Hattah-Kulkyne National Park birds
Blue-faced Honeyeater
Our holiday in Victoria
September 2007
One of the main reasons for visiting the Hattah-Kulkyne National Park last year was to do a few hours of birding in one of my favourite places. With large tracts of mallee scrub, the national park is an excellent place to see a large number of honeyeaters, especially when the trees are in flower.
Along the Murray River and around the various lakes the large stands of River Red Gums also attract a good range of honeyeaters. While we were having lunch on the bank of Lake Hattah I was pleased to get some good photos of the Blue-faced Honeyeater.
Blue-faced Honeyeater
Mallee scrub, Hattah-Kulkyne National Park
Mallee scrub, Hattah-Kulkyne National Park
Our holiday in Victoria
September 2007
There are two main features of the Hattah-Kulkyne National Park in north west Victoria. The lakes ecosystem complete with magnificent River Red Gum eucalyptus trees is the part that attracts most visitors to the park. This is only one of the attractions of this national park.
By far the greater part of the park is mallee scrub, an environment unique to Australia. I grew up in the Murray Mallee district of South Australia, so it is like home to me. This environment has a unique range of plants, insects and other fauna. When the mallee is in flower, the scrub can come alive with thousands of honeyeaters and other birds.
The mallee tree is of the eucalypt family of trees. There are many species of mallee, most typically have multiple trunks all growing from a stump, or lignotuber.
Mallee scrub, Hattah-Kulkyne National Park
Hattah-Kulkyne National Park, Victoria
Lake Hattah, NW Victoria
Our holiday in Victoria
September 2007
After leaving Swan Hill we travelled on towards Mildura in far north-west Victoria. We briefly visited one of our favourite places, Hattah-Kulkyne National Park. We have spent many very enjoyable camping holidays in this park. The park consists of a series of shallow lakes filled during high water levels in the nearby Murray River.
Recent visits to the park have been disappointing due to the low water levels in the lakes. During the drought of the last few years there has been little or no water in the lakes system in the park. When there is water present the bird life is prolific, including many species of waterbirds. My family has also spent many wonderful days exploring the lakes in our canoe. (Power boats are not permitted here.)
Lake Hattah, NW Victoria
The photo above was taken in September 2007 with an abnormally low level of water in the lake. Normally the water would be several metres deeper and where I took this photo I would be standing in waist deep water.
Lunch down by the beach
Wattamoola, Royal National Park, Sydney
Our holiday in New South Wales
September 2007
After our walk in the Royal National Park just south of Sydney, we drove on through the park for about half an hour. We were looking for a good spot to stop for lunch. On the map I had it showed a picnic ground at the beach at a locality called Wattamoola. We had never been there so we headed there to find a lovely spot on the headland overlooking the river estuary and the beach.
While we were having a very pleasant lunch my memory was jogged. I seemed to remember coming here after all, but a very long time ago. I seem to remember our children playing in the sand at this point. They are now adults. I must have been sometime in the mid-1970s. The memory cells are a little rusty. Somewhere I might even have an old photo or two.
Great place for a picnic. Or a swim. Or just to while away the hours on the beach.
We decided that the next time we come to Sydney we need to spend more time in this area, not just drive through it over about three hours.
Wattamoola, Royal National Park, Sydney
Birding in the Royal National Park, Sydney
Royal National Park, south of Sydney
Our holiday in New South Wales
September 2007
After morning tea we went for a walk along Lady Carrington Drive in the Royal National Park south of Sydney. I deliberately chose this road because on our last visit in 2007 we saw a Lyrebird walking along the road. It seemed quite at ease walking a few metres away from us. I guess it is so used to walkers and cyclists using this track that it feels quite at home in their presence. I was disappointed that we didn’t see a Lyrebird this time around. I did get to see a Rock Warbler. Not as good as a Lyrebird but still a good sighting all the same.