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| Hindmarsh Island to Little Dip |
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January 26 - February 3 2020 |
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I sometimes look back and wonder at what caught our
attention. Something so simple as a bird nibbling at seeds can keep us
occupied for an hour or two. Carefully balanced on one foot. Holding seeds
with the other. Nibbling with beak. |
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Waitpinga Beach. A short stop on our journey towards the
Coorong. A paradise for surfers. And fishers. |
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And presumably botanists. Definitely coastal vegetation. |
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Down the hill to Victor Harbour. And shops .... and a
bakery. |
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We waited a while for "le tour" to arrive. Heaps of
vehicles and motorbike police to keep the road clear.
The expectation builds ......
Then a bunch of cyclists.
All over in less than 15 seconds.
The cyclists looked like they were working hard. |
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A quick look at the Goolwa Barrage. The Murray is a big,
long, river. Drains a very large part of eastern Aus. Heavily modified with
frequent weirs, lots of irrigation, sometimes not enough water to reach the
Coorong. The mouth is dredged to keep it open. |
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A couple of nights with friends on Hindmarsh Island. We
were put to work. |
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That which was horizontal is now vertical. We then cut
down a couple of trees, cut them up, and moved the leftovers round the
corner. |
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The Mouth of the Murray. After 2,500km, and lots of
interruptions, some of it finally makes it to the sea. A bit of a sense of
awe. |
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The railway through Milang no longer operates. Lots of
interesting leftovers. |
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And so to Point Sturt. A small conservation park.
Overlooking Lake Alexandrina, the lake just before the mouth of the river.
This collection of birds was in more or less the same place each day. Facing
different directions. Coming and going. |
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The track stopped about here. Farmland. |
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I took several short videos of Pelican coordinated fishing.
They gathered in a group, looked like they were surrounding fish, and all
ducked heads into water at the same time, balanced by slightly open wings.
Choreographed, synchronised, swimming. Before we ever thought of it for
the Olympics. |
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South Australia has a few ferries provided at no charge.
This one across the Murray near Wellington. We took a second ferry at
Narung across part of Lake Alexandrina to reach the coast and the north end
of the Coorong. |
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On the way to Narung. |
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To camp at Mark Point, a bit north of Narung. |
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Which was a bit wet and miserable. But beautiful. |
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With an 1880 mill to explore and reverse engineer. |
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There's small scale commercial fishing in the Coorong.
Complete with pelicans to help. |
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We followed the edge of the Coorong, along the Kartoo Road. |
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To camp at Long Point. |
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With a walk along the edge to the point proper. |
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We never cease to be amazed at large flocks of birds.
Perhaps harks back to the earliest tv nature documentaries when the
technology only allowed pics of flocks from far away. None of the big
lenses available for pics now.
We think a mix of ducks and geese. |
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I need the bird book .... |
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Thence to Little Dip Conservation Park, a little south of
Kingston. We have left the Coorong having described a bit of a circle
through Adelaide and Fleurieu Peninsula. |
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A walk to the beach. |
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Time to leave South Australia, and Peter and Margaret.
Sad, but there'll be another day.
Our trip home was uneventful. Past the Grampians, sadly the national park
with ancient stone fish traps was closed after the fires.
A night in Freshwater Lake, Dunkeld (well, at the edge really). Kara Kara
National Park. Tarcutta, again. Wellington, and home.
First task to cut the higher than knee high grass. |
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| Brisbane to Normanton |
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April 21 - 30 2021 |
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