Tim the Yowie Man comes over yellow with poplars and sculptures in the Monaro

Currently conspicuous in their autumn splendour, the poplars, mostly planted early last century, are in stark contrast to the otherwise treeless and boulder-strewn plains of the Monaro.

Driving south from Canberra, along with the comforting sight of smoke rising from chimneys, the sight of these poplars out the windscreen indicates that you are approaching another town or village. First it is Michelago, then Bredbo (where townsfolk have even adopted the poplar as their logo), then Cooma and Berridale where piles of fallen leaves along "Poplar Avenue" are so high children can be seen playing hide 'n' seek amongst them. Really!

A stand of poplars also marks the turn-off to the Alpine Way just south of Jindabyne, however, their prevalence soon peters out as you head higher into the mountains and into Kosciuszko National Park, a place where exotic vegetation is mostly (and understandably) not welcome by rangers.

However, just before you cross the park boundary another eye-catching yellow spectacle is grabbing the attention of passing motorists. These are not deciduous trees, nor are they even natural, rather they are dozens of yellow rods recently installed at Wildbrumby Distillery.

At first glance the six-metre-high carbon fibre kinetic sculpture that sways in the wind looks similar to the Dancers on a Lakefront sculptures outside the Belconnen Arts Centre, which since their installation in 2010 have become a Canberra landmark. Testimony to this is when this column ran a photo of the colourful rods in its "Where in Canberra?" quiz a couple of years ago, readers responded in near record numbers.

Thankfully, this striking sculpture is not going to lead to a lawsuit filed by the creator of the Belconnen rods for both sculptures are the work of the same artist, world-renowned Konstantin Dimopoulos.

While the Belco rods represent various motifs, including the reeds in Lake Ginninderra, here, according to Dimopoulos, the aptly-named Yellow, is designed to "echo the blonde grasses of the Snowy Mountains".

However, Yellow is not the only recently installed Dimopoulos sculpture at these gardens, which are a delight to walk around, especially at this time of year when you do not have to dodge the snakes of summer, or tip-toe around the ice patches of mid-winter. Beyond the stone chapel, towards the far western corner of the garden's rolling grounds is a stand of (real) gum trees with blue trunks.

In nature, blue is often a warning colour, indicating danger, and Dimopoulos has created these Blue Trees "as a sight never seen in nature, to sound a warning for deforestation due to climate change, diminishing water tables and over-logging".

They certainly stand out and I cannot wait to see how fluffy white flakes of the year's first snow dump contrasts with the biologically-safe blue colourant painted on the trees.

Back on the Alpine Way, and heading further south, there is another sign, also yellow (well, at least partially) but decidedly more subtle than the poplars, that winter is just around the corner — the last flocks of yellow-faced honeyeaters (Lichenostomus chrysops) are flying down from the mountains through Dead Horse Gap on their annual migration to warmer climes.

According to Dave Woods of the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service "the Thredbo Valley is a deeply incised riverine valley, which allows migrating fauna, including birds, to keep to relatively low altitudes and pass at the gap, which is a relatively low point along the Great Dividing Range".

"Keeping low allows species to avoid the more challenging weather higher up the mountains or to at least reduce the amount of time exposed to such conditions," explains the khaki-clad wildlife warrior.

Hoping to see one of the little birds, I position myself right on the Dead Horse Gap sign and wait patiently.

Perhaps I have left it too late in the season, for I do not see any migrating birds, nor any hikers for that matter. Although just up the road, at Thredbo Village, there is a real sense of expectation for the onset of winter, with tradesmen applying licks of paint to chalets, and restaurateurs stocking their cellars with wine (oh, and of course schnapps).

Above on the ski runs, the snow guns, like giant stick insects, wait poised for action, while Kosciuszko Express, the chairlift connecting Thredbo Village to Eagles Nest is closed for regular maintenance. Thankfully, if you still want to stroll around the roof of Australia, the nearby Snowgums Chairlift deposits you at almost the same altitude.

From up here, looking down into the Thredbo Valley, you can really get a sense of why creatures use Dead Horse Gap to flee the chill of winter's first chilly breath, – it really is the most direct route down to the Murray Valley. You also gain a deeper appreciation of the destruction of last decade's bushfires with mountainsides in every direction still littered with the tree trunks devoid of foliage, while off in the distance through binoculars you can just make out the vast swathes of dead manna and ribbon gums on the plains of the Monaro. As highlighted previously in this column (Mystery on the Monaro, February 27, 2015), the latest science suggests these trees are the victims of climate change.

From my lofty vantage spot near Eagles Nest, I cannot quite see Dimopoulos' Blue Trees swaying deep in the valley below, however, their appearance is a timely reminder that we need to take action to protect our fragile environment.

Wildbrumby Distillery: Corner of Wollondibby Road and the Alpine Way, between Jindabyne and Thredbo. Hours: 10am-5pm (6pm in winter). www.wildbrumby.com or Ph: 02 6457 1447. Don't miss the butterscotch schnapps.

Did You Know: A 2013 report commissioned by the Snowy River Shire Council determined that each Lombardy Poplar tree in Berridale's Poplar Avenue has an approximate current economic value to the community of between $13,500 and $36,300 depending upon their individual condition. This means that if an average value is applied to the 42 trees, the avenue has an approximate value in the order of $1 million.

Dead Horse Gap: Located 5km south of Thredbo along the Alpine Way. Its name originates from wild horses once found dead here, thought to have been trapped by unexpected snowfalls. The yellow-faced honeyeater is not the only bird that migrates annually. Other species include white-naped honeyeaters, silver eyes, spotted pardalotes and red wattlebirds. Meanwhile, according to a sign at the gap, "each spring clouds of moths, flies and wasps fly south through here" and that "the mass migration of wasps can last a week". Heck, I'd love to see a photo of that!

Thredbo: Enjoy the mountains before the onset of winter. Ph: 1300 020 589 or: www.thredbo.com.au

White Boomer

While house-sitting a property just off Macs Reef Road, Patrick Bacon claims he has spotted the elusive albino of Wamboin.

Bacon reveals that "after stalking the albino a bit closer, I noticed that the roo had a joey in tow, however, the offspring looked like a regular roo".

After showing his photos (a bit too blurry to publish here) to the "Brains Trust" at the Eagle Hawk Pub, Bacon says that he was told "there are plenty of white roos in the area."

"I wonder if this is a result of localised evolution, with all the darker roos getting hit by cars on the way to the coast," ponders Bacon.

Still on hopping marsupials, Martin Butterfield takes exception to this column's musings about the lack of commuters who recognised the old shed in a paddock on the western side of William Hovell Drive, which recently featured in this column's photo quiz.

In response to my comment, "it probably means that drivers who read this column focus on the traffic rather than what's in the surrounding paddocks", Butterfield retorts, "out here, towards Captains Flat, we watch the traffic and the paddocks as what is 'in the paddocks' often becomes 'in the road' and hosing a kangaroo off the bonnet is not pleasant".

CONTACT TIM: Email: timtheyowieman@bigpond.com or Twitter: @TimYowie or write c/- The Canberra Times, 9 Pirie St, Fyshwick. You can see a selection of past columns at: http://www.canberratimes.com.au/act-news/by/Tim-the-Yowie-Man-hvf8o

Cryptic Clue: Fungal chat

Degree of difficulty: Medium

Last week: Congratulations to John Burge of Curtin who was first to correctly identify last week's photo submitted by Les Davies as the Coat of Arms of Australia at the main entrance gates to the Australian National Botanic Gardens. Burge immediately recognised the photo, as he regularly has lunch at the garden's cafe and recently noticed that "the colours on the restored coat of arms really stand out in a most wonderful way". For the record, the paint job was the meticulous work of Pat and Warwick Wright from Curtin, two volunteer Friends of the Gardens.

How to enter: Email your guess along with your name and address to timtheyowieman@bigpond.com. The first email sent after 10am, Saturday, May 14, 2016 with the correct answer wins a double pass to Dendy cinemas.