Ghost ship appearing on the horizon

Published on September 10, 2022 by bushboy18 Comments

This is July 2022

Published on July 31, 2022 by bushboy53 Comments

July saw Winter arrive here. The first week was wet on the odd day or two but then the rest of July has lovely sunny days – 20c plus. The nights then dropped into single figures and the fire was lit earlier in the afternoon as the cool breeze blew down the mountains.

I didn’t get out very much to take photos so most of this month are photos from my garden. The only exciting day out was going to Ballina and seeing the Humpback Whale migration.

Your July song to scroll to

July saw the start of the foggy mornings. I took this one early in the month when I went down to check on how much rain was in the rain gauge.

The Nectarine and Peach trees are starting to come into blossom. The foggy morning provided a good background.

One morning I looked out of the kitchen window and saw all these Peaceful Doves on the ground. This was most unusual as when they are around there, they are foraging for food, not sitting still. At first I wondered if they were dead, so I grabbed my camera to have a closer look and saw some fast asleep and others opening and closing their eyes. Next time I looked they were gone. Most unusual.

The mornings are always punctuated with Whipbird calls echoing around the gullies that are on both sides of the house.

In July, the Whipbirds have been in the garden most days. All the photos have been taken out of the windows as they are quite shy and will disappear at the slightest movement. This is the first time I have seen both of them together.

They are quite striking looking birds

Yes it does look like I was spotted in the sun room trying to sneak a few more photos. I probably took over a hundred photos over the month, many duds or the window does need cleaning.

One morning I spied a Lewins Honeyeater lurking in the Honey Gem Grevillea.

A Blue-faced Honeyeater was quite serious getting some nectare from the Honey Gem flower.

Outside of the office, Satin Bowerbirds hopped onto the branch to see what I was doing. It is so hard to get the amazing colours and shades with a photo.

Yellow-faced Honeyeaters can always be heard chattering away around the garden all day.

The garden wouldn’t be complete without an Eastern Yellow Robin splashing yellow about the garden as they fly about.

The female Golden Whistler comes into the garden but the fabulously coloured male doesn’t seem to. He stays in the gullies calling the most splendid song.

A Grey Butcherbird hangs about occasionally looking for a snack or two.

One day I saw a lot of movement in the garden. Venturing out onto the verandah I saw a small flock of Variegated Fairy Wrens investigating the soil as well as under leaves and on branches for food. A female Jenny Wren hoped to find something on a Fan Palm leaf.

The flocked never stayed still for long so it was hard to follow them through the garden. I eventually came across the male Variegated Fairy Wren as he made sure his harem was safe.

The Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoos have been around for the last few days of July. Their raucous calls let me know they have arrived in the late afternoon to chew the bark of the Eucalypts to get the grubs. It was hard to get good photos as they were high in the trees.

The Eastern Spinebills have been around in the garden for a few months now. It is hard not to want to get photos of them especially when they are in the Firesticks Grevillea. This one eyed me suspiciously early in the month but now they don’t mind me wandering about.

The bees don’t have much to feed on at the moment but the Pentas were still flowering at the start of July.

The Bottlebrush, just like the Grevilleas have had another flowering. Perhaps once the rain slowed down and the ground is starting to dry, they decide to have another flowering. Lots of bees and birds are always hanging about.

One day I’ll find out the name of this pretty orchid that grows on long spikes. I love the splash of colour they provide amongst the green of the plants in the garden.

When at Ballina Beach for a fish and chips lunch and hoping to see some Humpback Whales, the Sooty Oystercatchers patrolled the beach looking for their lunch.

I did manage to get one whale photo out of a lot of splash photos. It is quite difficult when trying to get a photo from the shore

Late in the afternoon, the Buddha sits serenely in the last of the warming sun.

I hope this finds you serene and at peace with all that surrounds. Did you have a favourite?
Perhaps you would like to join us with your post?

About The Changing Seasons

The Changing Seasons is a monthly project where bloggers around the world share their thoughts and feelings about the month just gone. We all approach this slightly differently, though generally with an emphasis on the photos we’ve taken during the month.

For many of us, looking back over these photos provides the structure and narrative of our post, so each month is different. Some focus on documenting the changes in a particular project — such as a garden, an art or craft project, or a photographic diary of a familiar landscape.

But in the end, it is your changing season, and you should approach it however works for you.

There are no fixed rules around post length or photo number — just a request that you respect your readers’ time and engagement.

Tags and ping-backs

Tag your photos with #MonthlyPhotoChallenge and #TheChangingSeasons so that others can find them

Create a ping-back to Ju-Lyn at Touring My Backyard or this post, so that we can update it with links to all of yours.

This is June 2022

Published on June 30, 2022 by bushboy62 Comments

A wonderful start to Winter in my part of the world. The rain has stopped for the moment. The days are in the low 20’sC with cold night into single figures necessitating lighting the fire giving a warm glow to the loungeroom.

I have managed to get out for a few little excursions as well as take photos at home. A lot of time has been spent cutting and splitting firewood with a few delays as I have me camera with me just in case something happens – or has been the case a few times not have it.

I hope my June song to scroll with works for you. Please enjoy

I did make it out for a quite pastel sunrise. Something to begin with for having a look at what I found in June. I loved the lines across the sky.

Someone else was enjoying the early morning as well aboard their yacht

The sparse vegetation on the point at Wooli really does take the brunt of wind and water

On the other side of the point, the river winds its way to the sea. A Striated Heron took a stroll while the tide was out looking for lunch.

In the morning at Iluka, a fluffed up Pied Butcherbird warmed up among the Banksia trees

There was a look at the works the Iluka Landcare team had been doing planting Red Gums to increase the Koala habitat. While we were there looking around I spied a Pacific Baza. Later on her mate appeared and landed on a branch above her.

In the late afternoon a White-cheeked Honeyeater sitting atop a Banksia sang to the setting sun

A Silver Gull basking in the afternoon sun on a wharf post.

An Australian Pelican kept a wary eye on me while resting on the old wharf post

A nearby Darter was stretching probably contemplating heading off if I came any closer

There are all manner of ways to secure your craft at the wharf. I was attracted to the rust.

Overhead an Osprey patrolled the beach looking for breakfast

Back in South Grafton the copious amount of Little Corellas wheeled about before landing on their roost or in the paddock to scour the ground for seeds and grubs. Little Corellas are migrants who arrived on the coast after a very prolonged drought over the ranges. They liked it so much they never left, built up numbers and can now be found all along the coast.

The Little Corellas were flying over this part time wetland. The Black Swans had a nest among the reeds in early June. The Pacific Black Ducks were always around looking for a meal as well as other water birds. Towards the end of June the paddock dried out and the farmer let a few cattle in to graze. Unfortunately all the reeds you can see were eaten down to almost ground level. I fear that the Black Swans nest was disturbed, perhaps even trampled by the cattle as I never saw any Cygnets.

One surprise when I went to a small village, Diggers Camp, was this Pheasant Coucal hunting for insects. He didn’t even care about me walking about.

This little Superb Fairy Wren female, called a Jenny wren, blended well with the grass at Iluka as she foraged for food.

While this Jenny wren kept an eye on me at my place as I walked through the bush.

She was making sure I didn’t get too close to her babies

A Red-browed Firetail Finch took in the afternoon sun

A Grey Butcherbird stayed in the shadows while looking about for food.

Standing on your head to get some nectar an Eastern Spinebill enjoys a Bottlebrush in my garden.

Walking down my street I saw a Jackie Winter was just sitting on the wire fence

On the way back, a Restless Flycatcher was intently watching something while sitting on the wire fence.

I often have photos of Satin Bowerbirds but rarely have a male and a female in the same photo. They were hanging around the tree near the verandah. This photo is through my office door while sitting at my desk. I love lazy photography.

I had been putting out some bird seed on the verandah to see who was around. The Male Satin Bowerbird and a Blue-faced Honeyeater came for an inspection.

A young Blue-faced Honeyeater and a King Parrot looked hopeful.

A juvenile King Parrot just getting his adult feathers hopped about the verandah.

The Firesprite Grevillea is having a fantastic flowering. A number of the smaller honeyeaters are able to sit on the flowers. This Eastern Spinebill was always chasing the Brown Honeyeaters away from “his” flowers.

All of the Grevilleas had a good flowering in June. This one was a rescue plant that has done well.

The Coconut Ice Grevillea also having a great season.

In the Iluka Rainforest some of the old fallen trees have some wonderful wood fungi

The wood fungi at my place has been bright orange

OK Now for all the people who don’t like spiders get that scrolling finger ready to zoom past this beautiful Huntsman Spider I disturbed when I was cleaning up around a shed.

Here is your second warning…..you know who you are.

Ready, steady……scroll

Now for a bit of arty farty. Looking deep into a stump and a cascade of moss with a rim of lichen.

A stick on the beach

She Oak needles with a blue sea and sky – Minimalism

Sunset through the trees with some ICM (Intentional Camera Movement)

Looking out of my kitchen window at the Red-necked Wallabies grazing in the garden

I love a foggy morning. Looking down the hill near my shed.

Well it looks like the sun is setting so it must be time to get going. The sunset at Iluka was a treat.

The Super Moon was supposed to be a wonderful sight. This is the best I could do. Goodnight and see you next Changing Seasons for a wrap-up of what I found.

Of course I would love to know what your favourite photo is.

The Changing Seasons

The Changing Seasons is a monthly project where bloggers around the world share their thoughts and feelings about the month just gone. We all approach this slightly differently — though generally with an emphasis on the photos we’ve taken during the month.

But in the end, it is your changing season, and you should approach it however works for you.

There are no fixed rules around post length or photo number — just a request that you respect your readers’ time and engagement.

Tags and ping-backs

Tag your photos with #MonthlyPhotoChallenge and #TheChangingSeasons so that others can find them

Create a ping-back to Ju-Lyn’s latest post or my post, so that we can update it with links to all of yours.

Back at Raspberry Lookout

Published on June 9, 2022 by bushboy13 Comments

Ragtag daily Prompt Thursday: Gulch

With fog

With waterfalls

Wordless Wednesday – 8 June

Published on June 8, 2022June 7, 2022 by bushboy19 Comments

A few F’s

Published on April 28, 2022April 28, 2022 by bushboy15 Comments

Cee’s Mid-week Madness Challenge: April Alphabet – F at the beginning or end of a word

Fog

Begonia leaf

Fence

Figbird eating a Fig

Fighting ants

Leaf

Roof

Calf

This is January 2022

Published on February 1, 2022February 1, 2022 by bushboy43 Comments

Welcome to a mixed bag of stuff. I have been trying to do things in between rain showers as well as days of rain. As the weather, albeit wet, has given a month of flowers and I have already posted quite a few during the month so there’s not an overload in here.

Not much news to tell so let’s get going shall we?

A January song to scroll to if you wish, a bit of Aussie music.

Where to start….how about we hop straight in with a few frogs. This little beauty, a Broad-palmed Rocket Frog, came into the house one night and was keen to explore. They move quite quickly hence being a rocket frog.

I was about to go to town when I noticed a strange lump on the top of my car. I found a Perons Tree Frog looking back at me. Goodness knows what he was doing there. Relocated to somewhere safer.

The rain during the month has had the waterfalls in the Gibraltar Ranges flowing. This is the Boundary Falls

A lot of the mornings were quite foggy. I love the trees rising out of the fog.

A while ago Graham from Hawaii posted a photo of a Japanese lantern flower, I thought the ones I had were different nut they seemed to be the same. I wonder who had a munch on this one?

There’s quite a bunch of stamens

The cap and the veins are so red which counterpoints the yellow.

This is one of the first flowers on a Hibiscus in my besties garden. It is so lovely again with reds and yellows

I love this orange and pink blush on this Hibiscus in my garden

This Summer the Marigolds have looked a treat

The Purple Gerbera really stand out in the garden

I this is a Livingstone Daisy, a brilliant splash of pink

Not only are flowers pretty in the garden but new leaves on a rose bush stand out as well.

The colour on the shed wall at my besties goes well with the flowers

The hanging pot of Geraniums has flowered well this month

A type of native Frangipanni in it’s stunning white colour

On a walk along a track at Evans Head we found some Wattles flowering possibly Acacia longifolia

There were also some seed pods on the trees as well

A Dragonfly decided to pay a visit to my verandah

The Lemon Migrant Butterflies arrived on their annual migration

I can’t help stalking Blue-banded Bees around the garden. Salvia flowers are a favourite

They like to dive straight in to one of my favorite coloured Salvias.

I had to go down river so I decided to keep driving to Brooms Head hoping to see the Coastal Emus that live down that way. I didn’t see any unfortunately. It wasn’t good weather at the beach and the Crested Terns faced into the wind so their feathers didn’t get too ruffled.

This Australian Pelican was standing on a rock for ages. I wondered what it was doing, then some fishers came over to the fish table to scale and gut their catch. Very soon the Pelican wandered closer.