October 7 - Bemm River and there abouts!

It’s not the destination but the journey that counts - and so say both of us! It usually takes us twice as long to get anywhere because we stop, sometimes frequently,  to check out a bird, a flower, a tree, a view. We have spent many happy hours just poking about often within 100 or so metres of where we hopped out of the car; this particular day was no exception. We were aiming for Bemm River but stopped along the road because I wanted to get a closer look at the grass trees which were crowding the grassland between stands of trees. Like so many species we’ve found, these seem to thrive and certainly flower after fire. 

The name Xanthorea literally means ‘yellow flow’ derived from the resin it exudes: Xanthos (yellow, golden)  and rhea (flow). The aborigines once used the resin as a glue in making axes and weapons. 

Flowers are borne on a long spike above a bare section called a scape and are often stimulated by bushfire! They are among the first flowering plants to have evolved. 

The flowers are intriguing and quite sweet I believe; the insects love them. 

These majestic plants - Xanthorea, our amazing grass trees, are only found growing naturally in Australia. There are 30 species in Australia (depends on who’s telling the story - taxonomy?!), five are native to SE Australia. It’s an ancient plant which relies on a symbiotic relationship with a fungus growing at its roots which increases the roots ability to access water and nutrients. Ah fungi - how many plants rely on fungi for their survival. 

Many, but not all, species develop an above ground stem. The stem may take up to twenty years to emerge above ground. I think this one is a Xanthorea minor which is relatively small with no above ground stem. We have seen them footed throughout the bush as we’ve explored. 

As we strolled we found loads of other lovelies. 

Stylidium graminifilium - trigger plant

One of the hundreds of pea genus 

Tetratheca ciliata - pink bells!



Burchardia umbellata

Diplarrena moraea - white iris

Raindrops captured by a Drosera- one of my fave wee plants. 

Dampiera stricta 

We did get to Bemm River eventually. It looks like a nice quiet holiday spot which I suspect is mainly for people who like fishing. It squats on the shores of Sydenham Inlet which forms part of an immense estuary complex near the mouth of the Bemm. 

Bemm River

A daisy bush but not sure which one.



My favourite birds relaxing at Sydenham Inlet from where we then drove to the ocean beach at Pearl Point - we bashed our way through swarming mozzies to reach a wide windswept beach. 

Greenhood orchids tucked in along the steep sandy track to the beach

Banksia integrifolia 



Pearl Point and indeed it was a pearler. 

We drove home with a quick look in at Cabbage Tree creek where we were to return for a wander dome days later. 

October 2 - Errinundra Old Growth forest walk

Someone said recently that they’d like to go Walkabout with me, this particular day would probably NOT have been one you’d have chosen! 7-8 kms through amazing bush but it was very challenging in parts - the uppy-downy bits mainly, man oh man! We were walking the old growth forest trail in the Errinundra National Park. 

This NP protects Victoria’s largest remaining stand of cool temperate rainforest and ancient tall eucalypt forests; some Shining Gums are believed to be over 600 years old.  

Hard water-fern 





This vagrant frond was turning its underside to the light. The brown spots are spores - lots of new tree ferns there. 

It was quite magical walking along what was once a network of ancient Aboriginal ridgeline travel routes, routes that countless previous generations of the Moreno people traversed to visit or attend special places or events or to access seasonal foods, for example, to and from the high country for Bogong moth feasts. Many aboriginal quartz artefacts have been found in the area some of which are believed to have been made as much as 5000 years ago: it is a registered site of aboriginal significance and the artefacts are protected. I didn’t look for these but found lots of strange coloured earth. 

Tree and bracken fern shoots at edible and make a nourishing salad I believe. When we were in Far East Russia the locals told us that they collected the ferns in summer and froze what they couldn’t eat. 

Geebung or Persoonia levis Bren fruits are edible once they are ripe; they ripen after they have fallen. 

Mountain Correa

I saw lots of fascinating trees and bushes - Gippsland Waratah, Mountain Correa, Forest gebung, Mountain pepper and ferns including Hard Water ferns which I rather like.  But we saw little wildlife apart from birds and a few lizards; evidently there are resident owls, gliders and tiger quolls.

Patient Lindsay waiting for me to catch up - I make so many stops to take pix and inspect the plants. 

When I say track well it’s over this tree root! Lindsay is standing on the track. 

This too is the track! Fallen branches everywhere. My knight sat in the branch so I could climb over. 

It was slow going not only because often it was a bit eeny-meeny-miny deciding where the track actually went, but I was checking out ALL the plants and fruits I found - no I didn’t try any, this time! And we were always on the look out for Joe Blakes, it was that kind of day. 

Sometimes it was good to sit down for a spell .....

.... and sometimes it would have been nice to sit down!

‘They’ said the walk was 2.5km in to the giant trees and elevated boardwalk in the valley but at 2.5km we were still walking with no boardwalk in sight and we were still plunging down into the valley where those giant trees and elevated boardwalk were said to be lurking. I couldn’t see where the trail might possibly end and given ‘what goes down’ etc I wimped out at 3km and propped on an old seat (thankfully it was there) while champ Lindsay kept plunging on down. It was so peaceful sitting there with the sounds of the forest and the birds all around. About 30 mins later poor Lins came struggling and panting back up the track - that killer effort was at least 1 Km. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him so wiped out, poor darling - it was a veeery steep climb.

We got back to the car almost 4 hours later rather bushed. Then we took the long way home over the Errinundra Saddle and followed the Combienbar River road south through Club Terrace, an old mining settlement, to emerge onto Highway 1 someway east of Bemm River. 

Bright everlasting daisies dotted the side of the road 

I call these wild hyacinth but they are actually Stackhousia monogyna. Not a pretty name. 

We skirted around many fallen trees but this one on a track out to a lookout was impassable. 

It was a marvellous drive through fascinating isolated country where once gold was mined. We saw lots of forest regeneration but the clean up looks like slow going with some fallen trees still across tracks. Lots of flowers snatched at my eyes as we passed - bright everlasting daisies and pretty stalks of what looked like hyacinths. I even saw a female lyrebird career across the road. The sun was slipping behind the mountains however so we didn’t dilly dally to look at all the lovelies but we will definitely be back to explore another day.

August - one last bite! Philip Island wetlands and bird sanctuaries.

Conservation Hill and Rhyll inlet on Western Port. 

A well marked walking trail takes you through tranquil mangroves and mudflats, the destination for many migratory birds as well as resident birds such as the Great Egret, Royal Spoonbills and Pied Oystercatchers all watched over by the mighty White-bellied sea eagle. 

The boardwalk brings you close to mangrove trees and allows a great view of the life in the mudflats. 

We saw both Scrubby and Beaded glasswort

Some form of insect gall taking advantage of a comfortable albeit temporary nursery.  

Along the route we saw quite a few roos and wallabies and birds of course. And we had wonderful water views out over the inlet. 

I was inspecting this prickly wattle and out sprang this bold little spider to see who was twanging his web. I must have looked a bit large for him to take on so we just watched each other for a wee while.  

This vantage point offered great views over the escarpment. 

This escarpment is the site of the Diamond Dolly Quarry which was developed to give employment to farmers during the Great Depression. It was abandoned when the rock was found to be unsuitable for road making. Today the quarry site is a National Geological site of significance. The rock found there, known as Rhyll Arkose, is over 65 million years old and differs from all other forms in Western Port. Other rocky reefs like this run out into the Inlet. They are the extremities of basalt flows from vents further south on Phillip Island much like that which form the Forrest Caves we visited earlier. With ancient volcanic activity such as this it is no wonder Phillip Island is a fossickers dream. 

I love these flowers and they bordered part of our walk; Leptospermum, coastal tea tree, it is so fragrant. Captain James Cook named it the tea tree because he had observed the Bundjalung people of eastern Australia use the leaves to prepare a healing tea and it is reported that his men used the leaves first to make a tea and then to brew a type of beer

Oswin Roberts Reserve

Within this area of wetlands and bird sanctuaries is the Oswin Roberts Reserve. We took a trail through this after an already tiring walk so although it it was an easy albeit longish walk, it was a bit much that day. Nevertheless .....

The reserve comprises remnant  eucalypt woodland and is a sanctuary for wallabies which we saw, as well as echidna and bats which we didn’t see. 

Rather spectacular bloom

Many trees were festooned with this creeper the Pandorea pandorana – Wonga Wonga Vine 

Lichen and fungi provided splashes of vivid colour

Some tree were massive and were obviously old but still standing. Others were destined for the chop.  

Gnarled trees made a gallery of tangled art forms along the trail.