The bees were being sold in carboard boxes from the back of a truck (which I stupidly forgot to photograph). We had lunch at the cafe out front, then drove on down the track to where the truck was parked. They handed over our box and we put it in the boot, with one seat-back down so the air-con would keep the bees cool. We drove with the windows open for a while to let a few loose bees escape.
At dusk we began to move the bees to their new home. I'd spent an hour yesterday shredding paperbark to put in the smoker. Graham is much better at lighting a smoker than I am. I donned my beekeeping outfit, removed the beehive lid and measured how many frames I had to remove to fit the box in. I smoked the outside of the box, then removed the lid and smoked the inside. The queen cage was wired inside the box so I unwound the wire and pulled it out. It took a while to figure out how to open the cage, but between us Graham and I managed it. I hooked the wire over the top of one of the remaining frames. Put the lid back on and we were done.
Graham was very brave taking these photos, as he was dressed only in shorts, thongs and t-shirt, and several bees landed on him.
