Saturday 31 May 2014

May and some cooler weather

After a big walking month in April May started off fine and then, in the second week, the wheels fell off.

Trevor returned from 3 weeks in China on the 4th. Astrid was over on Tuesday which, with darkness falling a little after 5 o'clock, restricts the amount of walking possible. On the Wednesday I did manage to make up for most of Tuesday's shortfall then on Thursday I flew down to Melbourne to attend the funeral of the last of my parent's siblings. Friday was the second day of the Schools Swimming Championships and I had missed the first day. Saturday was a development swim meet followed by a distance meet. Walking definitely took a back seat during this week.

Sunday was Mother's Day and the family went out for breakfast. After doing some swimming stuff Trevor and I headed over to the Botanical Gardens and while Trevor was looking for small birds and eventually climbed up to the summit of Black Mountain I headed off to do some more of the Canberra Centenary Trail. I did do bits and pieces of the trail within my 28.66km walk but I was definitely unimpressed with the poor signage and lack of a clear description of the trail. Very frustrating. I'll do a separate post on the Canberra Centenary Trail experiences in due course.
A glorious view along the edge of Lake Burley Griffin
I was treated to a brilliant sunset, scattered kangaroos and lots of tiny wrens. By the time I made it home my feet were complaining about their lot in life.




While Monday (12th) started cool it was not an unpleasant day. In the late afternoon I did a circuit from home to Mt Taylor, up the mountain and home.

On Tuesday Trevor and I went to Woden for lunch. I walked home at a rather slow pace once inside the Mt Taylor reserve as I was on the lookout for small birds. They were elusive. My slow pace meant that Runtastic gave up on me during the climb up and down the mountain. I suspected that the monitoring failed when the pace dropped off and this was the first clear evidence of just how sensitive it is. As I had walked this route on numerous occasions it was easy to correct the distance and elevation gain information. Still, I need to consider whether I should change to another tracking system.

Wednesday was my usual gym session and I walked to and from the gym. This was good for distance and step count but a bit useless for elevation gain. Consequently I went and climbed Mt Taylor in the late afternoon. As I was coming down in the gloom I encountered lots of people heading up the mountain and not one of them was displaying a light. The track is quite uneven and very little light filters through the trees so, after nightfall, the risk of a fall or twisted ankle or knee is not insignificant. Rather them than me.

More Canberra Centenary Trail walking
On Sunday (18th) Michael and I agreed to tackle more of the Canberra Centenary Trail (CCT). To reduce the time it would take to get home after the walk we decided to take two cars and do a car shuffle. As we were walking from Watson (still in section 1) to Forde (part way through section 2) we met at the Mulligans Flat carpark in Forde before heading over to Watson for a latish breakfast. Suitably fueled up we headed to the edge of Watson where we abandoned Michael's car.

The walk started with my phone refusing to pick up a GPS signal. Michael covered for me by using an app on his phone. By the time I had my phone operational I realised that we had started after the summit track for Mt. Majura, a climb I had expected to include in the days walk. Shrug. I'll do it another time.

It was a pleasant day, sunny and not overly hot. Both of us ended up taking off our fleeces and walking in out shirts. There was a surprising lack of wildlife and it wasn't until we were close to the finish of our walk that we spotted our first kangaroos. Unfortunately for the roos they are in one of the designated culling zones so they may not survive the next few weeks if the cull proceeds. There were some large birds around. Magpies and a variety of parrots were the dominant species. We didn't come across any really small birds.

The frustration with the CCT signage continued and at one point we walked along the edge of the Federal Highway (not a good experience with cars and trucks whizzing past at 100+ kph just feet away from us) as there was no CCT sign directing us to cross over/under the road. There was a standard bicycles "cross with care" sign that we had passed but no CCT sign. We did see the Hughie Edwards rest area, the end point of CCT section 1, across the highway but getting to it would have meant doubling back. We plodded on and eventually picked up the CCT where it cross to our side of the Federal Highway.
There is the Federal Highway and the rest area but we were definitely on the wrong side

By the time we had walked through Mulligan's Flat and reached the carpark we had walked 18.5km.

I think that I can now claim to have completed more than half the CCT. I'll work on completing over the next few weeks as time permits.



Thursday 22nd
By the time I got home from the Family History Centre and did a couple of swimming related things the afternoon was drawing to a close. Heading out I decided to climb Mt Arawang and do a loop through Chapman and back home along Namatjira Drive. It was a pleasant evening with lovely pink stripes hovering above the ranges to the west. No photos as I didn't have my camera with me. I climbed up the track on the southern side. This is not a track I use during the summer as it is very narrow in places and the views of the track are obscured by long grass. It would be difficult to see a wriggly thing on or near the track in quite a few spots. I would rather come across snakes on nice wide, clear tracks where we both have a chance to avoid each other. At this time of year snakes are not an issue so the southern track was OK. The track climbs up to a high point before dipping and crossing a shallow grassy saddle and then climbs again to reach the trig point. The saddle had a collection of kangaroos spread across it as I came over the rise. All but one hopped away as I traversed the saddle. The roos were a pleasant surprise.

The area around the trig point is strewn with sizable boulders and as I reached the top I found a lass sitting cross legged on one of the rocks. Coming across anyone on the mountain at that time of day is unusual but up at the trig point totally unexpected. Still, the view was nice and the sky was still smeared with bands of pink. Looking towards the west I spied a couple perched on another rock. Three people up at the trig point in the gathering gloom ... actually four if you count me. I left them in peace and headed down the western track which brought me out onto the Stanhope Highway. The views from this track were pretty as the lights started to take effect across Western Creek, Woden and through to the city.

... another walk and another great sunset- looking north from the eastern side of Mt Taylor. This one was taken on the 24th

 On Sunday 25th I decided to head off on a walk in the mid to late afternoon. I initially headed to McQuoid's Hill. Instead of climbing up to the trig point I did a circumnavigation using one of the fire trails. There were some great views across to the ranges which run down to the Murrumbidgee River. Unfortunately, in the late afternoon the sun was in the wrong place to get any decent photos.

I came across a couple of groups of small birds. Fairy wrens were definitely part of the group but what the rest were is still to be determined. They were all very small.

There were quite a few kangaroos on the eastern side of the hill. Some were skitish while others just let me wander past with no obvious concern.

I came across a number of people out and about on McQuoids.

Leaving McQuoid's I walked along Kambah Pool Road heading towards the pool until the Bicentential Trail cut around the edge of the Murrumbidgee Country Club and head along the base of Urambi Hills. I had told Trevor that I would be out for a couple of hours and I was conscious of the elapsed time so did not climb up to the trig point but headed down into Kambah and home. There was a surprising number of people out and about in the early evening. Most seem to be accompanied by dogs. I suspect that Kambah has a huge dog population.

The section of the Bicentennial  National Trail that I walked along was well signed. A far cry from the poor signage of the Canberra Centennial Track.

On Tuesday afternoon the weather took a turn for wet and wild and an anticipated walk to the Tuggeranong Town Centre and back was abandoned. So on Wednesday 28th, after my PT session, I figured that I would make up for my failure to reach the Urambi Hills trig point on Sunday as well as my shortfall in distance walked and elevation gained on the day before. I approached the trig point from the south west, not the usual track which comes up from the Learmont Drive side. There were numerous tracks some, I suspect, were roo tracks rather than created by the passage of people. Still, they did eventually get me to the proper walking track to the trig point.

From the Urambi Hills trig point there are good views across to the Bulleen Range and parts of the Murrumbidgee River. Bits of Red Rock Gorge, on the far bank of the river are also visible. Certainly it is a pleasant vista. Sorry, no photos as I did not have my camera as I thought that it might rain during the morning.

My initial descent from the trig point was via a slightly different path which skirts around the top of the hill. Looking down from the path I was stunned to see hundreds, I kid you not, of kangaroos grazing on the grassy slopes. Mt Taylor's kangaroo numbers are pathetic compared to those on Urambi Hills.

Trevor and I lunched at Cooleman Court and I walked home, still trying to make up for lack of walking on the previous day. By the time I reached Cooleman Ridge the dark cloud moving across the ranges was starting to drop rain. To the west it was raining yet Mt Taylor, such a short distance away from where I was, was bathed in sunshine.

The weather closing in over the ranges to the west

Definitely rain falling on the ranges ...
... but Mt Taylor bathed in sunshine

Friday 30th was still in the middle of the day as this photo taken across Lake Tuggeranong attests.


Saturday 31st was a gray day and possible showers were forecast for later in the day. Not to be put off by the possibly inclement weather I headed out for an early afternoon walk. I decided to tackle, again, part of the Canberra Centenary Trail and selected the section from Black Mountain to the Arboretum in the hope that I could actually keep on track this time. Actually I did preetty well although my opinion of the poor siting of track markers was only reinforced by the walk today.

Starting off from the car park at the Botanical Gardens I headed up to the summit of Black Mountain. Some work had been done on the summit track in the last three weeks and many of the broken, eroded spots had been repaired.

Coming down the mountain I was attempting to see where I had gone wrong on Mother's Day. Due to the poor sign placement I almost missed a turn again today. This time I checked the signs from both sides to see if there was any difference in information. Yes, there was. Not good.

Walking through the Black Mountain reserve I came across quite a few shrubby plants in flower. I'm not sure what they are. The flower looks like an acacia. I'll investigate further and see what it is.




The track wandered though forest at the base of Black Mountain.



Just before ducking under Casswell Drive I got glimpses of the Black Mountain Tower.



The trail took me through some of the Aranda parkland, initially through a wooded area and then through a grassland, as I headed towards William Hovell Drive. I had thought that the Urambi Hills were heavily populated with kangaroos. This area of Aranda was also sporting numerous kangaroos.

Kangaroos lined up along a ridge

A small part of the roo population in this paddock
A rather impressive male ... standing well over 5ft tall
I did appreciate the style ... much easier to negotiate than a step through ... although not nearly as impressive as the one I came across in Forde.




The track took me into the Arboretum and through a cork plantation. I had not realised that this plantation was here. I had previous walked through the cork plantation on the lake side of the Tuggeranong Parkway without realising that there was another large area of cork trees just a hop, step and a jump away.



Apart from the obvious cork in the plantation I came across some spectacular fungi.

Pretty but poisonous




Trevor did a search and discovered that they are highly poisonous. They still look spectacular and, no, I was not tempted to collect any for dinner!

The track weaved its way through parts of the Arboretum. There were glimpses of the lake a even the back side of Government House. I was surprised just how many buildings there are at the GGs residence. I was pleased to finally reach the entrance road so that I could exit this vast area of trees.

It was a comforting feeling heading under the Tuggeranong Parkway as I knew that I only had a short distance to go, about 4km, to get back to my car.

The Tuggeranong Parkway underpass near the Arboretum
The days was very still and Lake Burley Griffin provided some terrific reflections in its still waters.


I was happy to get back to the car park at the Botanical Gardens and head for home having covered some 13.35km.

The weather throughout May was been generally quite pleasant. There has been the odd damp day, some fog but mostly sunshine. Some of the mornings have been rather cool but these can be coped with if the day is fine and sunny. There have been some spectacular sunsets, too.

Statistics:

Partway through the second week of May I reached the 3 million step mark for the year and by the end of the month had walked more than 3 1/2 million steps during 2014. Perhaps it is time for a new pair of shoes!

By months end I had walked 1,828.62km and gained 36,250m in elevation since the start of the year.

And in May?

Distance walked: 354.54km at an average of 11.44km per day
Elevation gained: 6,906m (average 223m per day)
Steps: 667,418, an average of 21,530 per day.






Friday 2 May 2014

April meanders and wonderful sunsets

With school swimming still a feature in the first couple of weeks of April walks were fitted around them.

To start the month we had a swimming carnival. After we got home I headed for Mt Taylor on foot. It certainly help to get the kinks out of a body that had been sitting in front of a computer all day. I still needed to be careful of the blistered left heal. Once it warms up it seems to be OK.

Wednesday April 2: I had my usual PT session so walked to the gym and back. Unfortunately this does not give me nearly enough metres of elevation gain. After lunching at Woden I walked home via the top of Mt. Taylor.

Thursday April 3 was another swimming carnival day. At least we finished early and were home before 2 o'clock. Trevor and Michael were picking up their China trip doco down at Woden so I took the opportunity of  walking home from there. There had been light rain during the walk but at least I had my rain jacket so the top remained dry even if the bottom got a little damp. There were not many people out and about. The rain was obviously putting them off. Given that the forecast was for wild weather overnight I could understand people being a bit cautious about venturing out. There was a huge congregation of kangaroos in the paddock adjacent to the Mt Taylor nature reserve. A couple of the large males were obviously attempting to determine the pecking order and they put on quite a display. They were fighting on the slope of the hill. I'm not sure which was the better position - uphill facing down or downhill facing up. The roos kept switching who was up and who was down. I didn't see the end of the fight so I don't know which roo won.

Friday April 4: After some heavy overnight rain and continuous drizzle and rain during the day things were pretty wet underfoot. In the afternoon Trevor and I ventured out and did his Urambi circuit. This is a fairly flat 6km walk around the western half of Kambah. We got some strange looks from people who were out walking their dogs as the persistent rain was keeping most sane people indoors. Our rain jackets did their job so our top half was dry. The shoes were rather wet by the time we got home as there were puddles of water across the path in quite a few places as well as the rain.

The rain continued on Saturday. After lunch I went to the gym as I had spent a great deal of time hunched over the keyboard and needed to work some of the muscles in my upper body. I walked home in light rain, cozy in my rain jacket. I didn't have my camera with me which was a shame as there were some super views of water accumulated on the ends of needles on many of the trees. With light shining through the droplets it looked like hundreds of tiny lights. Very pretty.

Sunday saw the end of daylight saving. I'll need to adjust the time I go out for walks in the afternoon now. The morning was sunny but I was slaving away inside. By the time I was ready to go out it was raining again and threatening to be heavy rain, at that. I waited until the rain cleared and headed off to Cooleman Court. The Stanhope Highway was surprisingly dry considering how much rain we have had over the past week. There were some soft spots but these were easy to avoid. I encountered quite a few people out with children in tow who were taking advantage of the rainless late afternoon. After doing some shopping I headed home. The evening was closing in and very few people were out and about.

On Monday 7th we had Astrid for the day.

Astrid having fun in a muddy puddle

Nothing is better than playing in muddy puddles

She certainly fills up the day and with daylight saving now at an end and darkness coming that much earlier than it did last week I had little chance to fit in walking. Still, I did manage to clock up 6kms. Just as well the Marconi Crescent walk is viable at all hours of the day and night.

I was booked in to have a flu injection on the 8th. A visit to the doctors allows me to get a decent walk in no matter which route I take between home and Mawson. Today I chose a reliable route which, while not the shortest, guaranteed that I could make my appointment time without meandering through unfamiliar streets. When time is not important exploration is fine but not when I need to be at a particular place at a specific time. I made it with a couple of minutes to spare. As I walked through the Mt Taylor reserve I came across a group of small birds one of which I had seen a few days earlier. Unfortunately I was pressed for time and couldn't stop to observe these flighty little devils. It was also the first time in a while that I had passed the dam and the water level has increased yet again. That wasn't really much of a surprise given all the recent rain.

Wednesday I did my usual walk to the gym and back with my PT session in between. On the return trip I walked along Athlon Drive as I expected quite a number of spots on the lake path to be covered with water. After lunching at Cooleman Court I walked home along the Stanhope Highway. It was very quiet out. The persistent threat of rain appears to have kept most people indoors or in their cars.

The recent rain has really greened up the previously brown, dry ridges and hills

Thursday the 10th was the last of our zone swimming carnivals. Being the Associated Southern Colleges carnival it is a big one with time pressure. It was an early start as the aim was to kick off at 9:00am which we went close to managing. By the time we got home there was no time for a walk before I needed to head out for a meeting which was starting at 6:00pm. I forgot to take my house key so was locked out when I got back. Hungry and tired I figured getting some food into me was better than just sitting in the car waiting for Trevor to get home, he had gone to a swim club night. By the time I got home I was exhausted and it was wet and miserable. I didn't even attempt my Marconi Crescent walk.

There was more rain on Friday (11th) and it wasn't until after 4 o'clock that I headed out to do a circuit up and over Mt Taylor. Trevor came with me as far as the Village where we stopped for a cup of coffee. On the way to the Village we came across a couple of little birds which we had both observed in a number of places over the past few weeks. We still have not identified them and I failed to get a photo of them, too. The coffee pause meant I was even later reaching the top of Mt Taylor than I had intended. The light was definitely fading and the view down across the Woden Valley and towards the city was very pretty with the lights really putting on a great display. This also meant that I was going down the mountain in near darkness. This was great for testing my night vision however I did get out the torch when I reached the park sign as the track from that point down to Sulwood Drive is fairly rough and eroded in places. I passed a number of kangaroos grazing close the the track. They were almost impossible to see in the gloom. Even though I was carrying a torch, the light is fairly weak, they were unfazed by my passage.

There was quite a bit of water lying around on the Mt Taylor reserve tracks.

Yes, this is a track ... looks more like a lake

When I reach my rock run I realised that there was quite a bit of water coming down. I climbed up the narrow track which runs alongside the rocks before being forced onto the rocks themselves. The surface of the rocks was slippery and  a fair degree of care was needed to ensure a firm footing. The one slip I had as I was picking my way down reinforced the need for care. Fortunately, no damage was done.


As I went up beside the rock run I discovered another rock shute which seemed to have a greater waterflow than the rocks which are visible from my normal track. I decided to check it out and actually found a small waterfall ... well, there was water falling freely.


Safety being important I left the park at the Mannheim Street exit rather than walking back along the eroded, waterlogged trail that I normally take. Sometimes I do take the cautious option.

The Richomd Fellowship Track, which I use climbing Mt Taylor, is a zigzag track with 3 zigs and 2 zags. Coming up the second of the zags I encountered quite a few places where water was slipping across the track. This made it rather slippery and care was needed to ensure that I didn't slip and fall. The first of the zigs was also quite wet however the wet spots were generally on the flat, stepped sections so didn't pose too great a problem.


Saturday (12th) was a fine day. The sky was blue with just the odd small, light coloured cloud hovering just above the horizon. The only downside was the wind which was strong and gusty. In the late morning I headed off to the gym. There were times when I thought that I was going to be blown over but, fortunately, that didn't happen. After a session at the gym and a bite of lunch I headed home. The wind was still strong but not as gusty as earlier which made for easier walking. There were still a number of places where water covered the path. Fortunately, it was generally possible to walk off the path to avoid the puddles.

Walking to Tuggeranong and back does not get enough elevation gain for the day. Given that it had been a rather slack week climbwise I trundled out and did a Mt Taylor climb before dinner. There were very few people out on the mountain and by the time I got down there was only one other car in the parking area. I did the 4.1km circuit with 201m of elevation gain in 46:51 which I think is my best time for this circuit so far. I'll need to go back and check this against my previous times.

Sunday 13th: This was the day that Trevor and Michael headed off on their China tour. Trevor and I started the day with breakfast at Macon and Green Grout, an eatery in New Acton that had managed to get itself listed in the Gourmet Traveller 2014 Australian Restaurant Guide. Interesting is perhaps an apt description.

We collected Michael around midday and headed in to Civic and the bus station. This weekend was the Canberra running festival and today was the marathon day with half, full and ultra marathons. As we headed over Commonwealth Avenue Bridge stragglers were still out on their chosen course most looking like they would rather be somewhere else.

After dropping the boys I headed off to the National Botanical Gardens, the starting point for the Black Mountain summit track. Even on a Sunday you have to pay for parking. That would be OK if you actually got what you paid for. Supposedly, the cost was $2 per hour to a maximum of $10. I was a little short of change but did feed $4 into the machine and was rather surprised when it declared that my $4 had purchased a mere 1 hour 24 minutes of parking. When I get a chance I'm going to follow this up as it is less than satisfactory to be short changed on rather expensive parking fees.

The day was warm with a glorious clear blue sky. A lovely change from the wet days of most of the past couple of weeks.

I headed up through the gardens towards the exit gate. There was a delightful wattle in full flower with creamy coloured flowers. April is an unusual month for wattles to flower but this one seemed oblivious of the strangeness. The red flowered coreas were past their best and had been replaced by a cream flowering species which was playing host to small birds. I'm fairly sure that these are the same small birds that I keep seeing around Kambah and Mt Taylor.

Once outside the gardens it was just a fairly continuous climb to the summit.


Looking towards the western ranges from the top of Black Mountain

Having completed the climb I headed home. I was still short on steps, kms and elevation gain for the week. I rectified this by doing a walk to Tuggeranong and back in the late afternoon. All square for the week I settled down to dinner and to planning the week ahead.
Monday (14th) was a glorious day following a chilly night. I started the day with some cleaning and then a trip down to Tuggeranong to purchase paper and other supplies for my mammoth printing job leading up to the Swimming ACT presentation night. I did call into the gym and did a workout while I was in the vicinity. I decided to head down to Woden for lunch and to grab a few items that were not available at the Kambah Woolworth's which I wanted for my day with Astrid.

A group of kangaroos I came across ... just lounging around

On the way down I checked out the dam and then came across some of the little birds that Trevor and I have been trying to identify. I didn't manage to get a photo of these flitty little devils.


Yes, there is definitely a lot more water in the dam than was the case back in January

A day (Tuesday 15th) with Astrid is full of activities but mostly not a lot of monitored walking. We did go down to the Village to get lunch stuff and more chocolate for the days cooking effort.

Wednesday (16th) was another clear, sunny day. The early morning was quite chilly but the day quickly warmed up once the sun was up. After going to the gym I had coffee with Sue Knight and we were joined by her husband Phil. The walk home was very pleasant.

Needing to get elevation gain I decided to get the bus to Woden and then walk back. This allowed me to stop off in Chifley at A Bite to Eat for, you guessed it, a bite to eat. Suitably refreshed I headed to Mt Taylor and a climb up the Richmond Fellowship Track. Water is still seeping down the mountain and a number of places on the track was damp. Going down the Mannheim track there were active waterflows and at my rock pile there was quite a stream of water still flowing down.

It is great to see whole areas of bright green grass. If the weather holds there will be plenty of feed for the animals over winter. The Golden Everlastings are starting to flower while many of the plants are having their last fling before the cold weather sets in.


Thursday (17th) was a cool morning with the temperature a mere 6 degrees when I got up. It was sunny and still so the low temperature was not too much of a pain as I headed out for an early morning walk.

After my session at the Family History Centre I returned home and decided to head down to Cooleman Court.
Autumn is on its way with trees beginning to put on a colourful display

On my return I was treated to some gorgeous golden light effects as the sun sunk down behind the range. I had been contemplating climbing Mt Arawang on the way home but decided against it as darkness was descending and the path to the top is none too even and rather narrow in places.


Good Friday (18th) started with a cool morning. The temperature had dropped to a mere 3 overnight. I had been invited, by Astrid, to go to Duffy to help with some gardening and have some hot cross buns. Antony offered to supply breakfast, he must be missing Michael, so I headed off about 7:30 for the walk over to Duffy. I began by skirting the western side of Mt Arawang and then headed along Cooleman Ridge. Looking to the city and the line of bumps (mountains) ringing the north eastern side of Canberra I noticed that they were shrouded in fog and the tower on the top of Black Mountain was disappearing before my eyes. Out to the west there was fog along the river and in some of the valleys between the mountain ranges.
Fog along the Murrumbidgee River

Fog in the valleys between the ranges
I cut down through Chapman, picking what I hoped to be a relatively short route and I seem to have managed that quite well. I arrived at the Camelid Castle around 8:45.

Astrid enjoying herself digging

After lunch I headed off home following a section of Stage 6 of the Canberra Centenary Trail which runs along Eucumbene Drive in Duffy, onto Cooleman Ridge, around Mt Arawang and eventually crosses Barritt Street, my exit point. Cloud was starting to come in and the breeze had a bit of a bite however it was a pleasant 8km walk home.

Cooleman Ridge is studded with boulders of all sizes. According to the Cooleman Ridge Nature Trail guide, which I picked up as I passed one of the information points along the track, the rocks are Laidlaw Volcanics, which were formed by a gigantic eruption 420 million years ago.

The Cooleman Trig point with some of the Laidlaw Volcanics visible (on the left)

More rocks


Next to the horse paddocks at the back of Mt Arawang is an equestrian centre. It doesn't seem to be used much these days, except by the kangaroos.


Saturday 19th: ACTEW had sent us a notification that there would be inspection of the properties to ensure that all growth met the required clearance from powerlines, including those from poles to premises. I think nearly everyone in the neighbourhood has received a failure notice given the frenzied activities in yards over the past week. Unfortunately, the Eleagnus and the apricot tree ran foul of the clearance requirement for the lines to the house. The problem needs to be fixed before Trevor gets back so I started with a clean up of the Eleagnus. Apart from its thorns, and I have a number of punctures on my hands to attest to their powers of penetration, and the density of the wood I managed to clear the Eleagnus. There was a huge pile of off cuts out the back. Fortunately Anto was taking some green waste to the tip and called past and loaded up my very large load. I still have the apricot tree to deal with and will definitely need a pro in to do this.

With the yard cleaned up I figured that I could tackle one of the sections of the Canberra Centenary Trail (CCT). As it would be around midday by the time I would be starting the walk I decided that Section 7 from Tuggeranong to Parliament House, 29.4km in length and requiring about 7.5 hours, was not a good choice. Instead I decided to do Section 1, the Parliament House to Watson section, which is a mere 19.2km and logged as requiring 5 hours. Having checked the bus timetable from Watson back to the city and organised my pack I set off for Parliament House.

First issue: parking. I did find a spot in one of the surface car parks down toward Old Parliament House. That was fine as I had decided that I didn't really need to circumnavigate the big house on the hill and happily started from the car park and headed down towards the lake.

The John Gorton Building is one I have often passed. Indeed, I worked in it briefly back in the days with it was known as the Admin Building and, more recently, sons Anto and Mikl have worked in the building. We do seem to have a habit of finding buildings wrapped in plastic. Here is John Gorton:

Is this really a junk on Lake Burley Griffin?

The route tracked along the shoreline until reaching Kings Avenue. There is work underway in this area and the CCT signs directing pedestrians were nowhere to be seen so I overshoot the turn off and had to backtrack.
Aspen Isle and the Carillon

Once across Lake Burley Griffin the route tracked along the lake shore towards the city before heading up Anzac Parade towards the War Memorial. A quick toilet stop at the War Memorial cafe and it was up Mt Ainslie. I've been up Mt. Ainslie a number of times over the past few months however today was a relatively slow climb. I was carrying my full day pack with 2 litres of water, a thermos with coffee, first aid stuff, food, wet weather gear ... you get the idea.

From time to time I have come across trees that should have been dead ... fire ravaged trucks with just a shell remaining ... and yet there they are happily regenerating. Here is one I came across and, yes, you can see right through the burnt trunk.


Normally when I climb Mt Ainslie I return down the same track but today was different. It was over the top and down an entirely different track.

Following a track that ran along the back of houses at Hackett the trail reaches Mt Majura. The CCT sign actually had a disk informing the walkers that the track was the summit track. So far so good. I had been making good time and had covered the first 10km in just a little over 2 hours and that included the climb of Mt Ainslie. The track up Mt Majura was quite pleasant and reminded me of the Richmond Fellowship Track on Mt Taylor. All was good until I reached a junction which had CCT signs showing arrows for both tracks. There was not a mention of "summit" anywhere. I opted for the wrong track so did not end up reaching the top. By the time I realised that I had picked the wrong track I figured that I would give it a miss and go up Mt Majura another time.
A view back over the city and towards the western ranges
Section 1 finishes in Watson. What I hadn't realised is that it finished down on the Federal Highway nor was there any indication that I had just finished Section 1 and had started on Section 2. It really is a funny place to stop and, if I had realised, once I had come down from Mt Majura as there was a straightforward track down into Watson where I could have got a bus into Civic. That was not to be. On I walked. I was a long way from anywhere and certainly a long way from any bus route. I figured that I was probably well on my way to Hall and decided that I needed to bail out. In the end I followed a road with lots of traffic until I reached an intersection which had two options: Harrison and Mitchell or the Gungahlin Town Centre. I opted for the Harrison and Mitchell route and eventually, in sight of Mitchell, came across a bus shelter.

Over Easter the buses were running on the Sunday timetable so they are generally only operating an hourly service. Still, it was only a 20 minute wait and I was able to finish off my coffee as I slowly turned into a block of ice. The bus was well patronised and duly delivered me to the bus interchange. Unfortunately I had a 40 minute wait for the bus that would drop me back at Parliament House and, hopefully, my car. I filled in the time by grabbing an early dinner. Of course, the bus stop at Parliament House was on the opposite side of the massive building from where I had left the car. Another rather cold trek brought me to the front of building. Next I had to figure where the carpark was. The open air carparks are not lit so I needed to check the route I had driven to work out which path to go down in the hope of finding the car in the dark. I was obviously looking a little lost as a policeman (on a pushbike) stopped and asked if I needed help. He seemed a bit surprised when I said that I was looking for my car which I had parked in one of the Parliament House open air carparks before I had walked to Watson and beyond. At least he pointed me down the road I needed to get to my car. It was the only vehicle left in the carparks and even then it was not easy to see.

And how far had a I walked? 22.58km and 557m of elevation gain.

As well as the signage issues, there were a number of places where water covered the track even though it is now days since the last rainfall. Here is an example:


I have a number of issues with the CCT sections that I have tackled. There is very little detailed, written information about the routes. Relying on the signs obviously means that you can go astray. A proper description would be a definite advantage.

I came across a number of stiles ... memories of the Coast to Coast walk flooded back. At least this one was easy to negotiate.
Note the carpet over the fence making easy to put a bike over
On Sunday (20th) I opted for a relatively easy day. I drove down to Woden, which was deserted at midday, and had a pedicure. Later in the afternoon I walked down to Tuggeranong and did a session at the gym.

Monday was quite cool to start with but promised to warm up and be lovely and sunny. I figured out that I could tackle more of the CCT. This time I planned my starting and finishing points. It does mean that I have part of Section 2 to cover but I can do that at any time.

I picked up Section 2 at Muligan's Flat car park on the edge of Forde, one of the outer suburbs of Gungahlin. I chose this starting point as I had figured out how to get back, thanks to Action buses, following my walk.

Everything has to be the best in Gungahlin. The initial path was a wide cement strip. Luxury. However the icing on the cake was the stile:


The route picks up and follows the ACT border with some lovely views across the countryside

as well as over the city

The track has obviously been built with cyclists in mind. It weaves and has relatively gentle rises and falls.



Section 2 terminates at the Northern Borders Camping Ground. This is in the absolute middle of nowhere. Still, its toilet was a welcome sight and I did make use of it. I also used the table to eat my lunch before heading off on Section 3.

Northern Borders Camping Ground
Much of the area I had been walking through was probably an old sea bed. The rock was generally sedimentary with shale quite common.

The path hugged the northern ACT border and looped around to the village of Hall. It was a undulating tracked as it passed around and over ridges and hills. At One Tree Hill it was possible for walkers to climb to the lookout at the hilltop. The track was less than brilliant however I did get up and down without mishap. I'm not sure if the effort was worth it as the views were not that much better than those on the lower track.

The One Tree Hill lookout

I was pleased to reach Hall and had hoped that it would be possible to grab a coffee but not such luck. It was a Monday and the cafe is closed on Mondays. So on I plodded, on Section 4, towards Gold Creek and Federation Square and, hopefully, a bus to Forde.

By the time I got back to the car park I had covered 24.40km in just on 5 hours walking. The elevation gain had been 543m.

Tuesday 22nd was an Astrid day. Although I did lots of steps I only did a small amount of logged walking. By the time I dropped Astrid home we were both exhausted.

On Wednesday 23rd I had my PT and headed off to the gym. The sky was overcast and from time to time it precipitated but it was never enough to cause much concern. I had intended going down to Woden and grabbing some lunch and walking back vai Mt Taylor however the best laid plans were given a swift kick as I waited around for a chap to arrive and give me a quote for attacking the apricot tree to mee our power line clearance requirements. By the time he materialised it was too late to go to Woden so I just went down to the Village and grabbed the bare basics.

I still wanted to get in some elevation gain so just before 5 I headed off, in the car, to the Mannheim Street "car park" and did my up the Richmond Fellowship Track and down the Mannheim one circuit. It was a fairly slow circuit.

Thursday is my family history day and this week was no exception. By the time I completed working through all the ins and outs for the Schools Swimming Championships, prepared the report of who had been granted swims and sent it off I was running late. It was a delightfully sunny day, even if the night had been cool, and a pity being inside.When I finally got home I had some additional changes to do to the Champs entries which I did and sent off yet another version of the report. I was beginning to loose count of how many times I had created the report. Enough was enough and I decided to head out for a longish walk. Escapism at its best!

I headed off to Mt Taylor via Colquhoun Street. As I approached Mrs Lowes Fire Trail I figured that I would go and investigate the hilltop just outside the horse paddock. There appeared to be bits of walls and masonary and I wondered if this had anything to do with the fire trail name. Climbing the rise next to the horse paddock, no longer occupied by horses, I was struck by just how many kangaroos were in it. There would have been well over the hundred mark.

Just some of the roos in the horse paddock
When I reached my target I was disappointed to discover that the "walls" were just more rocks.

Just more rocks
Still, the view down the valley to the Tuggeranong Town Centre and beyond was pleasant.





By the time I was descending Mt Taylor the sun was setting. The display of colours made the whole walk worthwhile.






It was dark by the time I left the park and I carefully made my way out and home.

Friday was Anzac Day. After a number of glorious days the weather had changed and it remained heavily overcast for the entire day. Today I headed down to Cooleman Court and back via the Stanhope Highway. I kept expecting the rain to come but it held off. I had finally put on my new hiking boots to give them a workout. They stood up to the 12km walk pretty well.


On Saturday (26) I headed down to the gym shortly after 10 o'clock, once again in my hiking boots. In the late afternoon I decided to go and investigate Mt Neighbour. It really isn't all that big just more difficult to get to than most of the other peaks, even though it is only a short distance off the edge of Allchin Circuit. Once again I came across a heap of kangaroos. More interesting was the horse that came charging over the the fence and then followed me for quite some time. I got the impression that it was lonely.
Mt Neighbour
The odd kangaroo or two hundred

Once I got to the top of Mt Neighbour I went over to McQuoid's Hill and them home along the Kambah Pool Road.
Interesting pattern of light on the ranges
Another example of a burt out shell of a tree which is still alive

Same tree ... just a different view

More interesting light patterns


And then I almost bumped into this big roo ...

I did come across a couple of groups of small birds but failed, again, to managed to get any useable photos of the little critters.

On Sunday (27) I spent the morning working on swimming stuff and it wasn't until a little after 2 o'clock that I headed out, once again in my boots. By the time I reached Chifley the kitchen at a Bite to Eat had already closed. Cake was not an appealing lunch so I continued on to Woden. Having come to rely on my phone to keep track of the distance walked and elevation gain I was a bit surprised when the data upload failed to complete during the entire time I was at Woden. In the end I shut down the phone and restarted it and headed home. There was definitely a problem as Runtastic gave some very odd results.I'm just pleased that the problem didn't occur when I was doing a long walk on a new trail.

There have been some truly spectacular sunsets during the month. Here are a few more views:



On Monday (28th) I spent the day tackling more swimming things and compensated by doing a number of short walks. I did do a short Mt Taylor climb circuit, though.

Fortunately, I did get my phone working properly. I had been thinking very evil thoughts about it but, luckily for it, I finally managed to get it up and running again.

Tuesday (29th) was an Astrid day. By the time I took her home it was already dark. Apart from a walk to the Village and back I haven't managed to log any walking for the day. Not to worry. I rugged up as it was getting decidedly chilly, put on my head light and headed for Mt Taylor. As it was dark I varied my route. I went around Marconi until I got of Inkster Street which I climbed to get to Sulwood Drive. I then walked along Sulwood Drive, with some great views over the Tuggeranong Valley, until I reached the Manheim Street entrance to the park. I went up the Manheim track, rather then my more regular Richmond Fellowship Track, as a risk mitigation strategy. There were very few people out on the mountain at that time of night. From the top I retraced my steps.

Wednesday (30th) was the final day of the month and started with my normal walk to the gym for my PT session and home afterwards. It was a glorious day with just the odd cloud.


I took a bus to Woden and did some shopping and grabbed some lunch before heading home via Chifley and the top of Mt. Taylor.
Looking out towards the ranges from the top of Mt Taylor ... how many rows of bumps are there?
Some of the gum trees are already flowering ... much to the delight of the parrots
On dusk I did my short Mt Taylor climb circuit and what a lot of people were on the mountain: cycling, walking, running and dog exercising. I was treated to another wonderful light display.



I suspect that it is mating season for the roos as I saw quite a few large males huffing themselves up to look big and other sparring as they sort out who is and will be the alpha male in the mob.

Statistics for April:
Distance: 437.27km - an average of 14.58km per day
Elevation Gain: 8177m - a daily average of 273m
Steps: 710,256 or 23,675 per day

Yes, it has been a big month.