With the rise of smartphones as a tool in hiking (GPS, mapping apps, cameras or if you're like me, for reading Kindle books!), the addition of a battery powerbank to recharge them is becoming a must-pack item for our backpacks. Up until now, you'd choose your powerbank based on mAh (milliampere hours), which describe the amount of total power that the unit can hold until you need to charge it … [Read more...]
Claustral Canyon VR experience
To enter a canyon is to enter another world. The canyons of the Blue Mountains in Australia, carved over millions of years through sandstone, are home to myriad of creatures and unique plants. Ferns, mosses, lichen, fungus, yabbies, water spiders and frogs, all washed by the waters that continue to move, carve, tickle and dance over the ancient terrain to create nothing short of a … [Read more...]
Overnight Hiking with Kids : Miss 8’s big adventure
If I was a mum, I'm pretty sure I'd aspire to be like Clare. I came across her adventures through the Travel Play Live family and was so excited to hear about her and Miss 8 (Scarlett's) first big overnight hike together, that I asked them to share their story. I hope you (and your little Misses and Masters) find it inspiring too - there's some great tips and learnings in there about hiking with … [Read more...]
37km hike to the wreck of the Stinson Crash Site
Is that really my alarm going off at 3.15am? I confess that I’ve always had an aversion to commercial guides who insist on waking you up for an early start, but in this case, I’m happy to let my circadian rhythms crash out of any sense of timing and drag myself towards breakfast at stupid o’clock. There’s quiet nods all round in the foyer of O’Reilly’s, (the legendary guesthouse and touchstone … [Read more...]
Book Review : Best Walks of the Great Ocean Road
The collection of publishers of bushwalking guide books in Australia is quite a narrow and select club. Historically, there’s folk like John Chapman or John & Lyn Daly who spread their net far and wide to cover a variety of different states and national parks. Sure, there are people renowned for a particular regions, like Ron Doughton’s Budawangs books, but in recent years, Woodslane Press … [Read more...]