Hooka Island
Apr. 6th, 2014 07:14 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
khiemtranThis week, come with me on a paddling adventure. We're off to Hooka Island...
To get there, we'll set off from Kembla Grange, down Mullet Creek.
In the early morning, the creek is clear and still. We make good progress as we slip along in our kayaks.
The creek narrows as it approaches the lake - Lake Illawarra, that is.
Here we are at the edge of the lake. Hooka Island is the one directly in front of us.
This part of the lake is actually quite shallow. There are lots of waterbird around us, including pelicans, egrets and oystercatchers.
At the eastern tip of the island.
Time for a rest and a look around.
Hooka Island is named after an Aboriginal chieftain known as "Charlie Hooka", who once laid claim to the islands around this corner of the lake and the land around Mullet Creek. Hooka famously fought and died in a battle against another Aboriginal tribe who wanted to attack the white settlers in the area. The suburb nearby is still known as Kanahooka ("Kana" being the local word for "chief"). A word of caution though with this story - it is quite unusual for Aboriginal languages to have words starting with "h" and it is not unusual for Western accounts to have quite garbled versions of names and events.
"Charlie Hooka was a great chief, whose land extended along the western shores of the lake from the mouth of Mullet Creek northerly to Budjong, now known as Killys Creek, by the range on the north and on the west and south by Dapto and Mullet Creeks…. Hooka was a sturdy well made man of medium height. He did not mix much with white people…but preferred to remain with his tribe in their wild state, his only garment being an opossum skin cloak…" (Organ, 1990, p. 355) "
Some more info here.
Today, the island is a nature reserve, and, hidden in background, you can just see the tops of two giant fig trees in the middle of the island, towering over the rest of the forest. Perhaps another time, we'll explore deep inside the island to see if we can reach those giant trees. Who knows what secrets lurk there?
Heading onwards now, and we need to head across the lake to the other mouth of Mullet Creek. There's a strong southerly, and the wind picks up a bit of chop across the lake.
These pictures don't really capture it, but even small waves can be quite exciting in an open kayak. Nevertheless, we make at least two knots into the wind, smashing our way through the oncoming waves. I hope you don't mind getting wet...
Back in Mullet Creek now, and things are a lot calmer. Mullet Creek actually forks into two before it reaches the lake. We took the northern fork on the way down, now we're going up the southern fork.
Lots of birds to see, including egrets, darters and cormorants.
Here's a Royal Spoonbill that was trying to hide incognito amongst a flock of ibises.
On the phone to check on the id of a raptor. The verdict was a Whistling Kite.
Nearly back again. Just over 10 km for the round trip and a touch over two hours. And still within the land that was once the domain of chief Hooka.
To get there, we'll set off from Kembla Grange, down Mullet Creek.
In the early morning, the creek is clear and still. We make good progress as we slip along in our kayaks.
The creek narrows as it approaches the lake - Lake Illawarra, that is.
Here we are at the edge of the lake. Hooka Island is the one directly in front of us.
This part of the lake is actually quite shallow. There are lots of waterbird around us, including pelicans, egrets and oystercatchers.
At the eastern tip of the island.
Time for a rest and a look around.
Hooka Island is named after an Aboriginal chieftain known as "Charlie Hooka", who once laid claim to the islands around this corner of the lake and the land around Mullet Creek. Hooka famously fought and died in a battle against another Aboriginal tribe who wanted to attack the white settlers in the area. The suburb nearby is still known as Kanahooka ("Kana" being the local word for "chief"). A word of caution though with this story - it is quite unusual for Aboriginal languages to have words starting with "h" and it is not unusual for Western accounts to have quite garbled versions of names and events.
"Charlie Hooka was a great chief, whose land extended along the western shores of the lake from the mouth of Mullet Creek northerly to Budjong, now known as Killys Creek, by the range on the north and on the west and south by Dapto and Mullet Creeks…. Hooka was a sturdy well made man of medium height. He did not mix much with white people…but preferred to remain with his tribe in their wild state, his only garment being an opossum skin cloak…" (Organ, 1990, p. 355) "
Some more info here.
Today, the island is a nature reserve, and, hidden in background, you can just see the tops of two giant fig trees in the middle of the island, towering over the rest of the forest. Perhaps another time, we'll explore deep inside the island to see if we can reach those giant trees. Who knows what secrets lurk there?
Heading onwards now, and we need to head across the lake to the other mouth of Mullet Creek. There's a strong southerly, and the wind picks up a bit of chop across the lake.
These pictures don't really capture it, but even small waves can be quite exciting in an open kayak. Nevertheless, we make at least two knots into the wind, smashing our way through the oncoming waves. I hope you don't mind getting wet...
Back in Mullet Creek now, and things are a lot calmer. Mullet Creek actually forks into two before it reaches the lake. We took the northern fork on the way down, now we're going up the southern fork.
Lots of birds to see, including egrets, darters and cormorants.
Here's a Royal Spoonbill that was trying to hide incognito amongst a flock of ibises.
On the phone to check on the id of a raptor. The verdict was a Whistling Kite.
Nearly back again. Just over 10 km for the round trip and a touch over two hours. And still within the land that was once the domain of chief Hooka.
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Date: 2014-04-06 12:26 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-04-06 07:42 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-04-06 01:17 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-04-06 07:43 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-04-06 10:59 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-04-06 03:01 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-04-06 07:45 pm (UTC)To this:
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Date: 2014-04-06 05:29 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-04-06 07:46 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-04-06 08:22 pm (UTC)And the way the fig tree towers over the other foliage reminds me of the huge tree in My Neighbor Totoro.
Love your shot of the egret in flight.
even small waves can be quite exciting in an open kayak --I'm taking "exciting" as a euphemism for "terrifying" here….
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Date: 2014-04-06 08:37 pm (UTC)Yes, exactly! We were discussing whether one day we might find a way in to commune with the Forest Spirit. Certainly, it would be cool to see such a big fig up close.
I'm taking "exciting" as a euphemism for "terrifying" here….
It wasn't that bad, but it certainly kept us alert. We always had the option of retracing our steps around the lee of the island, so we would have done if that it looked like things might get "interesting" (the next rung up the euphemism scale from "exciting").
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Date: 2014-04-06 08:53 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-04-06 08:56 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-04-07 05:50 pm (UTC)Lovely photos, as well!
no subject
Date: 2014-04-07 08:53 pm (UTC)