Bairnsdale 2004

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Sunday, 14 March
Four hours driving had me arriving in the east Gippsland town of Bairnsdale. After booking into a motel I realised there was still a few hours before the sun was due to set. The weather was fine so I drove south out of town to Paynesville to see if the town had changed much since my last visit. The area has a population of a little over two thousand. The foreshore has fishing boats moored and ready to set sail on the morning tide. The town is situated on the straits between Lake King and Lake Victoria. For me, not much had changed which is a common observation of so many towns I revisit.
On the way back to my motel I diverted to Eagle Point. The Mitchell River Silt Jetty is a narrow stretch of land reaching out into Lake King. The "Jetty" is believed to be formed from silt deposited by the river when it slows on reaching the lake and is considered the second largest in the world. Only the "jetty's" of the Mississippi River in the Gulf of Mexico are longer. I stayed on this stretch of land until the sun sank low on the horizon and the rays of light from the setting sun were worthy of a few photos.

Monday, 15 March
This morning I woke half an hour before the alarm rang. Had plenty of time to get ready for work. Today was the first of three planned working days in one of the local Kindergartens. After talking to the director I soon found out the information the company had given me was different to what she was expecting. Morning and afternoon sessions on Tuesday plus an extra day. I had already been booked to work in another town on Thursday so I contacted the company to tell them to arrange for another photographer to cover that job.
Although I arrived at eight-thirty to set up my studio light and background, it was an hour later before the children arrived (another bit of information that I had not been informed about) There wasn't many children and the session went well and I was finished around mid-day.
Bairnsdale has a population of over ten thousand. It is promoted as a tourist destination and the gateway to the lakes region. I read somewhere that the name was taken from the property "Bernisdale" which in the 1840s was occupied by Archibald Macleod.
Behind the town is some wet lands. I had been there before but couldn't remember exactly how to get there. After following one track that looked promising I found my self in the middle of a paddock with metre high grass on both sides of the car. The track came out on the Paynesville Road so I headed back to town without finding the wetlands.
Spent the rest of the afternoon in the motel room and only ventured out in the evening when I had my meal at a local pub.

Tuesday, 16 March
As expected it was a busy day. The morning session finished around lunch time. I spent my lunch time back at the motel and returned to the centre in time to start the afternoon session which lasted until three o'clock. Took a drive past the local cattle yards and discovered the wet lands I have been looking for. I gathered up my tripod and camera and headed off ready to capture any wild life I could find. In the hour I was walking along the broad-walk I only saw one Tiger snake. I was pleased to see it slither off into the bull rushes that surround the wooden walkway.
Went back to the cattle auctions and followed the auctioneer from pen to pen as buyers competed for the stock. When the last of the animals had been sold I left.
It was about five in the evening when I went back to the Kindergarten and spent the next three hours photographing family groups.

Wednesday, 17 March
Only exposed three spools of film this morning. Needless to say I didn't have to work too long. Before I left the director told me there would only be five children the next day and suggested I could start work late.
Before you arrive in the township of Lakes Entrance you descend via a winding road. The first vantage spot, overlooks the gap between the sea and the lakes. I photographed the dredger clearing the entrance. In the early days schooners and steamers that serviced the district were forced to navigate a dangerous natural opening from the sea into Lake Bunga. In 1869 work began on an artificial opening. Thirty years later the opening was complete.
Later after a four kilometer walk I managed to get to the gap. The dredger was still hard at work. More images were captured as the ship worked to keep the entrance open to allow the fishing fleet to work the Bass Strait.

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