| Leader | Mentor | Tail Ender | |
| Standards | Selwyn | Dave R | Frank |
| Alternates | Ali | Bev | Moira |
Distance 14km/13km, elevation 465m/375m, Time 4hr
All our tramps are enjoyable outdoor outings, but our recent Glenafric tramp went past expedition status and almost into the realms of being an adventure.
The first indication of this was experiencing a rear tyre blow-out on our bus as we were heading towards Amberley. Our driver Gary managed the whole tricky situation magnificently and within 45 minutes we were safely off again. Tranzit, our reliable and helpful bus company, had been able to find another bus to carry us to our destination.
Even the journey up the windy Mt Cass Road was more interesting than usual, following a concrete truck heading towards the wind farm construction site, and also encountering a rather large grader.
Our first real challenge was chugging up the very steep farm track to get to our morning tea spot. The 14 Alternates weren’t far behind the 17 Standards already enjoying the wondrous view.
The adventures continued. The Standards encountered: many fences to go over (including a few with barbed wire and live electric wires to add to the fun), the Dovetail creek to carefully step over (or wade through) several times, with the associated challenges of slippery stones and mud. There was also the drama of negotiating our way through the varied terrain with no track to follow (well done Selwyn and David R). However the lovely fine weather and the impressive sandstone cliffs we encountered, plus the goal of stupendous sea views (and lunch) kept us in good spirits.
Lunch for the Standards was at 1pm and was enjoyed at a glorious spot metres away from the edge of a cliff. The Alternates got to enjoy their lunch close to 2pm at a nice spot short of the cliff.
The Standards were soon off again ready for more adventures. These included encountering: belligerent bumble bees, a herd of curious cattle, and a flock of sheep who perhaps thought we were a curious sight, trudging single file along the narrow tracks they had kindly made for us. The most exciting part was the very narrow chalky ‘track’ (that seemed to have been made by mountain goats rather than sheep) sidling up and along a sandstone cliff face.
After that point our trusty leader’s written instructions read like directions on a treasure map: continue on to the second cluster of cabbage trees near a macrocarpa tree, then head down to the beach. The trees were easily found, however the descent to the beach was actually quite a hazardous task. And the walk along the beach was challenging too – but a fascinating experience negotiating over all the large piled, wave-rounded rocks and concretions full of fossils.
Then it was just a matter of getting up the steep hill back onto farmland and marching towards our bus, repaired and waiting for us near the farmstead. The Alternates joined us about half an hour later. They had had challenges of their own, and one of their number (and her thermos) had taken a bit of tumble down a hill.
By 4pm all of us weary adventurers headed back to town in the comfort of our bus. Our first-time visitors Beth, Ali and David had acquitted themselves extremely well with what had been quite a wearying, unpredictable day. And what a fantastic day it was!
Text by Shirls
