Weekend Walk at Wellington Point

On the very warm weekend just passed, we sought out the cooling sea breeze that fans the narrow peninsula of Wellington Point. 

One view from the Wellington Point peninsula.

Jutting out into Moreton Bay, the tip of the peninsula that is the Wellington Point Recreation Reserve, is lapped by ocean on both sides. There are huge, old Moreton Bay Fig Trees that offer up wonderful tree-climbing opportunities as well as shady picnic spots. Most welcome on a hot day!

A younger Moreton Bay Fig

North Stradbroke Island in the distance.

Off its Eastern side, there's a distant view of our much-loved Straddie island, from which we have not long ago returned. We jokingly talked about heading for the barge!

A low-tide sand bridge.

At low tide, a very special walk emerges from under the Moreton Bay waves. A sandy "bridge" forms a path out to tiny King Island or Yerra-bin as it is called by its traditional owners. There are photos here of the sand bar at low tide.

View of Yerra-bin (King Island) from the Wellington Point shore.

Though not quite low tide, we were able to wade across the sand bridge and out to the island. It's about two kilometres there and back again. The water was so very warm, bath-like in places!  I did not take a camera with me as I knew we were going to get wet (and, knowing me, I would also be likely to drop it in the sea) but you can see photos of this tiny island here. 

People walking out along the sand bridge towards the island.

Now a conservation park, circled by mangroves and visited by seabirds, a plaque on the island tells how it was once home to a family who lived there for a couple of years in the very early 1900s. I wonder how often they walked back across the sand bridge?

A photo of the sand bar taken around 1895.

(Photo taken by H. Adler and held by State Library of Queensland.

Image now in public domain.)

It had been many years since we were last out at Wellington Point. It's nice to return to places after such a long time.  The cooling sea breeze did not disappoint either!

Meg

Dipping My Toes in the Ocean

We're here! We're not much more than an hour from our home in the suburbs but we've made our traditional holiday "escape", across the magnificent Moreton Bay (see these beautiful photos from Moreton Bay Foundation photo gallery), to our beloved Straddie island, and it feels a world away really from this December and from this year.

A Straddie jetty.

Such true words!

We left home on a scorching 38C day; a smoky haze, from the devastating bushfires that have set the east of our country on fire, thickening the air in and around our city. No rain on the forecast; a dire outlook for an extra dry and extra hot Summer ahead. We filled our car boot with a pared-back load of the essentials. (Our trusty old ute didn't make the trip this year; we no longer fit with any ease across its bench seat, thanks to the seemingly unlimited growth of our almost-teenage son.) There's never been any room for what a lot of shops are "flogging" at this time of year; happy to leave all that behind on the shelves. We have everything we need.

Beach Lagoon.

We so look forward to returning here year after year  (everyone needs something to look forward to, don't they) to all that is familiar about this special place and to see what shifts the sand has made since we were here last. This year, there is a low-tide lagoon on one of the beaches, where we swim in the day-warmed water until it's almost sunset, and a wall of sand along another windswept beach that's been carved out by the power of the waves. Nature shapes the island.

Straddie Sandbank.

This year, I've longed for these Straddie days even more so than other years. Just one glimpse of her as the barge draws near, one afternoon of her cooling afternoon breezes, one dip of my toes in her greeny-blue ocean and I feel at peace.  I love to float upon her gentler waves, my face turned skyward to the azure blue above, and clear my mind.

 

Late Afternoon Waves.

Our fortnight of days on this island has taken us a world away from the searing heat, the smoky skies, the parched landscapes of our tinder-dry country and the Christmas commercialism and reminded us, as it does each year, that life can be very relaxed and simple. We are lucky indeed to have this time here and to know we will always come back.

Meg

Beautiful Batemans Bay

On a cold but sunny Winter's day, we drove east from Canberra, to explore a little of the south coast. Two hours on and we found ourselves in beautiful Batemans Bay. Rugged up in our keep-out-the-cold jackets, jeans, socks and boots we found a quiet beach and walked from there over the shoreline rocks, discovering one tiny bay after another.  

Sunlight on the water.

Cloud cover momentarily hides the sun.

 A 'stream' of white quartz.

 A distinct feature of the rocks.

One such little bay, its shoreline edged with sea-rounded pebbles, was so serene and still. The only sound, when our feet weren't crunching over them, was the  'hush' of those pebbles as the water gently rose and fell over them. I could have sat there and listened to that sound for hours!

 Tiny bay edged with pebbles.

A sea-weathered trunk.

Rock pools edged in pink and filled with seaweeds.

 Seaweed strands of pale green 'beads'.

 Sunlight sparkles on a calm water beach.

We shed our jackets and our boots eventually, the warmth from the sun and the walk itself making its way through our layers.  We even dipped a toe or three into the clear and icy water.  Couldn't resist! There is something about the sea ... 

Have a lovely weekend wherever you may go exploring!

Meg

Lovely Little Bay Beach

A short stay in Sydney followed on from our trip to Melbourne. Halfway home! While we walked across the Sydney Harbour Bridge and looked up at the architectural sails of the Opera House, introducing our son to these iconic Australian landmarks, it was a beautiful little beach, not far from where we were staying with friends, that created favourite memories.

The very lovely Little Bay Beach.

After days of exploring hustling and bustling cities, the sand and the rocks and the water of quiet Little Bay felt so peaceful. An afternoon spent wading through shallow ocean water, rock hopping and collecting tiny pieces of sea glass from the shore were nature's restorative antidote to that busy-ness of city days. It was such a perfect afternoon. An Autumnal blue sky, the line of our Earth's horizon so clear and defined, the way sunlight and shadow fell onto the rocks and the crisp clear water of such very gentle waves. Time slowed right down and drifted away...

Another view of the beach. 

 A little rock "bridge" to cross.

The rugged & rocky headland from above.

Rocks sculpted by nature.

Light and shadow on swirly-coloured rocks.

Gently lapping waves.

Our afternoon spent exploring lovely Little Bay together reminded me of the wisdom of Richard Louv's words, written in one of my favourite books, about the place and importance of nature in our lives and our children's lives:

"We have such a brief opportunity to pass on to our children our love of this Earth, and to tell our stories. These are the moments when the world is made whole. In my children's memories, the adventures we've had together in nature will always exist." 

                                                                         ~ Richard Louv ( from Last Child in the Woods)

Rock hopping fun!

An afternoon when "Dad" took him across the rocks and around the headland; when he leapt "great" distances from one beach rock to another; when he felt that cool ocean water lapping at his toes and when he found more pieces of his precious sea glass. Those moments now form part of my son's childhood memories, of his family and of nature. I hope he'll always feel the presence of nature in his life.

Do you make time for nature in your life?

Meg

A Walk Along an Island Foreshore

Crossing the Bribie Island Bridge, that takes you from the mainland, across the protected waters of the Pumicestone Passage, to the island on the other side feels like a slow exhale to me.  A walk always awaits; a chance to breathe in the fresh air and see the sea.  My most recent walk here, on a windy day in February, took me along a section of foreshore that was calm and breezy and peaceful.

Bribie's  Bridge. 

A row of little red "tinnies" .

 Boats bobbing on the waves.

 Large, shady gums.

Pretty purple flowers. 

Gorgeous greens & greys. 

Mangroves on the shoreline.

Pigface tendrils in the sand.

Four feathery fellows. 

(I just love the antics of these birds!)

A peaceful view towards the mountains.

As I walked, the Glasshouse Mountain peaks filled my view, enveloped in a curtain of cloud. These iconic Sunshine Coast mountains stand tall on the distant horizon, connecting the waters of the passage with the land. The waves, for a windy day, were fairly calm and gently lapping the shore. Little boats bobbed up and down upon them like corks. 

Pelicans gathered in one spot, their black and white feathers ruffled by the wind. I love to see these birds for they seem such funny characters. Did you know a group of pelicans can be called a scoop? I think that's very apt considering the fish they scoop up into their bills and hold in their net-like pouches of such delicate pink. I'm not sure Bribie's fishing folk quite see them as endearingly as I do given they are always on the hunt for a free meal!

While the colours of my windy day walk were muted by the cloud above, this offered up its own beauty; a contrast to the strong light and blinding brightness of an Australian beach in Summer. 

Meg

Sydney's Harbour

The hustle and bustle, car-lined streets and expense of our largest city, Sydney, is not for me but its beautiful harbour & bays, historic homes, gorgeous gardens and coastline walks made for a wonderful weekend away.

I flew down to Sydney last weekend to spend time with two of my dearest and closest friends. We explored pockets of the city together and had such fun, our laughter just like it was during our university days well over twenty years ago now. Our first day together was spent exploring the harbour. We wandered through the Botanic Gardens to Circular Quay, crossed the harbour on a ferry out to Watson's Bay and walked further on to the candy-striped Hornby Lighthouse at South Head. Takeaway fish and chips, from the famous Doyles restaurant, back on the beach, made for delicious end to that circuit. We sailed back across the harbour again windswept and happy!

While I managed to lose many of the photos from this first day, a few survived or were sent by my beautiful friends. I would have loved to have shown you some of the interesting plants growing in the Botanic Gardens, Harry's Cafe de Wheels (which I first walked past with my then new husband while on our honeymoon), and the close up shot I took of the tiles on the Opera House but they've disappeared ... perhaps they are at the bottom of the harbour! Here's just a glimpse then of the scenery and the history around a little of Sydney's Harbour:

 Our iconic & distinctive Opera House and Sydney Harbour Bridge.

Sandstone along Sydney Harbour foreshore.

We three close friends posing at Mrs. Macquarie's Chair.

 Camp Cove from the Watson's Bay Walk.

 The red and white stripes of the Hornby Lighthouse.

 A little bit of history above the door.

 The lighthouse keeper's little cottage. 

An historic gun emplacement atop South Head.

A long ago date on one of the gun emplacements.

 A wide and blustery entrance to a very beautiful harbour.

While we spent much of this first day exploring Sydney's beautiful harbour, we spent the second one indulging in a rather fancy high tea at a historic Sydney home. I'll show you those photos next time.

Meg

A Little Serenity

It has been many, many weeks since I walked in this beautiful, serene place. What a joy it was to set foot on the sand again. Step after sandy step, breath after cool breath, beside wave after gentle wave coming in and retreating again. 

A favourite place to walk.

As I walked, the welcome and familiar sound of the sea was beside me. The crash of waves coming in to the beach and that gentle fizz of foam as they retreat is the soundtrack I love to listen to on these walks. No earphones for me! I want to hear nature's "backing track" as I walk, I want to hear and say, "Good morning!" to those I pass and to the fishing folk who try their luck off the beach.

I saw much but I didn't photograph any of it. I didn't want to stop, to break that steady, familiar rhythm that I had settled into. I watched dolphins play offshore, their silvery grey bodies sleek and shiny in the sea. A lone Brahminy Kite soared overhead, her shadow on the sand alerted me to her presence above. Lots of little shells and a few pieces of sea glass were scattered the length of one quiet bay. Playful dogs, barking their happiness and chasing one another across the beach, reminded me just what it means to be carefree and totally absorbed in where one is and what one is doing.

I sometimes bring much that feels heavy to these shores and, at those times, I leave feeling lighter and grateful for the space and time to walk here. This beautiful place offers up to me a little serenity. I thought I would share it with you.

Meg