Wild

on the cover

Nick was the expedition leader for our extended stint of canyon exploration in Tasmania. Perversely, however, he’s afraid of heights; it’s part of the reason he started canyoning. In our descents, we were forever balancing risk amongst the group. Nick wanted to setup ropes on everything. In this instance, I pretty much insisted nature had provided a walking ramp, and that we didn’t want to be here all day. It could explain the look he gave me when I asked him to smile for the camera. (Read more on page 28.)…

wild australia

@wildmagazine wild_mag wild.com.au/newsletter/ EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Roland Handel, editor@wild.com.au EDITOR James McCormack EDITOR-AT-LARGE Campbell Phillps PRODUCTION CO-ORDINATOR Anja Fuechtbauer SOCIAL MEDIA Steve Blackburn CONTRIBUTORS Jason MacQueen, Dan Slater, Andrew Gregory, Chris Armstrong, Craig Fardell, Flint Duxfield, Catherine Lawson, David Bristow, Andy Bodsworth, Andy Szollosi, Matthew Crompton DESIGN Sam Grimmer, Tamara Romcevic, Miljana Vukovic, Ivana Brkic FOUNDER Chris Baxter OAM ADVERTISING AND SALES Roland Handel m 0458 296 916 @ sales@wild.com.au CONTRIBUTIONS Want to contribute to Wild? Please email contributor@wild.com.au While every care is taken, no responsibility is accepted for submissions. Articles represent the views of the authors and not necessarily those of the publisher. PUBLISHER Roland Handel Wild Bunyip Pty Ltd ABN 50 617 545 696 m 0458 296 916 @ roland@wildbunyip.com…

kenshō

The other day I was bitten by a bull ant. I was out with my son in the Royal National Park. He’s five years old now, but we were out on, for him, a longish walk—a 13km out-and-back jaunt beyond Uloola Falls. While it’s not an especially difficult outing, it’s not dead set easy either, especially if you’ve got short legs; there are ups and downs, rocks to clamber over, thigh-tohip high steps to contend with. It was one of those gorgeous Sydney autumn days. A flawless, hard blue sky. Warm enough that I sweated a little on the climbs. And the air was stripped of haze; when we reached the walk’s high point near Uloola Turrets, we could see each skyscraper in the distant CBD with perfect clarity. I can’t…

wild letters

THANK YOU, OLD FRIEND I finally got around to reading Wild 167 and came across the track notes for the Castle. Ah, the memories! I first climbed it in 1971 in Year 11, part of a party of a bushwalking camp. You could still drive then to the top of Kaliana Ridge. There was so little vegetation that we simply sighted the top of Kaliana and walked up in a direct line! No fixed ropes then, though I think the party leader did carry one. I’ve climbed it several times since and my main comment is how it’s so much harder now, not just because of advancing age but because of the degradation of the track. In 1971 I was walking on the top of the ground. In 2015 I was…

gallery

time and space

Travel broadens your horizons, so the saying goes, but being in nature gives you space. Space to see outside your own little bubble; space to open up your lungs and really breathe; space to think, to dream, to really connect with people, yourself and the natural world you’re part of. Although it’s a good start, it’s not just being outdoors that does it—it’s being outdoors and aware. The busy Spit Bridge to Manly track is near my house and I walk it regularly, passing determined-looking people powering their way along regular routes. They zoom along in pairs, eyes down, focussing on steps or activity trackers and engrossed in conversation. The subject of discussions varies, although work and family are big ones. But within those large subjects, the topics are small. It’s not…