Pen2Paper Autumn 2019

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OUR LIVING LANDSCAPES
In late November 2018, the Australian nature writing Inga
Simpson (author of Nest, Mr Wigg, Where the Trees Are and
Understory) held a nature writing masterclass at Gallery Yampu
and a meet the author event at the Parks Library.
Inga’s visit was held as part of our Living Landscape Initiative, a
foundation project of the Living Environment Strategy 2022. The
initiative promotes the value and living history of the city’s built,
cultural and natural heritage. If you would like to know more
or get involved in this initiative then contact Maggie Hine, Team
Leader Strategic Planning and Environment on 8405 6943 or
Inga has written the following
article as a short reflection of her time in the City.
WRITING NATURE IN PORT
ADELAIDE – INGA SIMPSON
It is already hot when we gather at Gallery Yampu, the perfect
setting for a nature writing workshop. Yampu is the Kaurna word
for dolphin, and this creative space offers us expansive views of
the river and Port Adelaide’s historic buildings. One writer spots
a dolphin by the bridge on his way in.
I find it humbling hearing the participant’s words, as they share
their responses to the writing exercises – tentative at first but
gaining confidence as the day goes on. I see the port through
their eyes, taking on the issues facing their local environments.
These emerging stories are central to place-making: embracing
the past, rewriting the future.
At morning tea we lean on the deck railing and stare at a single
mangrove, fighting back. Someone points out a well-camouflaged
crab, and then we see the fingerlings in the shallows. Nature
writing is ninety per cent observation, but it requires being still,
opening ourselves to the landscape.
When I visit Mutton Cove Conservation Reserve the next day, it
is hard to tear my eyes from the power station, to look past the
refuse, the muck snagged on the undergrowth left behind by the
tide. Even though I spotted the arching backs of dolphins within
moments of emerging from the air-conditioned car, I’m struggling
to be in this place in my usual way, to enter the landscape. When
Maggie asks what I see, I say, ‘A wasteland.’
It isn’t until I see the stilts that the blinkers come off. We’re here
for the birdwatching, with Tony Flaherty from the local NRM
office. I’ve never seen pied stilts. Their black and white bodies
atop long pinky-red legs seem so improbable – yet graceful.
There are so many shore birds I lose count: spoonbills, white-
faced herons, ibis, oyster catchers, dotterel, plovers, terns and
gulls, godwits, shanks, dowitcher and more. This is part of the
east Asian-Australasian flyway, a critical habitat for migratory
species from as far away as Siberia. I’m transfixed with Tony’s
tales of tracking of individuals and pairs, their stories. Some of
these birds have just landed, and have a long way to go yet.
It is a small crowd that evening at the Parks Library, but some
have travelled for ninety minutes. While we are discussing the
importance of reconciling our First Nations histories with any
story of place, a storm moves in, the wind swirling dust around
outside. It is as if the land has spoken.
On my final morning, we head out to Garden Island with Dr Mike
Bossley. Conditions aren’t right for a boat tour of the Dolphin
Sanctuary but we walk along the boardwalk. The dolphins do not
reveal themselves but it is another bird watching opportunity,
and an up-close close look at the mangroves and waterways.
I finish with a visit to the Maritime Museum, grounding my
experiences in the port’s history, and recognising Mike’s voice on
the video that is part the dolphin exhibit. It seems appropriate
that the dolphins should have the last word. After an intense few
days of wonderful conversations with passionate people about
the arts and environment, I leave with the embrace of a warm
and creative community unlike any that I have experienced.
My thanks to the Port Adelaide Enfield Council for hosting me.
Mutton Cove