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Wee Jasper

Sunday 8 September 07:30
Lia Battisson

This outing will be to private property near Wee Jasper. The property is called Bimbenang and is on Doctor’s Flat Road. The quickest route is over Uriarra Crossing, turn right and follow the road until the T junction. Turn right onto Mountain Creek Road and continue north to meet the Yass/Wee Jasper Road. Turn left towards Wee Jasper and then left at Doctor’s Flat Road. Bimbenang is 14.8 kms from this turnoff. You pass a property called Kenya, then about 1 kms further on cross a small creek (Dinnertime Creek), (which might be dry). The gate to Bimbenang is about 70 metres further on, on the right. It has a “No Trespassers” sign on it. It takes about 1hr 40 mins travelling time from the city centre to get there using this route. We will carpool from Stromlo Forest Park carpark. Please meet there at 7.15 am and we will aim to arrive at the property by 9.00 am. Due to restricted parking on the property we will take only four cars.

Dinnertime Creek runs through the property and usually has water flowing at this time of year. That’s probably the best spot to see birds but the property is 86 hectares in size so there are plenty of other places to look also. It’s very rugged country covered in virgin tall-timbered forest so people should wear their toughest shoes and worst clothing.

Birds that may be seen include Superb Lyrebirds, Golden Whistlers, treecreepers, Eastern Spinebills, Fantails including Rufous, numerous small green/brown “scrub birds”, Cockatoos including Gang gangs, and Wonga Pigeons.

Bring morning tea. Wear long trousers, sturdy boots and, as it is snake season, wear gaiters if you have them.

As this is an area of dense bush and tracks are narrow, this outing will be restricted to 16 people. Registration is essential to Sue Lashko on 62514485 or smlashko@gmail.com

Noel and Lynne Bentley, Sue Lashko

Post event report

It was a perfect spring day when seventeen of us met for carpooling at the Denman Village shops to travel to Wee Jasper, where we were met by our hosts, and their son and two grandsons, who joined us for the walk around the property.  Eastern Spinebills and New Holland Honeyeaters were supping on the flowers in the garden as we arrived. We then moved into a nearby paddock where one of our members explained a little about the many fossils which could be seen in the rocks there.  The children had a wonderful time, scrambling over the rocks.  As we made our way down to the Goodradigbee River on the edge of the property we saw a Black-shouldered Kite and a Nankeen Kestrel.  Small flocks of Yellow-rumped Thornbills and Superb Fairywrens were on the boundary fence and in the blackberries in the neighbour’s yard, and Welcome Swallows and Fairy Martins were hawking overhead. There were Great Cormorants and Australian Pelicans amongst the birds on the river, and a Straw-necked Ibis nearby.  A large flock of Pacific Black Ducks flew off the nearby overflow pond as we approached.  Satin Bowerbirds were using the garden when we returned to the house.  Some of our party had a look at the house, which has been built into the rocks. We said our goodbyes to our hosts and most of our party went on to the Fitzpatrick Trackhead, on the Hume and Hovell Track, for morning tea.  Here we read about Hume and Hovell’s Expedition, noting that this year is the bicentenary of their journey. On the way back to Canberra we had a brief stop at the junction of Mountain Creek and Wee Jasper Roads, to have a look at the fossils in the roadside bank. Lia Battisson

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