March last year the yacht Futura after 30 years ownership, past into anothers hands.
I thought my sailing days were over
But a chance to crew with friends means that the 2021 adventures start on the bright blue sea.
Sailing down the channels Port Phillip
Past ships waiting at anchor
Keeping a weather eye
Before entering into Queenscliff the beautiful small boat harbour near Port Phillip Heads.
After a beautiful seaside sunset it a day for some final checks then out into Bass Strait.
At the end of my street is Newport Lakes
A 33 hectare urban forest created in the 1970’s from an old bluestone quarry
What a wonderful vision of the then Local Government Council to create this haven in what was then a very industrial suburb devoid of open space.
Only about 12 kilometres from the centre of Melbourne
The fate of the quarry was sealed when the digging hit an underground spring and the lake was formed.
Over the the four months of the Melbourne lockdown I have walked the trails of this urban forest.
Seen the changes as winter turned to spring and now as summer approaches.
The trees in blossom
The resident black swans with their cignets
The flock of Yellow Tailed Black Cockatoos that came for winter and went back bush in the Spring. Unlike us terrestrial animals free to fly to and fro as they please.
The bird life by the lake is vibrant wattle birds, butcher birds all too quick for amateur wildlife photographer like me
But this little blue wren wasn’t shy and struck the perfect pose.
The hard bluestone walls that surround the lake loom large and bare the cracks from the many explosions that were used to extract the bluestone.
Those cracks now form handholds for climbers to practice their skills.
And in the rock faces there is the subtle marks of human presence
Mosaics of the birds in the park
And as the days got longer and warmer and summer is only an month or so away
The Blue Tongue Lizards come out to bask in the sun.
Walking in Newport Lakes and cycling on the Williamstown bay trail (posts here, here and here.) have made me appreciate my local space very much. How lucky I am to have access to these elements of nature in a big city.
After for months of lockdown in the City of Melbourne the restrictions that have kept Melbournians separate from the rural areas of the State will be lifted in a few days.
The Mighty Breva will roam again across the local countryside, on the coastal roads and over the windy mountain passes.
But before I sign off my local explorations
A pelican in flight a couple of evenings back down at the Koroit Creek estuary.
It is into the 4th month of lockdown in Melbourne, Australia.
Movement is very restricted but lucky for me the Bay is near at hand.
One of the activities, one of places that soothes me is an evening ride along the Williamstown to Altona.
I have learnt to watch the colours of the sky, and know the spots to get the best views intimately.
Might have been my years of sailing that makes me such an avid weather watcher.
I can tell as the sun slowly sets that there is going to be a beautiful show tonight.
The early stages of of the sunset reaches across the bay and lights up the CBD.
There is the perfect moment when the sun reflects of the city’s glass towers making it glow before the cities artificial lights try to steal the show.
Its hard to believe from this angle that the metropolis is quiet and largely deserted as it sparkles in the sunset.
Its a short ride over a little ford to my favourite viewing point to see the birdlife on Koroit Creek
This night it is the swans gliding and feeding on the creek up near the ford, under the reddening sky
By the the time I reach the estuary end of the creek the fiery sunset is reflected in the still water
At the Jawbone Marine Sanctuary the last minutes of the suns day is an orange smudge across the sky
Gotta say in these difficult times, to be able to be in and rejoice the natural beauty nearby is a special tonic.
I check the lights on my cycle and head home.
There is a little place I go
A peaceful place that juts all so slightly, out into the bay
At the right time of the year
On the the night of a full moon
On a still cloudless night
When the water of the bay is smooth like the surface of a mirror
I can watch the moonrise
I can watch the sunset
Simultaneously
Look to the east and the moon makes its ascent
At first pale in the twilight
She creeps higher and higher slowly asserting her power over the night sky
Its her night
Once a month she fills the sky
As she rises its as if she is pushing the big red globe of the sun below the horizon
The sun as if in anger fills the sky with orange red
As if unwilling to leave the sky stage for the moons solo performance
Casting a pinkish reflected glow in the moons direction
But the suns end is inevitable
Soon the moon dominates the sky
less pale, more bright
casting her silver beam across the water.
The vapour pale of a jet
A rare sight in the Melbourne lockdown
Like a knife slash across the sunset sky.
Its a warm evening
Early spring
The first full moon of the spring equinox here in the southern hemisphere
I cycle around the peninsula
To catch the moon as she reaches her full glory
And there she is filling the sky with her soft silver light
Her glow sparkling on the water.
In many ways a severe COVID-19 lockdown is about finding oneself
In ones own environ
Reconnecting and finding peace within
I grew up 5 or 6 km from where I live now
We were A Bunch of Ratbags
Back in the rough industrial suburb of Footscray
And as a kid I ride my bicycle to the City of Williamstown
To look across at the City of Melbourne and dream.
Walk along the old piers looking at the boats and dreaming of adventures in distant lands
Now this area is my home and Im back from adventures in distant lands
And am again cycling by the waterside, sometimes dreaming and often appreciating the beauty of the place
The mighty ships coming up the Yarra River to port the ever present reminder of modern industry
So different to the time when the ball on the Time Ball Tower was raised and lowered so the waiting ships could set their chronometers.
Riding along the trail over the weeks of the restrictions I see and experience the moods of the slowly changing hours, weeks and months
Lost in the winter fogs
Feeling stranded like the boat at low tide
Rejoicing in the joy of a clear winters day the bear cloudless sky reflected in the still waters of the creek estuaries
Clear but cold with the beach all but empty apart from some hardy souls walking on the sand or buying a hot coffee.
Sometimes having to ride home hard in the cold chill of a waning day
The trail I ride is about 15km its like a meditation as my legs move to the rhythm of the trail.
The same trail but everyday different.
Lost in the place and its beauty.
It was 2015 that I spent a full winter in Melbourne,
Australia’s southernmost mainland capital
Renowned for its cold and changable winter weather
Cold and foggy mornings lasting till noon when the weak winter sun burns the mist away.
Was surely written about Melbourne’s weather by Crowded House
The current lockdown restricts me to my environs and luckily the local waterways
The bicycle has most of the time replaced the Moto Guzzi
So on my ride I flock together with the local waterbirds
The Spoonbill
The Egret
And the hungry Pelican
They aren’t locked down but choose to enjoy what winter offers
Across town there is the beautiful Yarra Bend Park
With its early 1900’s boat house
On the banks of the Yarra River with paths to meander along
And the Cootamundara, a beautiful winter flowering tree in full bloom
The park is on the city doorstep with beautiful views of the city
Which makes a beautiful backdrop for my Aprilia Pegaso – my fave bike around the city
At the end of a day heading across the town and home
The St Kilda Pier runs west into the Hobsons Bay and offers spectacular views of the sunset
Though the lock down is is hard the rules allow the opportunity to get out to exercise
That means I can revisit and appreciate some of my favourite places in my home city.
Hopefully one day soon fellow travellers you can as well.
The second Melbourne, Australia lock down has just been implemented
After being in and out of lock downs in Spain and England and quarantine in a Melbourne Hotel, this second lockdown in Melbourne has finally anchored me.
Famous landmarks of the usually bustling city cast with an almost ghostly quietness
Even the usually bustling Victoria Market with its colourful displays of produce, like the life has been sucked out of its ancient stalls and sheds
No queuing four deep at my favourite stall
Chance meeting with someone I hadn’t seen for a while
Little is left to chance in the time of coronavirus
At the eastern end of the city
The Monuments, the Shrine of Remembrance and the Old Observatory along with Gardens and the floral clock stand alone
In the lanes and alleyways of the inner city
Usually vibrant
The graffiti almost mocks the quiet desolation
The next 6 weeks (the length of this lockdown) will be a time and thought of what has been and what will be.
Something different to share over the coming weeks.
It was a sunny clear still winters day
The air was crispy cold as I headed out of the city and into the rural hinterland of Melbourne
As I passed over the Murchison Gap the rich green farming land was rolling out in front of me – a sight to see
The little back roads winding through the hills and farmland beckoning
But it was a holiday weekend and the roads were slowly filling, even the back roads were starting to bulge with caravans being towed by big SUVs. Post the Covid 19 lockdown I think all Melbournites were keen to get out of the city.
After the lovely tourist town of Marysville I was heading for the Black Spur only to hit a long line of traffic
A sign to Warburton a quick to the left and I was on a little road through the forest
The road soon became a gravel track
And I was in the tall trees and giant tree ferns of the Yarra Ranges National Park
The surface was a little damp and slippery in places
But no traffic just the smell of the bush and a through this beautiful piece of old growth forest
Such a lucky turn, a piece of serendipity on a little days ride.
Flags are the traditional way of ship comminication
The flags tell a message of respect.
The club burgee at top of the mast says the ship is from Hobsons Bay Yacht Club
The Australian flag from the back stay identifies an Australian ship
The courtesy flag is a sign of respect to the country you are in.
The flying of the aboriginal flag from the cross trees says we are in aboriginal country.
Three flags can give a simple but true message.
A safe, joyful, happy 2019 to all
May the sun shine warm upon your face
May the wind blow always at your back
May the rain fall soft upon your fields and
May peace, happiness and love rein supreme.
Ps the above is an adaption of a traditional Irish greeting.
