, when Japan entered the war against the Allies, much of Australia’s armed forces were heavily involved in campaigns far from home.… Read more

Training for bombing raids that never came Read More »

Wooden gold

2 September 2022 / 2 Comments

Introduction

Sandalwood is a highly aromatic timber that has been harvested in Asia over centuries for many uses. The main one has been burning powder from the tree in joss sticks as incense and forms a significant part of religious ceremonies. In Australia, Aborigines had many cultural uses for sandalwood. Some species can be carved into delicate products such as inlaid boxes, ornaments and incense holders.… Read more

Wooden gold Read More »

Some more war stories – when war came to Australia

8 February 2022 / 2 Comments

During our travels to the Top End and following on from my earlier blog, ‘Some War Stories’, I have learned more about northern Australia’s involvement during WWII, particularly the bombing of Darwin in February 1942. Growing up in Sydney, I learnt about the Japanese submarine raids in the harbour. Still, I never heard anything about the broader invasion threats to Australia during the war.… Read more

Some more war stories – when war came to Australia Read More »