I'll Take the High Road

Me and my trusty steed for the day Thursday 20th June What a lovely way to spend a day at Lakes Entrance.  The area is really very flat and there are many bike/pedestrian paths - more than I could manage yesterday on foot, so hire a bike it would be! My ride! The day was sunny, although not very warm.   It had been 10 years or more since I last went for a bike ride.  After yesterdays 13+km walk, I was unsure about how my knees would hold out, but an agreement that I could come back to the shop and pay for an upgrade to an e-bike set my mind at rest.  I did have to suss out the meanings of the different types of bikes - what is a cruiser bike ?  I needed to ask.  It turns out is that style that I ended up with - just your classic bike where you sit upright, handlebars are in a sensible place and everything is much as it was several decades ago. Gippsland lakes from a lookout on the road out of town I was terribly wobbly to start with, but it didn't help...

Beautiful exhibits in the Shell Museum Wednesday 19th June The best-laid schemes o' mice an' men gang aft agley It seems none of the Lakes Entrance tour boats are currently offering tours today (apart from one to a winery, which I don't feel the need to do - it wasn't what I had in mind) A chat with reception at 9 o'clock and, surprisingly enough, they do have space for me for tonight; their deal is pay two, get the third night free. I'll think about it. I do love pelicans!  In Cunningham Arm I returned to my little apartments to don some warmer clothes. With my winter bushwalking trousers and down jackets I feel a bit like Michelin man and better dressed for the snow than for a walk on the beach.  Pelicans and more! Spoonbill Walking alongside the first lake it's quite pretty, in a very flat kind of way.  There's pelicans, ducks, black swans plus pied oyster catchers and cormorants; they're always lovely to watch. Spoonbill and friend And a bit of e...

Sunrise on Boydtown Beach  Tuesday 18th June  I rose relatively early. The clock in my bedroom was fast, sunrise after my shower was a bonus for a photo from my veranda through the trees on the sand dunes and another from the beach; it was rather delightful to have a couple of hooded plovers cross my path as I walked down to the beach.  While I am more familiar with these lovely little birds from Tasmania, they are critically endangered in NSW, and the pair I saw are only 1 of 15 pairs nesting on the NSW far south coast.  Sunrise from my veranda After breakfast and packing the car, I went for a walk along to the end of the beach, it was most enjoyable as the sun was really warm although the breeze was still quite icy. The beach walk would have been even lovelier if I hadn't been harassed by a couple of off-lead dogs. I don't know what people don't get about it not being OK for their wretched dogs to rush up to random stranger. Their comments ‘oh, they won’t hurt y...

Bermagui's Blue Pool Monday 17th June There was a short, light shower early this morning but otherwise the rain didn't significantly eventuate in Bermagui. The wind, however, was consistent, with some strong gusts, so my choice for a cabin was a good one. The wind would have been enough to necessitate putting away the awning had I been camping. A but splashy looking down towards Blue Pool Morning conversations with two dive operators in Eden suggested that my dive gear is going to remain dry and my new wet suit will still not have seen interstate water.   The first, a young woman, said they's dived a couple of days ago and conditions were quite good - when asked to quantify, they'd dived in 3-5m of water with 3-5m of visibility - I suggested we had different definitions of good!  Looking south from the Blue Pool Lookout The second, a male of not such junior years, judging from the voice, simply laughed!  The rain over the past few days has put dirty water from the ri...