Magpie Geese to........

Ground Control!!

What an incredible experience. I was driving towards the west tonight to try and find a good spot to take some images of the sunset. I glanced to my right and nearly jumped out of the car. There must have been a couple of thousand Magpie Geese nestled in a large paddock. I had cars on my tail so had to drive a couple of 100 metres before I could turn around.

By the time I arrived back at spot the geese had taken to the air. I raced out of the car, no time to mount the camera on the tripod and started firing off as many shots as I could. Then I noticed some of them starting to settle in an adjoining field. I hopped back in the car and quietly drove as close as I could and then started walking slowly towards them. This is one of those moments when you just have to stop thinking about photography and try and take in what is before you.

It was an extraordinary moment - alone in the field with a couple of thousand magpie geese. I stood and watched in awe as these beautiful creatures were bunkering down. What a wonderful privilege. The only way I can possibly share this with you is to try and express my feelings through words and sometimes that's simply impossible.
This is a moment I may not ever experience again as from all accounts it is very rare for so many of the Magpie Geese to be this far south.

I had another lovely encounter today and that was with Bill and Margaret. Early on in our visit to Bundaberg I blipped an image of Bill with his wonderful hibiscus garden.
I promised to add some more images to my Blip Folio and here are four other spectacular blooms. So far I've documented 32 different varieties. I've set Bill a project to work out the ones I've missed so that when I return I can fill in the gaps. It's such a joy to spend time with people who are so passionate about their garden.