A trip to the opera

Saturday 7am. Another gorgeous day. It's very easy paddling today, no waves and absolutely no wind, just a few seagulls about.

I pass Clark Island. In 1789, a marine on the First Fleet, Lieutenant Ralph Clark, tried to grow vegies on this one hectare island. He abandoned the idea when his crops were repeatedly stolen, but the island has been known by his name ever since. It's a great spot to have picnic.

In the middle of the harbour, in front of the bridge and Opera House is Fort Denison. It sits on top of the remains of what was once a 15 metre high sandstone rock. The rocky island was flattened by prisoners under the command of Captain George Barney, the civil engineer for the colony. It was quarried it for sandstone to construct nearby Circular Quay.

I like the view of the city when it looks like it's rising out of the trees in the botanical garden. The trees cover up the ugly bits and so the shiny high-rises can look their best.

I'm still impressed with the Opera House every time I see it. When I did see it for the first time, in the flesh so to speak, I was surprised at how big the base or podium is. The roof seems to get all the attention.

In 2004 an America's Cup Yacht crashed into the Opera House. Easily done, I suppose, because it isn't really very easy to see.

Heading back I found a creature floating on the water. It's a Puffer fish and it's all puffed up trying to imitate the Opera House roof.

A cruise ship passed me. I don't think I'd like to do a cruise, I found it bad enough catching the ferry to Tasmania, but it must be a highlight of the trip arriving in Sydney on a day like today.

I'm heading back to Rose Bay now, it's 8.30am.

By the way, you can hire kayaks from the kayak shed at Rose Bay every weekend, year round and also during the week in the summer. Go to: www.kayakracing.com.au

A perfect day

What a great day to start my blog. It's 6.15am, it's 26 degrees and there's no wind. What a great day to be out on the water.

First I'm off to Shark Island which is between Point Piper and Steele Point in Vaucluse, the island is right in the middle of the Sydney Harbour. Port Jackson is the natural harbour that contains Sydney Harbour, Middle Harbour and North Harbour. It covers an area of 55km and has about 10 different estuarine tributaries, so there's plenty to explore.

There's a couple of beaches on Shark Island either side of the jetty. There's perfect view of the city from here.

Bradley's Head is next. Named after William Bradley a lieutenant on the 'Sirius' of the First Fleet. He surveyed Sydney Harbour in 1788. Before a gate was put on the walkway, the lighthouse used to be a favourite spot for brides in to be photographed with their grooms.

It's so quiet out here, all I can hear is my paddle going in and out of the water. Amazing there's no one around. There's more than 4 million people in Sydney, but they're not out here.

My favourite spot - Taylors Bay. It's hard to remember that there's a city just around the corner. This is also a favourite place for white cockatoos and parakeets. This is national park - there's a couple of sandy beaches and a resident iguana. There's a bunch of yachts moored in the bay and a few houses perched on the slope on the opposite side, It's all very idyllic. Who needs to go to a tropical island when it's all here!

Another beach, at Chowder Head. Normally this is under the water, it's a very small bay and today any sound echoes. Chowder Bay next. There's a good scuba diving operator here www.plungediving.com.au. And, a nice little place to get a coffee, just pull your kayak up onto the beach and the cafe kiosk is just there.

Back to Shark Island. I'm on the other side of it now heading to Rose Bay. It's 9am and I can hear the city rumbling with traffic. People are heading to work, doing their make-up, listening to their music and eating their breakfast in the car. I'm hungry now...