Chasing the Milky Way… and a Few Other Things!
Updated: Oct 19
My good mate Manjul and I had planned a four-day expedition to Bermagui on the NSW South Coast for months. The goal? Capture the Milky Way rising over Horse Head Rock.
Simple... well, not quite.
It Started Before We Left Home
The adventure almost ended before I’d packed the car. My granddaughter Emily and I took Lucy, the family dog, for a quick walk. While I was chatting to a fellow flying his drone over a pod of whales, Lucy quietly slipped her collar and disappeared down a long flight of stairs.
If you’ve ever wondered how quickly your heart rate can increase, I can now answer that.
Thankfully Lucy was caught, Emily stopped looking at me as though I’d committed the crime of the century, and I avoided explaining to my daughter how I’d lost the family dog after exactly one walk.
The holiday was back on!
South We Go
After meeting Manjul at Castle Hill before sunrise, we packed enough camera gear to open our own camera shop and headed south.
About thirty minutes later I realised my water bottle was still sitting in my own car.
An omen? Probably.
After breakfast in the almost deserted Berry, we wandered through Pebbly Beach and Narooma before arriving in Bermagui, all the while trying to organise a boat trip to Montague Island. Apparently two photographers aren’t enough to justify launching a boat in winter.
Who knew?
The Ocean Wins Again
That afternoon Camel Rock turned on a lovely sunset... and one of the sneakiest waves in NSW. It completely ignored Manjul and filled both of my shoes with seawater, Twice
I’m convinced rogue waves can smell dry socks.
Back at the motel I downloaded the images and discovered something even worse my Canon had spent the afternoon happily shooting JPEG instead of RAW.
Every photographer reading this just shuddered.
A Very Early Start
Friday’s alarm went off at 4.30 am. Photographers have a strange relationship with sleep. We happily get up at ridiculous hours, then complain about being tired all day.
Horse Head Rock looked magnificent from above and, despite a few clouds and another photographer occupying the best position, we came away with some terrific drone images.
The drive towards Green Cape Lighthouse came to an abrupt halt when the bitumen disappeared. The road quickly became better suited to tractors than BMWs.
We looked at the road.
The road looked back.
Manjul’s BMW quietly whispered, “Absolutely not.”
Instead we visited The Pinnacles near Eden—brilliant orange cliffs against dazzling white sand. Sometimes Plan B produces the better photograph.
Time for Plan C
The original plan had always been to photograph the Milky Way over Horse Head Rock.
There was just one problem.
Actually getting there.
With my hip replacement only weeks away, climbing over slippery boulders in the dark suddenly seemed less like adventure and more like a hospital admission.
Horse Head Rock wasn’t going anywhere.
Hopefully neither was my new hip.
Instead we photographed the Milky Way over Camel Rock. It wasn’t the shot we’d driven hundreds of kilometres for, but it was still spectacular.
Montague Island at Last
Saturday finally arrived and, after what seemed like endless phone calls, our Montague Island cruise actually happened.
Finding the boat was another story. I’d ignored the skipper’s directions and managed a scenic tour of Narooma before arriving just in time. Then his credit card machine stopped working.
Things were running exactly to plan!
The ride out was beautiful. A whale surfaced just long enough for everyone to lift their cameras... before disappearing again. I’m fairly sure it was laughing.
The seals, however, were brilliant. They played, posed and generally behaved like they owned the island—which, to be fair, they probably do.
Two ladies even snorkelled with them. One returned grinning from ear to ear. The other looked like she’d just completed the Antarctic swimming championships.
Wildlife... of a Different Kind
That evening we photographed sunset and the Milky Way at Glasshouse Rocks.
Just before launching our drones, a passing dog walker informed us we were personally responsible for destroying the local bird population. We smiled politely and decided the sunset was a much safer conversation.
While waiting for darkness, I balanced my phone on the tripod and we watched the All Blacks play Ireland.
Landscape photography is becoming surprisingly technical.
One Last Sunrise
Sunday brought one final sunrise at Barragga Point and Cuttagee Bridge before the long drive home. Apart from Kiama—which appeared to contain half of Sydney—the trip back was uneventful.
Back at Castle Hill we swapped cars, had one last coffee and headed home.
I arrived home feeling rather pleased with myself...
...until I realised I’d left my drone in Manjul’s car.
Some things never change.
Looking Back
Looking back, I don’t remember the things that went wrong. I remember great company, plenty of laughs, playful seals, spectacular sunrises, beautiful night skies and some photographs that made every early start worthwhile.
Just in case you’re keeping score:
🐕 Escaped dogs: 1
💧 Forgotten water bottles: 1
👟 Shoes filled with seawater: 2
📷 Cameras accidentally set to JPEG: 1
🚙 BMWs saved from dirt roads: 1
😠 Grumpy dog walkers: 1
🚁 Drones left in someone else’s car: 1
🌌 Milky Way photos captured: Enough to make the trip worthwhile
Thanks for coming along! If you enjoyed the journey—or have a favourite image from the trip—I’d love to hear from you.
Who knows... Horse Head Rock is still waiting for us, so there may just be a sequel next year!
Until then, happy travelling and happy photographing!
Donovan Callaghan
