Arcadia?

It is nice to be living in our own house again and it is such a contrast from the manse in Rockhampton. Surprisingly, since we have otherwise moved back to the traffic and chaos of big city life, we now live in a quiet arcadian location. In Rocky we were in a conveniently sized regional town but harrassed by traffic on one of the few urban arterials which ran only metres from our bedroom window.

Cycling in Rocky was hot much of the year and it was most enjoyable to rise early and do some miles in good sized training bunches of roadies. I miss that here and I miss the friends there. The roads are hilly and complicated so that it is hard to find those kinds of rides. On the other hand it is cooler and I can ride my mountainbike straight out into the forest climbing up from the pretty creeks to high ridgelines through ferny corners and tall shady trees. Mostly the steep hills are ridable even over 20percent gradient…as long as the legs and lungs hold out. I can do a hard loop with fun descents and great views that takes me 50minutes. It is 12klm with about 500 vertical metres of climbing in total.

The bird life is abundant. In Rocky we had some smaller birds flitting through the garden but a fairly small number of species. The little Misteletoe Bird was the highlight. This morning I was woken by Noisy Friar birds cackling. They are more pleasant than the raucous Cockatoo’s screeching. I’ve been discouraging them with a few well placed stones and they stay at a reasonable distance from our house now. Often Kookaburras wake us at dawn and if I lay awake I can hear many other birds calling. Pheasant, Pigeon, Drongo, Magpie and Butcherbirds are but a few. Up close there can be Blue Wrens tapping on the window after insects, the buzz of Double Bars or high peeping of Red Browed finches and the trilling of a family of Red Backed Wrens staying in touch. I haven’t seen a Wonga Pigeon yet or Satin Bower Birds which used to frequent this place but was surprised when a White Headed Pigeon swooped past at speed. Others that fly past are King Parrots, Yellow Tail Black Cockatoos and Rainbow Lorrikeets. I should start keeping a proper list. Now that I think about it many come straight to mind so there are ALOT. Wood Ducks, Pale Headed Rosellas, Peewee, Willy Wagtail, Blue Jays (Black Faced Cuckoo Shrike),Koels and Channel Billed Cuckoos at this time of year, the ubiquitous Swallows and Cattle Egret.

Whereas in Rocky we stayed indoors and closed up house to keep out the traffic noise here it is hard not to just sit on the verandah and watch the day go by without doing any work at all. Matter of fact I think it’s time I had another cup of tea! But first I should just go and pick some guavas before they are too ripe and start some jam.

Come visit us sometime