Paruna

Today was a public holiday, said to be for the King’s Birthday. C had bought tickets online, so we set off in my car as it’s the most economical on fuel. I was glad to let her drive because of the many hairpin bends on the one hour drive. The final  kilometre was on gravel, when she wished she was in her own car, with higher clearance and new tyres.

Paruna Sanctuary is owned by the Australian Wildlife Conservancy. The trails have all been closed for some time, I think because of heavy rain which made them unsafe. The Possum Trail has just opened for the prime wildflower season and it was very busy.

Turnstile entry

You had to enter a code that had been given after the online payment and then enter it again in order to leave.

The first thing we saw was a couple of long drop toilets (which I used to call for on the Camino, but Spain took no notice and they now have a huge litter problem).

It was an overcast day with sprinkles of rain from time to time. I took a photo of C pulling up a noxious weed:

Gladiolus weeding

A selection of wildflower pics follows:

Too many to point a stick at!

Rocky outcrops

The trail had LOTS of steps, up and down and I found it quite strenuous. I am not fit any more for bushwalking. C said I was probably the oldest person doing it. There were plenty of kids as it’s the start of the school holidays. Their noise scared away any bird or animal sightings which was a pity.

We reached the car just as a heavy downpour started. Lucky for us, as there would have been absolutely nowhere to shelter. We ate our lunch inside and waited for it to stop before negotiating the gravel track out. 

All in all, it was a great day.

https://trailswa.com.au/storage/media/kep5xlj359oq/Possum-Loop_Paruna_Brochure.pdf

Kings Park Bushwalk

This walk was last Sunday. I’m a week late in reporting. Val was the leader and told us lots. She had been a voluntary Kings Park Guide for many years.

We started from the carpark near the Pioneer Womens’ Memorial on Fraser Avenue, crossed the road and set off downhill. Our first stop was the Acacia Steps:

On the ground are mosaics of acacias:

There are so many things in Kings Park that I have never seen before.

It was the perfect time of year, when so many wildflowers are coming out:

Blue Leschenaultia

Black Kangaroo Paws

Val asked me to take a photo of the group to send to the Nats Club, but it was hard to get everyone together:

People had spread out on different logs: it was like herding cats!

In Kings Park there are lots of “weeds” that have escaped from domestic gardens and have to be removed. To the untrained eye these look and smell lovely:

Freesias

Forgotten the name!

I brought this one home and put it in a vase. Others picked a bunch of freesias. They are a problem to Kings Park because they proliferate, to the detriment of the native plants. At Wireless Hill, they are fighting a battle against Pink Gladioli, another weed.

Here are some more wildflowers we saw:

Val explained in detail how Kangaroo Paws present themselves one flower at a time for pollination by flying insects:

Nature is very clever!

Spring

There’s something in the air that tells you winter is over. The garden at Como has burst into colour. The wisteria gives off a beautiful scent, as it continues to hold up the deteriorating fence:

The bottle brush is redder than ever and hosts lots of noisy birds high up in its branches:

The Meyer Lemon has also come into flower:

On Friday, C told me to visit Wireless Hill to see all the wildflowers, so I was there on Saturday morning taking lots of photos:

From general shots to close-ups, I really need a better camera, but my iPhone is always in my pocket and ready to use:

Kangaroo Paw

Cat’s Paw

Milkmaids

There are plenty of interpretive boards and occasionally they are actually near their subject:

The most abundant orchids just now are the donkey orchids:

A few elusive spider orchids are to be found:

JL used to be good at spotting these, having grown up in the bush.

Pink lady orchid (I think)

This is another, longer walk, but I didn’t do it this time:

My Family and one other animal

Not quite the Durrells, if you know what I mean.

I’m very fortunate that they live only 6 kms away. There was a big milestone on Friday as we celebrated C’s birthday:

A toast with non-alcoholic bubbly

Red cyclamen from me

Whale shark t-shirt from my sister

Sushi feast, half demolished

Dessert was rhubarb and apple crumble with custard, a favourite of JL’s, but not on the menu for a long time.

Rocky patrolled the table looking for crumbs, but didn’t get his photo taken.

From Russia with Love

Remember the James Bond film, starring Sean Connery as 007?  I’ve just borrowed the title.

There’s a recent BBC documentary Our Man in Moscow describing a year in the life of Steve Rosenberg. He is one of the few western journalists who have managed to stay on the right side of the authorities. He posts regularly on YouTube. All this has set me thinking about my own experience in Russia.

In 2000 I had been attending a library conference in Stockholm. When it was over, I decided to take a trip to St Petersburg, via Tallinn in Estonia. Fortunately I met some Brits who warned me to be especially careful about my currency declaration. It was vital to declare everything to the last cent with no rounding up or down.

On the St Petersburg train, in the middle of the night, there was a tremendous banging on the door of my single sleeping compartment. I was to prepare for a currency check. (This, by the way, was the only time that a Russian spoke to me in English). In the next door compartment, I could hear a Canadian traveller being intimidated by the guard. When it came to my turn, the guard seemed surprised that I was not shaking in my shoes as I handed him the form and displayed my currency. He went away disappointed, unable to fine me like the Canadian. On reflection, this seemed to be a scam that would only work with people in single compartments.

In St Petersburg, I stayed in an international youth hostel near the Moscow Station. There was a 5-exit roundabout and I had to be careful to take the correct exit or I would be completely lost. The hostel served breakfast, which was a poor imitation of a western one. There were cornflakes which appeared to have less nutritional value than the packet. There was some pale pink watery jam, supposed to be strawberry. 

The highlight of the trip was finding my way to the Hermitage Museum, two days running. I had free entry with my students pass (I was doing my PhD at the time). All in all, it was quite an adventure. I still have these souvenirs, depicting Russian folklore: