Twelve Cartophiles started the walk on Saturday, but a rather reduced number finished.

The weather was delightful when we gathered at Woolwich ferry wharf for the short trip across to Greenwich and the start of the walk.  Michael, Gabriel, Annie, James and Kit backed up from the last week’s rogaine with stalwart Cartophiles Sue, Aida and Doug.  They were joined by new Cartophiles Kaaren, Rachel, Tertius and Amanda.

Annie & Sue at Burns Bay

With Kit and Doug navigating we should have simply followed the well-documented course, but somehow we took several accidental shortcuts that reduced the walk to 12 km instead of the planned 15½ km.  Well, one shortcut was planned: the one that took us to the Hunters Hill Hotel for lunch.  The walk varied between busy streets, cool creek-side trails, scenic harbour edges and the stately old houses of Hunters Hill.

The first half of the walk was the hardest, with a few steep sets of steps and some grinding road hills.  After about 3½ km Gabriel’s seven year old legs were showing the effort of doing the rogaine the previous weekend, so he and Michel decided to wait for ‘Mum’s taxi’ to come and get them.  Then there were ten.

In another kilometre, as we descended steep stone steps towards Tambourine Creek, Amanda slipped and twisted her ankle so badly she had to turn back and catch a cab home.  Then there were nine.

From Tambourine Bay we climbed to St Ignatius College at Riverwood, where Kaaren had to leave to meet her family.  And then there were eight.

No further casualties occurred, and all eight finished the walk.  After the walk we retired to the Woolwich Pier Hotel to congratulate ourselves on another successful walk.

The next Cartophiles walk is an two day hike from Waterfall Station to Heathcote Station on 3rd/4th March.  The next day walk is from Cowan Station to Jerusalem Bay and return on Saturday, 17th March.