Innehållsförteckning för April - May 2022 från Great Walks

“WALK gently on our land, look after it and it will look after you. Our ancestors are watching over you out there, they really are. We, the traditional owners, really are inspired by the walkers, this incredible personal journey that you’re on.” – Nova Pomare, one of the traditional custodians and current manager of Angkerle Atwatye (Standley Chasm.) “Everything is super green at the moment, the waterholes are so full! We reckon it’s going to be a pretty nice dry season, there’s an unbelievable number of wildflowers and birds all around.” – Kathy Moylan, Red Kangaroo Bookshop, Alice Springs. For the Western Arrernte people, the country of ‘Tjoritja’, where the Larapinta Trail snakes her way west from Alice Springs, is sacred. Their Dreamtime stories of ancestral beings moving through the…

LIKE a Spanish – or perhaps French – eagle gliding majestically above the Pyrenees, the Camino de Santiago soars high above any efforts of explanation. Whether detailing its fascinating history, the twists and turns of the pilgrimage trail itself, or even a host of amusing local stories, the words will always finish a distant second. And for this, let me apologise. But as every good walker knows, it’s step by step that life is best experienced. The roots of both Santiago (the destination) and the walk itself date all the way back to the early 9th century. The story goes that a hermit by the name of Pelayo was guided by the stars and thus discovered the tomb of Saint James. The magnificent Santiago Cathedral stands on this spot and…

IF you needed anymore evidence on how go the outdoors is for you, doctors in the Canadian province of British Columbia can now prescribe a National Parks pass to patients in need of the physical or mental health benefits offered by time spent in nature. Canada’s national nature prescription program, PaRx, has announced this new collaboration with Parks Canada allowing its registered, licensed GPs to provide a free annual Parks Canada Discovery Pass to patients. “We have a standard recommendation, based on the latest research, that patients spend at least two hours a week in nature and at least 20 minutes each time,” Dr. Melissa Lem, family physician and PaRx director told globalnews. ca. “So this is all about breaking down those barriers to access to nature.” An annual Parks…

THROUGH red dust clouds kicked up by our traveling companions up front, we caught sight of the enormous mountain of rock emerging in the distance out of flat scrubby plains. We were driving the 834km Kingsford Smith Mail Run from Meekatharra to Carnarvon in the heart of Western Australia’s Gascoyne region. Our destinations: Mount Augustus and the Kennedy Ranges. Burringurrah is the indigenous name for Mount Augustus, the biggest rock in the world. The Wajarri people’s Dreamtime says that Burringurrah was a boy who ran away from tribal initiation. If you look at the rock at the right angle, you can see shape of a boy lying down. Mount Augustus is nowhere as well known as the Red Centre’s Uluru. There are also similarities and differences between the two rocks.…

Northern California is a bushwalker’s paradise with world-class trails like the Pacific Crest Trail and the John Muir Trail that traverse some of America's most dramatic landscapes. And soon there'll be another bucket list-worthy trail. The 960km Lost Sierra Route aims to highlight the majestic beauty of the Sierra Nevada by connecting 15 mountain towns in Butte, Lassen, Plumas and Sierra counties. The trail will traverse everything from high alpine meadows to jagged mountain peaks. Although you could spend weeks walking the trail in its entirety, it can also be experienced in day and overnight sections. The plan is for the trail to be finished over the next seven years. The first section is expected to launch in 2023, connecting the quaint towns of Quincy and Taylorsville while traversing the…

TAKE a step back in time en route to Careys Peak as you enter ancient World Heritage listed Gondwana Rainforests. There are many things that makes these rainforests so special, most namely that they represent outstanding examples of Earth’s evolutionary history. As these rainforests are millions of years old and have slowly dwindled and became more fragmented over time, lots of the flora and fauna in these areas have become unique and threatened. Through this, the Barrington Tops has become well-known for containing the most substantial remaining pockets of Antarctic Beech cool temperate rainforests in the world. With this in mind it’s time to hit the trails. Starting from Lagoon Pinch picnic area, the first stop in mind is Careys Peak, although with 8-9km of leg burning uphills it’s best…

LOCKDOWN’S silver lining was discovering more in our backyards than first imagined. So used to looking further afield – to a far flung national park, an iconic interstate walk or passport-compulsory treks inspired by yet another hiking memoir – many were surprised by what we found closer to home. But in a prescient move executed in blissful pre-2020 ignorance, a group of volunteers had already spent years determinedly mapping routes across Sydney that previously only locals knew about. And when I say ‘local’, I mean, can’tleave-your-LGA-during-lockdown local. The Walking Volunteers, map in hands, approached landholders and councils for collaboration. Sydney’s Great West Walk was launched in late 2019. It’s a 65km urban route stretching from Parramatta to Penrith at the foot of the Blue Mountains and it explores the tensions…

ONE of the most important things you need to do when planning a bushwalk is check the weather. It’s easy to find out predicted temperature and if there’s a chance of rain with the help of the television or internet, but this doesn’t tell you which direction the rain will be coming from, whether there’s a chance of a thunderstorm coming through or what the wind will be like on the day. Once you unlock the mystery of reading a weather map, you’ll be able to predict if there’s any chance of rain or storms and what gear you’ll need to take. Just don’t forget that chaos theory (and the butterfly effect) will always play a role in the weather. Rainfall Actual and possible rainfall is indicated as blue-filled shapes…

AS a kid I distinctly remember loving the Bunya Mountains junior ranger program. There was a little booklet that had challenges and activities that you could complete, and they all involved you getting out into the bush and seeing nature as a beautiful thing. That was the beginning of my love for the great outdoors. Fast forward to today and I’m the co-owner of Mt Barney Lodge. My parents started the lodge in 1991 and did all the hard work building and renovating the various buildings that are onsite, and then as they looked to retire more, asked for help from the us kids, my wife Tracey and I were well placed to help and I had a real desire for that, and so we came on to manage the…

‘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. WHAT is the appeal of long-distance hiking? Is it access to more remote idyllic villages, pristine tracts of wilderness, and/or unique wildlife? The opportunity to test yourself and improve your outdoor skills? Time away from the daily grind? Yes, yes, yes! But there’s more. Pain, toil, and commitment. Seriously, it’s easier to stream a multi-week hike fresh from its country of origin and avoid the sore feet and daily discomfort. In 2019, I watched months of YouTube video channels to prepare for the 4,300km Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) in America. Through GoPro camera lenses, I walked the PCT trail. Much of the footage of feet…

TRAIL magic is a term usually heard in US hiking trail conversations. It basically means “an act of goodwill on the trail” but the meaning can vary. My husband and I experienced a bit of this magic on day two of the Six Foot Track in the Blue Mountains, October 2020. We met up with family and a family friend on day one and started out early Saturday morning from Jenolan Caves House because, as my seasoned hiking uncle says: “You should always walk towards home” and that home happened to be in the Katoomba direction. The day quickly turned up the temperature as we walked along the fire trail through burnt out bushland and admired the way it was already coming back from the devastating fires six months prior.…

AT midday, late in March, I embarked on my pilgrimage at temple number one of the Shikoku 88 Temples Walk, following in the footsteps of Kobai Daishi (aka Kukai), the founder of Shingon Buddhism. My plan was to walk each day and stay wherever I could find somewhere to sleep. I knew some temples had tsuyado (a free room) as opposed to shukubo (paying guest accommodation) and I was carrying a tent. There were many other places where it was acceptable for pilgrims to sleep, such as bus shelters, parks, rest huts and daishido (small temples with bedding). I used them all, plus a few innovations of my own! I arrived at temple number five late in the afternoon, where the attendants directed me to a zenkonyado (a sleeping place…

PEOPLE have been walking Europe’s iconic Camino pilgrim walks for hundreds of years and doing it in many ways – guided, independent, all in one go or over the course of their lives. Some people have the time, and need, to walk the whole thing, while others want to experience just a part of it. Some people are prepared to give up their creature comforts while others still value a good night’s sleep in a comfortable bed in a room of their own. It’s up to you how you want to do your Camino and if your choice is to experience it with the support of a walking tour company then check out these great brands that offer a variety of services. Follow the Camino I Experience the bucket-list Camino…

WE have led guided tours across the Overland Track and the South Coast Track, but still another epic track beckoned – the South West Cape. Usually, we trek Tasmania in summer and Kokoda in winter, however, COVID has thrown a curve ball and Kokoda has not happened now for two years. We found ourselves with some time to spare in February, and decided to tackle the South West Cape. This was to be a test walk to see if we should add it to our list of guided walks. There is sparse literature on this trek apart from John Chapman’s bible, so this was read from cover to cover. It appeared to be an exciting walk with some challenging sections, far removed from the Overland, and more testing than the…

THERE was a time once when I couldn’t breathe. I tried, but only a tiny bit of the precious air I needed could make its way to my lungs. My body flinched at every noise and tears surfaced for no apparent reason. It made being a functioning human pretty much impossible. When I was at my lowest ebb, it was a long walk that brought me back to life. I set out to hike 3,000km down the length of New Zealand and barely a month into my journey the tide began to turn. Anxiety ebbed, replaced by an ever-growing sense of self-belief, confidence and control over my life until I finished four months later blissfully calm, a relative powerhouse and forever a changed woman. Not everyone can take five months…

The Scent of Cempasúchil Sergio Carrasco, Mexico: “Mexican Catrina, an icon of the Day of the Dead, wearing a typical Mexican dress from the state of Chiapas. She is standing in a field of Mexican marigold, or Cempasúchil, a flower traditionally used for Mexican Day of the Dead celebrations. Every year, my wife puts on a different Catrina costume to celebrate our tradition.” Bat Cave Sink Chihao Wang, Taiwan: “Many bats inhabited this cave in ancient times. They’ve vanished due to today’s environmental changes.” Montsho Tshabalala Bongani, South Africa: “Montsho, meaning ‘black’, is a word used in South Africa to make fun of a dark-skinned person. This photograph explores the emotional effects of childhood teasing: depression and low self-esteem. Montsho opens conversations around the representation of the black body and…