On my doorstep

Lots of people have been asking us if we are happy in our new home and my response is often……."yes but not our first choice of where we would choose to live…..but budget constraints contributed to our eventual location"…well sort of like that anyway! I absolutely adore our home but often yearn to be back where we used to live (and where I grew up in Kensington Park too!). But times like this one must really evaluate life and how lucky we are. After all we are only five minutes from the incredible McLaren Vale Wine region, we are only five minutes from the fabulous Port Noarlunga beach and cafes and we are about to witness the opening of the amazing Southern Expressway which will cut about 10-15 minutes of travelling time to the city - so why wouldn't we be happy?! And this is right on our doorstep too…….

Yesterday while Larry was watching his beloved football team get beaten again (!!) I went for a walk with my camera. This view above is literally 'on my doorstep'. We live right beside the Onkaparinga River - the second longest river in South Australia and we are not far from the ocean mouth. In just five minutes of strolling along the major bike trail this is what I saw……..

 It was a very cold winter's day yesterday of about 10C but jackets, gloves and scarves did not stop many of us and the sun was shining…….

 The pelicans hypnotise me and to watch their flying synchronisation is fascinating…….

 One lonely and very cold looking fisherman……..

 The only disturbance to these idyllic scenes was the buzzing of trail bike riders somewhere and the hum of traffic….one forgets we are still only on the outskirts of the metropolitan area…...

 The housing estate we live in is right beside the walk………..

The field of yellow is in fact a noxious weed here…..the good old Soursob native to South Africa…... 

 Ducks doing what ducks do in the wetlands…...

The dog (not mine), scared a small group of kangaroos but I did manage a quick shot as they hurriedly hopped away….. 

 Evidence of a very old farm…...

 I must find out what these ghastly caterpillars actually turn into! We used to get them at our old home and they are rather creepy and for some reason we used to poison them as I think they spit. Well further reading and I think I have found them here and yes they do spit and also damage our eucalyptus trees, so no beautiful butterflies here…in fact they turn into sawflies!!

 Those wonderful pelicans again…..

 Some homes have an amazing vista and the sunsets over the river must be spectacular!….

 We also have a brand new train line nearby with all new electric trains. I managed to capture the train as it travelled on the brand new river bridge which I might add also lights up at night to create a spectacular display. I found the link to the new bridge here where you can read it is the equal third longest bridge of its kind in the world……

As the sun was setting I waited for the final sunset but it got a bit too cold…...

So today we are 'laying low'. Larry and I both have sore throats and are aching all over….the down side of visiting a very sick little grandson a few days ago! So hope you are well wherever you are and thanks again for visiting x