Tabla de contenidos para August - September 2022 en Great Walks

A while back, British nature writer Robert Macfarlane (who wrote one of my favourite nonfiction books about outdoor adventure Mountains of the Mind) discovered that the latest Oxford Junior Dictionary was missing a few things. Oxford University Press confirmed that a list of words had been removed. These words, the publisher felt, were no longer relevant to a modern-day childhood. So goodbye to acorn, ash, and beech. Farewell to bluebell, buttercup and conker. Adios dandelion, fern, hazel, and heather. And in their place came modern words, such as blog, broadband, chatroom, Facebook, Tik Tok, Twitter and voicemail. Inspired by the culling Macfarlane set out to counter the trend by creating a glossary of his own. “We lack a Terra Britannica, as it were: a gathering of terms for the land…

I LIVE close enough to the Victorian High Plains to consider them part of my backyard and as a member of a local bushwalking club, it means I get to spend a lot of time playing there. The Border Bushwalking Club features two events on its yearly calendar that I try not to miss – a weekend trip to The Fainters and the Hotham to Falls Crossover. I consider these a couple of ‘Great Alpine Walks’ and are doable for most people with a reasonable degree of fitness, who are ‘hike fit’ and have the appropriate gear and equipment. Any excursion to Victoria’s High Plains carries with it a certain degree of risk and uncertainty, since weather conditions can change suddenly with severe weather fronts moving in. It’s not much…

THE climb is relentless, getting steeper, colder, gnarlier. I’ve been going for six hours already, gaining nearly 1000m in elevation from ocean towards the summit and the day is taking longer than I expected. Patches of snow start to dot the track and old-man’s-beard moss drapes from twisted tree trunks as I hike further into the misty heights. An icy wind bites into my bare hands and even though I’m exerting myself, my body is getting uncomfortably cold. I stop to pull on a jacket and gloves. When I think it can’t get much harder, it does. I use my arms and legs to haul myself, and my food-laden pack, up sizeable rocks and ladders of tree roots. Where is the flat sunlit boardwalk I saw in all the adverts?…

AFTER two years of tumultuous times and restricted travel, the world is starting to feel more normal again with international trips back on the cards. If you’re still hesitant to travel far or just want to experience some bold and spectacular wilderness, there has never been a better time to jump on a plane and head over to the Land of the Long White Cloud, Aotearoa, New Zealand. New Zealand is often seen as a small country and it shouldn’t be too hard to see everything in a few weeks, but you couldn’t be more mistaken. We are blessed with an incredible amount of environmental diversity, meaning that each region can often feel like an entirely different country. For instance, from the deserts of Central Otago you’re within a few…

THE majority of those lucky enough to walk amongst the majestic peaks of the Frenchmans Cap massif, approach and return on the well maintained but still rewarding track past the Loddon Plains. For years, this route has had the reputation of heartbreaking marches through waist high bogs. However, in recent years through generous donations, clever rerouting and back-breaking track building, the path has been made stable enough to handle the many travellers that traverse its bends. I had always wanted to visit Frenchmans Cap but due to having a special affinity with the Franklin River, two vehicles available for a car shuffle and three great friends with a common appreciation for the wild, I suggested we try the Frenchman’s ‘circuit’. Not a new route, it appears in John Chapman’s South…

Great Walks editor Brent McKean has a thing or two to say about why we should support outdoor gear retailers. Outdoor gear shops are our portal into outdoor adventure and they offer more than just quality gear. Employees and owners often have years of experience on their outdoor resume. Their passion for gear bleeds into their days off. The result: a lifetime of expertise on equipment and outdoor pursuits. In addition, they are well versed in the local trails, terrain and weather. And who better to tell you about the current conditions than someone who was out enjoying them that morning before their shift? An essential factor in choosing the right gear for your goals includes familiarity with the local environment. You won’t be surprised to find that some local…

BUSHWALKING CLUBS HAVE you ever thought about joining a bushwalking club? Well in my case – no. To me bushwalking is a solitary pastime, almost spiritual – the bush your company, getting away from it all, and everyone else. Of course, walking alone has its limitations, especially when things do not go to plan. So yes, I do try to walk with one or two friends, but the thought of walking in a group never thrilled me. That is until recently. Three years ago, I moved from Sydney to the New South Wales South Coast, near Batemans Bay. Here there is bush all around – beautiful mountains and coast, all ready to explore. But I found that, other than those iconic National Parks trails like the Bingie Dreaming Track or…

Producer by trade, Caro started lotsafreshair.com to inspire people to get outdoors and remove barriers to bushwalking. IT may come as a shock to the hardiest of solo-hikers out there, but we are not alone. It’s estimated that there are over 100,000 trillion bacterial cells that make up our human microbiome. We don’t tend to notice these (mostly good) neighbours in our comfy, urban lives; we cover them up or try to do away with them completely with regular washing with soap and the use of perfumed products like deodorant. Heading out for a bushwalk means stepping away from everyday hygiene routines. If we don’t do a bit of careful planning on how to look after our lady* gardens, we could be adding unnecessary discomfort, pain or even illness to…

“DON’T BE AFRAID TO HAND PICK THE RIGHT PERSON” ‘Kit Kat’ is a fundraiser and avid senior hiker who earned her trail name walking the Pacific Crest Trail in 2019 with type 1 diabetes. IMAGINE having a hiking buddy readily available to join you on all your walking expeditions, long or short, easy or difficult, near or far. Oh, what fun you’d have exploring nature in the great outdoors with a friend who digs your passion for hiking. Well, forget it. This person doesn’t exist. Amongst my hiking friends I have the fair-weather hiker, the leisurely suburban dog walker, local explorers of well-trodden tracks, adventurers and daredevils, the fitness junkies, back country navigators, the sisterhood group, the glampers and those happy with a weekly mental health boost. When you decide…

“A very snug cove”, that’s how one person described Ship Cove, one of the many bays that make up Marlborough Sounds. Standing on the pebbly beach and staring out into the sparkling waters I couldn’t agree more. This was a very snug cove and the perfect place for the 71km Queen Charlotte Track to begin. In fact the person who said this would have been the ideal bushwalking buddy as he adored the area. But that was impossible because his name was Captain James Cook and he was here about 240 years before I was. Cook found Marlborough Sounds so agreeable he visited Ship Cove five times between 1770 and 1777 during his expeditions to map the Pacific. There’s a lovely memorial for Cook at the start of the track,…

IT’S one of those things you think will never happen to you. On a normal day in 2019, Mark Berridge went cycling with his mates but within a few hours he was being rushed to hospital with a severe spinal chord injury and his life was changed for ever. Mark takes five with Great Walks to talk about his road to recovery and how he found solace in writing about it. What were you doing for work and where were you living before your bike accident? At the time of my accident, we lived in Brisbane where I was building my own consultancy business, providing services such as business transformation, revenue optimisation, negotiation support and strategic rigour to large corporates. Tell us about the accident and how did you feel…

WHAT’S IN MY PACK? I was not an outdoorsy child or teenager, but in adulthood I realised how much I enjoyed spending days at a time immersed in nature. Somehow the views are always better if you have to work for them. And as someone who enjoys getting away from the crowds, I quickly realised that the longer the hike in is, the less likely it is that there will be others at the campsite. To my delight I met a kindred spirit three years ago in my partner Peter. He not only agrees that a week or more is a perfectly reasonable amount of time to spend on the trail, but also doesn’t mind how loose the plans are. We’ve embraced a “make you own adventure” style of hiking…

A Qld government proposal to build luxury cabins in Great Sandy National Park poses a threat to its pristine natural beauty and Aboriginal cultural heritage, locals say. The state government plans to construct “eco-tourism” accommodation in locations along the Cooloola Great Walk, which runs from Noosa North Shore through Cooloola to Rainbow Beach. However, the project has left locals anxious that the accommodation will demage parts of the 102km coastal route, which winds through massive sand hills, rainforests and wetlands. “We could call it ego-tourism,” said Greg Wood, convener of Protect Our Parks and Rainbow Beach resident. “We’re going into the last refuges of nature…that have been protected from commercial private development…and we’re going to monetise them as well,” he told The Guardian. Ten cabins are proposed to be built…

WILDERNESS PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR WITH our Wilderness Photographer of the Year presented by Southern Ocean Walk well underway, it’s time to meet this year’s judges. And the good news is our judges from last year have returned. These professional photographers will be bringing plenty of experience from last year’s comp when they begin poring over the hundreds of entries. Here’s a little bit about our judges and what they are looking for in a stand-out image. Mike Edmondson Mike has been a backcountry guide, professional photographer and cross-country ski instructor for over 35 years. Specialising in Kosciuszko NP, NSW where he leads photography, snow camping adventures and Australia’s Ten Highest Peaks walks. Mike also has an extensive photographic online gallery. Mike: “I’m looking for an image that has the…

MY earliest bushwalking memory is on the Bibbulmun Track with my dad, sitting under a tree boiling water to make soup for lunch. It was raining, I was soaked to the bone and shivering under my oversize raincoat. Our friend Tilly had found a couple of ticks around her hairline and her dad was removing them with tweezers. Rain, ticks and cuppa-soup, a classic bushwalk. I grew up on a farm in southwest WA, so I was always outside, climbing trees and playing in the bush. My dad was a real adventure sportsman, so he was a big influence on my attraction to the outdoors. We’d often go hiking on the Bibbulmun or bikepacking on the Munda Biddi. From a young age I was drawn to the simplicity of those…

EIGHT turquoise-blue emu eggs sit on their bed of twigs, glowing in the sunlight like beads for a gigantic necklace. A male emu lurks behind the encircling wall of grass and lignum, ready to get back on the nest as soon as we have gone. The eggs’ burst of vivid colour is an intense contrast to the grey-brown-green of the surrounding landscape. Over our three days of walking there’ll be other such pops of vivid colour: the royal-blue sheen of Purple Swamphens glimpsed among wetland reeds; Ringneck Parrots displaying the traffic-light green of their tail feathers to potential mates high in the trees; spots of flaming scarlet dancing before our eyes as Red-Capped Robins flit from branch to branch. And we wouldn’t see any of them, were it not for…

IF you’re going to cross the ditch to try one of NZ’s 10 Great Walks (soon to be 11 – see pg32) it seems a shame not to do a couple, which is what Ultimate Hikes were thinking when they created The Classic guided walk, which allows you to walk the Milford Track, have rest a day in Te Anau and then head out onto the Routeburn. You’ll appreciate the contrast between the two iconic walks and it also means your walking holiday doesn’t have to end so soon. All Ultimate Hikes guided walks start with a briefing at the head office in Queenstown the day before your walk. This is where you’re given all the info and collect whatever gear you need i.e. rucksacks and wet-weather jackets. The next…

TO guide, or be guided? That is the question. There are pros and cons for either choice, but the most important question to ask yourself is: what do you want out of this walk? You might want to learn everything about an area, or you might want some solitude in nature. What kind of adventure are you looking for? Does the walk match your level of skill? As well as the obvious safety benefit, going with a guide can give you insider knowledge and another point of view. Cost can also define the choice, but looking at what’s on offer and aligning it with your desires is worth considering. Whether you choose a guided walk or to take it solo, you’re spoilt for choice for multi-dayers in New Zealand and…

OUTDOOR RETAILERS IT’S been a long two and a half years since the world was plunged into the maelstrom of Coronavirus, and one of the industries that suffered deeply and immediately was retail. Unlike food, clothes, and toilet paper, outdoor gear was a hobby spend and not considered essential to anybody for quite a while, especially since we weren’t allowed outdoors. As a consequence some retailers didn’t survive, but for those that did, things are finally looking up. Great Walks spoke to a couple of the largest independent outdoor retailers in the country to chat about how they’ve bounced back. Neil Blundy, Owner, Bogong Equipment, Melbourne How is business now compared to pre-pandemic? We re-opened around 1st November. People were really quite cautious at first, so it wasn’t like opening…

“RETRACING OUR STEPS WE LAUGHED AT OUR EARLIER EFFORTS TO KEEP OUR NOW SODDEN SHOES DRY” HEAVY rain was predicted for our first week of rambling around the tracks on the Whitsunday Islands, but this didn’t dampen our spirits. Hey, the rain’s warm up here. On day one from Shute Harbour, Phil on his Island Transfers boat dropped us off at a well named Sandy Bay on uninhabited South Molle Island. Our trek was 18km of “wow!” and “wow!” again. The vegetation and views change at every corner. The wide winding track took us up to views of blue water far below and over and through hundreds, thousands, of xanthorrhoea, grass trees. The occasional lorikeet perched at the top of some the flowering spikes, and the xanthorrhoea grass trees’ thick…

BORN and raised in South East Queensland, we have always enjoyed exploring and navigating to hidden gems in our national parks. We have spent the last few years poring over maps and finding lesser-known trails to remote bush camps to spend more than a day out in the wild. We kept thinking, ‘Wouldn’t it be great if there was a guidebook dedicated to multiday hikes?’ After discussing this aloud, we realised we were the perfect pair to create such a book! Overnight Hikes South East Queensland provides maps and track notes for multiday hiking adventures. We have also included useful information such as phone reception, reliability of water sources and swimming holes. From the avid trekker keen to suffer in the outdoors to the novice hiker heading out on their…