Kevtoberfest #22 Nicholson River
Where there’s water, there are boats!
We spent a day exploring the Nicholson River on board Kevin’s vintage cabin cruiser Deeann J. A wide slow-moving waterway, the river flows south-east for 83 kilometres from the foothills of the Victorian Alps to Lake King.
From a small marina near the Princes Highway we sailed upstream, passing fertile farmland and weathered sandstone cliffs.
Dozens of opaque jellyfish floated just below the water’s languid surface and waterbirds near the riverbank basked in the sunshine.
When we turned and sailed downstream, the landscape changed from gently sloping green hills to grassland and marshes.
We sailed under an aged timber bridge, formerly a part of the Bairnsdale to Orbost railway line. Where trains once crossed over the river, cyclists and walkers now follow the path of the East Gippsland Rail Trail.
At the point where river meets lake, white markers created an imaginary line across the water. Beyond them Lake King’s vast expanse of water stretched away to the distant shore.
Closer to us a tiger snake swam by, gliding swiftly across the water and passing just a few metres away. Luckily it was more intent on reaching the far shore than bothering with us.
After the excitement of Kevtoberfest, a slow day on the river was the perfect way to relax.
Would this be freshwater or seawater Carol? The snake suggests fresh, but the jellyfish suggest sea. Or maybe a mix of both as it’s estuarine?
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The river is fresh water and the lakes are a mixture of fresh and seawater. Kevin had never seen jellyfish like that in the river before so they were a bit mysterious.
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That’s it! You have me thoroughly chilled out now and ready for my weekend. 🙂 🙂 Enjoy yours! I’d love to spend mine a-sailing.
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Excellent. I’m gearing up to sit back and watch the wedding this evening.
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I’ll be scooting back from zumba for a ringside seat, and then it’s Rafa time 🙂 🙂
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What a blissfully relaxing day on the water Carol. Lovely places that bring back lots of memories for me. Have a great weekend.
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Thanks Miriam. We had the perfect day.
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Beautiful and appears so peaceful. Tiger snake has gorgeous tiger stripes. I’ve never seen one. Enjoy time on the water. Thanks for great photos, again.
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The tiger snake is one of Australia’s most venomous and quite aggressive too, so we were glad not to get too close. I’d never seen one before and it was unusual to see one swimming.
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What perfect weather you had for your day on the water. I have never seen a tiger snake on land or water. What a sighting!
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The weather was glorious, considering it had been quite cold on the weekend. I hadn’t seen a tiger snake before and it gave me the creeps a little. I’m not keen on snakes.
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A slow day on the river is perfect any day! It is beautiful and so interesting too – I had the same question as Denzil so I am pleased to see the answer already here as I scrolled down. I’m settling in to watch the wedding too 😀
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It was a lovely day and so sunny. We really enjoyed trying out the boat. Kevin plans on restoring it to its former glory now he’s retired.
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It’s difficult to avoid THE wedding. I hope they have a long, happy future.
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Me too.
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Not a place to go swimming in then…
We’re off out for lunch to avoid THE wedding.
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People probably do swim in the summer. We didn’t see any swimmers but the water was quite cold. I watched the wedding. It was lovely.
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The news was ALL about the wedding so I ended up seeing it after all. I really do not understand all the fuss over the couple at all. But then I have managed to avoid all royal events most of my life.
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So much of the scenery looks like you could be in Canada. It’s when you get to things like jellyfish and tiger snakes that the differences really present themselves! Wow!
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It’s interesting to know the landscapes are similar. Tiger snakes are one of Australia’s most venomous. I’m glad he swam past.
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Good grief! I’ll say. When we were in Australia we didn’t see a single snake. Thankfully.
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Great choice in photos. My dad only posts one in maybe twenty photos he takes; I just take a bunch and put them all on facebook because I have trouble deciding which are the best ones.
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Thank you. I am quite selective in the photos I use. We take dozens between us but I use only a few in each post.
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The reflection photo is gorgeous Carol! I didn’t realise that snakes just swam like that!
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MR ET took that photo. Isn’t it a beauty. I didn’t know snakes could swim like that either. It gave me the creeps to see the snake skimming across the water like that.
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Gorgeous day on the water except for the snake. I don’t do well with snakes or rodents. You’d think the gardener in me could overcome the trepidation, but they send me running in the opposite direction. I love the birds and the jellyfish. 🙂
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I’m not keen on snakes or rodents either. That snake gave me the creeps because tiger snakes are one of the most venomous in Australia. I was glad he passed us by. But it was interesting to see him skimming across the water at such a fast pace.
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It was all so beautiful…. until I got to the snake!
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It was exciting to see him but I have to confess I was glad he wasn’t heading in our direction.
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Such a magical place which seems perfect for a day trip! Your pictures left me speechless and I will have to add this place to my bucket list. Is it possible to swim there?
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We didn’t see anyone swimming but it wasn’t really the right season for it. I expect it would be a popular area for swimming in summer.
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Gorgeous. Not crazy about Mr. TS, but the water shots make me want to get my boat out there.
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It was such a lovely day.
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It might have been different if you’d gone for a swim with Mr. TS. 😝😝
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No chance of that happening.
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