North Adelaide……the lion circuit

Dear Reader:

It is a mild sunny morning and I am enjoying one of my favourite bike rides. Starting at The Lion Hotel I ride away from the city along Melbourne Street to the Park Terrace intersection. The street is an eclectic mixture of cafes and niche retailers selling anything from clothes to antiques and Persian rugs.

Classic old building converted into shops and galleries

Crossing Park terrace I wind my way through narrow streets and past some lovely old homes to intersect the path that runs alongside the Torrens River before it hits the city proper. The river has cut a narrow gorge through the ochre coloured rocks and tall eucalypts dominate the trail. A pair of rainbow lorikeets is fussing around a nesting hole and one bird takes flight as I dismount to take a closer look.

Rainbow lorikeets nesting

A wooden boardwalk descends towards the river and the weir that controls the water flow. Common pigeons can often be seen foraging along the steep hillside early in the mornings. I think that the clay might supplement their diet and aid digestion.

Boardwalk trail along the river

Common pigeon feeding on cliff-side

Where the walkway levels out a small bridge splits the trail with one path leading back into the city and the other north east to the foothills. I head for the city. The track is flatter here and I pass numerous joggers and other cyclists all enjoying the fine weather.

Foot and cycle crossing near St Peters

Large dragonfly resting in a bottle brush near the river bank

Just past the little foot bridge the path sweeps under the much larger Hackney Road Bridge that carries the majority of traffic into the eastern side of the city. Here, the river widens, slows and becomes the Torrens Lake. As if to herald the change, a graceful snowy egret stands sentinel-like amongst the reeds watching for prey. Further along the waterway, a great cormorant perches close by with similar intent. These larger predatory water birds seem to indicate a greater abundance of prey in the lake.

Signage explains Aboriginal connections and other historical facts

Great Cormorant perching on the lake behind the zoo

Egret hunting in reeds

Although the path follows the lake right along the northern edge of the city, I only ride a couple of hundred metres further to the Frome Road Bridge. Pausing briefly to take in the view of the lake, city and zoo from the top of the bridge, I turn right and head past the playing fields riding parallel to Mackinnon Parade through an avenue of massive, stately eucalypts. Cyclists, joggers and football players of all codes share this green space with cockatoos and other parrots that squawk in the trees and feed in the grass.

Cockatoo foraging on the oval near McKinnon Parade

Left near the end of the tree line and I’m back where I started and ready for coffee or breakfast at The Lion.

Back at The Lion

A brilliant way to spend the morning!!

Try it some time!!!

Cheers

Baz

Tags: Aboriginal heritage, Adelaide attractions, Adelaide parklands, Australian birds, Australian wildlife, cormorant, Dragonfly, Egret, Old Lion Hotel, parrots, rainbow lorikeet, South Australia, South Australian birds, south australian travel, Torrens River, water birds, wildlife photography