To O'Reilly's

Tuesday October 18

A disturbed night after a very eventful evening. After retiring, Josh arrived downstairs complaining of an itchy head. Nits and the odd head louse were found! Sara set to with the comb and conditioner....we left her to it and went to pack and go to bed. Harry was also infected, Sara came in to give us the once over. Clean apparently.

Then, my phone rang, no number, no response. By now it was midnight.

Don’t know why Mike was up early, both boys were being kept at home. Anyway, when we left at 7.20, he was talking to the council men who were replacing poles and wires outside the house and cutting off branches to tidy up. Maybe he sweet-talked them into trimming a few more !Martina took us a different way from any we’ve used before, we usually get lost but this one was different again. Bottom line is that we got to Canungra - the kick-off for the climb to O’Reilly’s - at 9.20 after a very slow first half of the journey in horrendous traffic. Brisbane rush hour.
After a breakfast of bacon, eggs , toast and coffee in a greasy spoon, we set off for O’Reilly’s. It’s 36K of increasingly steep, tortuous and often single - carriageway, road with blind bends. Not for the vertigo sufferers but, thick forest helps conceal most of it.
The obligatory call in at the Kamerun Look-out. Stupendous all round views , to-day's was marred by mist and smoke from distant fires. No birds either. There were on the road taking us back to the ‘main’ one. Eastern Yellow Robin, Brown Gerygone, Lewins Honeyeater and Superb Fairy-Wren. A later stop in a lay-by situated in a more open area, produced a male Golden Whistler, more Brown Gerygones and a Golden Bowerbird for Pam.
The first part of the O’Reilly complex suddenly appears as you round a bend.

The day visitors car park with the cafe behind.

Waw. Bower not yet started , yet, the male Satin Bowerbird was prospecting the area at the side of the road near the car park. I took these photos with my small camera from the car.

Luckily, the sun was shining. He looks black when it isn't.

His bower is usually strewn with blue items, glass, plastic, straws, anything blue, to match his plumage.

We were too early to sign in, so we parked at the far end of the car park and saw: a Wonga Pigeon saunter across. several Brush Turkeys, White-browed Scrubwrens and Grey Shrike-thrushes.
A sandwich lunch in the rather cool outside seating area at the cafe, overlooking the misty valley below, accompanied by black and white waiters...Pied Currawongs.....

...and several more colourful ones.

Crimson Rosella

They become a nuisance but we resisted feeding them.
The Reception area was blocked off by a group of excited Asians with a local guide. He was feeding the birds, placing grain on people’s shoulder so that Regent Bowerbirds, Satin Bowerbirds, King Parrots and Crimson Rosellas perched on their yelping heads and arms. I photographed only those I could see in the near trees. As soon as the group moved on, the birds disappeared.

Male Regent Bowerbird - O'Reilly's logo

Room number 18, Mountain View, is lovely. Above our own parking area this time with a better view down the valley than our last ground floor room.


Very spacious, a king size and a large single bed, big shower room and a balcony (4’ x 8’) with a bench. We sat outside , woollies on, enjoying the view, joined by Lewins Honeyeater and Crimson Rosellas. The latter were very cheeky, landing within a few inches of my hands, often moving my hair with their wings. We had to shut the room door and constantly move them on.

King Parrot pair

Crimson Rosella

After a hot drink and a piece of fruit cake, ‘free’ afternoon tea in the restaurant, we walked one of the trails. Well, we started to and the rain came down. We sheltered for a bit before giving up, exploring the information rooms and retiring to our balcony with a glass of red and some savoury biscuits.

Down came the birds. Oh how we’d love to feed them........A man in nearby rooms had several Bowerbirds on his balcony. We had them on our roof, peering down at us, it was the Rosellas who proved to be the most persistent and intrusive, such beautiful birds.

I saw three Channel-billed Cuckoos - huge grey birds - and two White-headed Pigeons, fly across the canopy below. The pigeons are real sub-tropical forest birds.

Before leaving for the warmth of our room as the light faded, a pair of Superb Fairy-Wrens skittered about on the path below. Trying to photograph these very active and tiny sprites is like trying to catch dandelion seeds, especially in the near dark - excuses for poor photography.

Male Superb Fairy-Wren

Supper in our room on Sara’s burgers, salad and a cup cake, the restaurant here is very pricy and the food isn’t good. Breakfast is and we’re booked in for that in the morning.

Two BooBooks called for five minutes, now total silence.

An early night beckons.