Naracoorte, SA

Thu 19 Feb 1998

Being far from Adelaide with few days left we did a transit drive to Naracoorte in South Australia. We arrived at Bool Lagoon in early afternoon having driven through the Coonawarra vineyards.

Bool Lagoon has suffered from a very dry summer and appeared to be a desert. No water anywhere we looked and certainly no birds. This apparently the normal condition of the site in autumn. Happily we persevered and found the last remnant of water in Hacks Lagoon. Though the water was very limited in area and clearly only a few cemtimetres deep, there were still hundreds of birds in residence. We saw Cape Barren Geese, Freckled Duck, Brolga, as well as Swamp Hen and several other waterbirds. We also saw Swallows, Willie Wagtail, White-backed Magpie and several other unidentified species of woodland birds.

When the reserve is in its dormant phase it is hard to imagine what it is like when the lagoons are full. We promised ourselves a return visit at a more "populous" time of the year. Since we bypassed Mt Gambier and a visit to the Blue Lake we will have to come back to south-east South Australia sometime.

The caravan park in Naracoorte is very pleasant with lots of trees and an adjacent public swimming pool which would be the envy of most towns. There is a nature walk of two or three kilometres with markers and notes to enhance the experience. The walk takes one through several different habitats based on the underlying geology of a 60 million year old sand dune. The highlight for us was the arrival of a flock of Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoo which roost in a stand of pine trees nearby.