The dangerous nature of nature
Today I had another one of my ridiculous adventures. I went to Parramatta Lake for a 'quick look' for some plants i needed to find for class. I wasn't wearing appropriate shoes or clothes for a bush walk, but I didn't really intend on going for a hike. However I kept getting drawn further into the bush by the amazing views and flowering plants. Then I saw a sign to the Banksia track and I though " oh yay my favorite!" and ran off into that. At the the end of that there was a track called the Lake Circuit which seemed to look quite steady and direct so I took that thinking it would probably take the same time to get back, than if I turned around and went back the way i came.
Alas, the tracks became a lot harder and kept spilling off onto smaller tracks in different directions! I was starting to get blisters and was getting pretty thirsty by this stage. I kept taking these tracks that would lead me up to razor wire fences. Starting to get worried about being so lost in a 96ha reserve, I grabbed my phone and tried my GPS which showed me to be at the most northern part of the bush, completely off track. I retraced all my steps and tied every path I could find but to no avail. My phone battery was almost dead, but I managed to make a quick call to my friend Nicolle to tell her I was lost, as nobody knew I was there. After speaking to her i felt slightly more calm. Eventually I ran into some people who were hiking off the track, they told me how far off the track I was and how to get there. They offered me some water too which was nice ( I must have looked like a mess and had been crying I think).
The yellow lines on the picture is where I walked, and you can see at the top is where it all went wrong. The track normally is 4.5 kms, but i think I did about 6.5. Once I was lost, the beautiful bush I was admiring moments before, became a horrible dangerous place.
I learnt a lot of lessons today. I will never go on a bush walk alone again, will let people know where I am going, and bring water and walking shoes no matter how short I think the walk will be.
Most importantly though, I wont get sucked in to the beauty of the bush. It lures you in and captures you. The beauty is true, but behind it is a dangerous nature.
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