Fencing, Lawns, Weed Spraying, Christmas Cake

We arrived home on Tuesday night and first thing Wednesday morning got straight back into "life at home". Pete and I both went into Moffat Beach at 5am - me to do a double class of Animal Flow and Move and Pete to go and have a cup of coffee with a friend. We then, all had breakfast together before heading home. I spent time with the grand daughters until Ross got home from work and then went to acupuncture, before picking Annika up and bringing her home with me for a couple of hours.

Pete, meanwhile got stuck right in to replacing rotten fence posts - the wooden boundary fence has been held up up Star Pickets or Warratah's as we call them. One of the posts had completely rotted off and the other two are only just holding on to the ground. Pete is replacing them with treated posts this time and is going to concrete them to above ground level. It was hard, hot work for him, digging out the posts that had been concreted in. He got two or the three dug out, one replaced and concreted back in and the other one ready to finish tomorrow. Pete is not 100% at the moment, as he is fighting off another cold.

We both went for a walk in the evening and noticed how much the stream a few 100 metres from us has risen with all the rain that has fallen here and how dirty it is. Apparently it completed covered the little bridge in the peak of the rain.

Last night, back in NZ, my eldest granddaughter had her Yr 8 graduation, she is off to High School next year. I think she looked gorgeous.

Today I weed sprayed both at home and at Ross's - it took me 30 litres of spray at Ross's place! I also mowed our lawns on a high setting to take all the seed heads off the paspalum and other seeding grasses. 

Then this afternoon, I decided to make the same very nutty/fruity Xmas cake that I made last year that we loved. It takes me a good hour to cut up all the nuts and dried fruit that goes into it.  I will have to make another one tomorrow to take to NZ with us. I have contacted the NZ Customs Dept and they say as long as there is no uncooked fruit or nuts on top of the cake, I can take it to NZ with us.

Cut up nuts - brazil, almonds and walnuts

Dried fruit cut up and added

Ready to go in the oven.

Leave a Comment Baking, Fitness, garden, leisure

Morning Walks

The last two mornings I have gone walking around Darwin, 6 km each morning, in over 30 degree heat and what feels like 500% humidity. I am doing a "100km before midnight on 24th December" challenge, which started on December 1st - crazy! I think every pore in my body must have been cleaned out multiple times a day with the amount of sweat that literally drips from my body, all over my body - it is quite disgusting. It doesn't really seem to help with the cooling either!

Anyway, as I walk I stop and admire/look at things and take photos. Yesterday there was a cruise ship docked, spewing hundreds of people off to swarm the waterfront and city. Walking down to the waterfront I passed this unusual rock formation that is alongside the road. My brother gave me an explanation of its formation, however, I won't try and re-explain that to you.
I walked along the waterfront, up some stairs and along the Esplanade walkway, which follows the coastline and has a park alongside it - a nice walk with lots of war memorials, art work and dedications to 200 Territorians.

The Diamond Princess

I have started to look for murals painted on public toilets, the side of buildings/shops etc as I walk around Darwin. I really like them and appreciate the talent that has gone into painting them. 

Rock wall down near the waterfront

Tree roots on a walkway down to Lameroo Beach

This morning, I walked a different way, coming to the top end of the Esplanade walk and making my way back along it to the waterfront.  I really enjoy the viewing spots that have been built into the walk and make a point to stop at each one and gaze out to sea or down to shore below. 

Looks picturesque enough to swim in, but I wasn't game - could be a croc lurking out there.

Rather good sized fish in each of those circles, easily spotted from up above. Wonder what they would taste like?

Then I found coconut trees and coconuts all over the ground. It seems such a shame they are not being eaten. 

The covered walkway below goes from where the cruise ship dock, right across to the road going to the wharf, with another walkway branching off to the Waterfront Precinct, where the wave pool and netted swimming area is. 

I decided to go to a shopping centre after my walk for a look around and had to grin at the Christmas Tree they had there. 

Yep, it's constructed from Jandels, or Thongs if you insist. It has a string of Xmas lights around it, so I'm guessing it gets lit up at night time. 

2 comments Fitness, leisure

Mt Karioi - Raglan

Mt Karioi from Raglan (innocent looking isn't it!)

Today, Sunday, I am suffering; my calf muscles hate me and my lower back isn't being too friendly either. My knees are forgiving me, although when I got up during the night, my right one reminded me forcefully that I am no longer in my 20's and I had to have a second attempt at standing on it. Thank goodness I've got another round of acupuncture tomorrow morning.

Why am I being reminded that I am not as young as I'd like to think I am? My daughter and I climbed Mt Karioi yesterday. An ancient volcano, the summit is at 756 metres above sea level. We started off about 100-150 metres above sea level at the car park. As I've said before, both of us are part of a team of 4 completing the Gold Coast Kokoda Challenge next July, so need to get lots of km's under our feet of mountain climbing to prepare.

Christina told me there were two ways up Karioi, the easier, quicker way which doesn't have many views, or the harder, longer way, that has great views, and then asked, which did I want to do. I said the one with the views - silly me.  About 3 minutes into the walk I said "ok, my legs are tired now and I'm puffing, time to turn back", just joking though. It takes a while for the legs to get used to it and the lungs to get their "2nd wind", once that's happened, it isn't quite as hard.

The cars are way down the bottom.

We started off walking through low native bush and then out into grass land. The initial climb up to the main bush line is steep and the cars parked below quickly look like matchbox cars. The path is very narrow and quite rocky. We were reluctant to forge a new path through the long grass, as you couldn't see the rocks and we weren't that keen on breaking toes, or twisting ankles.  In the photo to the left you can see the narrow path following the fence line. The car park is the white blob in the middle of the green way down the bottom.

Once in the bush, we struck mud, ankle deep mud - oh yah! I did manage to keep my shoes relatively clean on the way up, but on the way down, I gave up, I was too tired to hop from dry spot to dryish spot, or pick my way delicately around the edges of the mud puddles. Thankfully not all the track was muddy, in fact it was probably only 1/4 of it. Parts of the track follow a ridge line, with the sides dropping steeply off on each side of the narrow path. Christina commented that she couldn't stand with her feet side by side on some of it. I tried not to look over the bush lining the edge of the path. We also had to be careful not to plant a walking pole over the edge, expecting it to give us leverage.

Tree roots and rocks provided steps up some of the path. In one place, were there are chains to assist, we estimated it was a good 6 or metres up, using the chains to haul oneself up with, while using tree roots as ladder rungs as well as the occasional rock. Going up wasn't difficult, coming back down took a little more time. Here is Christina making her way up the chained area. It is hard to depict in photos the steepness of the track here. I so wish someone would make a camera that showed exactly what the eye sees.

It was here we meet a gentleman coming down, who told us it had taken him an hour, yes only an hour to reach the summit. Recommended time is 3 to 3.5 hrs. He is a trail runner - idiot. He hadn't realised how "technical" this track was and hadn't been able to run it very much. His shoes and lower legs were covered in mud, obviously he wasn't like us and just jogged straight through it. I'm picking he went down in half that time. Amazing to be that fit and agile.

Tree roots are great steps and hand holds. 

Another part of the track where a chain had been installed to assist, however, we found it easier to just use the tree roots that were conveniently placed as steps and handholds.

The views on the way up, up and down the coast line were amazing and if my stupid phone's battery hadn't gone flat so quickly, I would have taken many more photos. Next time, yes there will be a next time, I'm taking a small camera with me.

Raglan Harbour

Kawhia Harbour

We reached the summit in 2 hrs 50 mins, had a bite to eat, and then started down. Going down was torturous - our knees protested mightily and to be honest, the exhaustion hit. I hadn't really eaten many carbs the day before and half a banana and an egg for breakfast, wasn't really a clever idea. I should have carb and protein loaded for dinner and breakfast. While the snacks we took were nutritious, an apple each, nut bar, sweet and salty popcorn, a nut/fruit mix and lollies, they were not really sufficient for the amount of energy expended climbing up the mountain. I'll be better prepared next time with protein balls, electrolyte tablets and protein bars.

It took us 5.5 hrs approximately, with stops for "catching the breath", knocking mud off the shoes, our lunch at the top, getting caught behind a large group of tourists, who weren't really prepared for that type of hike and a very slow descent. Five hours of that was actual hiking. I am now much more aware of how much exercise I need to do to get fit enough for the GC Kokoda Challenge. I need to build up my knee strength and general cardio fitness and ultimately, I just have to get out there and climb mountains, one after the other. 

My watch is trying to cheat me out of height climbed (it's actually 756m to the summit), but this gives and idea of the terrain profile we climbed.

Below are some other photos taken of the bush, and the rocky cliff below the carpark.

Rock climbing anyone?

NZ native bush.

The dark hole in the middle of the bush is where the track goes. This is after the open grassy area of the climb.

It's a long way down and we aren't even 1/2 way up yet. 

2 comments family, Fitness, leisure, Mt Karioi

Indoor Rock Climbing

On Saturday a good number of the gym 12 week challenge crew went to RockIt, an indoor rock climbing facility at Warana. I wasn't sure if I was going to have a go; it's something I've never done before, my shoulders aren't that great at extending and have been rather sore lately (so much so that on Thursday at HIIT class, I couldn't do some of the exercises), and I was a bit nervous about trusting someone else to keep me safe should I slip off the wall.

Anyway, pride got the better of me and I did it. What FUN. I loved it and my shoulders have not had this range of movement for a good couple of years. All the stretching and putting my weight on them, gave them a good stretch out and loosened up all the "gluey" bits.  I even managed to get over an "overhang" - I admit, it took me several attempts and lots of encouragement from those watching. Also hearing, "she's representing the Kiwi's", was an added incentive, can't let the blimmin Aussie's get the upper hand :)

So, below are some photos of me up the walls, feeling very proud of myself. If you ever get the chance to do this, DO it. I'll be back there again, as will most of those of us and some who didn't give it a go.

That overhang nearly got me, but I made it. What an amazing feeling. 

1 comment Fitness, leisure

A Snapshot of my week

I'm not sure where the days go and sometimes I can't even remember what I've done on each day - should I worry about that I wonder! Each day started off with some form of exercise, either at Moffat Beach Studio or Plus Fitness in Beerwah, out in the community or at the beach and three times ended up with exercise on the treadmill and rowing machine at the gym.

Monday: Fine weather, so it was in to the gardens at home for me. I started on the back garden, a narrow long one that had 5 Cordyline things and ground cover in it. The Cordyline's are in the wrong place as the washing gets caught in them. I cut them back, dug them out and they will have a new home at Ross and Bernie's. I also saved some of the ground cover for them. The rest went into the garden bin. I also weeded the front garden, put some more compost onto it and planted a capsicum out there. Three chillies and two eggplants went into the 3/4's of the back garden I got completed. I'll finish the rest another day, once my garden bin is emptied. Both it and my compost bin are full at the moment. Lawns also got a mow and I swam a kilometre in the local pool. I was very happy with my time, 32 mins and 11 seconds, the best I've ever done and I didn't have to stop - amazing. I haven't swum since the beginning of the year. I want to try and swim a couple of times a week.

Before

After

Tuesday: Looked after the grand daughter's for the day. They survived and so did I, just. Tamara did not want to sleep - little monkey, so I put them both in the double pushchair and we went for a 5 km walk. Pushing an extra 25 kg's up hills, even if they are small ones, got the sweat running off me.

Wednesday: Moffat Beach for exercise - two classes then a 3 km walk/jog along the beach. I live in a beautiful part of the world. There were lots of dogs out being exercised too. Some swam eagerly, others reluctantly and one I saw wouldn't be tempted near the water at all.

Then I spent a couple of hours with an amazing woman who I have known since high school and who is the mother of my eldest nephew. She is 'actively dying' of Metastasized Breast Cancer and now has (supposedly) weeks to live, with the "pacmen" as she calls them, taking up residence in her brain, liver and lungs as well as all through her bones. We went op shopping. If Leslee has her way, her determination, humour and strength of will, will keep her alive until next year.  She is quite inspirational. 

Then I headed up to my Aunts for the night. Each evening, a strong sea breeze gets up and the kite surfers have a ball out in the entrance to the Maroochy River. This was our view from her apartment.

I counted 13 Kite Surfers at one stage. 

Thursday I went for a bike ride, walk along the beach, swim and bike ride back home again with my Aunt and some of her very fit "young" 70 something year old friends. It was a beautiful day and the water was delightful, once in. Getting in took a little bit though. I was very pleasantly surprised at how warm the water was.

Friday: Beach session, then to the Community Gardens to give them a good watering. The hot days and drying winds have removed all the moisture from the ground that the days of rain we had deposited. Then I met up with my old Team Leader for lunch, bought some preserving jars so I can bottle some of the beetroot out of the community gardens, made another batch of mango chutney (no more mangoes in the freezer now), bottled the Kombucha and baked some Lemon and Macadamia Biscuits. I sure I have done other things as well, like vacuuming, washing floors, laundry, grocery shopping etc, but they are just the normal day to day things that occur, no matter what else I am attempting to squeeze into my days.

2 comments Baking, family, Fitness, Friends, leisure, Preserving

Pete's birthday walk

Pete choose our walk on Thursday, up Mt Coochin, 'the Twins' as this Mountain has two summits and using your imagination, you can see them as co-joined twins.  This isn't a difficult or long walk up to the first summit, but is quite steep in places, certainly enough to make me puff and drip sweat. Deciding whether to go left or right when we came to the first fork in the track was the most difficult decision, and we went the wrong way, coming to a dead end and having to turn around, go back and try the other path, which was the right one. A small "goat" track branched off this one, to the right of the track, going up the hill, and this was the track to the summit of the first peak.

The flora on this mountain is quite different to Ngungun or Beerberrum, being more open and smaller trees. We loved the bark on what I think are a type of manuka or kanuka or maybe even melaluca. We were fascinated by the sound the bark made as it slowly rolled up on itself - a constant crackling, as though a thousand lizards were scurrying through the undergrowth around us. 

When we got to the first summit, we could see why this mountain is called "the Twins", for there across a gully was the other summit with the track visible up the rocks. It was quite a climb down to the bottom and with my sore knee, it took me a while to pick my way down. The climb up to the other summit was short, a bit of a rock scramble in places, but not too hard.

Starting down from summit 1 heading towards the next summit. You can see the track up the other side quite clearly

Picking my way down

We came down that

Up the other side. The poles where a hindrance so I collapse them down and carried them.

Mt Beerwah in the distance and the track down from summit one .

The views from the top of both summits is good, especially out towards the other Glasshouse Mountains. We decided to not go back the way we came, instead electing to follow a faint  path down the ridge and join a track that goes around the base. From there it was a short walk back to the car. It will be a good training ground for me, especially if I go one way, from base, up and over and back to base and then turn round and go back the other way.

We then went home, showered, changed, went up to my Aunts and took her out for lunch. See below.

Ginger and cranberry scone with jumble-berry jam

Lemon and key lime meringue pie

1 comment Fitness, leisure