The water level in the lake has risen some more since our last paddle and today was our first opportunity to see how much further we could get up the creek.
Having met up with our fellow paddlers in Little Cuttagee we set of on glassy waters. The fish were jumping and the birdlife abundant. In addition to the usual suspects we saw one of the resident Sea Eagles that didn't budge as we paddled quietly passed. In the entrance of the creek we spotted a lone Spoon Bill and a little further on two immature Sea Eagles, presumably last years offspring. It was a delight to see them. We had feared they may not have fledged when the bushfire of October 3 2023 completely destroyed their nesting tree.
We saw a couple of kangaroos bounding along the silt jetty and had to wait while a Swamp Wallaby swam across the creek. We had 3 or 4 Azure Kingfisher sightings and that annoyingly elusive bird that never lets us get quite close enough for identification - I think it's either a Striated Heron or Black Bittern.
On the way back we spotted a Great Egret and, to top off a wonderful paddle, the resident Sea Eagles.
We made it nearly a kilometre further up the creek. It was sobering to see the bushfire damage in this formerly beautiful stretch, and sad to know that we will never again see it as it once was. Only a few of the Pencil Cedars remain. At the end of the blog I've included a few pre fire pics showing this stretch as it once was.
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11.3kms
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