Despite its ominous name Dead River Beach is a delightful, peaceful campsite on the Victorian side of the Murray River.

It is a popular stopover for river travellers — lone kayakers, groups of schoolchildren on rafts, motley convoys of river craft travelling together, and the usual hoon or two in a beer-fuelled tinny.

Behind the campsite was a small brackish pond where one evening I spotted a pair of wild ducks and their dozen young. Unfortunately I ran out of ‘film’ on my digital camera at the crucial moment and captured this less than ideal exposure of the family outing.

Two days later the adults were back, but without any of their brood, likely taken by foxes.