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The South East
Forests Project: some notes
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Although
his South East Forests Project truly began in the early 1980s, it started intensively in early 2001.
With the assistance of Jacqueline Medvecka and the NPWS, John Blay walked the region full time and his trek
covered many thousands of kilometres. It comprised three legs over almost
three years:
- From
Barragoot beach near Bermagui through Biamanga National Park, through
Brogo Pass into the Bemboka Section of the South East Forests National
Park, over Brown Mountain, along the escarpment Forests and then down
onto Mount Imlay and on to Nadgee Nature Reserve, between Eden and
Mallacoota.
- Through
the coastal Parks and reserves of the region from Point Hicks in
Victoria and back to Bermagui.
- From
the coast to the summit of Kosciuszko, exploring ways, interlinks and
means for a walkway, along the border regions and into the high
country of NSW and Victoria.
His on ground
researches paid especial interest to old aboriginal campsites, pathways
and moth hunting localities as well as new and interesting species of
wildlife.
Over the period he explored the relatively unknown
beauty and natural attributes of the region, which forms a rough triangle
from Bermagui in the north, to the Kosciuszko National Park in the west
and Croajingalong National Park in Victoria to the south.
Ultimately, his intention was to produce books and generally inform
people about the amazing wonders of the region, which he believes would
deserve World Heritage status.
He
is known for his expertise on flora and fauna of the region. In 1982, he
discovered a new species of wattle in the Brogo wilderness. Growing to
over 30 metres, the species was named Acacia blayana in his
honour.
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The Brogo wattle, Acacia blayana |
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His researches for this project properly began in the
early 1970s.
His aims, he said at the time, were, 'to
actually be in the bush, on foot, as much and for as long as possible. You
see more then, you become more observant and you notice the unusual
things, the special things. I’m not going to be totally pure. I won't
just follow along straight routes, I’ll diverge and zigzag and follow
butterflies. Wherever it would be helpful I’ll come out of the bush to
speak with the experts and old local residents and such. At later dates I
will most certainly revisit areas I have missed or which have raised my
curiosity, as many times as necessary. I am especially interested in old
aboriginal campsites, pathways and moth hunting localities.
Although I’ll be keeping a journal along the way, I probably
won’t start writing the main book properly until the actual walking is
finished and all the information is collated, identified and effectively
transcribed. I will ask big questions along the way, and continue to look
at the history of the area, the values people find in such areas as well
as the importance of ‘wildness’ and ‘wilderness’ to us nowadays
and for the times to come.'
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Silvertop ash, Eucalyptus seiberi
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| From the silvertop ash which are common on the dry ridges
for the coast to the crest of the coastal range to the white sallee or
snowgum, most common to the colder places of the range where snow and
frost are all too common, the SE Forests display a range of plants and
wildlife that are remarkable by any standards. |
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White sallee, Eucalyptus pauciflora
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| His
aim in the beginning was simply to capture the essence, the
history and natural history of the new National Parks which included
places better known for forest protests like the Coolangubra and
Tantawangalo. Bob Carr was a keen supporter of the project and provided a
two-year grant to help cover expenses. The National Parks & Wildlife
Service of NSW and Vic have provided remarkable levels of assistance and
co-operation. Eighteen months ago he gave a talk for the Foundation for
National Parks & Wildlife on the wild forests and it attracted a
capacity crowd. |
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Shining
gum forest |
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| The project has yielded close to 10,000 photographs which
are being data-based to provide a resource for the future. Not all are
suitable to be shown on the web but some of the most beautiful are to be
part of a SE Forests photographic exhibition late in 2004. |
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Messmate-brownbarrel forest |
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White ash prefer the misty mountaintops.
The succession of eucalypts from the coast to Kosciuszko
in itself is so remarkable as to deserve world heritage status, and when
coupled with other merits the case is extremely strong. These are the
great eucalyptus forests of the world, a store and a resource of great
charm and beauty. |
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