Pictures from a train

I'm writing from Surry Hills in Sydney, and David is napping, pretty much ironed out after the train trip we did today, from Taree to Central.  We are here in Sydney for David to have the final part of his treatment.  On Monday, he goes into St George Hospital and becomes radioactive for a while, courtesy of radioactive iodine tablets designed to knock out the last of any troublesome thyroid cells that may be lurking in his system. Then it's back on the thyroxine, the skies clear, bluebirds begin to sing and we live happily ever after!

The trip from Taree to Sydney is just so scenic that I had to take lots of photos.  It's not so easy to catch good images from a fast train with a slow camera, but you will get the idea. Here's the journey, in chronological order.

It is luridly green at present, Spring of an unusually wet year. This is near Wingham.

 There were cows with tiny calves at foot  all around the Gloucester area.

 The train shadows the Manning River , heading West after Wingham, then it follows the Gloucester River as it approaches Gloucester. After Gloucester, it turns South and heads for Dungog, and on towards Newcastle.

Not sure if this yellow field was a crop, or just fireweed gone crazy.  But it was very pretty.  Turns out fireweed is not on the noxious list in this area.

 I think this might be the Hunter River, not far from Maitland.

 (Above) Crossing the Hawkesbury River.

 We were on the tail of the train and I managed to capture the rest of it snaking around a bend, coming through the tight turns after Newcastle, with the F3 to the left.

At Hornsby I leapt onto the platform to snap this extremely fast handover of some of Marjory's scripts from David to Peter, who has sprinted up the platform to receive them.  The station master was blowing his whistle in my ear and saying "Back on the train please!" as I took this.

On Wednesday I will head back to Taree on my own to go to work. David will return a few days later when they decide he is no longer glowing green enough to cause concern to anyone else's thyroid. It's his 60th birthday on the day he goes into hospital - we may have some delayed festivities when he is strong again!