You are hereForums / The Knapsack Project / Kingy meets local resident at Knapsack

Kingy meets local resident at Knapsack


Kingy's picture

By Kingy - Posted on 29 January 2011

Quarry decent from lovers walk ran into a resident so I took the opportunity to ask him about mountain biking in the reserve, he opted not to comment how ever he did not have a problem with posing for a photo. lol

ChopStiR's picture

Wow! I've yet to see an echidna in the wild. Will have to keep an eye out for this local resident.

The Brown Hornet's picture

I've seen 3 echidnas in the last fortnight. 2 at the gate to Glenbrook NP while Beth was working (on different days), and one roaming the streets at Kingswood one night while I was at work. It was a battle to get him up and to safety-fark they can dig in!

Rob's picture

This is part of why getting out into the bush on an MTB is so nice.

I've only ever seen an Echidna once down in Tassie (Cradle Mountain NP - literally teaming with wildlife) and would love to see more about Sydney.

BM Epic's picture

Had one at the end of the street, it seen us all and dug in like a tick, funny buggers they are!

Kingy's picture

When I seen old mate on the trail he heard me coming and tucked in so I sat off to the side of the road and waited next thing I knew he was walking right at me he literally walked up and straight to the camera lens I snapped a shot and the shutter noise had him digging for china again, I will get Moggoi to put up the close up shot Smiling

Rob's picture

LOL... yeah, they are cool little buggers.

On my encounter I stopped the car to let him finish crossing the road. Gave him a bit of hurry up in case someone not as patient came along. There was a pretty high 'kerb' of dirt at the side he headed too, easily 2-3 times his height. The little fella just walked straight into it like it wasn't there!

Chuck's picture

The neighbours dog had one bailed up a couple of years ago. It dug straight down into the lawn and you could just see it. Must have taken WIRES and I thirty minutes to get him/her out. The dog copped a few sharp quills in the nose in the process.

Nerf Herder's picture

Saw one in thredders the other week ... big fat guy (slightly smaller then basket ball sized) nice colouring

I've also seen one at Oxford falls XC loop, years ago, before it was closed off ... much smaller, he was a brave little tike and ignored us completely.

Muninjitsu's picture

I have only ever seen one, was in the Grampions National Park in the middle of the road. They are pretty rare to see, but like most animals, bushfire, flood, change in adverse weather seem to bring them out.

You may have noticed that you rarely would see a black cockatoo in the lower blue's prior to the big bush fires we had several years ago, but now.....

beaver's picture

I have also seen some different wildlife lately...
Echidna crossing singles ridge rd...
Dingo? or something very similar at yellow rock lookout...we startled it when we came around a corner and it scarpered quick smart, but both of us swear that it was a dingo...is this possible?
Black cockatoos at home and down the oaks...
baby goanna hanging out in the backyard cleaning up all the snails for me...
2 red bellies...1 along blue gum and the other on the oaks
numerous bearded dragons of varying sizes...
And a brown hornet sweating his tits off completing hot lap of blue gum...
All of these sightings have been in the last few weeks...

What a great place it is that we live in!

Chuck's picture

There are Dingoes that live at the back of St Columba's High School.

BM Epic's picture

Have come acroos the dingo several times, npws also confirmed that they are around winmalee/ yellow rock!

BM Epic's picture

Ohhh that brown hornet, did it have a craving for chocalate?..was it that rare winmalee breed, have come across this one myself, kind of hard to keep up with, but best keep a distance for fear of the sting!!!

Kingy's picture

I remember one time there going back a ways I was out on my treadly slogging uptowards Hawkesbury from Yarra, would have been about half 5 in winter so it was gettin on towards dark, anyway I was grinding away in the big gig next thing out of the corner of me eye I spots a bit of movement up in the bush, I figured it must have been a wallaby so I just rounded the turn and then kept in the rythym, I get about half way up the next grade again I see a little bit of motion right on my periphial, the hackles on the back of my neck went up so I thought something ain't right here so I figured I would drop a few gears lighten up the effort and start scanning the bush, now normally this time of night you get a few cars going past but I was already halfway up the hill and I had not seen one for about 6 mins, strange now I look back, so now with my eyes cast up the hill I continue the ascent, those of you who know this climb well will be familiar with the big sweeper that peels left and and then feeds up to the sharpest turn on the climb well just about half way up this sweeper there is a massive berm like embankment right opposite some high ground, it was up there that I was looking, well you could of knocked me over with a feather there up on the hill trundling along like a stealthy stalker was a blacky brindle looking dingo, I nearly cut a washer when I realised that the whole time I was going up this climb this predator was tracking behind me watching my every move.
I got around the next bend and the road flattens a little and I picked up the tempo again eager to get out of here, thoughts of little red riding hood and ferociuos dog movies like Cujo started uploading in my head.
I reckon I set a world record up that last k of Tarmac and to this day I have always been very aware of their presence out that way.
My mate Craig Gordon has also run into them in The Oaks! So be warned they're out there.
Insert spooky twighlight music here lol Smiling

Flynny's picture

I get a few Echidnas out the back of our yard and up along Hassans Walls

Last tuesday night we finished racing at rydal and one of the guys was running around asking every one "Did you see the echinda?" apparently if ambled across the track in front on him and dug in to a hollow log. Apparently he was still there each lap but was going by the race end without any one else seeing him.

Along with the long nosed, spiky buggars with the backward facing feet my fav regular encounters around here are with

feather tail guiders. Saw my first one in the wild on a night ride a year or so ago and seen a few since.

Lyrebirds. Always get a kick out of catch sight of one

Goannas.

moggio's picture

I'm always chuffed by the wallaby where I ride that is often around a certain spot late in the day. Used to startle me at first as I imagined feral dogs or dingos after my throat, but nah a big sweet animal.

Seen a lot of dog footprints out on Mt Hay Rd when I was riding there years ago for fitness... sort of stopped me riding there though I have never had a good view of a dog there.

Muninjitsu's picture

Not an echidna, but a grey roo, which i guess are a bit like a flock of seaguls around a picnic. I was tagging one along Faulconbridge Ridge on my MTB one morning, he/she was boinging along the fire trail and would stop to wait at the top of the pinches for me to catch up. I think it was taunting me, anyway, i clocked it at 42km/hr on the flat sitting only inches of its tale. I though this was fun until i thought if it stopped suddenly then i would be the first to hit a roo on a MTB. I pulled back but what a blast of adrenalin it was.

beaver's picture

Relax about the dingos guys ...i think your safe! Its been years since the last recorded attack and even that report still has question marks hanging over it...plus your not asleep in a tent!

DigDig's picture

if its brindle its no dingo.

Kingy's picture

Hey Wes, it looked like one I think it might have been a cross with a wild dog it had the same head and ears of the dingoand was pretty well nourished compared to the normal scrawny example you see round the koori camps up in Arnhem land.

Flynny's picture

I wouldn't be so sure about no brindle dingos. Colour is no guide.

Red or even black and tan dingos are about.
there is a lot of argument on whether these are pure or have interbred with domestic dogs.

Bit of an article of dingos in the bluies and their colouring here http://www.abc.net.au/catalyst/stories/2589671.htm

Andy Bloot's picture

I've only ever seen 2 dingoes in the mountains
And oddly enough in different spots on the same day
Both looked exactly like the ones in Flynny's link from what I remember

The first I saw was on a bush walk
Down Pierce's pass and cross the Grose river and follow the trail on the other side to the blue Gum forest
About 500 meters along this trail both Michelle and I saw it
I was stoked - she was freaked out (Azaria and all that BS)

Driving back we turned left to Mt Vic, and on the side of the road
Just stepping out of the bush, we both saw another
I hastily pulled over - it was definitely a dingo

Later we heard something on ABC radio about a study some guy did of Dingoes in the Blue M's

I've also come across an Echidna
Unlike Kingy's echidna he was up for a chat about MTB
He was very much in favour of the trails
And loved to find a spot near the trail to set up with the family and watch the action
He couldn't understand why it was such a thorny issue - ha ha ha
Get it - thorny - oh I'm so funny

Kingy's picture

:-0

DigDig's picture

Many yrs ago I was payed by farmers to get rid of dingos and ferral dogs.As its states in the abc report they had to have someone on there books that did it.I have seen different colour dingo but never brindle was told if it looks like a dingo leave it until it darks.As for ferral dogs they are much easyer to hunt.

Comment viewing options

Select your preferred way to display the comments and click "Save settings" to activate your changes.
Best Mountain Bike