Being the spring school holiday, which coincides with Lisa’s birthday, we would normally head away somewhere. The plan had been to take the camper trailer down to the Stirling Ranges, but several things resulted in that not happening. The first being the uncertainty of the outcome from Nicka having to get her sebaceous adenomas checked out, which only resulting in the need for antibiotics and fortunately not surgery. Another reason being the need to allow the trial run of Elseya taking on cat:
Working one day a week in the Bunbury pound was always going to be dangerous for Elseya, and indeed she soon came across an adorable, her and Lisa’s words, cat. The big issue being my allergies, and of course how the poodles would react. So we all had to be home for the weekend, to see how it may go. The result being no cat, but Elseya is glad she at least gave it a go. So with all that behind us, I suggested we could still cram in a couple of nights away, based on a recommendation from work Josh:
This year Lisa is keen to enjoy her birthday at home, so we only had a couple of nights to play with. Due to the distance heading to the Stirling Ranges with the camper trailer wasn’t viable, plus the weather was due to come in Tuesday night. So we went for the Bird Hide, which provides basic accommodation that may not be everyone’s cup of tea. But it has the essentials, is neat as a pin and has an amazing outlook. Being fairly isolated and purposely built to overlook the Blackwood River, resulting in a very relaxing place:
It is not too far out of Nannup, so just over an hour’s drive. But it might as well have been a world away. There is only very scant mobile reception and no technology provided in the accommodation. So it really is a break from the rat race of life, that is all too often made all the more stressful by technology. The views across the water and into the trees is idyllic, and on the first morning birds were everywhere. While Lisa enjoyed a good book all warm and cosy in bed, I went for a couple of walks and watched the birds:
The two birds I have included are a Golden Whistler (Pachycephala pectoralis) & White-Browed Scrubwren (Sericornis frontalis), but there were many more I spotted. The bird song was lovely, made all the more relaxing with the soothing babbling sound of the water flowing over a riffle in the river. Being close to Nannup I was also able to easily get to the wildflower walks we have recently visited. Being by myself I took a few new tracks and kicked myself when I came across the above Red-beak orchid (Lyperanthus nigricans):
These orchids will burst into flower after fire, but the occasional one may be found flowering even when a fire has not been through. They have large fleshy leaves, and these can be seen scattered in large colonies. Most times lying dormant, but this one plant had decided to flower and I had missed it being in all its splendour, by probably a week or two. Mid-September next year I’ll have to take this track to check the colony I found. It was a lovely walk and by the time I got back it was time for a second cuppa:
On these trips we tend to take a few games with us and in the evening and mornings we pulled them out. Spending our time the old fashion way. The decking was enclosed on two sides with glass, kept spotless so you had a great view whilst being protected from any rain or wind. This helped make the decking a great place to hang out in any conditions. On the first morning we ate breakfast, played scrabble, enjoyed the warmth of the sun, and were serenaded by the above Scarlet Robin (Petroica boodang):
I would guess that the male we saw viewed this as his territory, and he was out there singing his heart out most times. His way of both advertising and defending his territory. I even got a great up-close and personal view of birds doing acrobatics in the air, as they caught insects on the wing. I’ve seen several robins found in this part of Australia numerous times, and I have to say it was seeing the Golden Whistler that I was really pleased about. Even more so when I managed to get a good image of this more skittish and less bold bird:
After a very slow, chilled, and enjoyable morning, we eventually decided to head out. You may have guessed that seeing work Josh had mentioned this place, there was another part to his tale of this place. The Scott River National Park less than an hour’s drive away, and that is where we were heading too. Neither of us had been there, and I don’t think there are any walk trails to have previously drawn us that way. We drove through the one and only road that dissects the park and on both sides it was a swamp:
There were some higher areas, which is where we focus our attention as this place is known for its wildflowers, as well as water birds. Several images back you can see the sedge covered land that we started on, after which we drifted to the low sandy dunes. I was also kind of hoping to find a reptile or two, as I stepped carefully through the landscape. As shown by the two images above we spotted a Stumpy Spider Orchid (Caladenia ensata) and Scott River Spider Orchid (Caladenia thinicola), new finds for me:
There were heaps of the “standard” orchids and everywhere we looked Purple Enamels were popping out of the ground. Being one of Lisa’s favourite orchids as it is so colourful and cheerful. At one point she got all excited thinking she found a duck or bird orchid of some sort, and if you check out the above image you can understand why she thought this. However, the hammer had simply being blown or knocked up. And when put in the normal lower position she had actually found a Narrow-lipped Hammer Orchid (Drakaea thynniphila):
You will just have to try and imagine the orchid with the hammer in the downward position, as the finds kept coming so I can’t include a second image. Above is a Pale-China Orchid (Cyanicula gertrudiae), and as is often the case once we spotted one we seemed to find more and more. Both the above two again being new finds. We also spotted some very beautiful Donkey Orchids, most likely the Dunsborough Donkey Orchid (Diuris jonesii) and in the morning back at Nannup I also spotted the Purple Pansy Donkey Orchid (Diuris longifolia):
The above spider is a mystery, and I collared the assistance of Noel and even he is stumped with this one. It is possible that it is a hybrid or maybe a partial pale form, as most of the flower is yellow green. It is however different to the other two spiders we found in this location. Before we left this spot I was pleased to see one Bobtail Lizard, allowing me to watch it for some time, before it slowly slunk away into the bush. There were sadly no snakes to be seen, although Lisa was probably quite pleased with that:
On the higher sandy rises the vegetation changed with several species of trees, no taller than 5m, and an understorey of Sword Grass (Lepidosperma effusum). I thought I might find a few different species of orchids within this complex, but was mistaken. Lisa was happy not to follow me into these spots, maybe due to having less visibility of what might be lurking under the scrub. I did however spot several Forest Mantis Orchids (Caladenia attingens), to add to what was a growing tally for the day:
As I got back to the car I spotted the familiar shape of a Leek Orchid on the side of the road, and I found two plants in separate locations. This one, like the unknown spider, is a bit of a puzzle. The individual flower heads look on appearance to be the Little Laughing Leek Orchid (Prasophyllum gracile), but that is not found here plus the whole plant structure is too chunky. Noel is also a little confused with this one, and has suggested it may be a stocky form of the Limestone Leek Orchid (Prasophyllum calcicola):
It was quite amazing how time passed us by. Like being back at the Bird Hide, strolling round the bush spotting orchids was very relaxing and we were both enjoying the time. We had however not come very prepared, only bring snacks and Lisa was starting to get hungry. So it was time to hit the road, this time driving along the backroads. At one spot we simply had to stop, to observe the masses of Pink Fairy Orchids(Caladenia latifolia). We looked about and found many other species of orchids in the bush here:
It was however the above Pink Fairy I was most taken by. It had two flowers and both had the same colour graduation. Like identical twins, the pinks and whites were distributed to precision on both flowers, across the petals and the intricate middle components of the flower. As we drove on, and with a little intel from Josh, I kept an eye out for one more find before I would have to focus on the need for food. I thought I was keeping an eye out for a sun orchid, but was pleased to find that this was not the case:
If you look above you can see a cluster of white looking flowers on the bank to the right, with a very convenient spot to pull into just past this spot. This is where we found eleven flowering Cherry Spider Orchids (Caladenia gardneri), which were extremely colourful and pretty. This time when we got into the car we did not stop until we got back, although I nearly did as we spotted a Tiger Snake slithering across the road. It shot away and by the time I had turned round it was nowhere to be seen, and I could feel Lisa relax a bit when that happened:
Back at the Bird Hide we got the snacks out, as the hunger needed to be tended as a matter of urgency so there was no time to cook. The snacks went down a treat, as we played another game and looked out over the river checking for birds. And when the snacks were all gone and the game was done, we cooked dinner and pulled out yet another game this time watching the light disappear. It had been a wonderful day, and as the darkness came we continued to get our fix of board games with one that came with the Bird Hide:
Overnight, and as forecast, the heavens opened. The drops fell heavily on the tin roof and the hut became a bit of an echo chamber. Reminding us of our previous house in Capel, which was also plagued with the same issue when it rained. Fortunately, the morning was dry enough for me to get one final walk in, as Lisa again enjoyed reading her book possibly at times through her eyelids. This time I didn’t find anything new, but enjoyed being out in the forest nonetheless. Timing things well and getting back before the rain fell, and in time to make Lisa another cuppa:
We decided on breakfast out this time allowing for a slower paced morning, not that we had heaps to pack up. It did however allow a few more cups of tea and a bit more bird spotting, although it seemed the rain was keeping them at bay more so that the day before. The Scarlet Robin sat on the branch right in front of the veranda, looking me in the eye and brazenly singing away. But this morning it was this White-breasted Robin (Eopsaltria georgiana) that caught my attention, and I can safely say the Bird Hide really lived up to its name:
Sandbagged 