Youngs Around the World

After days of wining and dining, we headed southeast to Halls Gap at Grampians National Park. The Grampians are an impressive range of mountains with more than 150 km of walking trails. In January 2006, a bushfire ravaged much of the area, devouring hectares of forest and wiping out the once-thriving koala population around Halls Gap.

We drove into the park through winding forest roads. Many of the surrounding trees were charred down to blackened remnants but the undergrowth of ferns was lush and thick and many trees seem to have survived the fire. We checked into a friendly, quiet hostel and then drove into tiny Halls Gap to have a look around. In an open field behind one of the restaurants on the main drag, there were about a hundred kangaroos grazing peacefully in the late afternoon. A barbed wire fence precluded us from walking among them but one little Curious George engaged us and hopped toward the fence to get a closer look and a drink from a nearby stream. Despite our distance from the larger group of kangaroos, we were still mesmerized by the sheer number of them and how naturally they seemed to blend into the small town.

The next morning, we went in for a full day hike in the Grampians. The morning air was brisk but the sun was lighting up the trees as we found the trailhead and ventured in. The burned and partially regenerated forest was beautiful; the blackened trees were striking against the pale gray of the living tree trunks and mosses and ferns were sprouting out of everything that seemed otherwise dead. The trail took us through canyons, waterfalls, rivulets and stunning rock formations to a magnificent lookout point at the summit. We ate lunch at the peak, overlooking a distant lake and the valley town of Halls Gap with the forest-covered mountains wrapped around it like a leafy envelope. I remember having that rare, exhilarating sensation of being on top of the world as we listened to pertinent tunes like Ain’t No Mountain High Enough (Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell), Fly Away (Lenny Kravitz) and Free Fallin’ (Tom Petty) on the IPod.

As always, the walk down the mountain was much less intense. When we had almost reached the trailhead again, we spied a sign for another trail and, with the fresh air and surrounding grandeur fueling a euphoric mood, it took a mere glance and a smile to alter our direction onto the new trail. Back up the mountain again, the Chatauqua Peak path was less trodden and groomed and we had it all to ourselves. The tree-clad ridges, spurs, canyons and escarpments afforded us ample thinking space and an opportunity to appreciate nature up close. The final stretch to the peak was a tricky rock climb but the view from the top was definitely worth the effort.

If the first trail energized us, the second one exhausted us and we trudged toward the car park with our earlier vigor spent. We reached the caravan park at the trailhead in the late afternoon to find a group of kangaroos nibbling on a grassy knoll. The roos were surrounded by several giddy observers, which they didn’t seem to mind. One father even sent his little boy into the mix with a fistful of grass to feed them. The kangaroos allowed the boy to approach and one even took a tug at his offering but then uncertainly retreated. They were beautiful – I never tire of watching them.

It was a great day of hiking for the family and a good start to burning off some of the chub accumulated during our period of wine-induced decadence. Seeing the regenerated forest reminded us of the cycle of life and of the beauty, brevity and fragility of our individual existence. We talk often these days about the importance of living this life to the fullest and leaving a positive legacy. “The world is a book. Those who do not travel read only a page.” I saw that quote on a t-shirt in Bangkok and it has stuck in my mind ever since. World travel is inarguably a life-changing experience – one that expands your horizons and changes your perspectives. It offers an education beyond the scope of any classroom – dynamic lessons in humanities, sociology, problem-solving, history, art, architecture, geography, world religion and politics. If the world is a book, then I want to read the whole book and write a new one!

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