The Wells Gray welcoming committee greeted us within moments of setting off on our first little hike. By "welcoming committee" I mean a biblical swarm of blood-thirsty mosquitoes. I'd read about the bug populations in the park but hadn't really taken on board what it might mean, which may account for why we forgot to pack any insect repellent. Barely twenty minutes into our first hike, we decided we'd had enough and donned our bug nets and long sleeved-layers. I put on my waterproof jacket, partly because we were subjected to occasional showers but mostly to stop the mosquitoes eating me alive. My hands still suffered, of course - putting on gloves would have been far too warm.
We reached our destination of the 10-m high basalt columns known as Easter Bluffs, and came across a mother grouse and her one remaining chick as we were searching for a lunch spot. For just long enough, the mosquitoes abated. To our amazement, she allowed us to approach quite closely, and we spent several minutes taking dozens of close-up grouse photos. The ones of the little chick came out nicely, and at that I knew I had today's photo. I even took a short
video clip where the chick's peeping calls can be heard.
Grouselet
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