Boundary Bend and Lake Cullulleraine

We're on the road again and will blog to record our adventures.

We left home a week ago but have only today left the state. We have visited our parents, three of whom are in their nineties, and Phil has installed a diesel heater in the van so we can freecamp in comfort. Last night we camped beside the Murray at Boundary Bend and we're well pleased - the heater is so warm and cosy and economical.

I asked a local resident at Boundary Bend if the fish were biting. He said the 'Bidgee was bringing down too much muddy water at the moment and that it wouldn't be worth fishing until about September. The Murray was flowing quite fast and was indeed muddy. There were hundreds of very noisy Little Corellas in the trees along the bank and our local informant told us that they appeared after the numerous plantations of almond trees started to mature a few years ago. But I also saw a beautiful Mistletoebird, Common Bronzewings, Superb Fairywrens and  Yellow Rosellas foraging in and around the eucalypts, a stately Great Egret waiting patiently in the shallow and several Pelicans loafing on the bank. It's a beautiful spot even on a cold and grey day.

Boundary Bend

A few hours later we stopped for lunch beside another stretch of water. Lake Cullulleraine is on the Sturt Highway near the border of Victoria and South Australia. The lake is in a natural depression that in the past only filled when the Murray River was in flood but the water level of the lake is controlled now. There is a walking track all the way around, 10.4 km in total, if one should feel inclined. The birds weren't on the lake, they were in a small pool beside the lake. It almost looked like they had their own infinity pool. Coots, Black Ducks and Eastern Swamphens were sheltering from the rough water on the lake itself and grazing on the mown grass of the picnic area.

Lake Cullulleraine

We are heading west, across the Nullarbor to Perth and the south-west. Hopefully the sun will shine more than it did today.