Miss Molly's Big Adventure

.......An interview with Miss Molly (Blue Heeler and mountain climber extraordinaire).  

As told to me..........

Me :                Well Miss Molly.  I understand you went on quite an adventure today.  Do you want to
                       tell us where you went and what you did?

Miss Molly :     Sure Sharyne (aka Kendall's Mum and nice lady who gives me Beef Jerky treats!) 

                         This morning - Really REALLY! early - Kendall and Alan woke me up and told me we were
                        going for a drive in the car.   I was so excited - you know how much I love going for drives
in the car!

Me:                  So - did you know where you were going?

Miss Molly :    No. I thought we might have been going for a drive to get a Pizza (I know how much Alan 

              and Kendall like Pizza!) but then we turned down this road I had never seen before and I

                       saw this HUGE mountain.    Then Kendall told me that we were going to climb that 

                       mountain - all the way to the top.   WOW - I was so excited!

           

Me :               What was it like on the mountain?

Miss Molly :    Well,  there were SO many interesting things to smell...... and strange little insects and crawly

                        things...... lots and lots of trees and grass...... oh, and there were also a couple of other

                        dogs on the mountain.  

Alan said they were "German Shepherds".  I just thought they were

                        two dopey showoffs!   Running like crazy up that little track.......            

    

Miss Molly :    And I'm not the only one who thought that!    

Kendall told me I was such a good dog.  So well behaved...... So obedient......

So intelligent.......

SO much better than those two dopey German Shepherds!

I really like Kendall (and Alan of course!)

Me :                What about the view?

Miss Molly :     View?   What view?

Me :    Did you have any trouble keeping up with Kendall and Alan?

Miss Molly :  Who me?   No way. 
I had to keep stopping so they could catch up to me.

Me :   What about rest breaks along the way?

Miss Molly:  Oh yes, there were plenty of those.  
Kendall brought along my own special water bowl - see that little blue bowl in the picture.
Alan let me share his sandwich and I also had a couple of biscuits - yum! 

Me :  What was the best part of the whole trip for you?

Miss Molly :  Um mm...... climbing over all those rock faces
and
showing Kendall and Alan the way to go!

Miss Molly :      Oh....... and sharing Alan's sandwiches and biscuits!

Me :   And once you got to the top - what did you think of the view

Miss Molly :   View?  What view?

Me :  Well thank you Miss Molly.  It has been a real treat hearing all about your big adventure today.
Is there anything else you would like to add?

Miss Molly :   I would just like to thank Kendall and Alan for taking me.
But next time.......

Could you PLEASE pack me my own sandwiches and bikkies

(and maybe some beef jerky treats!)

My Thursday Walk Around the Neighbourhood

Just thought you might like to take a look at my regular Thursday afternoon walk.  I have been walking this  track for a while now and every week when I head up this little hill I am blown away by the absolute beauty of this pristine tropical rainforest.   This beautiful National Park is just down the road from the Valley - so I like to think of it as a walk around my local neighbourhood.   The pipeline  carries water from the headwaters of the Gorge to the city (some 25kilometres to the north) and the walking track follows the pipe all the way to the top.  The track itself is 6.4 kilometres up and back and takes us about an hour and a half to complete.


At this time of the year most of the causeway crossings are flooded and we have to tip toe across river rocks.    There have been a few occasions when I haven't quite managed to get the right footing and ended up ankle deep in the water.  Wet joggers and soggy socks - yuk!

This is the little creek we pass at the half way mark.   On the way back it is a great place to jump into and cool off!

We call this "heartbreak hill" - because that's what it does!  "Wait up Kendall........" 

Up and over "heartbreak hill" and we pass by these magnificent rocks and waterfalls.  This is where Kendall wants to have her wedding photos taken (not that she is planning on getting married anytime soon!!)   It would be a magnificent backdrop but somehow I think the logistics of getting an entire wedding party to trek here might be a bit much. 

Just past "Wedding Photo Falls" we get our first glimpse of the river snaking its way down the Gorge.

After a couple more steep inclines we round the corner and are met with this magnificent sight

Doesn't matter how many times I do this walk I never tire of this view.  Simply stunning!

Where did August go?

Welcome to the first day of Spring from tropical Far North Queensland!
I'm back again after a bit of a blogging break.  In the blink of an eye August has come and gone.  Not sure what happened?  It's not that I didn't do much - because I certainly seemed to be kept extremely busy.  It's not that I didn't go anywhere different or achieve any goals - because I did.  It's not that I wasn't inspired by all the wonderful things I've seen and read during the month - because I have.   I guess the reality is that I just haven't felt inclined to blog about it.  Very strange......  I wonder if any of my blogging friends have ever felt this way?  Anyway, hopefully this small transgression will soon pass and I will get back my blogging mojo.

So what has been happening in my corner of the world these past few weeks?
Well the most exciting piece of news is that my friend Julie and I made it to the half way mark on the Pyramid!  This was a huge milestone.  Not only is it an extremely physical climb (3 hr return trip)  but I also had to overcome my incredible fear of heights - which was a massive psychological achievement .  To reach the half way point (455 metres) was the highest I have EVER been (other than being in a plane!)   When we finally reached the half way mark - a massive boulder with 1/2 WAY scrawled across its face in faded white paint - it was as much as I could do to fall to my knees and kiss it (like the Blarney stone!)

Once I managed to anchor myself to a small sapling (literally!) I summoned up the courage to look around and take in the views - and WHAT amazing views they were! 

Gordonvale and the Mulgrave Mill

The first rays of morning sunlight

Looking south

Looking north

High 5's!

At this stage we haven't made plans to go any higher although who knows how we will feel in a couple of months time.  It certainly is a fantastic feeling of accomplishment to have reached such a massive milestone and better still - managed to burn off 1200 calories (according to my heart rate monitor!) - so that has to be good.

Aside from conquering mountains I have also been kept very busy with heaps of projects around the house.

Finally managed to finish the painting I was doing for my bedroom.  Am really happy with how it turned out and it adds a wonderful splash of colour to my all white palette.

Almost finished the transformation of this room.   Just waiting for my new quilt and trying to decide on a floor rug.  Oh yes, and I am just waiting for the September holidays to finally have a go at making the farmyard bench which I intend to place at the foot of the bed - chipppy white (with a touch of red) of course!  All in all I am really pleased with what I have achieved.  

Have spent the last two weekends repainting my front picket fence - all 50 metres of it!  Only 4 more panels to go.  Looks lovely and crisp against the green foliage backdrop.

Two weeks till September school holidays and I am already making my list of "things to do" -

#1 - Build farmyard bench

#2 - Paint verandah balustrading

#3 - Lay tiles on verandah

#4 - Finish painting walls in kitchen

#5 - Complete some more blocks on my Breast of Friends quilt

#6 - Mulch my front garden

#7 - Replenish the pebbles in my driveway and pathways

Whew!.........  I'm exhausted already

Mini Milestone

For the past 3 weeks I have been taking part in Michelle Bridge's (Biggest Loser) 12 Week Body Transformation Program (aka 12WBT) which basically means I have been following a 1200 calorie a day diet and exercising like a crazy woman!  Today was officially declared "Mini Milestone Saturday" and as a "Beginner" I had to select an activity which would challenge me for at least 1 - 2 hours.  So this was my Mini Milestone - climbing Walsh's Pyramid!  I mentioned in a previous post how the Pyramid has been my nemesis and how every day (for the last 27 years) I have driven by it and (secretly) dreamed of climbing to the top.  Now suffice to say I didn't get to the top - all 922 metres of it, however Julie (my training partner) and I made a pretty good fist of it and managed to get about 1/3 of the way up.   So we were both pretty pleased with our efforts. 

We started the climb at 7 a.m.  There were already a couple of cars in the carpark when we arrived so we knew we wouldn't be the only climbers on the mountain.  Checked out the sign and the base which told us it was a 5-6 hour return trek (you must be kidding!) and then started the climb.   The Tropical Walking Tracks Guide lists the walk as strenuous however Julie and I have decided that this must be a mis-print and it should be listed as extremely strenuous and gruelling!

The first half of the walk passes through open woodland up an ever narrowing spur that gets steeper as you climb.

We passed by a number of large trees which had been burnt out during last summer's bush fires.  We had to keep looking out for the orange tree markers which showed the track.  It would be pretty easy to take a wrong turn however the track seemed pretty well worn so obviously there had been a fair bit of activity up there over the school holidays.  We were actually overtaken (on more than one occasion!) by a couple of crazy people who must have decided that they would go for a easy little Saturday morning jog up the mountain.  Not human obviously!

After a solid 40 minute of climbing and scrambling - we reached a rock which marked the 1K point (approx 300 metres altitude).   We decided that this was a pretty significant milestone to reach.  So, after giving our lungs a bit of chance to catch up to our breathing - we started the descent.  The views on the way down were spectacular. I truly felt like I was "on top of the world!"

 It was such an exhilarating experience and Julie and I are definitely hooked.  Next Saturday our goal will be to get to the half way mark (approx 450metre altitude).  With a bit of luck my ageing knees will hold up okay - will have to mega dose on the Fish Oil capsules this week!  

The Pyramid

This is my nemesis - the Pyramid!   The symmetrical  Pyramid (922 metres in height)  is located just south of  Gordonvale and is the highest free-standing mountain peak in the world (not part of a mountain range).   My Valley flanks the western side of the mountain and there is not one single day that I don't either see it or drive by it.  For 27 years it has hovered over me like some giant impossible goal.    I am determined that one day I am going to climb this mountain.   I have actually managed to almost get to the half way point.   However my lack of fitness and incredible fear of heights has prevented  me from getting any further.   It is amazing just how many people actually make the trek up and down the slope on a regular basis.   On weekends there is almost a "traffic jam" up there as people scramble to get to the top.  I can only imagine how beautiful it must be to see the sun rising from the top of the Pyramid.   Hopefully one day I will get the chance to see it!

Kendall and I made the trek to Behana Gorge this afternoon.  It is such a tough walk but I always feel such a tremendous feeling of achievement when I reach the end.    Such a beautiful place.

Public holiday here tomorrow.   Hopefully I will get the chance to do some more work on my "Breast of Friends" quilt.   Would love to finish it by the time I finish decorating my bedroom although the hand embroidery is really slowing me down.   Thankfully there are only a couple of blocks with embroidery detail.  I am really looking forward to getting stuck into the applique work.  

Treetop Walk

Checked out another walking track this afternoon with Liz, Julie and "Mr Chips".  We really enjoy finding new places to walk and sights to see.  This particular track is in Lizs' stamping ground at the back of Forest Gardens so she (and Mr Chips) took on the role as our tour leaders.

Bouganvillea in full bloom out the front of Liz's house.  The colours are just magnificent.  Must be in a perfect position.  Liz says it is Bob's favourite plant in the garden.......

A lake (complete with lilypads!) along the way.

Amazing to think that this beautiful little water feature is in the middle of suburbia.

 

"The Bridge Keeper" - not sure how much ($) the bridge toll is but I'm keeping an eye on this fellow.  That beak looks pretty sharp!

Mr Chips leading the way.  "Come on you guys - keep up!"

Ok Liz - "smile for the camera"!