A Quick trip up north - Atherton Tablelands

Once again we decided to make a short trip to the Atherton Tablelands to escape the oppressive heat on the coast. Even as regular visitors we are always on the lookout for new places to stay and this trip – without the camper trailer – was to be no exception. With one new location, a return to an old favourite, as well as a return to a new favourite, this was to be a trip full of bird photography opportunities.

From a bird watching and photography point of view, North Queensland in summer offers many great opportunities that are not available in the more comfortable winter months. Summer migrants like the Buff-breasted Paradise Kingfisher and Metallic Starling are busy nesting. The colourful Blue-faced Parrot Finch can be found at its favourite feeding sites on Mt Lewis and Superb Fruit-Doves are vocal prior to nesting.

I had a wish list of tropical specialties, that I had seen in the past but had not photographed satisfactorily, to look for on this trip. In addition to the birds mentioned above, Tooth-billed Bowerbird, Barred Cucko-shrike, Atherton Scrubwren, Fernwren, Bridled Honeyeater and Mountain Thornbill were all on the list. I also hoped to photograph Boyd's Forest Dragon, a lizard I had often looked for but never seen. Mick

Wondecla

27 – 30 December 2017

We headed up the Bruce Highway towards the tablelands and stopped for lunch at Henrietta Creek campground. Last time we were here we had camped overnight. There is a shelter with picnic tables so it seemed the ideal spot to stop. We then drove into Atherton for a visit to Platypus Park, and then some shopping before making our way to Wondecla. Had we not had time to kill and a need to shop, we could have turned off at Millaa Millaa towards Herberton to reach our destination.

Our first stay was new to us – a birdwatchers cabin inWondecla. There is only one cabin on the property so guests are assured of peace and quiet in the very well-appointed cabin which faces out into the wet sclerophyll forest. A number of bird feeders have been set up a short distance from the verandah. There is a network of walks, some well-established and some being created, mostly along the creek which unfortunately had little water.

Here my target was the Superb Fruit-Dove. Several birds could be heard along the walking tracks but I only saw one briefly at a great distance. Oh well, we'll just have to return for them another time. This is a wonderful place to indulge in my favourite type of bird photography... sitting on a verandah with the camera on a tripod and clicking away at whatever comes in for the feeders. To me this is blissful, as I'm not carrying a heavy camera around! One of the highlights was a visit from Mountain Thornbills. Mick

Eastern Spinebill, one of the many honeyeater species that visited regularly.

Macleay's Honeyeater

Yellow-faced Honeyeater

Scarlet Honeyeater

White-naped Honeyeater

White-cheeked Honeyeater

Red-browed Finch

Mountain Thornbill

Sub adult Australian King-Parrot

Male Australian King-Parrot

A family of Pale-yellow Robins come in to drink around sunset.

Peaceful Dove

The property owners are very happy to share their knowledge and also offered to take us spot-lighting which we declined this time. During our three night stay we completed the loop walks – retracing our steps to the best spots, and spent hours on the verandah watching (and photographing) the birds as they came and went for food and water. We didn't leave the property, just enjoying the peace and quiet - including no phone or TV which is something we quite enjoy.

A Green-eyed Tree Frog waiting for bugs on the window.

Brush-tailed Possum

 Coppery Brush-tailed Possum

A Northern Brown Bandicoot foraged around the cabin in the evening.

Northern Sword-grass Brown Butterflies were common.

There were lots of nocturnal visitors and the regular calls of frogs despite the lack of water in the creek.

Julatten

30 December 2017 – 2 January 2018

Our next stay was at Kingfisher Park – another birdwatchers’ spot – at Julatten. We first visited more than 25 years ago and even though the place has changed hands several times since then, it remains a specialist birding destination. At this time of year the attraction is the buff-breasted paradise kingfisher. Visitors include many international birdwatchers.

Leaving Wondecla in the morning we visited Hasties Swamp (another regular stop-over) and then Platypus Park for lunch. Grocery shopping in Atherton, then the drive through Mareeba to Julatten.

Nankeen Night Heron at Hasties Swamp.

Azure Kingfisher at Platypus Park.

 There are lots of good spots on the property but one of the big attractions of a stay at Kingfisher Park is its proximity to World Heritage rainforest at Mount Lewis. We spent two mornings on the mountain staking out the blue-faced parrot finches. An unexpected bonus was a sighting of Atherton Scrubwrens.

It was great to see Atherton Scrubwrens but this was the best pic I could manage.

Blue-faced Parrot Finch

 I was happy to get shots of Blue-faced Parrot Finch and the Atherton Scrubbie on Mt Lewis but they could have been a lot better. I didn't even get time to look for Fernwren, another very challenging bird to photograph. So it looks like we will have to come back for another try next summer. Mick

Red-necked Crake bathing near our room. These could be heard calling at night.

Buff-breasted Paradise Kingfisher

Noisy Pitta sub-adult

Dinner on New  Year's Eve at the nearby Highlander Tavern was a bit of a treat - nice meal and a fabulous view.

Eastern stony creek frog at Kingfisher Park

As we were packing to leave Kingfisher Park we noticed a musty smell in the car. A quick check didn't reveal the source - we suspected wet clothing or boots, so we headed off towards Mareeba and a stop at the op-shops. By the time we arrived the smell had started to become unpleasant but we still couldn't find it. 

Lake Eacham

2 January - 5 January

We stopped at The Humpy at Tolga to pick up some fresh produce, snacks and other goodies from this popular fruit and veggie shop. Their selection of other things is fabulous and we always stop and buy ourselves something as a treat. Getting back in the car the smell had started to smell distinctly like something dead!

We stopped for a while in Atherton then made our way through a tropical rainstorm to Lake Eacham and Crater Lakes Rainforest Cottages. We have stayed once before and really liked the accommodation, location and the many visiting birds - so now it's on the favourites list.

On arrival we decided to unpack the car as completely as we could to try to find the source of the offending odour, but without any luck. By this time Mick had decided there was something dead in the air conditioning system, as the smell seemed to be worse we first starting the car. I wasn't so sure and really didn't want to have to start removing bits of the car to find it. I eventually found the instructions for removing the aircon filter - first you have to remove the glove box - and Mick set about the task. Well, he was right - there was a decomposing and very smelly antechinus (native mouse) just behind the filter. Fortunately it wasn't too hard to get it out - just really stinky. A quick drive into Atherton the next morning for a new filter and some heavy duty air freshener was in order. We have no idea how this lovely creature came to find itself in the air conditioner, but we suspect it climbed up into the engine bay when we first arrived at Wondecla looking for warmth - it was very cool in the afternoons and overnight there. We checked that off as a new experience and one we had no desire to repeat.

The climate on the tablelands is significantly cooler than on the coast, but at the height of summer, it was still hot enough away from our rainforest hideaway to go for a swim. Lake Eacham is a very popular spot and there were heaps of people there when we visited each morning. The water was perfect and there was plenty of room for everyone. We also visited Lake Barrine and had morning tea at the tea house - another favourite place. There are walks right around both lakes as well as shorter ones. We went on short walks looking for birds of course!

Lake Eacham is a reliable place to find Barred Cuckoo-shrike.

Little Black Cormorant

Boyd's Forest Dragon

Bridled Honeyeater

Dance practice for a young Victoria's Riflebird.

Lewins Honeyeater

Ginger flower

Tooth-billed Bowerbird at Lake Barrrine

Most of our time was spent at the cottage, feeding and photographing the birds. Mick was also excited to see and photograph his first Boyd's forest dragon. Once again, we enjoyed the peace and quiet of a beautiful spot.

Metallic Starling

On the way home in Tully's Gum Boot Park I found Metallic Starlings nesting down low. Unfortunately it was raining so I only had a very quick session with these amazing birds. Mick

Heading Home - Rainbow Beach and Eungella

Rainbow Beach

13 - 15 November 2017

We chose to stay at Rainbow Beach because of its proximity to Inskip Point. Inskip Point is a fabulous and very popular camping spot where we stayed at the start of the year. As well as a lovely beach and views to Fraser Island, there is also the potential for bird photography.

We stayed in a town house at Rainbow Beach and visited Inskip Point a couple of times without any success. Even so, it was nice wandering along the bush tracks and along the beaches. We spent a morning in Rainbow Beach township and enjoyed a short walk along the beach.

Caspian Terns out on the sand spit.

A pair of juvenile Brush Turkeys got my hopes up briefly. From the moment they hatch these cute chicks are on their own.

Inskip Point is supposed to be a good site for Black-breasted Button-quail. Finding and photographing them was the main purpose of our visit. Unfortunately there were none about... again. There were a good few Bar-tailed Godwits and terns out on the sand spit. Mick

On our departure from Rainbow Beach, we decided to take another detour to Tin Can Bay. As luck would have it we arrived just at the end of the dolphin feeding so we hung around and watched these beautiful creatures until they swam away. You have to pay to take part, but we didn't see anyone collecting money, probably because the activity was almost over.

Australian Humpback Dolphins are fed by volunteers. The Humpback inhabits rivers & estuaries.

Even a baby dolphin turns up.

From Tin Can Bay we made our way back to the Bruce Highway and north towards home. We reached Rockhampton mid-afternoon and decided it was too early to stop. After a break and refreshments we set off again and reached Clairview at about 6:00pm. We made this our overnight stop.

Our cabin was over priced and dreadful but the beach is pleasant.

 We had a short walk on the beach in the morning before heading off for Eungella.

Eungella

16 - 18 November 2017

Eungella has been a favourite spot for many years and we have visited quite a few times. The attraction is not only the birdwatching and rainforest, but the platypus. Apparently Broken River is the most reliable place on the planet to see these unique and fascinating creatures. Platypus were thought to be nocturnal but at Broken River you can often see them during the day as well as early morning and late afternoon. There are a number of viewing platforms along the river's edge with interpretive information, and you can also stand on the road bridge for a look. We spent most of our two days wandering along the walkways looking hopefully and were regularly rewarded.

Although we saw them a little less frequently this time, I think the conditions were better than on previous visits.

We did go for one short walk through the rainforest along part of the Granite Bend Circuit (1.6km, Class 3). We took a detour down to the creek which is part of the Clarke Range track (8.2km and Class 4 - definitely not for us) and spent some time enjoying the peace and tranquility, before heading back to the Granite Bend track. We retraced our steps instead of continuing on (we both thought we remembered the track getting a bit steeper further on) and then turned off again to complete the Rainforest Discovery Circuit (780m and Class 3). The tracks are very well marked, with maps signposted at all junctions so it is easy to make up your own walk as we did.

Despite their bright colours, Noisy Pittas can be very hard to see among the leaf litter.

A green Tree Snake sunning itself on the walking track.

Flowering Lillipillies along the river attract a variety of honeyeaters. Lewin's Honeyeater.

Dusky Honeyeater

Little Shrike-thrush.

Leaden Flycatcher

Female Cicadabird

Male Cicadabird

Fan-tailed Cuckoo

From Eungella it was on to home with a stop for coffee in Proserpine and lunch at the well resourced and maintained picnic area at Guthalungra.

The trip as shown on our Wikicamps Trip Planner

In summary:

1. We were away from home for 29 nights
2. We drove a total distance of 4333km
3. We stayed on 1 island, at 5 beachside towns and in the mountains at 4 places - from the rainforest to the reef in 12 different locations
4. We travelled through two states - Queensland and New South Wales
5. We visited 6 national parks (Mount Clunie, Tooloom Falls,  Nightcap/Whian Whian - NSW; Eungella, Mapleton Falls, Kondalilla - Qld)
6. We have now visited the most easterly spot on the Australian mainland (we have previously visited the most northerly and the most southerly in Tasmania. Just the most southerly on the mainland, and the most westerly to go)