This was a very pleasant walk along a nice part of Sydney Harbour. It was organised by Brian Everingham for the National Parks Association of NSW. On the walk was Brian, Chris, Mary, Maureen, Mary 2, Derek, Roy and myself.
After a trip from the Quay to Manly in the ferry, we set off along the foreshore. Continue reading
Over the weekend I made a visit to Wolli Creek and two visits to the Cooks River to look at birdlife and other aspects of Nature.
Firstly, Wolli Creek on Saturday morning – Continue reading
This was a very pleasant day spent in Dharawal National Park in the South West of Sydney. Digi Dave was keen to get out and we decided to visit the Minerva and Jingga Pools. These were places that I had never been to before and sounded interesting. I had also talked about a visit to these pools with David Hufton, and by coincidence we met him at the carpark at the entrance to Dharawal National Park at Wedderburn.
Minerva Pool
This carpark is at the end of Victoria Road at Wedderburn and there has recently been some upgrades there. Near the carpark is a nice picnic area and toilet block. Signs with maps indicated the way to the pools. Continue reading
The Supermoon had produced another King Tide, so I ventured agin down to the Cooks River for some photos. A month earlier, there had been a King High Tide (and that was about 4 cm higher) and then I had visited the Cooks River downstream from the Wardell Road crossing. So this time I ventured upstream.
The Boat Harbour was certainly very full – Continue reading
During the night, a rather rare astronomical event was going to take place – a “Supermoon” that also coincided with a total lunar eclipse (“Blood Moon”). And as it was also the second full moon of the month, it was also a “Blue Moon”.
Sydney was in a prime position to see the total eclipse, but on the night, it was very cloudy. The forecast was for the clouds to gradually clear, so I went outside several times during the evening. No luck. Continue reading
Hobnail Canyon lies in Range Creek, a small tributary of the South Branch of Bowens Creek. It was first descended by members of the Hobnail Club – probably in the late 1960’s. The Hobnails were one of several bushwalking clubs affiliated with the YMCA in Sydney. Others were the YMCA Ramblers and SPAN. By the mid 1970’s the Hobnails had dissolved. I think many of the members joined other groups like the YMCA Ramblers.
Hobnail Canyon
I had never been down Hobnail Canyon before, but had explored the lower part from Bowens Creek on several trips. I was perhaps discouraged by trip reports indicating that it was not too special as a canyon. Continue reading
I spent a very pleasant few hours down on the Cooks River observing and photographing the birds.
I first went to check out the Tawny Frogmouths at the Dog Area. I found them easily, but could only see one chick and both parents. Perhaps the other chick was hiding under one of the parents? I could not see it nearby. Continue reading
This was the third canyon I visited with Albert over the long weekend. The Sunday was a cooler day and it started out with some light rain. But overall it turned out to be a good day for canyoning photography.
We packed up from our campsite at Mt Wilson and drove out to the carpark on the Waratah Ridge to start our trip. There were quite a few cars there – no doubt due to Wollemi National Park being closed due to numerous bushfires. So quite a few canyons were visiting Blue Mountains National Park instead. Continue reading
On the second day of the long weekend, Albert and myself took our cameras down a section of Wollangambe Canyon at Mt Wilson. We visited the “Greg Section”, which allowed us to also photograph the lower part of Whungee Wheengee Canyon.
It was sunnier than the previous day, but if a section of the canyon was lit too harshly with direct sunlight, we could wait a while, usually not too long, for clouds to come. Continue reading
Clatterteeth Canyon, which lies in Du Faurs Creek near Mt Wilson was the first of three canyons I did with Albert over the long weekend. We did these canyons as photographic trips – carrying cameras and tripods with us and taking plenty of stops for photos.
The weather over the long weekend was quite hot on the first two days, and canyons provided a perfect refuge from the heat. It was also fairly cloudy, so we could enjoy reasonably soft light in the canyons for our photography. Continue reading
