Why I get up early - Wurruma Swamp at dawn
May 2020
Sun up, fog gone, time to feed.
I often get up very early to arrive at a location for sunrise or just after. The reason is that if you arrive too late you miss beautiful light and scenes like the photo above of a Swan feeding on Wurruma Swamp at Mt Garnet.
On the day I took these photos I left home at 4am. Below is what happened leading up to the photo above, which was one of the last I took at the Swamp that day.
Ravenshoe Windfarm as I drove through.
As I drove past Ravenshoe on my way to Wurruma Swamp I spotted this colour in my rear vision mirror so I pulled over at the wind farm outside Ravenshoe to take a photo. It was 5 degrees celsius as I got out of the car!!!!!
Shortly after I realised how cold it was I discovered I had left my jumper on the bed at home. I have no idea how I took this photo whilst violently trembling in the cold.
Sunrise at the Swamp on a previous visit February 2020.
I have seen a beautiful sunrise at he Swamp on a previous visit but really wanted to see the water covered in fog to slowly reveal the birdlife there.
The Swamp cover in fog on my arrival that day.
When I arrived shortly after sunrise this day it looked like my wish was going to come true. Freezing cold but very beautiful.
Frost covering everything
To give you some idea of how cold it was that morning at the Swamp this was the view as I walked the track. Everything was covered in frost which in the case of my feet soon turned to freezing water as my shoes brushed and absorbed it.
A frozen spider web.
When I say everything was covered in frost I do mean everything, even the spider’s webs. I only survived the cold by wrapping myself in the picnic blanket I found in the boot of the car.
Note to self: never remove your jumper from the camera bag :)
The first sign of life to reveal itself through the fog on the Swamp that morning were some ducks.
I think that is a Kingfisher.
Shortly after that I ran into this tiny solitary bird perched up in a tree. I think it is some sort of Kingfisher. I see them often so I should find out what species it is.
The Swans reveal themselves.
As the fog started to lift I could see the Swans for the first time. At first I could only see two.
Through the haze they swam towards me.
I found a spot to lay out the picnic blanket and sat down to let the birds get comfortable with my presence. It was not long before they started to swim even closer to me.
More Swans reveal them selves.
More and more Swans were becoming visible as the fog rose. However it was the first two that I spotted that I spent most of the morning with.
The Swans keeping an eye on me.
Despite the odd squawk these two Swans seemed not only relaxed around me but a bit curious. They continued to get closer.
Making eye contact.
The timing was perfect that morning. As the fog rose it allowed for clearer photos and they parked themselves right in front of me. They swam around feeding with very little care of my presence.
Taking a nap.
They became so comfortable near me that they took a short nap. So cute. With a clear sky and very bright sun it was now time to visit some other areas in the district with a bit of shade.
The view of the Swamp as I left.
Above is the Swamp as I left it that day at about 10am. Below is a photo I took on a previous visit that shows the scale of the Swamp.
The Swamp is quite large, it continues far back and around to the right. February 2020.