It seems an age since I’ve seen you
Count down as the weeks trickle into
days
I hope that time hasn’t changed you
All I really want is for you to stay
My happiness slowly creeping back
"My happiness" written and performed by Powderfinger
When my inner starting gun finally went off, I flew up the first hill to see if I would get any reception on my phone and had a long, in my mind, needed conversation with Julie while overlooking a vast open Australian desert with Honeymoon Gap and the Mount Gillen range baked in golden morning light.
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| The conversation point with Mount Gillen Range on the right |
Soon after, I let out an almighty dingo howl to express my happiness and show my appreciation for the beautiful world I was standing in. A reply in the shape of a ‘Coooeee!’ came from one of the two other lone dingoes across the valley. The three of us all waving at each other from afar.
Thursday 28 July 2016
Section 1: Simpsons Gap to Alice Springs Telegraph Station
Section 1 is a 23.8km section. You will need to camp
overnight to finish the section.
It is a long distance with some steep ascents. Section 1
gives you views over Alice Springs and the surrounding lowlands, as well as
good bird watching opportunities.
Information from the government web-site.
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| This bird was singing its little heart out at Simpsons Gap |
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| Walking on this amazing Larapinta trail |
There was only a little bit of suffering to go through before I reached Wallaby Gap where I passed out in my warm, lime green shelter for a couple of hours. How much sleep does one need in this place?
Hiking in the wild makes you stink like an
unwashed wheelie bin. Every day I venture out with toiletry bag under my arm and micro-fibre towel slung over the shoulder in search of that ultimate spot of serenity and a quick, but glorious one bottle wash - au naturel. I had just found my
shower spot overlooking a small valley and had my hands on my shorts to draw
them down, when the sound of a large engine disturbed the peace. A huge 4wd bus pulled up on an access road I had not quite spotted only 50
metres away. A young man carrying a large watermelon jumped out and walked up
to me and told me he was working for one of the tour companies and was about to
deliver a large quantity of food for a large group of hikers. I told him my purpose
of being out there and he laughed. So did the others in the camp when I told
them I was nearly sprung in my birthday suit. The fact still remains that
standing out in the open of the Australian emptiness without a string of clothing is a
total liberation of spirit that I highly recommend. Give it a try, but beware
of the bus full of watermelon-wielding day trippers.
Mid-afternoon, the man of the law walked in to the Wallaby Gap campsite. I immediately put the billy on and made a reviving coffee for the three of us. Roz and John joined in and we all shared our food with each other. There was dark chocolate, biscuits and Grant's famous dehydrated hummus with crackers. The Larapinta community spirit was very much alive.
Mid-afternoon, the man of the law walked in to the Wallaby Gap campsite. I immediately put the billy on and made a reviving coffee for the three of us. Roz and John joined in and we all shared our food with each other. There was dark chocolate, biscuits and Grant's famous dehydrated hummus with crackers. The Larapinta community spirit was very much alive.
The massive hiking group of mainly ladies with a female guide conquered
and left the campsite without giving us much attention or share a bit of that
huge watermelon with us real full-time, end to end hikers. Most of us hadn’t
seen fresh fruit for two weeks. The conversation reverted to food soon after and what we all were going to eat once we arrived in Alice Springs
the next day?
Its going to be yummmm...
A café at the end of the trail - the old Telegraph Station - the finish line.
Its going to be yummmm...
A café at the end of the trail - the old Telegraph Station - the finish line.
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| Looking back to Simpsons Gap |
Looking back at all the people that I
have crossed paths with on this trail, I had come to a surprising conclusion that, as it was on the Kokoda
track, the majority of the hikers on the Larapinta trail were woman. Many of
them walked in groups or in organised tours like the one that just left us at
Wallaby Gap. Quite a few walked solo through this harsh, desolate country where
the nearest point of civilization or help, if you needed it, could be days
away. I have seen a woman with a snapped achilles tendon climb through a
dangerous narrow gorge, met a young lady who walked the whole 231 kilometres
with one shoe and a thong on the other foot.
To top it all off Roz mentioned talking to a ‘hikester’ at Ellery Creek
who asked her where the hard part of the trail was as she had called
the track including Razorback Ridge ‘easy’???!!! Go figure.
After several discussions with the
man of the law as to the reasons behind this phenomena we attributed, to a large
extent, this spike in classy, trailblazing broads to the book and the movie
Wild. Cheryl Strayed wrote a terrific
account of her 94 day, 1000 mile battle on the Pacific Crest Trail in the United
States. Starring the beautiful and talented Reese Witherspoon - the story is an intense
recount of how an inexperienced hiker overcomes the wild and heals herself in
the process.
Maybe none of the woman on the track
have ever read the book or watched the movie. Maybe they just have a healthy sense of adventure. Either way I still have to say – power to the 'wild woman' - kudos by the bucket load.
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| Photo courtesy of Word Press |
Grey Bits
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| One of the many thought provoking quotes from the movie Wild |
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