Wednesday, October 6, 2010

A Perfect Morning

The weather and tide were just right. This season so far there have been far too few mornings just like this. I put the kayak in down at the picnic area at Mullens and paddled a little south and then up the creek.
The birds were standing on the sand and among the trees at the roost we call the Airport Roost. There were quite a number of Godwits and a few Whimbrels Curlews and Greenshanks. The ones I was especially pleased to see were good numbers of Grey-tailed Tattlers and Terek Sandpipers. Last year there were very few of them - apparently they were being disturbed too often and were flying off elsewhere. This is the only place on this southern end of the Sandy Strait that I have found Terek Sandpipers. (All photos were taken from the kayak.) My wish is for lots more mornings just like this one!

6 comments:

  1. How fabulous Mick - gorgeous to see the calm sea and beautiful reflections. As the entire east coast seems to be copping a lot of wet and windy weather we are all learning to appreciate every sunny day we get!
    Cheers
    Barbara

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  2. Thanks Barbara and 'fabulous' is the right word for a morning like this. I hope the long range forecasters are NOT right! They are predicting early cyclones and a number of them!!

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  3. What gorgeous shots Mick! A perfect kayaking day! What style of kayak do you use? I want to get a kayak specifically for taking bird photos on the river here. I have been told that the "sit on top" style is what I want if I want to keep my camera gear dry.

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  4. Hi Mick
    What I notice is the "light".
    Blue skies, blue water, green mangrove leaves.
    Just lovely.
    Denis

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  5. Thanks Larry. I have a 'sit on top' style although I have friends with the other kind and both work OK. However, I wanted to be able to move around on the kayak - i.e. I swing my legs over the side and sit sideways when necessary. I don't imagine this brand is available over your way but I have a Viking Javlin - http://www.vikingkayak.com.au/javlin.htm - It is absolutely essential that you have a watertight case for all your gear. I have a "Pelican" case which is sealed with an "O" ring and only get the camera out when I am in position ready to take photos. Good luck with it all. A kayak opens up photo ops not available any other way.

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  6. Hi Denis, the light is beautiful and I am so used to it being bright that I have to struggle when it's dull and overcast. However, the weather report is saying there is more bad weather due by tonight and for small craft not to plan on going out on the water for a while :-(

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