To make Hay with the sun shining
Our trip through New South Wales
September 2007
On day two of our holiday in New South Wales we travelled from Balranald across the unbelievably flat Hay Plains. The road here is quite straight for long distances and very flat in all directions. The sun was shining brightly but the wind was bitterly cold.
Hay Plains, western New South Wales
At one point my wife asked me to stop so that she could photograph some of the plants and wildflowers on the side of the road. I took the opportunity to do a little birding. At first glance this area may seem to be birdless, but on closer inspection is is alive with many interesting birds. Twice we saw Emus, one of them with about a half dozen half grown chicks in tow. We also saw many raptors – birds of prey like eagles, hawks and kites.
Hay Plains, New South Wales
This place may seem rather desolate and a lonely place miles from anywhere. In reality it is a very busy highway. We later stopped for a half hour at a roadside parking bay complete with public toilets. The provision of such stops along our major highways has improved long interstate travels over recent years. While we were stopped over fifty cars, trucks and motorbikes passed us. This is one of two major routes from Adelaide to Sydney and is shorter that the other route through Broken Hill.
The meandering Murrumbidgee
Murrumbidgee River, Balranald, NSW
On our trip through New South Wales last week we stayed one night in a cabin in the Balranald Caravan Park. The town of Balranald (population about 1200) is situated on the banks of the meandering Murrumbidgee River, one of the major rivers that flow into the Murray River.
The caravan park is at the south eastern edge of town and the bank of the river forms one boundary of the park. The photo above shows a part of the river next to the park. The photo below was taken in the middle of the park. It shows the lift section of the historic old bridge that once spanned the river here. One section of the bridge had to be lifted to allow the old river boats to pass under it. A new higher bridge has recently been built.
Balranald Caravan Park, NSW
Travelling from Lameroo to Balranald
Balranald Caravan Park, NSW
On the first day of our 2007 holiday in New South Wales and Victoria we travelled from home in Murray Bridge, South Australia, through to Lameroo where we had a picnic lunch. After lunch we travelled on into Victoria. We drove through the small towns of Murrayville, Underbool, Ouyen and Manangatang, where we stopped briefly to refuel. Several times we stopped on the side of the road for my wife to take photos of native plants flowering. I took the opportunity during these short breaks to take a short walk and to observe the birds along the way.
At Tooleybuc we crossed a very narrow bridge over the Murray River. This bridge allowed only one vehicle at a time to cross. Fortunately the town is rather small and the traffic is never heavy, so it would be rare to have to wait more than half a minute for the bridge to clear. Crossing the river meant we were now in the state of New South Wales. That meant we had been in three states of Australia in about three hours.
We pressed on towards our destination for the night. Originally I had planned to reach Hay by sunset, but our late start in the morning meant we would be about a hundred kilometres short of there. We settled for a cabin in the caravan park of the small river town of Balranald. This park is right next to a busy interstate highway. The heavy trucks roaring past all night were a little disturbing, far noisier than what we are used to at home. Despite that we managed a reasonable night’s sleep.
One disturbing sight just before reaching Balranald was a dead kangaroo on one side of the road and a dead Wedge-tailed Eagle on the other. This is the largest of our birds of prey and a magnificent bird to see soaring on high. This unfortunate bird must have been feeding on the carcass of the kangaroo and hadn’t flown away in time to avoid being hit.
On the road again
No Comments »9th September, 2007; Category: General
My wife and I are on the road again. That’s one of the reasons I haven’t posted anything over the last few days – we’ve been away from an internet connection. Over the last week we have travelled from home in Murray Bridge all the way to Sydney in New South Wales. We took five days, though one can do it comfortably in two days if you don’t stop frequently like we do. We also took a rather meandering route to Sydney. There were a number of places we especially wanted to visit during our holiday.
Lake Roberts, Lameroo, South Australia
We left home last Monday about an hour later than we’d hoped to; those last minute things take up so much time. Never mind, we were on our way by mid-morning. By lunch time we had made it to the mallee farming town of Lameroo. Over recent years we’ve stopped quite a few times at the park there for meals or a cuppa. An artificial lake next to the golf course is a quiet spot off the main highway with lawn, seating, a covered area with picnic tables and some interesting bird life, which always attracts me.
A pair of Masked Lapwings had a little one to look after while a Great Cormorant sat resting on the bank of the lake. A mixed gang of ducks politely stood a metre or two away as we ate our lunch. They didn’t get any.
Over the coming weeks I will share some of our sightings, experiences and adventures during our twenty three day holiday in country New South Wales, in Sydney, in Canberra, in Melbourne and country Victoria.
Happy Birthday to my Birding Blog
No Comments »3rd September, 2007; Category: General
Regular readers of this blog will be aware that I write for three blogs. In addition to this one I have a blog about writing and blogging called Trevor’s Writing.
I also have a blog about birds and birdwatching called Trevor’s Birding. Today is the second birthday of that blog.
I invite you to head on over there, have a good look around and leave a birthday greeting.
Red Capped Robin