There’s not a lot to do in Penneshaw.
You can take a walk on the mostly deserted beach …
Chat to a few of the locals …
Fossick along the tide line for interesting objects ..
Watch the ferries come and go …
Eat fresh seafood and check out the local kids’ jellyfish creations at the pub …
Watch molluscs making trails in the rock pools …
And that’s about it really …
Perfect, no wonder we keep coming back !
It’s early morning and I’ve been sitting here listening to a native Wonga pigeon go on, and on, and on …
It’s a very pretty bird, plump, beautifully marked and quite shy, but it has one of the most annoying calls of any Australian bird. It can be heard up to two kilometres away and can continue for hours!
I’m wondering if the one I can hear is the same pigeon that has taken to parading backwards and forwards outside my bathroom window. My bathroom has large windows and no curtains so I enjoy a lovely view of the surrounding bush and wildlife while showering. I suspect that the pigeon is not actually interested in my ablutions, rather it can see its own reflection and is putting on a mating display.
Whilst searching for information on the Wonga pigeon, I discovered that the early settlers considered them a delicacy and often used to serve them roasted and basted in lemon butter with a bread sauce. One of Australia’s first cookbook writers Mrs Hannah MacLurcan published a recipe in 1898 …
Now I don’t wish this pigeon any harm, but it does sound rather delicious.
So Wonga pigeons should perhaps consider a new tune !
I had assumed that whilst I was in Sri Lanka I would miss most of the beautiful spring weather at home. But temperatures stayed low and 40mm of rain just before my return meant that I came back to a blooming garden and bees making themselves busy everywhere.
The nasturtiums in the bee garden are putting on a spectacular show and attracting hordes of native bees – sometimes three or four in just one bloom. And I’m appreciating their delicate scent as I wander around the garden.
Such wonderful value for a $4.00 packet of seeds. I’m collecting from this crop of flowers, so I should never have to buy another packet of seeds.
Encouraged by all this bee activity, I decided to risk removing the top layer of the roof of my native beehive, and to place a honey pot over the exposed hole. The idea is that the bees will fill it with honeycomb and then I can just keep replacing the pot for a modest but unending supply of honey. After an initial show of interest, the bees returned to their pollen collecting duties, and I’m optimistic that once they fill the main chamber with honeycomb, they’ll start filling my honeypot.
I also added a simple roof made from a sheet of propeller plate folded in the middle. Now I think we are ready for summer ….
A Bellingen Diary 