So graceful but so noisy!

It's no secret that for as long as I can remember my favourite birds have been black swans. A year ago I was thrilled to be able to capture them with my camera on the Fortescue. This year I had the opportunity again.

The funny thing about swans though, is that they are so beautiful and graceful. They appear pristine and aloof on the water. And then they make a noise that makes you jump and go, really? Something so hideous from the beak of something so beautiful?

I for one am grateful for this noise though. Our last camping trip down the Fortescue, I heard these swans before I saw them. I actually went looking for them. I walked up the riverbed, seven and a half months pregnant, just to see if I could spot the swans.

Fortescue did not disappoint. It's ironic that we have named this pool Pelican Pool. There sure were a lot of swans there that morning.

I didn't get too close. Luckily I had stuck with the 18-200mm lens so had a fairly decent zoom. But as mentioned in a previous post, the mornings on the Fortescue are spectacular and I wanted to share this one photo with you.

It's a reflection of a natural circle, created by the tree and the shadows in the rock face. I waited for the swans to swim into the circle before taking a photo. It's one of my favourite reflection photos.

Still morning reflection

The best thing about camping on the Fortescue is the colours in the morning. You can't always see the sunrise, but once it's up it casts an absolutely beautiful golden light over everything for about an hour. It truly is the golden hour.

To cap it off, the water is still and the birds are many. The colours of the red contrast beautifully with the blue of the sky and the green of the foliage, so much so that even in the dryest of seasons, like this season, you still have some sense of oasis.

Riverbed Friends

One of the great things about the Pilbara is the lifestyle and spending time with friends.

People who live here are generally attracted to the same things - enjoy the outdoor lifestyle of camping, fishing, exploring and the challenges of living remotely.

While on these adventures you can also make friends with some of the native wildlife.

On one such trip we did just that. We went camping down the Fortescue River with some friends. Just a quick, overnight, cook by the campfire, sleep under the stars night.

While gathering firewood, the boys found this little guy. I'd never seen this kind of gecko before, but he was very obliging for my camera. It was a little too dark for fantastic photos but the log that was his home was very textured and made for a perfect background. So much so, I decided to try the photo in black and white and was pleasantly surprised.

Roots and Rocks

The Pilbara is a rocky place.

It's a wonder anything survives.

Consider spinfex and its spines - it makes sense that of the plants that survive in this harsh land, spinafex is the most prolific. It's waxy, and spiny, keeping you at bay, screaming 'back off', working hard to grow in the rocky ground.

So when you see trees, massive trees, fig trees, paperbark trees growing, you know there is the sweet promise of water somewhere close.

But you can't always see it.

The mind boggles at how some of these trees grow and thrive. But grown and thrive they do, sending their roots through the rocks and layers.

Waiting by the Waterfall

We were lucky enough to have my sister in law and her fiance visit us in April. Naturally we wanted to show them the best the Pilbara had to offer and that meant one thing for me - Karijini.

Not to mention, this was probably going to be one of the last opportunities to visit this wondrous place before children become a concern.

But I've got to tell you - at six months pregnant they already are!

There were some severe limits to what I could do and what I couldn't. One gorge a day seemed to be my limit and I contented myself with staying by a waterfall reading while we sent the others off to adventure.

Luckily for me I married a terrific man who stayed by the waterfalls with me. He even walked in and out of Dales Gorge an extra time to go and get me my 18mm-200mm lens when it became obvious that my wide angle lens was broken. (insert sad face...).

I took many photos though. Some with the offending lens (which was crooked - I must have accidentally hit it on a rock) some with the 18-200mm.

But I reiterate - waterfalls are the happiest places on earth.

Fortescue falls - broken lens and all.

Fortescue Falls again