Chillagoe..the red part of Australia

Not sure if you all realize this, but I did not realize the difference until I was reading more about the area I went to yesterday; Chillagoe.  (If you already knew this... well..okay then, I guess you can leave... )

Unequivocally, Australia brings two words to mind.. 'The Outback' and 'The Bush'.  But, what is the difference?  Is there a difference?

'The Outback' is refereed to as most remote desert areas around the middle of Australia.  When I went to Chillagoe, it was (rather will be) the closest I will get to 'The Outback'.  'The Bush' is considered to be closer to the coastline and is high in native wildlife.  At Chillagoe, I guess you could have considered it to be either though.  It was relatively remote but not as remote as the middle areas of Australia, and yes it was RED and HOT.
 
Chillagoe is a deserted mining town with a current population of about 200.  In the early 20th century it was a massive mining town, (with a population of about 10,000) but after not making any profits from mining in the area, the company went bankrupt and it closed down and most of those people left. Now this place is just littered with abandoned caves and mine shafts.  This place was really cool, about 4 hours northwest of Yungaburra, it brings to mind of the old west movies that play on TV from time to time.  Small, almost desert like town with TONS of dust and red red rock.  One of the great things about this area again is the natural geology.  So much of the  rock formations are incredibly old...all sorts of different types of rocks. I had the chance to take a guided tour guide with a Queensland Park Ranger, it was really sweet.  Why did I bother to bring up 'The Outback"?  While I am here in Australia I will not be seeing it much and I guess this is the closest that I was going to get to it, living in the rainforest you are quiet far away from 'The Outback'. 

Sadly no kangaroos, but plenty of wallabies, even a little baby wallaby. 

So yesterday, Tuesday, after a day of lectures and exploring caves I and the rest of my group went back to the town center and had dinner at the only pub in Chillagoe.  Nice place, had a barramundi fish grill.  After dinner we all headed back to the previously set up camp site to fall alseep under the stars.  The great thing about Australia is the wonderful assortment of stars you cannot see from the skies in the northern hemisphere.  I never realized how incredibly different the stars looked here, especially when I was so far west.

So far its been a really beautiful trip.  I apologize for not posting anything while I was in Cairns, I got caught up in finishing a paper for one of my classes on Environmental policy.  I will try and be more disciplined in writing up posts.  Photos though are kinda hard and I will try and upload some soon, Ive been taking so many...I dont even know where to start. 

Its late here.. and I still have to hike up to my cabin. 
Good night.