Callan Park Visit – 9 March 2023

I had visited Callan Park a few times during the lockdown (see here and here), and had noticed some interesting old engravings in some of the rock outcrops near the bay. Bob was keen to visit the park, and he had found an journal article describing the engravings. So Bob and myself meet up at Callan Park and spent an interesting few hours wandering around the large park.

We walked in from Balmain Road, and that took us past some of the old buildings that were once part of the Callan Park Lunatic Asylum. Continue reading

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Birds at Sydney Park – 8 March 2023

I joined Valerie and Sue for an enjoyable few hours wandering around Sydney Park looking for birds.

Here are some that we spotted – Continue reading

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Vaucluse to Camp Cove – 6 March 2023

A very hot day was forecast, and so Sue suggested a walk from The Grumpy Baker at Vaucluse to Watsons Bay and a stop off at Camp Cove for a swim.

Well – the walk was quite short, but suitable in the heat. And we spent an hour or two at Camp Cove – swimming and relaxing in the shade, before catching a ferry back to the city. Continue reading

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Fungi and Birds at Birdwood Gully – 5 March 2023

The previous Sunday I had visited Birdwood Gully at Springwood, and I decided on a followup trip. Again I was concentrating on fungi and birds.

First, some of the fungi I found. Continue reading

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Fungi at Bola Creek – 4 March 2023

I was pleased to be able to take part in the field study at Bola Creek in Royal National Park with the Sydney Fungal Studies Group Inc. As well as members and visitors, we were joined on this field study by some of the volunteer bush regenerators from the Friends of Royal National Park.

We found a reasonable amount of interesting fungi out. Here is a selection of what we found. Continue reading

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Sydney Olympic Park – 2 March 2023

I joined in on the National Parks Association Walk at Sydney Olympic Park, led by Brian Everingham.

While we were at the park, we observed good range of birds. Here are some. These were all seen at or near the Waterbird Refuge. Continue reading

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Sydney Park Birds – 1 March 2023

I spent a few hours at Sydney Park at St Peters, wandering around with my camera.

Here are some of the birds I saw – Continue reading

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Fungi at Bola Creek – 28 February 2023

Valerie and Sue were keen to see if any fungi was out at Bola Creek in Royal National Park. They invited me to join them.

There had been some quite good rain during the month, but it had been a while since the last good fall, and since then the weather had been quite hot, so we didn’t know what to expect. We did find some reasonable fungi, but not a huge amount was out. Continue reading

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Birds at Nurragingy Reserve – 27 February 2023

I spent a pleasant day at Nurragingy Reserve wandering around seeing what birds were present. When I go there, I usually look out for the Azure Kingfishers, and it’s been a while since I have spotted any. This visit I did at least see one (or more) of them – albeit only brief glimpses. But I did manage to get a few photos at least.

But it was a Sacred Kingfisher that I spotted first after being alerted to its presence by its call. Continue reading

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Fungi and Birds at Birdwood Gully, Springwood – 26 February 2023

A hot day was forecast and I was keen to check the fungi in the Blue Mountains, so thought a day down Birdwood Gully could be good. So I caught a train to Springwood and was soon on the track down to the gully. I found a reasonable amount of early season fungi out – and spent most of the morning photographing what I spotted. Then in the early afternoon I concentrated on some bird photography.

First some of the fungi I spotted – Continue reading

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