Monday, July 30, 2018

It's called Camp Mountain, innit?

It's called Camp Mountain, not Camp Flats or Camp Plains...so there were a few steepish bits. And even a few slippery bits (that sounds rather like the title of a dirty magazine, doesn't it?) But it was a fairly short walk and run, if you only counted horizontal travel and ignored the vertical dimension. And though I heard rumours of some short-cutting here and there, most people made safely to the end.

The same couldn't be said for the meal, which suffered a spillage incident on the way over. So sorry to those who went a bit hungry....Anyone know a good car detailer?

Hugandkiss was skiting with the medal she earned being a Wild Woman On Top. Too much information? Well, it did involve a 30 km walk along the Sunshine Coast and the event raised some $800000 for the Fred Hollows Foundation - a really worthy cause. Congratulations!

No pics from this week's excursion, so here are a few from some of our members who are currently following Horace Greeley's (or John B. L. Soule's) advice and going west (young man.)





I have a feeling there may be a bit of hill-climbing involved in next Sunday's run/walk as well.

Next run details
When: Sunday 5th August, 4 pm
Where: Bottom of the Goat Track, Samford Valley. A map!
Hares: Mile High and Hugandkiss

On, on!

Tuesday, July 24, 2018

A day over 60

Shaggy didn't look a day over 60 the day after we helped celebrate his birthday at the Samford pub. Here are a few shots of the young man with hair - and with some orange-haired mates:



 


On a chilly Sunday afternoon our hares took us on a scenic roam along the bonnie banks of Pine. The water was remarkably clean and clear and the air was crisp and sparkling. The runners took on a number of false trails, but were warned by a passing stranger about the final one and so arrived home earlier than they might have. Congrats to Shockjock and Le W*nk for turning up despite having completed the J2J 10 km that morning in a pretty respectable time.

Footsie served up one of her famous curries and followed this up with the ideal fare for a cold evening - ice cream! This went down very well with leftover birthday cake....


Many thanks, hares! And bon voyage to Eweshggr, Strine, Charcoal and Scratchit - who are all heading off in their caravans for the next 6 weeks.

Next week the rest of us are in Camp Mountain. Please bring a chair!

Next run details
When: Sunday 29th July, 4 pm
Where: End of Kilgour Road, Camp Mountain. A map!
Hares: Culture and Haughty

On, on!

Wednesday, July 18, 2018

Shades of the prison house

What better way to celebrate Bastille Day than by visiting a notorious high-security prison - or at least the site where it once stood? There's not much left now at Boggo Road, where Le W*nk and Lax started us on a historical tour of Dutton Park and surrounds. (And - by all accounts - good riddance, too.)

After a circuit of the high walls and towers that remain, we dropped down to the river and crossed over to land purchased out of the Mayne family fortune - which allegedly had its origins in a pretty squalid criminal act. We returned via the Brisbane Corso (lots more old money here - wonder how it was made?) and the historic and ghost-ridden Dutton Park cemetery.

In keeping with Bastille Day, the cuisine included "saucisse grillee" and "ailes de poulet grillee." And the secret ingredient? - French polish, of course. Thanks, hares!

Some unmistakable frog-eaters:

"I'm a prisoner in the Bastille" expressed in mime:

Michelin judges decide how many stars to award Le W*nk's open-air restaurant:






And clear evidence that Samford Hash could do with some choir practice:


Next run details
When: Sunday 22nd July, 4 pm
Where: Eatons Hill Skate Park, Sargent Reserve, Bunya Crossing Road. A map!
Hares: Eweshggr and Footsie

Tuesday, July 10, 2018

"Every valley shall be exalted...

and every mountain and hill shall be made low...." That may be the prophecy (set to music by Handel) and indeed a good geomorphological observation, but every one of Charcoal's Clear Mountain runs shows how far the process is from reaching its logical end point. In other words, there are still a lot of hills and valleys in the world, and Charcoal's routes find the steepest ways up and down them.

It was good to see Possum and Ha'penny at the on, on, as well as a couple of visitors from interstate. We enjoyed traditional spag bol under the brand new pergola, and the brazier's warmth was very welcome. Many thanks to our hares!




We learnt that a certain yoga instructor at a resort in Fiji was tipped over the edge and resigned following Le W*nk's participation in a yoga class. He failed to pick up a key concept - silent meditation. We rewarded the man with the indefatigable tongue in the traditional way.

Next week we celebrate the storming of the Bastille by storming our local equivalent - Boggo Road Gaol. Please dress appropriately - berets, strings of onions, French maid outfits, white flags...you know the drill.

Next run details
When: Sunday 15th July, 4 pm (still pretty close to Bastille Day in France, given the time difference)
Where: Boggo Road Gaol, Boggo Road, off Annerley Road, Dutton Park - carpark on Boggo Road. A map!
Hare: Le W*nk

On, on!

Tuesday, July 3, 2018

Mounting Nebo

A search of the archives suggests that the last time we mounted Mount Nebo was 5 years ago - on Bastille Day 2013 (do you remember Le W*nk's baguette and the uses he put it to? And eating snails afterwards?)

A summit shot taken 4 years before that - on YShaggr's birthday in 2009 - shows some of us enjoying the champagne she'd carried to the top. What a woman!

And here's a traditional summit shot from this last Sunday, showing at least the runners and early comers among the walkers...and a few more grey hairs....I'm not sure if everyone on the trail actually made it this far, but everyone enjoyed a very pleasant rainforest stroll:

The view of Samford for those who might not have seen it for themselves (thanks to Mile High for these images):

Escargot - assisted by Dingo - followed up the walk/run with a hearty chowder, and Cash Converta provided dessert. Many thanks, guys - it was great to come back to the mountain! (And, for the record, Culture's Fitbit recorded 8500 steps on the trail.)

Le W*nk - lazy dog - made the excuse that he had completed the Gold Coast half-marathon that morning and didn't turn up. As they say - those that are good at making excuses are no good at anything else....

Next run details
When: Sunday 8th July, 4 pm
Where: Corner Clear Mountain Road and Buranda Road, Clear Mountain. A map!
Hares: Charcoal and Strine

On, on!