2019 - big things!

Happy 2019!

I'm so excited about projects waiting for me this year. One of them is a crazy ride through Thailand. I’ve been told my new best friends will be those fancy bike shorts and butt cream!

About what I'm doing...

I'm going to ride 500km in 5 days through Thailand to raise money for the New Life project in Kanchanaburi, located near the Thai-Burma border in western Thailand. More than 50 children call Kanchanaburi home.

Children at Kanchanaburi have come from difficult situations: sexual abuse, substance addictions, or they have no family to care for them. Others have been used as exploited labour.

I need to fundraise $5,000: 100% of donations go directly to the children in Thailand. It's a lot but I believe we can get more!

How am I going to do it?

Raising money by… Special photo sessions, artwork sale, asking for donations and… an auction or raffle. I already have some amazing donations which I’m very grateful for but need a few more. If you would like to help, here is how.

Training… getting by bum saddle ready is already slightly painful. Also getting used to hills. If anyone wants to come riding with me, let me know! I’ve already started and did my first 50km ride the other day.

How you can help:

Anything would be helpful. If you could donate something, please get in touch. I hope to do the auction in late January/February when everyone is recovered from the summer holidays. :)

And in return (apart from the feel-good factor of helping me raise this money for the kids) I will smother your logo/tag name all over everything in the promo for it. I'll also mention on social media and in a blog post that goes out to an email list of nearly 1000.

I can also give you a hug. Who doesn't love a hug?

So where will the money be going? Here's a bit about Hands Group...

“Hands Group is an Australian, New Zealand and Thai social enterprise that gives at-risk Thai children and their communities a helping hand through our charity Hands Across The Water.

Hands Across The Water was originally formed after countless Thai children were left alone and homeless by the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami.

This charity was unlike many others, it was nimble, entrepreneurial and strived for goals that many thought were unattainable. Just over 12 years later, Hands has raised more than $20 million for the children and communities in Thailand and now cares for more than 350 children throughout the country.

The reason for the charity’s success is two-fold. Firstly, we don’t rely purely on donations. Instead, we create meaningful shared experiences for everyone involved with hands – experiences that truly provide food for the soul. Secondly, we believe in charity in the true sense of the word. This means:

Our care comes without conditions

We don’t seek to impose a religion or belief system upon those we support

We give children the chance to grow according to their own beliefs and traditions

Plus, 100% of donations go to the kids and their communities. No donors’ money goes to administration in Australia. Or staff costs. Or marketing. Or fundraising. “

Here’s a link to the project so you can check it out, and donate if you want to... all donations are tax deductible.

Challenges and toenails on the Heysen Trail.

Ok, so technically, it didn't go wrong while on holiday - so it doesn't get in my 'things go wrong on holiday' list - but damn, it's a negative.

Fresh start on day one. Full of smiles. 

Dad wanted a challenge. He wanted to hike the Heysen Trail from Cape Jervis to Victor Harbor, normally a four-day hike, in two days. Just over 70km. 

I've never done more than 22km a day - and even that was a chore. Tired legs, same scenery and other hikers not enjoying themselves became a real mental struggle. I think I fell asleep while doing a beach meditation that day. While sitting up. That was on the Great Ocean Walk when we combined 100km into five days. 

Now I'm challenged to walking 35km a day, two days in a row. Over rough cliff coastline and hills that look like a Giants green bum sticking up in the air. A whole family of giants. I say yes, but never get too excited about it. In fact, I never even looked at a map of where we would be hiking until the day prior. That is VERY MUCH not like me to not plan and organise details. 

A good bit of the track, seems like a stroll, with views to KI and the southern ocean.

We set off early on Saturday morning and starting walking just before sunrise from the Sealink terminal at Cape Jervis. I'm jovial, nearly skipping along, commenting on how wonderful it is to be out in nature. But in the back of my mind, I worried about what I'd be saying 12 hours from now. 

One of the many stiles we crossed. By end of day two, it was a mission to step up and pull the leg over.

The hike started nice and easy, until Cobbler Hill in Deep Creek Conservation Park. I think we both let a few expletives go, but that was nothing compared to what lay ahead of us in the next 36 hours. 

It wasn't until Tunkalilla Beach that I found the terrain easier to handle. Two bung knees that shot daggers out whenever there was a slight decent, one ankle that was screaming at me to stop squashing it walking on the side of the hill and two big toes that I kept knocking on rocks while looking at what I could take photos of. (Note to self: stop and look, don't continue to walk while looking around.)

Finally! Some track not on a hillside. Instant relief for my ankle. Downhill - instant scream from my knees. 

The first day saw me nearly crying while letting out yelps of pain while descending valleys. I cautiously stepped one foot in front of another on  a cliff while seeing the sharp rocks and swell of ocean on the peripheral straight below the trail. Dad and I exchanged utter disappointment and exhausted awe when we rounded the corner and found he had told our support people to park in a carpark that was the steepest incline we'd had yet. And this was at 6 pm. We trudged up, I fell into the car, ate some chicken, the granny-hopped down the hill again to set up our tent and sleeping bags by the beach. 

I was set for a night of sleep that consisted of passing out from tiredness. But, setting up in the dark, meant we didn't realise we were on a slope. We both kept bracing ourself, so we didn't roll downhill. And, I had packed the wrong pillow - a u-pillow that was seriously more uncomfortable than clothes rolled up in a pillow case (which I normally do). But because I had accidentally left my thermals in the car heading back to Victor Harbor, I had to sleep in my clothes and had no left overs for a pillow. Yes, gross, I know. The first thing I did when we got back to Victor Harbor was shower - and then I felt half human again. 

See the road behind the house on the hilltops? That's where our dinner and tent were waiting. Not the most fun to realise after hiking 11 hours. 

Start of day two... just some ultra soft sand for a few kilometres. 

Day two, my body surprised myself by not being too sore. I could actually stand. We started with a few kilometres of soft beach sand, then climbed, with the assistance of the fence, a nearly vertical hill. We had the warning from a seasoned hiker this was worse than Cobblers Hill, Tunkalilla Beach. And yep, let your backpack pull you back, and you would tumble down to serious injury. The trail then eased, and we powered through most of the day. Lunch at Waitpinga beach was quick; any stop made my legs stiffen up like wood. Then we powered on. By mid-afternoon, I mention I should tighten my ankles of the boots up - my ankle felt strained and weak. In hindsight, it probably would have helped to do them up tighter from the start. Maybe my feet wouldn't have slipped forward as much, denting my toes. As the afternoon sun lowered, I felt myself tripping over more and more rocks. Screaming at one stage, I thought I'd broke it open. I didn't bother looking, though - what could I have done?

After the Tunkalilla beach soft sand, just a little hill to climb. I had to use the fence to stop me falling over backwards. 

By the time we hit the bluff, I was out of mental puff. I wanted to be the leisurely walkers out strolling with their dogs. I wanted to sit down - but didn't dare. I wanted a shower. I wanted my boots off. I wanted to be there. Dad wanted to walk down to my mum's house in Encounter Bay, but one step, another shriek, and we hobbled back up to a carpark to wait. My knees couldn't take it, and the pain daggers came fiercely. 

The shower made me feel half human while the nanny walk kept me appreciative of what I'd put my body through in the last two days. I warned my dad not to ring in the morning, because if I couldn't walk, I'd swear. The Funny thing was, he didn't call. He rang hubby and my mum to check in on me. I did end up calling him, though - I could walk. And he didn't cop an ear bashing.

But, that wasn't the end of it. Thinking I'd bruised my toes and toenails, I thought the pain would subside over the next few days. No. The nails turned lots of different shades of blue and purple, to the current state of purple-blue with smudges of black. Surfing a few days ago didn't help either - bashing my toes on rocks just made the colour come out thick and fast. 

Would I do it again? No. Never. Dad said he wouldn't either. Hats off to his workmates that did it in 23 hours. Fark.
Am I glad I did it? Yes. It is a challenge I can say I achieved. I am fit enough. I am strong enough. Mentally and physically. And I love the time with my Dad. Sometimes chatting, sometimes walking in silence. 

How 'out bush' do you go?

And another beach. Waitpinga. I love beach walking - especially when it's harder sand.