Pelican Therapy

Whenever I feel deluged by life occurrences, hitting the road and observing pelicans is a rejuvenating  therapy.  

With an imminent return to work hovering like a revengeful drone, I decided to explore two locations I'd seen posted on Facebook by fellow amateur photographers. Travelling from Sydney to the old coal loader at Catherine Hill Bay and then on towards Caves Beach, I was able to schedule a visit to both the pelican feeding and the much photographed lifesavers' hut at the Entrance, so the day was filled to the brim with photo opportunities.

image: Catherine Bay Coal Loader

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Paulownia Plantation

As it nears the end of my holidays I decided to head for the mountains on a waterfall hunt. Travelling via Richmond I decided to spend some time photographing the Paulownia Plantation which I'd noticed on a previous trip to Mt. Wilson. A popular location for wedding photography, the plantation has also appeared in some shots from the Focus group on Flickr and Facebook. Although visible from the road the view is somewhat obscured by rampant choko vines and blackberry bushes so not to be deterred I elected to travel round the perimeter of the block to see if I could find a less obstructed POV.

My gift for today was a beautiful old gentleman called Clive who serendipitously pulled up next to me on the access road and invited me onto the plantation. Clive proudly told me he was 83 years old and had recently recovered from heart surgery. Accompanied by Brownie his faithful dog he headed off on his tractor to do some control burning after inviting me to stay for as long as I wished. He even suggested I call back in Spring when the trees are adorned with their lilac blossoms.


After a few hours spent wandering amongst the majestic trees I set off for Leura Cascades to try and capture some waterfall shots. It was great practice for slow exposures but I was limited for time having spent so long at Richmond. But it was worth it - another item ticked off my bucket list !!!!!!