End of Lockdown

The opening up of Victoria from Covid Lockdown has been a long time coming but now we’re free to travel between the regions and Melbourne City.

I’ve taken the opportunity to visit two of my children, one on the Mornington Peninsula and one in St Kilda. I will have to arrange another time to see the other one!

In both of the places I’ve visited I’ve been lucky enough to be able to find natural places and see the signs of people connecting with nature.

On the Mornington Peninsula a walk around the edges of Westernport Bay took me to the edges of Mangroves, an ecosystem that has always fascinated me.

Growing up in Auckland, New Zealand, the local beaches where we mostly went to dip a toe in the water most often had Mangroves around the edges which gave the ‘beach’ a muddy bottom. I was always scared crabs were going to dig their way up and bite my toes.

On the surface they may seem to be smelly, muddy places of no particular value or beauty, but they are far from that. They are extremely important ecosystems for the health of the sea and the whole planet. The following link gives some information about their significance:

Share the Facts About Mangroves (conservation.org)

Further north and off the Mornington Peninsula onto the main body of Victoria, the suburb of St Kilda sits on Port Phillip Bay. The whole foreshore has been developed and many people get out to exercise and walk with the spectacular views of the water and the cityscape. Walking out onto St Kilda pier is a joy as you look back onto land. Sometimes Dolphins are even seen at play close in to the shore, maybe there to hunt the cute penguins from the Penguin Colony? I’m not sure. Nature.

Anyway, ’til next time.