Wildlife; Its Closer than You Think

We spend a lot of time looking for national parks and reserves, hoping to see sensational scenery and spot a bit of wildlife. The truth is, you can often find all the above while driving and at overnight roadside stops. All you have to do is look.

We were driving the Barrier Hwy and came across the Meadow Glen rest area west of Cobar. This is a large area, it is well off the Hwy, has a decent long drop, a small shelter with a BBQ, tables, and rubbish bins.

Better than that, it was heavily treed, a very pretty spot and had plenty of goats to keep Peter amused and birds to keep me happy. What more would you want?

Funny story. I went in search of the Bower bird’s bower. I didn’t find it, but I caught sight of something shiny off to my right. Looking through my camera, I had a conversation with myself that went something like this.

 “Is that a snake? Don’t be stupid, it’s too big for a snake.” I lowered my camera and took a few steps closer, then looked through the lens again.

“Oh my God, it is a snake. Nah, there’s got to be more than one.” Again, I lowered the camera and took a few more steps closer.

“Just look at that would you, definitely a snake, definitely more than one. I wonder if they’re mating.” I moved closer for a better look, (no that’s not creepy, David Attenborough does it all the time). When I looked through the camera this time, there was a snake looking back at me.

“Damn it’s big and yep, definitely two snakes. Whoa, it’s coming out, look at the size of that thing.” By the time I had lowered the camera, the snake had completely untangled itself from its mate and was moving, very quickly… towards me.

“Ok, was two snakes, now one. Jeeze its fast, I’m ou…”

I clutched my camera to my chest head hot tailed it back to the van. As I ran, all I could think of was the barbed wired fence I’d clambered through, and how I’d get through it if the snake was close behind. Luckily it wasn’t, though I didn’t waste any time crawling under the fence.

I have heard that snakes generally won’t chase you, unless its mating season. I guess I can confirm that theory now.

We ended up spending two nights at Meadow Glen rest area. The night after that we found a hidden gem of a spot, on the Kidman Way.

It looked like a shallow quarry and had obviously been used by council for storing materials and plant for past road works. Completely concealed from the road, a large area, and enough bird life to keep me busy.

So, it does pay to be a little curious. Just enough to help you find those hidden spots, but not so much that you stumble upon a couple of snakes doing the wild thing. And for those of you who are wondering, yes, I do talk to myself from time to time.

See you out there somewhere

On tow and on the go!