On the second morning of our trip to Wilsons Promontory, we made two pretty long hikes covering a total combined distance of almost 27 km in a day. The first, which I would label as a “Journey to the East” as it brought us from the Western side of Wilsons Prom to the East, was monumental in many ways. It not only brought us through winding passages covering a multitude of forested and rocky terrains, but showed us the awesome beauty of God’s green Earth, enhanced by the endorphins elicited through endurance exercise! While this post will try to capture the essence of our extended walk, nothing beats experiencing the real thing.
Put on your hiking boots, fill up your water bottles, and go!
The first part of our journey was a fairly easy saunter through open bushlands like this.
A view of the trusty trek which brought us through different mountainous terrains.
A huge boulder over the mountain shoulder.
These blackened tree trunks bore testimony to the terrible effects of the bush fire, creating a strangely alien landscape “devoid” of life.
The vegetation changed to a thicker undergrowth with more low lying trees as we walked on. Before we knew it…
Voila! We came to our first rest point which was at Windy Saddle, a 40 minute walk from the start point.
Naturally, we wasted no time in recuperating our energies.
Our fortitude restored, we journeyed on through seemingly secondary forests with low lying ferns and moss covered rocks along the track.
After some time, we came across this charming babbling brook, enticing us with its song of serenity and tranquility. Ahh…. such bliss!
After another short respite, we soldiered on.
As the environment grew damper, the ferns were seen to overshadow the landscape. Many towered way above us.
We spotted a huge cave along the way, wondering if it was home to a giant wombat or other undiscovered denizens of the forest.
This huge rock outcrop provided a much needed comic relief for us, courtesy of Chong Meng.
Our favourite intrepid explorer at it again with a log fallen across the track.
Along the way, I couldn’t resist taking some close-ups of these ferns over here.
As well as a shot of the bracket fungi cloistered around a dead log.
After an hour or so of seemingly interminable walking, the terrain became flat with a comfortable boardwalk provided for us.
A tea-coloured pond greeted us along the way.
Tung showing much gusto as he crossed the bridge over a tannin-coloured river.
Finally, we came across the other side of the 9.7 km long trek!
We were all moved by the breathtaking beach at Sealer’s Cove, seemingly unspoilt and untouched by the transgressions of humanity.
While some of us rested and have our lunch, others preferred to make new feathered friends.
Does this look like a giant sperm whale beached beside a flowing stream?
On our way back, we managed to spot this cuddly wallaby feasting on some leaves.
I also noticed how tall some of the trees were, compared to us puny humans.
I must have felt delusional when I snapped this “macha-coated log cake”! 🙂
The final scene of a rocky and barren landscape greeted us before we emerged, triumphant and victorious, from our long sojourn through the trees.
