On the way home, I decided to head westward rather than go down the coastal road again—which was lucky, because the coastal road was flooded from all the rain anyway.
I paused at a few rest stops along the way, and at one I was gobsmacked to find these Brolgas, possibly in the middle of a courtship dance:
My first proper stop was in Emerald, where after a long drive I stretched my legs at the Emerald Botanic Gardens and happened to spot two lifers—the Yellow-Throated Miner and the Apostlebird. I didn’t get any good Apostlebird photos at the Botanic Gardens, but luckily there were loads of them at my next stop.
I also spotted this gorgeous Great Egret hanging out in the river:
And this Rainbow Lorikeet peeked out to say hello:
Overnight, I stayed at Lake Maraboon Holiday Village, which was stunning. The scenery while driving over the dam to get there was a lovely surprise.
I was stoked to be greeted by a huge crowd of Black Kites—there were dozens hanging around the dam and the caravan park. I had a lot of fun trying to photograph them in the gorgeous evening light on my afternoon adventure.
There were also a whole lot of Grey-Crowned Babblers at the caravan park—another lifer!
And of course there were a few resident Laughing Kookaburras at the caravan park. They’re always a pleasure to photograph.
I also spotted this Australasian Figbird on my afternoon stroll—he was getting cranky with a nearby Black Kite.
Last but not least, some more Laughing Kookaburras posed for me in the sunset.
I was up early the next morning to see what I could find around the dam. Many more Black Kites:
Another Laughing Kookaburra, caught in the middle of breakfast:
And a gorgeous Sacred Kingfisher:
And the only Apostlebird that would sit still for a photo:
The main reason I wanted to go west on the way home was to stop in at Carnarvon Gorge, so the next day I set off early and drove in to Carnarvon National Park, where I did my longest bird walk to date: approximately 11 km. My first exciting bird was this Buff-Rumped Thornbill—another lifer—having a bath in a puddle in the carpark with some friends.
Unfortunately my fitness and photography skills were both challenged at Carnarvon Gorge so I didn’t end up with many blog-worthy photos. I was excited to see some Purple-Backed Fairywrens, but sadly they were too quick and the lighting too dull for photos.
I was followed most of the way by the song of the Red-Browed Finch:
I was stoked to see this beautiful Scarlet Honeyeater, a tiny red flash through the trees:
And I had been seeing glimpses of yellow all day. Finally, towards the end of the walk, I spotted this conference happening between some Yellow-Tufted Honeyeaters:
The final stop on my journey home was at Lake Broadwater, where I did a few walks at Lake Broadwater Conservation Park (including spending a while camped out at the bird hide) and stayed one night at the stunning Broadwater Campground.
Near the bird hide I spotted these Little Corellas hanging out together:
And also this pair of Sacred Kingfishers—presumably a cranky parent and its hungry young.
Later on I found another gorgeous Sacred Kingfisher:
And these bubblegum-pink Galahs:
Closer to the campground was another Sacred Kingfisher:
A whole tree full of Yellow-Rumped Thornbills:
They were tricky to capture up close, but luckily these ones landed right near me:
Lastly, I spotted this beautiful Red-Winged Parrot, perched up high:
And that’s a wrap on my wonderful trip to Mackay.
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