Thursday 9 May 2024 Bermagui River

 It was way overdue for a paddle and yesterday provided a window of opportunity between wet weather, continued clean up after the bushfire, building bonfires, burning them and dealing with tradespeople.

We set off 9.05am on slack water. The first thing we noticed was a flock of swans - we don't seem them below the bridge very often.

Next was a group of pelicans busily preening,

some terns and 

another flock of swans - all before heading under the bridge!

Heading up the inside of the Oyster lease.

More birds - Little Egrets.

With a high tide of only 1.5m (9.15am) we had to back track and hunt for passage between the oyster bommes to get back to the river (L discovered a couple too late and shredded some more plastic from his boat).

Nearing Rose Bay we could hear lots of splashing. Rounding the corner we came upon a large mixed flock of Cormorants hunting a school of approx 12cm silvery fish, chasing them across the river in front of us and pinning their quarry along the far bank. There upon a feeding frenzy took place. Fascinated, we sat and watched. The hunting took two forms - there were cormorants that hunted the fish and cormorants that waited and hunted the cormorant that caught the fish. Flashing silvery fish were disappearing down gullets faster than we could count.

The not so successful cormorants still chasing the school as we continued on.  It was turning out to be a more of a bird watching than paddling outing.

Yet more birds.

The last of the hunting cormorants, now sated, overtake us as they returned to their resting spot;

the oyster bed poles making a perfect perch.

Pulling into the campground for morning tea.  The only thing that marred this most soothing and restorative paddle was discovering the yobs had been back to the campground leaving the usual - broken bottles, drink cans and toilet paper. 

As we sat enjoying the sunshine a Blue Wren family kept us company foraging around our feet and in the nearby shrubbery. We spent a happy 40 mins, basking in the sunshine before returning to the water to catch a lazy ride back on the now outgoing tide.

An Australasian Darter spotted on the way back.

The cormorants were still on the oyster pole perches, wings dried, most of them were snoozing. Further on we spotted the Sea Eagles flying high overhead.

Feeling relaxed and peaceful we mooched slowly back, letting the current do most of the work. 

Being all packed up at 1.15pm we debated whether to have lunch in town or go straight home. Settling for neither we stopped for a gelati instead :) :)