Great Walks

IF 2020 was a bushwalking track it’d be graded Challenging and require all your skills to navigate. The weather would be unpredictable and maps unreliable. The path would be littered with broken trees and slippery rocks. You’d realise you left some i

Located in the Wimmera plains of western Victoria, Mount Arapiles-Tooan State Park covers 7500 hectares and is valuable for nature conservation, with around 14% of the state’s flora species found in the area. As for fauna, you’ll spot kangaroos, shin

IN many a hiker’s camp or hiking hut one of the evening starter conversations is “What’s for dinner?” Nowadays I can showcase my pre-prepared, home cooked, home dehydrated and zip locked tasty two-course meal. Sounds good, but I did learn the hard wa

THERE is an exciting research project underway at the Australian National University, called Mayi Kuwayu – The National Study of Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Wellbeing. An impressive group of scientists and researchers have come together to cr

IMAGINE completing a multi track walk from the northern town of Penguin and finishing at Cockle Creek, Rocky Bay in the southeast. Our six walks were Penguin to Cradle Trail (P2C), Overland Track (OT), Frenchmans Cap (FC), Port Davey Track (PD), Sout

Deborah: “We were walking the 30km Coastal Walk on the Mornington Peninsula when my hiking buddy Leesa decided to walk along the rocks, then we all realised the tide was coming in, let’s just say she got a little wet and we still had 20km to go.” Kl

Lynton: “Five adventurers on route to K2 base camp picking our way across the Baltoro Glacier to Concordia accompanied by our Pakistani guide and head chef. One of the most challenging hikes over 14 days with the Karakoram mountains in the background

The Blade is light, compact, tough and easy. With one pole, exterior pole clips, a single skin, and a total weight of 1.5kg, the Blade ($299) is easy to set up, take down and carry around. You’ll barely notice you’ve got it with you until it’s heroic

TAKING a self-guided walk is a cross between a fully independent and fully guided walk, where a walking tour operator provides you with transport and support but you do the walk on your own. Great Walks spoke to seven tour operators on why a self-gui

1. Bullawah Cultural Trail, Wangaratta 2. Mullinmur Billabong, Wangaratta 3. Kaluna Park, Wangaratta 4. Friends Track, Warby-Ovens NP 5. Mt Glenrowan Lookout Track, Warby-Ovens NP 6. Sunrise Track, Warby-Ovens NP 7. Paradise Falls, Alpine NP 8

WANGARATTA (the Pangerang word for the long neck of the cormorant) sits at the junction of the Ovens and King Rivers in Victoria’s High Country. In terms of walking, the ‘Wang’ area ticks all the boxes. In addition to its spectacular natural attracti

IT’S been a while since I did an overnight walk. Thirty years ago we called it hiking. Post-walk, as I analyse what happened, I wonder if there is a critical number of walkers you should have semi-formal meetings with to help with decision making and

ARRIVING at the old Jackson’s airport in May 1991 was a bit of a shock. I was met by Bernard Choulai who drove me to his haus in Badili, near the Koki markets in Port Moresby. Every haus along the way was surrounded by razor wire and there seemed to

IF the last story left you wondering how you’d successfully tackle the Yuraygir Coastal Walk don’t fret! The good people at Yuraygir Walking Experiences has you covered. The Yuraygir Coastal Walk is one of the most spectacular and diverse in Australi

SCOTTISH author Robert Louis Stevenson (1850-1894) is most well known for his novels Kidnapped and Treasure Island but he was also a keen outdoorsman and his 1878 memoir Travels with a Donkey in the Cévennes recounts his 12-day, 200km solo hike throu

STANDING at the summit trig on Mt Kosciuszko, the highest point in Australia, the 360° view is one that demands a slow pirouette. To the north, Kosci’s twin of Mt Townsend stands with Carruthers Peak like gatekeepers of the Main Range. East, across E

IT may be a no-brainer but you’ve probably all gone on a multi-day bushwalk thinking you’ve got everything you need to make your walk safe and comfortable but then forgotten something. So in the interest of enjoyable times in the great outdoors here

COMPLACENCY can really ruin your plans. “These boots are so comfortable they feel like slippers,” boasted my partner Anthony who hadn’t been on a multi-day hike in two years. “Yeah, well I haven’t had a blister in 4,000km,” I said smugly. Only our th

“I trained for and did Everest Base Camp and Gokyo Circuit in Nepal wearing Injinji toe socks with merino Kathmandu hiking socks over the top. I never had a blister even though our training hikes were in Brisbane heat and humidity from Sept to Novemb

UNPRECEDENTED, shocking, unbelievable, devastating. These are just some of the adjectives being used to describe 2020. And yet many people have found the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic have led to increased resilience, strength, connection with

IF you’re an amateur photographer who prefers shooting with digital SLRs instead of the ubiquitous phone camera then Kosciuszko guide and professional photographer Mike Edmondson has some practical photography tips that could make your next outdoor p

At the intersection of the Mojave and Colorado Deserts, Joshua Tree NP encompasses a magical world of big boulders, stunning sunsets, and acres of the park’s namesake flora. Numerous outlets for adventure exist in Joshua Tree, as well as campgrounds

AS a child I spent a lot of time with my grandmother, who was a great walker. Even in her late 80s she lived independently on her farm where she used to take me for long walks, or so they seemed then! I learned to love the way that nature enhances yo

WHEN I was six, Santa brought me Heidi by Johanna Spyri. Dad covered it in plastic and wrote my name on the inside cover. It was my favourite book. Orphan Heidi (the story goes) was fobbed off by her career-focused aunt to live with her gruff grandfa

Have you gazed on naked grandeur where there’s nothing else to gaze on, Set pieces and drop-curtain scenes galore, Big mountains heaved to heaven, which the blinding sunsets blazon, Black canyons where the rapids rip and roar? Have you swept the visi