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Goulburn River National Park

On the weekend we...

drove past interesting formations....

...and passed historic homes....




Set up camp.. (please note the tea towel sunning)


To digispot birds (Jacky Winter in my sights)...

....whilst Dave went fishing.




That night we sat around a roaring fire, boiling the billy and telling tall stories...

Awoke the next day to -5c morning and a thick frost...

And walked along the Goulburn river in glorious sunshine.

The Goulburn River National Park is on my top 10 list. Excellent campsites, views and river make it a haven for wildlife. Cleverly laid out camping area means you are not in view of the next campers. Very cold at night and first thing in the morning, we were fortunate to have a roaring fire at all times.



White-bellied Sea Eagle ( Photo courtesy of www.birdphotos.com.au)

On this trip we saw:-Pee wee. Australian Magpie, Eastern Rosella, Crimson Rosella, King Parrot, Jacky Winter, Sulphur Crested Cockatoo, Galah, Nankeen Kestrel, Wedge tailed Eagle, Sea Eagle, Azure Kingfisher, Golden Whistler, Pied Butcher Bird, Australian Raven, Little Raven, Red Browed Finch, Common Starling,Striated Pardalote, White eared Honey eater, Noisey Miner, Bell Miner, Yellow Thornbill, White-throated Warbler, Variegated Wren, Grey Fantail, Willy Wagtail, Black-faced Cuckoo-shrike.

There were more birds in the canopy of the trees but were difficult to confirm as my binoculars kept freezing over!

Restless

The Mangrove Creek

On Sunday morning, as promised I took Dave and his friend Fishing on the beautiful Hawkesbury river. The boys set up whilst I tended to morning tea.


Daves mate with the first catch of the day!

It was not too long before Daves mate hooked a small brim. Too small to keep it was nevertheless a good sign of things to come

Brush Turkey!

Out of the bush came an Australian Brush Turkey. An interesting bird about the size of a large chicken, I think they would make good eating.

Boiling the billy

As the boys fished I boiled the billy, made tea and relaxed as the water quietly rolled by. There were plenty of bites, and a large Mangrove Jack was hooked. Sadly too strong for the line it, got away!

When we got home I took the boys along the fire trail in the landcruiser. Whilst not difficult, the track has become very overgrown and with a couple of steep drop offs it is quite entertaining. At the end there is an old fire place I made 10 years ago.

Preparing the fire for the BBQ

I have a fantastic BBQ plate and it cooks better than the De Longhi BBQ I have at home. It was not too long before we had a roaring fire and cooked our lunch consisting of bacon, lamb chops and chicken sausages.


My famous BBQ plate
In the cold, damp conditions they went down like a treat. A couple of beers ( for me) and a few hours later we headed back. David felt the urge to jog the few Kms back and thats what he did.

View from the bbq plate

A top Sunday afternoon had by all!