There’s some foot tapping going on here…..
The seed bowl is taking a while to arrive today..
We are back in one of our favourite places, Mystery Bay, visiting friends.
Canberrans are not very far from the pretty south coast of New South Wales, and it is a wonderful place to visit for short holidays and long weekends (and is usually warmer than Canberra in winter, and cooler in summer).
Regular readers of this blog may recognise the sharp-eyed Kookaburra and lovely Spotted Eucalyptus (Gum) trees from a previous visit to this garden…
The King Parrot, always a gentle and welcome visitor to a garden, looks as if he has been colour co-ordinated to fit with this birdbath..
On the first warm afternoon, we walked to Mystery Bay beach and watched the soft winter sky turn pink. On the way home we noticed Wattle shrubs beginning to blossom… a sure sign that spring is on the way.
Wattles are Australia’s National Flower, and, as I remember it, Wattle day used to be the 1st August, but now is 1st September….
During the weekend, we went with our friends to a music concert in the neighbouring town of Narooma. On the way home we saw this lovely flower, but I have no idea what it is…I’m sure someone will be able to help me out here.
The weather was taking a turn for the worst, but we still ventured a walk through the forest, to look at the Burrawang Cycads growing amongst the ghostly looking Spotted Gum trees.
The forest is part of the National Park, and provides a home for many birds and also smaller Australian animals like swamp wallabies.
We picked a wild and windy last day to go for a walk along 1080 beach…
No matter how windy the weather, the beach is still a good place for solving world problems..
However, the icy wind that day drove us back to the car….whose idea was this anyway?
Just as we left the car park we spotted this Eastern Yellow Robin, and he seemed to come down to greet us…
As we were driving back through the bush, we spotted this Swamp Wallaby munching on some Eucalyptus leaves….
Luckily he wasn’t going anywhere until he had finished his lunch..
I wish I had been able to take a photo of his long tail…quite remarkable..
Sadly we had to leave all this wonderful wildlife, and the good company of our friends to return to Canberra…
As we drove over Brown Mountain, we noticed it had been snowing…not unusual in this part of the world, but a first for us.. (and I think this would be called a dusting of snow in the Northern Hemisphere!)
This is a picnic spot on the edge of a little town called Nimmitabel. it had been snowing since Saturday, and the children nearby were having fun with toboggans…
We chose to have our coffee in the warm new coffee shop at Nimmitabel on this day…
When we arrived home in Canberra, our regular King Parrots ( a pair) were having a much needed drink from the birdbath….
and, spring must be on its way because they had brought a baby King Parrot along to feed on the Japanese Maple..(I think this is a female as the male has an orange head)
The baby seems to be saying…….it is very cold for a first outing…
Such a cute baby! I felt very pleased that the King Parrots had trusted their youngster to our garden for her first glimpses of the world….
Thanks for visiting Canberra’s Green Spaces, and I hope you are enjoying your place in the world, whatever season it may be..
For anyone who missed my first post on Mystery Bay, and is interested in the area, here is the link….
https://www.canberrasgreenspaces.com/category/new-south-wales-south-coast/
Copyright Geraldine Mackey : All Rights Reserved.
What a wonderful place to visit, I so enjoyed your photographs of colourful birds, scenery and gum trees. I always enjoy your posts.
Thanks Susan … The wonderful part about blogging is.. I can be transported to Venice or London by yours, and you can be transported to various parts of Australia by mine! Makes life interesting.
Definitely a dusting of snow. But that beach is glorious whatever the weather. Hold on to those signs of Spring. And what a cute baby King Parrot!
Yes… I’m thinking of spring with all the Wattles blooming. The baby parrot is like a fluffy toy.
It’s always satisfying to get out in the open in spite of challenging weather. We too are feeling the first flush of spring up here in the tropics- though ours is exceedingly fleeting. A while back I had 2 baby sunbirds testing their wings in my yard – it was such a thrill to see their complete joy for living & they were very vocal about it.
I imagine Spring is a lovely time in Far North Queensland … and probably not too hot yet. Yes It is wonderful to see young birds learning to fly in your own garden .. And definitely a sign of trust from the parents.
Hello Gerrie, I love reading your blogs with your beautiful photos of Australian plants, animals and places. You always succeed in transporting me far away from life’s day-to-day concerns, leaving me with a big smile. Today I just want to comment on the ferns you mentioned. They are actually cycads. Have a look at this lovely picture http://www.travelling-australia.info/CollFarsouthcoast/APics3B.html. It’s the Burrawang cycad, Macrozamia communis obviously called communis because it’s common, ie widespread. Like Canberra’s little Wahlenbergia communis that grows all along our roadsides. Macrozamia communis will grow in Canberra with some care but it’s very slow growing. I look forward to your next episode. Regards, Shirley Pipitone
Thanks Shirley I’ll edit that into the post … And I’m very glad you enjoy reading the posts.
Little bit of snow here too.
And such a different attitude, celebrating wattles, in their own home. There are mimosa festivals on the French Riviera too.
I’m surprised you are getting snow… Even a little bit!
What wonderful beaches, birds, and critters you have! I enjoyed your pictures, though that walk on the beach looked very brisk!
Yes indeed … That walk along the beach was windy and cold!
Beautiful beach, and you know how I love seeing your gorgeous feathered friends. To see a parrot that beautiful here I’d have to go to a pet store and look at it in a cage. I like yours better. 🙂
It was only when I started getting comments from other countries about the birds that I really appreciated seeing them in the wild.
Oh, beautiful birds!!!! What a delight it must be to see them. Ditto for the wallabee. And yes, a dusting of snow. 😉
Yes, we don’t do snow like you do!
Good to get mt exotic bird fix here! Oh….sighs, the rosella, kookaburra, king parrots complete with baby….how adorable is that? There are so many types of robins around the world, I am getting quite the education. Loved the wallaby too, gorgeous creatures. Lucky you eh?
What a beautiful beach, a wonderful, ethereal forest too. Mind kind of break for sure.xxx
Thanks Dina .. We don’t see many robins either .. Lovely to be near the beach..
Such a lovely post! I enjoyed it all, seeing the wonderful birds, flowers, scenery and the wallaby too.
I’m so glad you enjoyed the post Clare, blogging has given me a greater awareness of my own place in the world.
How exciting for you to be looking forward to spring! In the meantime up north of the equator we’re slowly grinding towards the colder, barer months.
Yes it is lovely when spring arrives. I hope you are enjoying Autumn.