The bedroom scene

When we're away, it's traditional to test out the orgy-potential of the accommodation. What will the beds tolerate? Here's an example from Kuching in Borneo in 2010:

And another from India in 2015:

And yet another from Fiji in 2018:

And (by way of variation), here's a test of how many people we could fit onto Le W*nk's special camping chair (Moreton Island, 2006 - who are all those weird young people, eighteeen years ago?):

And now (drumroll, please, and a little fanfare)...here's the equivalent 2024 Queenstown pic. Lucky that they build beds strong in NZ, eh? You can't say that we didn't give each other every chance of sharing Covid around.

Despite the miserable drizzle, some 26 of us met at John Scott Park for an outing this last Sunday and finished up at the Samford pub, complete with dogs and crutches. Here's a general shot, and a couple of arty ones from the occasion.

Finally, as always happens at this time of the year, we'll be responding to the "dying of the light" (classy quote, that, from Dylan Thomas, before it was a film) by moving to a 4 pm winter start time on April 7th.

Next run/walk details

When: Sunday 31st March at 5 pm (Easter Egg run, and the last of the summer runs)

Where: Pine Rivers Park, Strathpine. A map!

Hares: Dumbbell and Saucy Sous

You might like to bring a 

On, on!

"They collected the crippled, the wounded, the maimed, and they shipped us back home to Australia"

How relevant are Eric Bogle's words? Dumbbell came home in a wheelchair, Le W*nk with a swollen knee, and the vast majority of those who'd traveled to Queenstown came back with Covid-19! Obviously some of what happened on tour couldn't really stay on tour...but, gee, we had a good time nevertheless!

Here are just a few shots illustrating the Queenstown hashing experience - I'm sure more will follow in coming weeks.

The Virgin crew on its way - the Quantas crowd had already gone:

What a way to celebrate a 35th wedding anniversary!

Red Dress runners:

Walkers:

The Winning Walker:

Some of Banger's pics and a couple of videos from the Ballbreaker run:

Part of the old pipeline run:

Two down, downs for Le W*nk:

And a down, down for Payback:

Wagging the flag:

On the Bee bus:

The famous Wanaka tree:

A Queenstown Ice bar:

Partying in the Covid pit:

And the dreaded lurgy:

This last Sunday the stayathomes met in Samford once more and went on to the pub. Here are some words from Upstanding - thanks to him!:

"A small but high quality group of hashers gathered at John Scott Park. Comforting, that at least one member returned healthy and relatively unscathed from the land of the long white cloud. The group departed at 1701 hundred hours, completing a plethora of different routes to arrive back at the Samford hotel where the beer was back to 2024 prices. This was a big disappointment to the beermeister, as was his inability to secure a garlic bread to accompany his magnificent vegetarian pizza. 

Overheard at the food counter: 'Would you like your pizza cut into 6 or 8 pieces?'. Idle Vice replied, '6 please. We couldn't possibly eat 8.'"

By next Sunday we should all be back from NZ - and all fit and well. We'll have one more village meet before resuming normal service.

Next run/walk details

When: Sunday 24th March, 5 pm

Where: John Scott Park, Samford Village. After at the Samford pub.

Hares: M. Promptu will set the trail. The Samford pub will cater.

On, on!

A drizzly afternoon in the Sunshine State

[This week's post was penned by the erudite Idle Vice - thanks to her! News of the tourists will follow when they get back - unless "what happens on tour stays on tour"?]

"It was another drizzly day in Brisbane. We were quite envious of our Hash friends enjoying some glorious NZ weather in Queenstown. They were seeing more sun than those of us in the Sunshine State!

Not to be deterred, a merry band of 13 Hashers gathered at Samford John Scott Park for a lovely walk in the local area. We then adjourned to the nearby pub with our 3 well behaved pups. The canines were welcome on the veranda. We enjoyed a fabulous feast of pizzas, schnitzels and fish and chips (“fush and chups” for our kiwi friends).

It was a fantastic and safe evening; no one was trapped in the toilets and the “Biermeister” was delighted to receive discounted beer (the staff were cleaning the taps) He was a very happy man!

We wish Charcoal all the best for his recovery this week (his surgery was delayed) and look forward to hearing all about the Queenstown Hash adventures when our colleagues return from NZ. Some may return this week.

Next week, we will keep it simple – meet at John Scott park, walk and then retire to the pub for a meal and stories about epic treks up NZ mountains."

Here are some of Snappy's shots from the event:

Next run details

When: Sunday 17th March, 5 pm

Where: John Scott Park, Samford Village

Hares: M. Prompts will set the trail. The Samford pub will cater.

On, on!

Tapering

Some of the runners have been putting in some serious training ahead of Interhash, running the Goat Track and Mt. Mee, getting their hearts pumping and their feet wet. But now it's time to taper...and an easy 8 km circuit (with virtually no elevation gain and no creek crossings) was the go this Sunday. The walkers headed off in the opposite direction and most completed a 4.5 km circuit around the village. What was that about short-cutters? Surely not....

Back home at the hares', we raised a sad glass in honour of Lax's mother, who'd passed away suddenly and unexpectedly on Saturday morning. As Le W*nk said, she was not only Lax's mother, but also her best friend and companion. A very heavy blow indeed.

We enjoyed vats of chili followed by ice cream, while we messed up the beautifully clean verandah floor that Make An Offer had spent the day gerni-ing. Many thanks to our hares for a well-marked trail, a great meal, and a clean floor!

Faint cries of "Help!" alerted us to the fact that Snappy had trapped herself in the toilet. And then Idle Vice did the same, providing a good excuse for a song.

And while many of us will be heading off to Queenstown this week, Charcoal will be heading back to hospital for a bit more souping-up and tuning using after-market parts. He was looking fit, and he should be looking even fitter next week. We wish him well.

Here's a selection of Snappy and Saucy Sous' Dayboro photos - thanks to them!

Hashers begin to gather in the heart of town:

The walk:

Back at the hares':

Next run/walk details

When: Sunday 10th March, 5 pm

Where: The Interhashers will be at various places around Queenstown. The stayathomes will meet at our home venue of John Scott Park and travel via a roundabout route to end up at the Samford Pub. Dogs are welcome on the verandah.

Hares: In NZ, the Interhash crew. At home, M. Promptu.

On, on!