Irvinebank

Visited: autumn

Recommendation: I'm not sure I would make a special trip to Irvinebank again but I really enjoyed this little township. The locals told me that in the spring, the place is full of bush birds and that may make it worth investigating.

I stayed at the free campsite in Irvinebank in early autumn as part of my exploration of the wider Cairns area. The road to Irvinebank was a bit of a shock as I thought it was a main road but after a few kilometres from Herberton it disintegrated into an unsealed track. It was very bouncy for my little campervan and a new experience for me.

All that was forgotten when I arrived at this lovely little settlement in the middle of nowhere. The campsite had a creek running behind it and a pub over the road. There were lots of trees, plants and flowers everywhere and I felt it was a real oasis.

High in the canopy there was a lot of noise coming from cockatoo and currawong conducting running battles for supremacy. This was to my benefit as other birds were driven down into the trees. On the main junction there was a line of huge fig trees and as I wandering underneath them, I spotted a fruit dove. I had only ever seen the Wompoo species before and so it was a thrill to see this bird. And a stunner it was too although it looked a bit bored with all the cacophony coming from above!

Pied Currawong (Strepera graculina)

Further along the road there was a dip to one side and as I looked down I saw a female kangaroo feeding and thought it looked so cute. I then noticed the male standing behind her looking on. This one, not so cute. I took my photos and moved on quickly.

Superb Fruit Dove (Ptilinopus superbus)

At the other end of the village was a small lake. The pub landlord advised me that it was safe to swim in as there were only a couple of freshies (freshwater crocodiles) in it. Ah, no thanks. I did sit next to the water to see the birds and was quickly rewarded with a small group of Blue-faced Honeyeater combing the tree trunks for bugs.

Eastern Grey Kangaroo (Macropus giganteus)

Blue-faced Honeyeater (Entomyzon cyanotis)

The most interesting bird I found here was the Scarlet Myzomela. I had heard plenty at Granite Gorge but got nothing more than a glimpse. To see a male bird so closely in such incredible colour was terrific.

Male Scarlet Myzomela (Myzomela sanguinolenta)

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