Today (11/1) Tim and I completed the Dashwood Gully Rd (Meadows) to Kyeema Conservation Park leg of the trail. I left my car on Wick Rd and then guided Tim to the entrance to Kyeema Conservation Park on Woodgate Hill Rd getting lost only briefly along the way. The first section through the Conservation Park was probably the highlight of this walk, lush stunning natural bushland for about a kilometer and a half before crossing a stile and entering the Kuitpo Forest. For the next 13 or 14km the walk was pleasantly flat and shady and we were fortunate to spot the occasional Kangaroo or Black Cockatoo, we stopped briefly at Kiutpo Forest headquarters where we ate a snack at the picnic tables before continuing on to the Cookarloo Campsite. At the site there were quite ... read more

Back on the trail again (27/12) this time I am walking with my mates Tim and Steve, I picked Tim up just after 6.30 am before heading to Steve's place we took two cars leaving mine just of Dashwood Gully Rd and Steve's at Mylor right in front of the deli. We left my car at 7.45 am beginning the walk by following some back roads past a few farms before arriving on the edge of the Kuitpo Forest about an hour later. A nice cool and overcast morning boded well for a good walking experience shame about the swarms of flies though. On entering the forest my first thought was that this is nothing like the Crawford Forest, they didnt appear to be growing pines here, the vegetation looked much more native and the scenery ... read more

We awoke early as we do and went for another bread and jam breakfast, we had the company of an old French guy and a Polish professor who was interesting to talk too. At 8.30 Walter drove us to the wharf so we could catch our ferry to Moorea, the tickets cost about $14 each, the ferry was large, modern and very similar to those in the Greek Isles. The crossing took only about 30 minutes but that was more than long enough to cause Ruth some queasiness, on debarkation we decided to catch the local bus to our pension which took about 20 minutes. The trip was pleasant the island is beautiful and the weather good for the first time on the trip, unfortunately the driver didnt stop at the pension and after banging on ... read more

It is market day on Raro so although we are stiff and sore from the trek we headed to the Punanga Nui Market this morning. It's Ruth's mums birthday today so we picked them up and headed to Avarua. The market was interesting as markets tend to be anywhere in the world, there were lots of different foods and arts and crafts. The weather is not the best, rain has forced us to duck in and out of shops and stalls, I bought some coconut scones and a steakroll with mushroom sauce for lunch both were really good. We then went looking for the Raratonga prison, I had heard that you could buy hand made ukeleles (by the prisoners) there for bargain prices, it took a little while to locate the prison which was on the ... read more

Its still blowing a gale this morning and the skies are overcast, so much for tropical paradise . Had a leisurely morning before heading back to Avarua to visit the market and see if any stalls were open, one of the open shops had some fantastic carvings so purchased a statue of Tangaroa (God of fertility), a carved outrigger canoe, a carved paddle and a native carved drum. I was very happy with my purchases which will be wrapped and delivered to the resort before we leave for Tahiti. We then took care of some banking and visited a bar called the Banana Lounge for a few beers before heading back to the resort for another meeting with the celebrant, we are a little concerned now that the weather could have a detrimental affect on the ... read more