First, you go up "Xanthorrhoea Hill". This area on the right between node 3 and
node 4 is largely dominated by trees killed in the controlled burn, but grass-trees are
able to spring back, right after the fire. You may hear wattlebirds here, or see honeyeaters.
After a fire, the Australian bush springs back, either from seeds dropped in the ashes, or from underground sections that waited out the fire. The grass-trees are usually the first green shoots to burst out. There is usually a good supply of seeds in the soil, another reason to avoid erosion.
We have a major problem with feral rabbits on North Head, and while our endangered Eastern Suburbs
Banksia Scrub depends on fire to maintain its balance, the rabbits move in and create havoc, so
around the headland, you will see low wire-netting fences that give plants the chance to get established.
You will see quite few birds (see bird mugshots here) on Xanthorrhoea Hill, including wattle birds, New Holland Honeyeaters, Rainbow Lorikeets, currawongs and assorted others.
Part-way up the hill, the rabbit fence ends, and now the ground has much poorer cover (guess why!). Past the top of the hill, it dips down into "Soggy Bottom" between Nodes 4 and 5, a low area which is often wet, and the home to several sundews, (Drosera sp., below) which catch insects that get stuck in their sticky hairs.
You will also see the coral fern, Gleichenia here, and other water-loving plants, because in a few
paces, the game has changed. The shot on the left was taken in drought times, the one on the right in July 2020
in wet times. At times, frogs have been calling there, mainly Crinia signifera.
Move on now, up "Flannel flower Hill", between Nodes 5 and 6, which promises (in winter 2020) to be a major show of flannelflowers when spring comes. The whole sandy hill carries flowers of one sort or another, right through the year.
At the top, the track to the left takes you to North Fort Road and a quick way back to where you started if you turn left, or to coffee and food if you turn left there and ten right at North Fort Road. If you go right at the top of Flannel flower Hill, you will be on "Lookout Hill" which is much nicer, and you will end up at the coffee and food soon enough.
At the two points on the map above marked V (for view), there are excellent views, first to the north, and then west and south. In the three views below, you are looking back to the track going down to Soggy Bottom, but above it, you can see Long Reef and other headlands to the north. The second shot is from the second viewpoint, the third was taken near the Third Cemetery.
Carry on down the steel track and as you reach the fire trail, stop and admire the Third Quarantine
Cemetery at Node 7 on the map. There will be more about the cemetery when we look
at the West side fire trail.
You are now free to go where you will, though come to think of it, you always were. If you get lost, don't worry, because it's a nice place to get lost.
This file is http://members.ozemail.com.au/~macinnis/nhead/blank.htm.
The home page for this site is http://members.ozemail.com.au/~macinnis/nhead/index.htm<
The page was first created on 25 July 2020, and revised on 1 August 2020.