Mallacoota in May:trip down

We have travelled again to Mallacoota in the East Gippsland region of Victoria. It is still in Victoria, but so close to the NSW border that they actually show Rugby League on the TV!

We started the trip down by pausing to look at a large array of solar panels. Well done that company! 

Pity about the low-IQ nerk who has written the sign that really makes the place look gross. Surely they could have used a thumbnail dipped in tar?

A quick stop in Michelago got a photo of the school, where there are Memorial Honour Boards but I wasn't game to invade the place in school hours to see them These days one would get one's name in the paper in the non-positive pages very quickly for that!

The corporate coloured railway station is looking very spruce these days.  It's good that the 'ladies' have a room but in my observations what most females who visit this locale are interested in is the khazi across the road.

We also found a Memorial Hall, but as yet don't know what it is commemorating.

On down the road. I sat on the speed limit to save fuel (we achieved 8.9l per 100km overall, as is common when we're on a downhill leg) and avoid Mr Plod. It took us just over 4 hours with no dramas.

On arrival the garden seemed to be in very good order.  

This image of the flowers on a gum tree shows the opercula in various stages of falling off.

The first thing we noticed was a \larger than usual number of boats around the Inlet. Some of these seemed to be seriously fast and noisy, with what looked like harpoons on the bow. I eventually got to speak to one of the drivers of these and it turns out there is a large bream fishing comp on. The “harpoon” is actually a small electric motor which is used when stalking the finny ones to avoid scaring the fish.  

A walk along the foreshore of the Inlet was most productive in the matter of birds, but for some reason less so in getting worthwhile images of same. I was particularly annoyed that the ones I took of a flock of 11 Royal spoonbills were hopeless. Here are some less bad efforts from the day.

A very twisted up Crimson Rosella.

An Eastern Whipbird.  This is actually about as good a view as one gets of this most skulking species.  I estimate that about 99% of observations are made on the duetting whipcrack call.

Part of a flock of Chestnut Teal.  I'm not at all clear why the Chestnut are common at the coast while the Grey Teal are the common species up the hill.

A Whistling Kite.

You want lurid?  Here is a Rainbow Lorikeet munching on the gum flowers.