Where to next?

On Friday night, and continuing through Saturday, a cyclone was pushing its way down the west coast.  The forecast was for anywhere of up to 30mm of rain.  Some would say it would be a dumb time to head out for a camp, but Lisa had caught the camping bug after our night away last weekend, and I’m not afraid of a bit of damp weather.  As we laid our plans, the place we intended to go was fully booked.  It seems that the state government’s promotion of ‘Wander out Yonder’ to increase domestic tourism, for the two years that Western Australia had been shut off, was still proving remarkably effective:

Saturday morning came and we were in no rush.  A game with breakfast and it was then down to the beach to give the poodles a run, before they were locked in the house.  You would never have thought a storm was brewing from the above image.  The water looked amazing, as the poodles played with other dogs and their respective owners chatted, I was kicking myself for not have gone for a snorkel.  However, as we drove south to our destination things changed, and it started to dump on us.  Continuing right up until and for some time after we arrived:

We sat in the car for a while pondering our next move.  You may recall from my last post that I had dropped a few hints about camper trailers and also about needing to head out to pick something up.  Well that thing was the camper trailer that Lisa had gone to look at without telling me.  We almost missed out on getting it, but luck was on our side.  Now however, we were sat in the car with the rain tumbling down, wondering whether to pop the trailer up.  The reason for our hesitancy being that I had not put it up before, and it was all on Lisa:

We decided to go for it and it was super quick, possibly less than a minute.  This was a good thing. as the rain continued to descend on us.  Once it was up this resulted in us staying inside it, feeling a bit like drowned rats listening for a break in the weather.  Eventually it came and piled the few bits we had brought along into the tent, before heading out for a short walk.  The rain came in again so we decided an early and easy dinner was in order.  This went down very well, over a hard thought game of scrabble with Lisa pipping me at the post:

We slunk away to our home for the night.  Here we listened to the raindrops hit the canvas, while we played Yahtzee.  We knew it was likely to be a tad damp, so we came armed with a bunch of games just in case.  Eventually it got too dark, so listening to what our bodies natural circadian rhythm was telling us, we hit the sack.  Some would take lights with them to stay up, but we tend to synchronize with natures cues.  After a great and very comfortable night, light started to filter through the canvas and it was time for me to make a cuppa:

Lisa stayed under canvas, but opened up a few windows to enjoy the view.  I was happy to be up and out, keeping an eye out for the birds hopping about in the shrubs.  Too many to mention were seen.  They were obviously used to people, and at times they came almost right up to my feet.  Below a Grey Fantail (Rhipidura albiscapa) was putting on quite a show, never seeming to sit still.  It continually switched from hopping about, opening up and swishing its tail, and on occasion exaggerating the display by fluttering up and down on the spot:

Lisa didn’t stay in bad as long I expected, in part drawn out by my description fo the birds.  We decided to go for a wander round the campsite to check out the other spots.  The area was lovely and we are likely to come back here again, so we decided to see which were the primo sites to try and book on our next visit.  The walk also helped build up an appetite, and after breakfast we went back round for another wander but this time through the trees.  I felt this image was quite poignant, showing the stark different between the size of the trees of old and what exists here today:

For our trip this weekend, we had come to Jarrahdene campsite.  Another lovely spot for us to visit, not much more than an hour and half drive from where we live and nestled in Boranup forest.  A timber mill was located here in the 1800s.  It was very successful and the owner built up to forty miles of rail lines to connect it to major towns and ports.  Today not much exists of the rail lines, mill, or associated buildings.  Only a few felled trees like above, some mounds, and strategically placed images that you can check out and from which you can try and imagine what it looked like back then:

As we wandered through the quiet and tranquil forest, with a mix of jarrah, marri and peppermint trees.  It was the peppermint trees that Lisa most noticed, after the rains of yesterday the refreshing smell of peppermint wafted through the air.  If the fables of old are believed, the above Scarlet Robin (Petroica boodang) would probably have struggled to notice this pleasant fragrance.  The story the Indigenous Noongar people, of this area, tell suggests this bird had a punch up with an argumentative Willie Wagtail.  The resulting blood that trickled down from its beak, is the reason for the vivid red breast we see today:

We spotted a few Willie Wagtails, but they were not anywhere near the Scarlet Robins we saw.  Interestingly, Scarlet Robins are known to, on occasion, feed with other birds.  This includes Flame and Hooded Robins, Weebills, Grey Fantails, and Thornbills.  There is however no mention of Willie Wagtails, so maybe they still hold a grudge.  As we continued on our wander round the area, following paths here and there with no real destination in mind, I spotted something that caught me a little off-guard:

While I was already thoroughly enjoying being out in the forest and seeing all the birdlife, finding an orchid made the place feel even more special.  There was a small clump of Common Bunny Orchids (Eriochilus dilatatus), and one of them was just starting to flower.  I knew that orchids can be found flowering at various times of the year, but I have only really seen or noticed the ones that flower in spring time.  My new 500 page orchids book indicates this orchid is one of the first to flower, and often blooms in large numbers especially after summer fires:

The morning was wearing on, but we were again in no rush.  Eventually however it was time to make the third cuppa of the morning, as we packed the camper trailer away.  It was easy to pack away, not quite as quick as putting it up but I have to say I was impressed at the ease.  Fair to say that unlike the Scarlet Robin, I’m not holding a grudge against Lisa for her self-confessed sneaky approach to inspecting and eventually getting hold of the camper trailer.  We are instead now thinking about where we will head to next: