Travel Blog #4

The One Where Trevor Becomes A Shepherd

Just kidding. Probably. Though I have to say, Trevor the Shepherd does have a nice ring to it. And if I’ve evangelized to any of you about the book The Alchemist, you’ll know it’s definitely an omen.

Much has happened since we last spoke! Activities and adventures have come in bursts, so sometimes there’s not a lot going on and not much to write about, and other times there is a ton going on and not enough energy to write about them! So as I’m in the latter, here’s what I’ve been up to. I'll endeavor to post more frequently with shorter posts, but I make no promises :)

Mount Field National Park - Tarn Shelf hike, first Tassie camp and BIG TREES HOLY MOLY

This all started with an urge. A most treacherous urge. An urge like having a small, frail angel on one shoulder and a big, handsome beefcake of a demon on the other. I had an urge to buy new shoes. Or boots. Something, preferably that is at least 50% of my monthly income. Normally, I don’t trust this urge as it typically means I just want to spend money for good old fashioned retail therapy, and well, I really like buying shoes. I popped into one of the many outdoorsy stores in Hobart for a gander, definitely not to buy anything. I found my favorite trail runners and got to chatting with an employee about hiking in Tassie and the pros and cons of trail runners and boots for hiking here. And there just happened to be a pair of Salomon boots that fit me (I’ve never found a pair of Salomon footwear that fits my feet). AND they were 40% off! Don’t mind if I do! However, it was still about 50% of my monthly income still so I decided to think about it and come back if I felt I needed them. Obviously,I came back the next day and bought them. And boy I’m glad I did. It turns out what I thought was a small, frail angel on my shoulder was actually a confident angel speaking words of reason and responsibility in my ear. Because the hike I found myself on was full of slippy rocks, 1+ feet of snow and slush, creeks, the gamut of things that waterproof boots are good for. So very happy I went for it. I’m typically worried about my knee when I’m out of doors, but I decided breaking an ankle is probably actually a bigger concern when I’m out in the bush. ANYWAY, the hike was incredible. Hiking in Tasmania just feels different to what I’ve experienced. The trees have a greyish-greenish quality to them that makes the light coming through the canopy soft and muted. And there is a decent amount of light that comes through as the canopies are tall and the gums don’t have a lot of branches on their trunks. The understory has a plethora of smaller trees and shrubs and super cool ferns, all of which are unfamiliar to me. The mountains I’ve been in so far have a rounded quality to them too. None of the striking peaks of the Rockies, but stunning nonetheless.

My chosen turnout point was at a high point with a sensational view towering above Seal Lake. I had a sort of out of body experience where I saw myself on the map in the Tassie wilderness, sitting on a rocky outcrop, so far away from basically everything and everyone I know. It was surreal. So much time and effort has been made to get to this point in my life and it was actually happening! It was both an intensely lonely and empowering experience. Such has been the experience of travel for me - a mix of extremes with relatively few moments in the middle. Feelings of ecstatic joy, driving my 2002 Ford Laser through a rainforest, seeing trees that are 250 feet tall (more on this later), feelings of pointlessness and lonesomeness just a  few hours later after the high wears off. It often feels like an either-or with these experiences. Somehow we have to walk the knife-edge between them and not get drawn in to either side. At least that’s what hindsight tells me. So far, I just get sucked into them and oscillate between them. It’s honestly a lot. It’s vulnerable, fun, exciting, sad, frustrating, all of it. But maybe this is the nature of travel and adventure, where you don’t get much middle ground, mostly extremes: higher highs and lower lows. I'm still trying to figure it out. Either way, I’m learning a lot about life and myself. Shout out to Craig Lawson for reminding me to have fun and “embrace the suck” while I’m here. The hard times are just as important as the good times, maybe more so, and you gotta live them.

Okay, now for the trees.

Tree Talk

Mount Field National Park is one of several places in Tas that have “big tree” or “tall tree” walks. And they clearly don’t believe in hyperbole because “big” and “tall” are simply not the right words. I mean technically they are, and I suppose they save space on the sign postings, but WOW are these trees big units.   Eucalyptus regnans, or Mountain Ash /Giant Ash / Swamp Gum are the specific tall trees I saw. The tallest flowering trees in the world and second tallest trees in the world. It’s hard to describe what it’s like being amongst these giants and my photos won’t do it justice. I suppose if you've been to the Redwoods in California you would get it, but I haven't yet so here we are. I had that wonderful experience of smallness. Being a finite human with a short life, cosmically speaking. And these trees live for sooo long and survive so much - storms, droughts, bushfires, tourists with mouths agog starting up at them. Such magnificent creatures. What an honor to be amongst them.

I’ve been trying to figure out what it is about gum trees that excites me so much. Beau Miles, my adventure (and bean) hero from Australia, turned me on to them with his film Big Gums. But being with them, working to guard and protect them from the pesky deer and sheep, seeing the young ones that are thriving in protected areas, brings me such great joy. I think because Tasmania has such a tragic history of native plants being eradicated by introduced native species and bushfires, that they feel more precious and fragile to me. They also are a bit odd - the shapes they pull, the rough bark on the bottom and colorful striping where the bark peels off, the red colorations in the springtime with the new growth, the smell. I’m drawn to things that are a bit odd, a bit different. Though that’s also only because I’m not from here - they still are foreign and new to me. It strikes me that I don’t know all that much about the native trees of Montana, the threatened species of plants, the invasive species, etc. Another great thing about travel - the newness of an unfamiliar area opens your eyes to what you’ve become accustomed to or ignorant of. I look forward to all that I can learn when I return :)

Ross Workaway

Ross is a great little town. It’s a genuine tourist attraction, mostly because it has a cool, old bridge. To be fair, it’s a really cool bridge. Built in 1836, it has a number of intricate carvings and generally is pleasing to the eye. Is it worth coming all the way to Tassie for? Probably not unless you’re a bridgeophile (is there a word for people who really like bridges? Architects?) There’s also 3(!) cafes, a very good Wool Museum, some old churches, and farms galore. My first impression is that it reminds me of Choteau. I love it. People talk about walkable cities, but no one ever talks about towns so walkable that you can walk the length in 10 minutes!

I’m staying at a farm just outside Ross. I found it on Workaway as it had a title something like “Come help us conserve trees!” to which I said “don’t mind if I do!” It turns out it’s actually quite a large farm with well over 50,000 sheep (I can’t get any specific numbers from anyone, that’s how many sheep there are). My hosts have been incredible. Very welcoming, thoughtful, inviting, inquisitive, thoughtful, all the good adjectives you want in people. I’m staying in the Shearer’s Quarters on this property. It’s quite nice with communal kitchen and living area, which has been great because there was a group of researchers from the University of Tasmania here I got to hang out with a little bit. They’re doing research on the plants, insects, and birds around Tasmania to see what’s living on farms and conservation areas. This farm has both so they have lots of space to do research, and it’s centrally located for traveling around much of Tassie.

I’ve been doing a variety of jobs here - harvesting potatoes, asparagus, and strawberries. Guarding trees - mostly gums and Bursaria - on the conversation areas where they are working on native regeneration. Poisoning invasive trees and plants that are clogging rivers - who would’ve thought I’d be back to killing weeds after all these years? And most excitingly - working with sheep! I got to help out with weaning lambs. We were drenching (essentially force-feeding lambs dewormer), vaccinating, and spraying lambs to prevent flies. I helped out with drenching and honestly great time! I’m having something of an agricultural awakening on this farm. It was quite good to work with livestock, to learn about sheep, sheep farming, farm life in general. The folks I worked with, Lockey, Esta, and Sienna, are really quite delightful people and a blast to work with. Plus, sheep are just cute and hilarious, not to mention rather dim. Most impressive to me were the dogs. The group I was with uses Kelpies, which are part dingo so they have to train them not to eat the sheep! The dogs really want to eat the sheep.

It’s been really fun here so far. I’m learning a ton and yet again my eyes have been opened to all that I don’t know. I’ve realized how ignorant I am of the agriculture in Montana. Another thing to investigate when I return! This work stay has been a great way to get an hands-on introduction into farming and agriculture. I’m also meeting more people and having more human connection in one week than I did in four Hobart. Who woulda thought a town of 400 people would be easier to meet people than a city of 250,000 :) this week has done a world of good for my mentality and attitude - there’s so much to learn, at home and abroad.

Freycinet National Park

Perhaps the most wonderful impromptu hiking adventure I’ve had, ever! My hosts have a property just outside (and I mean just outside) Freycinet National Park and we went there Friday to do some tree clearing and removal. We worked in the garden for the afternoon then my new friend / coworker / sheep farmer and I were free to explore! The beach on Great Oyster Bay was approximately 2 minutes from the property so we walked along the beach for a while, which was great. Tyler is from New Zealand and has been farming for a long while. He’s super cool with lots of great stories and experiences from his days farming in NZ. And he’s a good guy to hang out with to boot. Neither of us had much prep for this trip so we hadn’t planned anything, though we both were interesting in some hiking and exploration. At dinner with my hosts that night, we formulated a plan to do a sunrise ascent of Mount Amos, which has a simply sensational view of Wineglass Bay and the Tasman Sea. Then I would go backpack to Wineglass Bay afterwards and camp there overnight or wherever my feet took me. Mount Amos was so good. It was a pretty tough hike, especially in the dark so early in the morning. There are not many things better in this life than seeing the sunrise over the ocean, and the only way I know to enhance it  is to climb a mountain to have a better vantage point. Tasmania is so beautiful. I had seen this view before on Youtube and tourist sights, and it was another surreal experience to realize: I am here, in Tasmania. Realizing the years of dreaming and planning. I am here, facing my fears of solitude and living a life without experiences. I am here, sweaty and tired and cold. I am here. It was really great to have Tyler along for the first part of my adventure. It’s not easy to find people who will do sunrise hikes with you, let alone do them with almost no warning. If I’ve learned anything on this trip - who am I kidding, I’ve learned SO many important things - one of the most important things I’ve learned on this trip is that shared experiences are more special than experiences on your own. So, with that said, after we trapesed down the mountain, I took off on my own for Wineglass Bay. It was a nice walk, apart from the 1000 descending stairs, which is brutal on the ol’ knee. But boy was it worth it. Wineglass Bay is genuinely magnificent. Beautiful clear waters. White sands. Red-orange lichen-covered rocks. Gum trees. Mountain views. Combined with blue skies and the general excitement of being removed from society, what could be better? Though I have to say, walking on beautiful white sandy beaches actually gets old real quick when you wear a pack. Such is life. I got a nice campsite with views over the water, scared off a wallaby, and set to a task I don’t typically allow myself to indulge in - doing nothing. I spent the entire day, and I mean the entire day, reading, napping, and eating. No service, no problem. What a lovely day. It’s so good to spend a full day disconnected from your phone. There’s something different about not using your phone and not being able to use your phone. It releases you from pressure to check socials, email, text friends, etc. If you can’t do it, then you don’t have to worry about it. Just read your book and fall asleep and forget to put sunscreen on your legs and feet and get sunburnt, as is proper!

Music That Has Moved Me Lately

This album blew my mind and melted my soul:

Lux by Rosalia

These songs gave me comfort and wonder:

Dragonfly by Iris Caitwait

Hard Times by Gillian Welch

City Gardens by Dreamer’s Circus (if you like this let me know - I like Dreamer’s Circus about as much as I like trees and will provide further songs, albums, playlists, recs and extensive and effusive (word for thoughts that’s not thoughts)

This artist reminded me of the importance of curiosity:

Gabriel Kahane (specifically the album Book of Travelers)

Inspiring Quote

Every act of conscious learning requires the willingness to suffer an injury to one's self-esteem. That is why young children, before they are aware of their own self-importance, learn so easily; and why older persons, especially if vain or important, cannot learn at all."

- Thomas Szasz

Courage,

Trevor

"Fill your life with meaning. Life is precious. Do not waste a single second."

 - Rog Bennett