Its Warming Up

This morning I set off for my morning walk at 7:00am. I could already feel the humidity and burning sun. After 20 mins in the heat I entered the cooler shade of the forest but I could feel the perspiration oozing as I climbed the hills, but I still had time to admire the native plants.

The little cones of a Sheoak tree.

I saw these cute little berries but I don't know the plant. 

I love the patterns that lichen makes as it grows over the rocks. Such a tiny plant.

Another native flower , called a Rice Flower. The hot morning sun shines through a eucalyptus leaf just before it falls.  When I got home I jumped into a cold shower and checked the temperature it was already 30°C at 8:30am. It is a sure reminder that summer starts in 2 days.

A Walk in Springwood Conservation Park

Springwood is the next suburb to Daisy Hill. It takes about 20 mins to walk there, then we enter the park and walk another 20 mins home. Its a circuit walk. It has been left in its natural state except for the pathways and steps.

We walked up hill to get here so now it is mostly down hill from now on....easy peasy.

Over the little bridge.

There is not a drop of water under the bridge, we haven't had rain for months.

Climb a little rise and wow........

...we can see all over Logan City (adjoins Brisbane City) all the way south to Tamborine Mountains and even further to Lamington Mountains.

Now it is a tumble down hill, its fun and pretty

Look back at the scrubby bushland or dry Eucalyptus forest before....

...crossing over the road and entering......

....suburbia again.

SEAGULLS AT SANDGATE

Now and then we get together with friends, Alma and Bill, for fish and chips by the bay.

Alma and Bill are our son in law's parents and they live near Sandgate on Moreton Bay just north of Brisbane. They give us a call, pack a picnic and we just turn up. We found a table in the shade and sat in the cool bay breeze to devour fish and chips and salad washed down with a glass of bubbly wine. We toasted the imminent return of our children from London. We also toasted our other daughter who is expecting our first grandchild.

After lunch a flock of seagulls begged us for scraps.

I'm sure they shouldn't eat chips but it made some interesting shots.

BLUE IN THE FACE

Spring is here, although it is more like summer now with the temperature at 35C or 95F. With Spring comes lots of new baby birds, how sweet they are UNTIL they start squawking to be fed at 4:30am. Then they are not sweet any more in my mind, as I'm trying to sleep.

They have a monotonous TWEET, TWEET, TWEET, TWEET call. It is an annoying sound. like a tap dripping. I go outside and call to them to be quiet until I am "blue in the face" but they ignore me and keep on tweeting. However, they are quite cute in an ugly way and I really love birds so I took the camera out to observe them.

I think this is mother bird. She is on the look out for danger from other birds.

I think this is father bird. He is a Blue Faced Honey Eater. He's probably gone blue in the face telling the chicks to be quiet.

He is finding food for the little ones from the Banksia flower, it is full of nectar.

Both mother and father have just fed the chicks.

Mother is keeping guard over the chicks while father has gone for more food. Throughout this whole process the smallest baby continued with its boring Tweet, Tweet.

A few days later I spied the biggest baby trying to feed itself....hooray. It had trouble trying to keep balance.

Then the smallest baby arrived. The bigger baby fluttered to another cone, Father is in the background and the little one continues to squawk to be fed, while sitting right next to the flower providing the source of food. I'm thinking..."C'mon kid get stuck into it and stop whinging"

Mother turns up but they all start preening and scratching, while baby continues to squawk

It finally had a little nibble and then both babies had a nap. Peace for a few minutes. It is fun watching them but I hope they hurry up and grow up and leave the nest. In the meantime I put in ear plugs at 4:30 am. The rest of the day I put up with it. At this very moment the baby is sitting next to the flower and it tweets and then pecks at the flower for a bit then tweets and eats and tweets and eats. I'm thinking...."Just eat and never mind the tweets." I can see them from my study window over the top of my computer. I actually photographed them through the glass.

A Walk in Brisbane City

Last week caught the train to Central and walked along Ann St to collect a Photobook that I had printed of the photos I took on our Kimberly Top End Holiday. We were very pleased with the book. Then we walked to King George Square, we passed The Palace Hotel......

...with its ornate wrought iron lacework balconies.

Then I spied this lovely old building squashed between the high rise offices. It is the School of Arts. The postman is pushing his cart in front and the little green vehicle is a gum cleaning machine.

A bit further along this beautiful church is dwarfed by more high rise.

.....and another one

...and another one.

The old Treasury building is now a casino.

The Petrie Tableau sculpture in King George Square. Made by Stephen Walker in 1988 for the bicentenary in honour of the early Brisbane settlers. It depicts The Petrie family and aboriginal neighbours in 1842. They are saying good bye to Andrew Petrie who is departing on an expedition to the west. The boy, John, holding the horse became the Mayor of Brisbane.

I found a kangaroo to cuddle.

Bill found a pretty girl to cuddle. She was promoting a beer.

A Walk by the Lake

We walk through the suburban streets for 20 minutes, passing by a Jacaranda still in flower.

Then we take a path through a small park which leads us to the edge of Lake Dennis. It is...

a very small man made lake. It was made by a pioneer called Dennis, who made the dam to hold water for his cattle and crops back in the 1800's. The land has subsequently been sold and developed into housing estates and the Dam donated to the council for the people.

We walk along the dam wall to the other side.

 Ducks busily foraging instead of posing for the camera.

Now we are on the other side you can look back across the lake in the other direction.

Admire the lily pads and the artistic fall of a dead tree before climbing a steep hill back into suburbia for a different way home.

WALKING in DAISY HILL

On our morning walk.

We walk along the ring road for a while then.....

....take one of the many walking tracks.

Stop to admire the plants (I think this might be an imported one that has become a weed.)

As we enter the picnic area we bump into some wallabies having breakfast.

This one has a Joey in her pouch.

Many people like getting married in the forest and they hire this bush chapel with its rows of log seats.

Then back out onto the ring road to the exit, but before that, admire........

...the morning sun shining through the wattle seed pods. Then walk home for breakfast.