Yondell Ridge Track, The Lourdes Grotto and a Visit to Wianamatta Nature Reserve – 9 December 2021

I was heading up the Blue Mountains with Bob for a bushwalk. The weather forecast was not good and in discussing trip we had decide to visit Yondell Ridge at Springwood and look for an old historic track.

I had heard reports of this track that links Yondell Ridge with the Magdala Creek track a few years back, and on Sassafras Gully walks had kept a lookout for it while walking up Magdala Creek. I didn’t think it was Riley to be at the junction of Magdala Creek and Glenbrook Creek as the cliffs there are quite high and don’t break. I had looked in several areas upstream along Magdala Creek looking for the reported old stone steps, but I had seen nothing likely. I knew about a track will upstream that leaves Magdala Creek and heads up onto Yondell Ridge – but that didn’t seem like the right one. Continue reading

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Sydney Park – 8 December 2021

Rain had been threatening, but the afternoon seemed OK so I made short trip to Sydney Park at St Peters. My main focus of this visit was to photograph the Little Pied Cormorant chicks being fed. I had seen this on my previous trip, but had been in a poor position for photography – only having an obscured view.

My visit turned out be brief as it started raining while I was there. But I did achieve my goal. Continue reading

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Greenway Bird Survey – 8 December 2021

I joined the Greenway Birdos for the monthly bird survey on the Greenway between Taverners Hill and Hawthorne Light Rail Stations. The morning was quite dark and gloomy with rain threatening. This made photography difficult and the birds less likely to appear.

Here are some of the birds we did see – Continue reading

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Local Tawny Frogmouths – 7 December 2021

Michael and Fiona from the Greenway Birdos had spotted a Tawny Frogmouth family perched in a park in Dulwich Hill, close to Canterbury Road. I went in the late afternoon to see if I could spot them.

I did eventually. One problem was that I was looking too high. These birds move from day to day for their roosting. When Michael and Fiona had some them they had seen an adult and two chicks perched in a Casuarina. So that was where I looked. But this evening, they were perched in a Jacaranda, and a lot lower darn than I expected. Again there was one adult and two chicks. Continue reading

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Forest Path Walk – 7 December 2021

I spent a nice morning on a walk led by Gary Schoer for the National Parks Association of NSW around the Forest Path in Royal National Park. On the walk were people wth good knowledge of the history and natural history of the area,

Variegated Fairy-wren

While waiting for people to arrive at the carpark at the south end of Lady Carrington Drive, we wondered who Lady Carrington was. Quick googling revealed she was the wife of a Governor of NSW – Lord Carrington. Continue reading

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Birds at Sydney Park – 6 December 2021

Another short afternoon visit to Sydney Park. It was a wet gloomy day, and I hoped to get a gap between showers.

During my visit, I spent a fair bit of time looking to see if I could spot any of the Tawny Frogmouths that I had see earlier nesting. I failed to find any. But looking up, I did spot a Channel-billed Cuckoo trying to look inconspicuous. Continue reading

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Back to Long Reef – 5 December 2021

After a very good trip two days earlier, I though I would again visit Long Reef. So back on the B-line Bus to Dee Why and a change to the 199 Bus to the golf course, and then the short walk out to the peninsula. I arrived about 11 am.

Like some of my previous visits the weather was not the best. It constantly looked like it was about to rain. And as often happens the day started off fairly quiet with not many birds present. The tide was too high to venture out on the headland and it was also quite windy – a strong breeze coming from the south-east. Continue reading

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Sydney Olympic Park – 4 December 2021

I spent a nice afternoon out at Sydney Olympic Park. I first visited the Waterbird Refuge in Bicentennial Park and then went to Wentworth Common and the Brickpit Ring and then went back the same way.

Australian Shelducks

I saw a lot of nice birds. Here are some – Continue reading

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Long Reef – 3 December 2021

I had spent the previous day at Malabar Headland, and that had been very good for bird photography, so I thought I would follow it up on another of Sydney’s headlands – Long Reef. It too turned out to be a very good day. I saw a Peregrine falcon, two Kestrels and three Ospreys. The Ospreys provided the best photo opportunities.

When I arrived, things were quiet. I walked down onto the headland rock platform and could see an Osprey  through binoculars. It was perched in a tree on the north side. I walked over towards it. Continue reading

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Malabar Headland – 2 December 2021

My previous visit to Malabar Headland had been quite disappointing in terms of seeing the resident Peregrine Falcons. I have been watching this breeding pair now for four seasons and the number of chicks they have had that have fledged each season has been 1, 3, 2 and now 1 this year. I have found that multiple chicks have been a lot better for photography because the chicks seem to fly together not far from the nest area. With only one chick, a parent seems to take the chick to more remote places to tech it how to hunt, so visits can be a bit hit or miss. This visit turned out to be relatively good.

On the walk in, I stopped to photograph a Rufous WhistlerContinue reading

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