June Art trail and bush walking

 Hi everyone, I hope you and yours are well. June has been such a busy month for me and I still feel like I am tryng to catch up. Where did winter days sitting in front of the fire with a book go? 

The first part of the month was filled with getting ready for and attending the Dardanup Art Spectacular and Art Trail. Various artists had art displays and sales throughout the town and also in the Ferguson Valley. 

I and three other artist friends again hired the lovely old heritage listed Anglican St Mary's Dardanup church to display our wares. Whilst the other girls had beautiful paintings, I had my photography prints, greeting cards, cushion covers and totes, and my botanical eco printing scarves, upcylced tops, tote bags, greeting cards and prints. Unfortunately due to the wet weather we didn't have as good a weekend as last year, but it was still ok. It had taken me several weeks to get organised and I felt exhausted by the end of it all and needed a couple of days to recover. 

In the pic below you can see me with the other three artists - Sylvia, Sandra and Christine, and the beautiful church. 

And below some of my botanical eco-printing products. - upcylced shirts, prints, notebooks and greeting cards printed mostly with local eucalypt leaves. 

And some cynoptype greeting cards - a craft new to me in the last few months - but so much fun! 

As well as the Art Trail - the Art Spectacular art competiion is held every year in the Dardanup Hall. I entered three pieces - 2 photographs and one of my framed eco-prints. I am happy to say that this top image of the autumn leaves which I took in May at the Balingup Tree Park was award a Highly Commended - ie equal second. 

Here is a happy snap of me accepting my award. Two fellow photographers from the Photography Group of Bunbury won 1st prize and the other Highly Commended prize. Sorry about the poor quality of this photo. 

Since then I have been unsuccessfully trying to catch up with life. Some family issues, trying to walk every day, complete some writing projects for my writer's group and a magazine I write for, and I have also been doodling drawing some botanical sketches with pencil. There never seems to be enough hours in the day. Somewhere along the line I need to do some housework! I think my husband thinks so too! 

It was lovely to go bushwalking on the weekend to the Crooked Brook Forest in the beautiful Ferguson Valley. We picked up some morning tea from the Dardanup Bakery first. A must visit. 

Crooked Brook has walks from relatively short easy walks on wheelchair and pram friendly paths to a more challenging 10km walk. 

There were not many wildflowers out yet, but they are on their way. I really need to start a catalogue of wildflowers I have photographed. Clockwise from top left - ground hugging Banksia nivea, commonly known as honeypot dryandra, one of the dryandras, one of the grevillias, the red jug flower, prickly hakea, and jarrah tree buds. 

Gosh we have a lot of prickly plants in the Australian bush. All of these except for the red jug flower and the jarrah are prickly! 

We were also fascinated to see a Mountain Marri - Corymbia haematoxylon - a variety that I have actually photographed before I have discovered - but obviously it hasn't really registered with me before. It doesn't flower till October to March so I will have to go back then.  They call this bark - tessellated bark

I think that is it from me for now.

You might also like:

The wildflowers are starting to pop at Crooked Brook - 2018

Crooked Brook Forest walk - 2017

Dardanup art Trail & Spectacular - 2017

Dardanup art Trail 2021

Thank you so much for stopping by. I value your comments and look forward to hearing from you. I will try to visit your blogs in return. Have a wonderful week. 
I am linking up to the link-ups below. Please click on the links to see fabulous contributions from around the world - virtual touring at its best!

   
MosaicMonday at Letting Go of the Bay Leaf
Sharon's Sovenirs 
Our World Tuesday
Pictorial Tuesday 
ThroughMy Lens 
Image-in-ing
My corner of the world through my camera 
Wednesday Around the World at Communal Global hosted by Randomosity. 
       and Little bird - Pienilintu
Thankful Thursday 
Welcome to Nature Thursday

Skywatch Friday

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Get through in the best way for you

Hi everyone. I hope you are all going ok in these troubled times and that you and your family are well and coping with the new normal. Here in Australia we have continued to be grateful for the relatively low numbers of infections and deaths, which I am sure are due to our population adhering to the social distancing and self-isolation rules laid down by our Government. 

A couple of weeks ago I wrote - "When it is all over, wouldn't it be a shame if you looked back and realised you hadn't made the most of this down time. from "moving forward and being grateful"
 
But what is "making the most" for you? Since then I have had a shift and realised that we should accept that it is ok to get through in the "best way for you". 

This could mean laying on the couch reading, playing an instrument, painting, tinkering in the shed, walking in the park, playing with your children, sitting under a tree, talking to friends on Facebook. 
It doesn't need to be a time of productivity, or to be achieving great things, reorganising your cupboards, redesigning your garden, learning a new skill - though that is great if that is the best way for you to get through this time.
Whatever is good for your soul and heart is the the "best way for you".
No one can dictate what is the best way for you. Only you know. 

So this week my message is "gently accept that it is ok to get through in the best way for you." It doesn't have to be a period of productivity. 
Take time out to rest and be still, and know that we are all in this together, and we will come out the other side. 

Here is my daily photo challenge collage for this past week.

Monday 27 April 2020 - the flooded gums are flowering at my son's block -
Eucalyptus rudis - Western Australian flooded gum. It was lovely sitting under the trees. We can now have 10 people in a group so we had lunch and afternoon tea under the trees with my son and his family.

Tuesday 28 April 2020 - yay! my moon boot is off and now I am in an ankle brace, physiotherapy starts and am allowed to walk - but not overdo it...

Wednesday 29 April 2020 - the oranges on our orange tree are starting to orange

 Thursday 30 April 2020 - we bought a coffee and cake in Dardanup and went to the Crooked Brook Forest, had our afternoon tea and then went for a little walk along the sealed pathway. Not much was flowering but we did spy the Easter Bunny orchid - Eriochilus dilatatus subsp. multiflorus
In spring this is a lovely place to walk. But right now it is food for the soul. This was my first opportunity to be out in the bush since my operation. 

Friday 1 May 2020 - I made this "journal" sketch book last year, and haven't used it. I decided to do a little sketching of this small spray of eucalypt leaves from Crooked Brook, and painted it with colours derived from leaves, flowers and bark. For a first try I was very happy. Years ago, when I was in high school I had aspirations of being a botanical artist. It didn't happen. 
But it has been relaxing doing these little painting doodles. A time for my mind to be quiet. 
I need to learn how to make green....

Saturday 2 May 2020 - some of those colours derived from leaves, flowers and bark.

Sunday 3 May 2020 - we decided to drive a little way south and buy take-away fish and chips to eat near the beach at Busselton. You can see here the start of the Busselton jetty. It wasn't the best day for it because of the cold wild wind (winter is coming), but there were other people out doing the same thing - whilst taking into consideration social distancing rules.

 And a special song from Kermit

So that's it from me for this week. What has been the best way for you to get through these stressful times? Perhaps you would like to tell us in your comments. Stay well. And stay connected.

Thank you so much for stopping by. I value your comments and look forward to hearing from you. I will try to visit your blogs in return. Have a wonderful week. 

I am linking up to the link-ups below. Please click on the links to see fabulous contributions from around the world - virtual touring at its best!

   
All Seasons
MosaicMonday at Letting Go of the Bay Leaf

Our World Tuesday

Pictorial Tuesday 

ThroughMy Lens 

Image-in-ing
My corner of the world through my camera 
Wednesday Around the World at Communal Global hosted by Randomosity.

The Lovin' Life Team over at: Deep Fried Fruit
Month end link up @ Live love craft me 

Hello there! I love reading your comments. If you scroll down to the bottom you can comment too! I would love to hear from you.

The wildflowers are starting to pop at Crooked Brook

Spring was in the air this past weekend and the sunny morning beckoned me to be out bush walking with my camera, so we went out to the Crooked Brook Forest, located on the edge of the beautiful Ferguson Valley region only about 25 kilometre's or 20 minutes from our home in suburbia in the south west of Western Australia.  I've blogged about Crooked Brook before here on my blog.

 It is a great place for a stroll to see the spring wildflowers with 4 walks ranging from an easy wheelchair accessible sealed circuit pathway, the easy 1.5 kilometre Jarrah circuit walk, the moderate 3 kilometre wildflower walk and the 10 kiometre moderate Marri walk. 

Located in State forest, the area is managed by the WA Department of Parks and Wildlife and has been developed and maintained by the local community. As well as the walks there is a nature playground, gas barbecues and picnic shelters. 

Scattered along the walks there are sitting spots where you can stop awhile to enjoy the beauty of the bush and information plaques to help you identify some of the plants. 
Not only visited for picnicking, bushwalking and wildflowers, it is also a great place for birdwatchers. 

The wildflowers were only just starting to erupt but there was enough to keep me and my camera happy.  The wildflower above I think is one of the Hakeas or it could be a Grevillea - but like many of our wildflower bushes, very prickly!  

Please excuse my identifications, I am not a botanist, so I can't absolutely identify many plants, as Western Australia has thousands of varieties, so often I can only give you the family name, not the specifics.  Western Australia's wildflower collection is the largest on Earth, with more than 12,000 species, over 60% of which are found nowhere else.  

Flowering in Western Australia extends from July in the northern Kimberley region through to November/December on the south coast.  

Here are a few more from Crooked Brook - top left and right and centre are three of the native pea varieties,  centre top I think is Cockies Tongues - Templetonia retusa. Centre row left is one of the Claw flower varieties, centre right is Pink Fairy orchid - Caladenia latifolia, bottom left is Yellow Flag - Patersonia umbrosa, bottom centre is I think, Bush Boronia - Boronia fastigiata, and bottom right one of the wattle varieties. 
 

 The wattle is Australia's floral emblem, and one of Australia's most prolific flowering shrubs. It seems to be the first of the spring flowers to appear.  Great swathes of it sweep through the forest's under-storey in a blaze of glorious yellow.

Below you can see, top row from left - one of the Myrtles, a cone flower before the flower opens, one of the Dawinia family, middle row, Greenhood orchid, a sun dew, bottom row, one of the Synapheas, Jug Orchid - Pterostylis recurva, and far right I think is one of the Hakea family.

And new growth erupting from what looked like a dead tree. 

Thank you so much for stopping by. I hope you have enjoyed looking at some of the early spring flowers to be found in the Crooked Brook Forest. I value your comments and look forward to hearing from you. I will try to visit your blogs in return. Have a wonderful week.  

 For more about exploring Western Australia's wildflowers - WA Wildflowers - Tourism Western Australia

You might also like:
Crooked Brook Forest - 2017
Hunting for wild orchids in Western Australia's mid west 
Photographing wildflowers

I am linking up to the link-ups below. Please click on the links to see fabulous contributions from around the world - virtual touring at its best!

   
All Seasons
Mosaic Monday 

Our World Tuesday

Pictorial Tuesday 

ThroughMy Lens 

Image-in-ing
Wednesday Around the World at Communal Global
Travel Photo Thursday 

The Lovin' Life Team over at: Deep Fried Fruit and 50 Shades of Age
Little Things Thursday

Life in Reflection

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An InLinkz Link-up

Crooked Brook Forest walk, Dardanup, Western Australia

Hi everyone, I hope you all had a great weekend and had a chance to get out in the fresh air and do something enjoyable in the great outdoors. On Sunday we went for a walk along one of the walk trails at the Crooked Brook Forest Reserve, which is nestled in jarrah woodlands, about 10 km from Dardanup off Crooked Brook Road, and 25km (or 20 minutes) from Bunbury, in Western Australia's south west. 

I always enjoy getting out into the bush away from the stresses of life, especially on a sunny winter or spring day.  There really is something regenerating about it don't you agree. 

I was surprised when I discovered that we hadn't been to Crooked Brook for a few years despite it only being about 20 minutes from our home.  We had our grandson with us, and despite him not particularly wanting to go with us, he enjoyed running along the pathways and discovering things in the bush.