30 Sept quarry visit

I was planning on observing in the morning but my allergies were terrible. By the time they subsided the rain began so I left after the worst of it - I figured that I probably wouldn't see anyone, and at best, I could argue that informal use is linked to weather (i.e. a nice day will attract more people).

4:15 pm: Nothing is happening and nobody is here. The weather is horrendous, overcast and windy. A barrier has been placed along Halong Drive where it meets the roundabout/dead-end - this is new, since it wasn't there when I last visited. I wonder why they've done this (whoever 'they' are) and what impact this will have on passive surveillance by residents who choose to enter/exit RVE the long way.

4:21 pm: Aside from the barrier, the other difference worth noting is that all the empty blocks and nature strips have been covered in roll-out turf. I knew something looked a bit odd when I drove in, so I checked with my photos from Sunday to confirm.

4:34 pm: Still nothing, still cold (and now rainy), and no cars coming through.

4:46 pm: It is so quiet that a family of magpies has emerged to feed from the newly rolled-out turf. A large group of cockatoos have taken over the dying tree adjacent to the quarry lake.

4:49 pm: A young male in a silver sedan drives past and does a complete loop at the roundabout before returning uphill. He slowed down when passing my car and looked at me. Is his preferred route home now blocked or did he have other plans? I wonder if my presence alarmed him.

4:52 pm: Quiet again.

4:59 pm: Still nothing - boring. I just noticed that the roundabout sign has been vandalised since my last visit.

5:00 pm: Spoke too soon - a tiny silver-blue hatchback has arrived. The car is quite new and there is a couple inside who look somewhat professional. I expected them to be alarmed by the roadblock and drive back uphill but they parked next to the roundabout.

5:02 pm: Hatchback people have not yet exited the vehicle. I don't blame them because the weather is cold.

5:03 pm: The driver of the hatchback exits the vehicle and goes to the boot. I'm thinking he could be here to dump rubbish but instead he grabs one of those silver foil sunshade things and tries to place it in the rear window of the car. He seems really annoyed that it won't stay in place - I assume he/the passenger don't want to be seen inside the car.

5:05 pm: After much fussing, the sun shade is in place and he has returned to the vehicle. I've heard the area is commonly used as a 'lover's lane' (which is probably the strangest facet of car culture and something I think would be interesting to explore in future research) and I guess this is proof of it. I'm kind of amazed that they're willing to do this in relatively 'dangerous' place.

5:10 pm: Quiet again. I'm mostly bird-watching now since nothing else is happening. The magpies accepted a magpie lark into their fold and they're all walking around together, while five cockatoos have congregated on a single dead plant.

5:13 pm: Old man in a silver BMW* drives through, does a full loop of the roundabout, and slowly drives back uphill - again, is this because of the new barrier blocking Halong Drive?

5:15 pm: L-plater in a 4WD drives through and around the roundabout. I learned how to drive here as well, and I've seen a few other learners around here, so it must be a known spot for locals. The couple are still there but I'm not going to stick around and make the situation more awkward so it's time to go home.

*I later saw this car parked outside a house under construction near the entrance to RVE so the driver must have been checking out something (quarry? Progress of construction?)

Took this when leaving, looks pretty useless to me but what do I know about barriers

Bad photo but cool bird tree

Baby magpie and older magpie near my car