Rainy walk at Dee Why with Sharon and Lydia

We met up in Dee Why, intending to walk to Manly, but it was raining quite hard. We chilled out at Girlders Cafe, which does very nice smoothies and food, before venturing for a short local walk.  We had a rather memorable interlude with an incapacitated sea gull.

Memorable moments: Problem solved

Sharon, Lydia, and I met up in Dee Why for what was meant to be a brisk coastal walk. The weather, however, had other ideas, so we spent the first part of the morning sheltering from the rain over warm drinks and long chats at Girdler's Cafe.

Eventually, the downpour eased enough for us to venture out along the lagoon. We hadn't walked far when we spotted a lone, incapacitated seagull lying flat on the wet sand.

Lydia, practical and eager to keep moving, was keen to press on. Sharon and I, however, couldn't bear the thought of leaving the poor creature there to suffer in the cold. We pulled out a phone and rang WIRES to report the distressed bird.

Instead of dispatching an immediate rescue crew, WIRES escalated the call straight to the Department of Primary Industries’ Animal Diseases division, suspecting it might be carrying avian flu. The operator gave us strict instructions: under no circumstances touch the bird, leave it precisely where it lay, and immediately complete a detailed biosecurity form they would text to my phone.

We turned back to continue our loop, but moments later, a follow-up message arrived requesting an urgent photograph of the suspect specimen.

Lydia and I picked up the pace to head back to the spot, while Sharon strolled along a little behind us. When Lydia and I reached the site on the sandbank, government protocols were rendered instantly obsolete. Two large crows were perched directly on top of the seagull, methodically ripping into it. The bird was already half-eaten.

We turned around and walked back toward Sharon, who was just catching up.

"The problem is solved!" I announced with genuine, unbridled relief.

Sharon’s face lit up with wide-eyed, delighted amazement. "It’s okay?! It flew away?!"

"No," I replied cheerily. "It’s been eaten by crows."

To my mind, it was a total victory: the seagull’s suffering was officially over, and nature had dealt with the backlog far quicker than any government agency ever could. Sharon, on the other hand, stood there looking utterly horrified, staring at me as though I had personally invited the crows to lunch.

Balmoral to Spit Bridge along the water

After my birthday lunch at Frenchy's, I walked to Balmoral. On a whim I kept walking towards Spit Bridge and was amazed that I was able to get all the way there entirely along the water's edge. It involved a bit of clambering here and there, all part of the adventure, and the rocks were spectacular. There were also some stunning houses. Sydney continually delights me with all its hidden facets. This is a walk I will definitely do again.

 

La Perouse with Shushann

 Shushann and I had meant to walk from La Perouse to Maroubra but it was a very hot day. We ended up going for a short walk at La Perouse, then headed by car to Malabar Headland for a swim. Lovely to catch up and share some of the highlights from my NSW outback trip. 

Cape Bowling Green Lighthouse and Pyrmont Bridge

I met up with Michael and Sue's friends for a delicious lunch at The Little Snail in Pyrmont. Afterwards, I took the opportunity to photograph the Cape Bowling Green Lighthouse and Pyrmont Bridge. Then a lovely stroll to Circular Quay past Barangaroo. 

Cape Bowling Green Lighthouse

The Cape Bowling Green Lighthouse has an unusually adventurous history. Built in 1874 on a low sandy spit south of Townsville in Queensland, it was an iron-clad timber structure designed to warn ships away from a notoriously hazardous stretch of coast. Because the cape was constantly shifting and eroding, the lighthouse had to be moved more than once during its working life. It was automated in 1920 and remained in service until 1987, when it was replaced by a modern light. Rather than being demolished, the 22-metre lighthouse was carefully dismantled, transported more than 2,000 kilometres to Sydney and reassembled at the Australian National Maritime Museum in Darling Harbour, where it opened to the public in 1994.

Pyrmont Bridge

The Pyrmont Bridge is one of Sydney’s most important surviving pieces of industrial-era infrastructure. Opened in 1902, it spans Darling Harbour and was designed as a swing bridge, with its central section rotating to allow ships to pass through. Once carrying road traffic between the city and Pyrmont, it was closed to vehicles in the 1980s and later restored as a pedestrian and cycle bridge. Today it forms a major walking link across Darling Harbour and remains a striking reminder of the area’s maritime and industrial past, with its original machinery still capable of operating the swing span.

Walk to Circular Quay past Barangaroo