A Busy Weekend of Oxfam Trail Walking and Partying.

Well, what a weekend!  I must say that I overdid it, even for my currently advanced state of return to wellness.  Still, it was worth it, and today after a very slow and shaky day yesterday, I am almost back to normal.  That sort of bounce-back would once have been unheard of, even from doing much less, so it's still a win of sorts.

The Oxfam Trailwalker event was very interesting to work at.  The day started very early, in the dark, with the full moon not yet set in the west.

It was beautiful, clear but very cold.  The car said 3 degrees C as we drove to the ranger station to start our shift.  I felt for all the teams who were out on the trail trying to rest or walk in it!

By the time we had picked up our vehicle and gone to do our first job at the start for the 50 k teams,  it was possibly colder as the sun came up, and Chidlow is always a little colder than Mundaring, despite being only ten minutes away by car.  

There were lots of enthusiastic volunteers and walkers there getting ready to start the 50 k walk, and the 100 k people had all left by then so we didn't see those until later down the trail.  Another of our brigade members did the last support crew shift and said the last people through the finish came in at 2am on the sunday morning, and they were 100k  people so they had been on the trail for nearly 48 hours by then. Brave people!

The fastest people did the 100k in under 13 hours. Amazing!

We saw a lot of sore feet but I'm sure that it was all worth it when they went over the finish line.  

Part of the trail took the walkers across our famous Zig Zag road, and since it was blocked for the event we got to go up it the wrong way, to check the toilet paper in the toilets that were placed halfway up it.   (A super sexy job, but someone had to do it)

Golly, I hadn't been on that road since I was in my early twenties and we used to ride it with dogs and horses and hip flasks of bourbon!  I'd forgotten how lovely it is to see the city from up there and to take the precipitous turns.

This is how sharply the road turns back on itself!

And this is what it was originally made for:  Trains!

This cool old pic and info from here:  http://pickeringbrookheritagegroup.com/railway1.html

 We got a St. John's Ambulance guy to take a picture for us.  This pic makes me giggle.  We look so countrified and somehow touristy.

Anyway after an eight hour shift, we went home and Andrew, who had also done an eight hour shift the night before, had a lovely nap.  Then we went to our brigade's annual dinner.

We were very pleased to receive our awards for being the best new members for the year.   They were well chosen, being a beer tankard for Andrew and an engraved gold pen for me,  the author, who does not drink beer!
 

Sunday was a bit of a write-off because I basically felt like all my cells were flapping like stranded jellyfish, and after a dog walk (stagger?) up at the block, I slept the morning away and then read for most of the arvo.  I didn't even play a single musical instrument all day!  Ah well, it was worth it.  (I know, I keep saying that.)

The sunset was lovely when I finally did drag my carcass outside again.

Cyrano, of course, thinks we are mad to ever leave home, but I know that it is good for my brain to do these things, even if I overdo it at times.

Why not just lie around and be picturesque like me?