Milang, SA

Sat 21 Feb 1998

Having had such a good day end to yesterday, we set out to travel round both Lake Albert and Lake Alexandrina. In particular, we wanted to visit the Tolderol Game Reserve.

The best laid plans . . . as they say.

The Tolderol Game Reserve is hidden behind 10 kilometres of gravel road with next to no signposts and several gates all but the last of which were also mute.

When we finally reached our objective, it was the biggest let down. Reserved it may be but without any sign of game at all.

We had lunch looking out over dry wetlands and tall reeds, no water and no birds in sight anywhere.

On the positive side, we have seen many raptors over the last three days, mostly unidentified. Today we definitely saw a Black-shouldered Kite. We have also seen several Nankeen Kestrel which might have been Brown Falcon.

Milang is a little town lost in history. There was once a thriving port and shipbuilding industry here servicing the lakes and the lower Murray River. There was even a railway line feeding the port. Alas the blacktop and the truck have put all that into the past and Milang clings to life by a thread.