Thank you Kate for the mention! I love that you called me "an Australian cartoonist" - it makes it sound like this small thing I do in my office for fun is real! So interesting naming what you do isn't it? Especially when it is not your profession or your area of training. Thank you for that, I might just start calling myself a cartoonist! I also love this post, especially this quote: "Everybody needs beauty, as well as bread, places to play in and pray in, where nature may heal and give strength to body and soul." I have the bread and the praying places sorted - the playing not so much, I need to commit to a promise the make adventure fit too! xo
Sometimes you just have to say it over and over, just to hear the sound of it, then you know it’s who you are! I have the same feelings about saying I’m a writer when I haven’t published a book. Small steps but being is helping with this. Kate :)
Thanks Kate for bringing this story back from your files. My wife and I used to seek out secret places in Upstate New York and the Niagara Peninsula on the other side of the border. We never had the stamina and strength to attempt anything like your adventures but we found a few hidden gems on our little half-day getaways. The best place ever is a little nature preserve on the Canadian side of the Lower Niagara River called Niagara Glen. The river gorge is nearly vertical there, but there’s a set of steel stairs that take the risk out of descending into the gorge. At the bottom of the steps there are rock layers that are impossibly ancient, fossils, wildlife, and three charming trails that are an easy but enchanting hike. There is some danger there, because if you got too close and fell into the river the current is twenty-two miles an hour and nobody will see you again until the river spits your corpse out into Lake Ontario near Queenstown, Ontario. Our second favorite secret place is Chimney Bluffs State Park on the American shore of Lake Ontario. I’ll have to tell you about that charmer some other time. Nowadays we don’t have any adventures outside. My wife is confined to a walker and a wheelchair, and I can walk a mile or two in good weather using a cane. My other activity is tenpin bowling. I used to be quite good at it and occasionally won some good money in local tournaments. I threw eleven strikes in a game five times but I never got the elusive perfect game. These days it’s just a twice-a-month outing, but last time out I managed to break 200 my first game. That’s the extent of our adventures, but I like reading about the stuff you guys have done. Enjoy it now, and give it all you’ve got, because it might be over and done before you know it. B and I are not sad that our nature adventures are over. We’re thankful for the forty-three wonderful years we’ve had so far.
So long for now, my friend from the Antipodes. Thanks again for this post and the inclusion of that thoughtful poem. P.S. We love your photos!
Hello Rafael, I loved hearing about your favourite nature places and that my stories have inspired memories of your own adventures. Thank you for sharing and for the thoughtful reminder about making the most of the time we have to be outdoors. Time is precious. Wishing you more success at the bowling alley.
A lovely essay, Kate. It's true what you say about risk. I always feel the most alive when disappearing into the sublime. And your story, although it's from your past, speaks to my present with two small children, 21 months and 4, and having to tailor our once risky adventures to suit their needs. We haven't yet had an opportunity to spend a day in the wild on our own, (let alone the weeks or months we used to go rogue bikepacking, trekking), but managed a quick dinner out twice 😆
As for our wild moment, we had a quiet weekend in our beautiful spring garden after our two weeks away in Tassie, but last week, as we made our way north to the ferry, we stopped at Freycinet and took the girls up to the lookout. The view was stunning, as always, and while our hearts wanted to keep travelling the full loop around the park, our short tailored moment had its joys and we were so proud of the girls, our 4yo walking up and down all by herself and our youngest (who has a love for stairs) insisting on walking down them all.
And thank you kindly for the shout out. I'm glad you enjoyed the essay 🙏
Thanks Ali, for your lovely thoughts here. The hike to the wineglass bay lookout is such a great family adventure. I love that your toddler wanted to walk all the stairs down. We have a very determined 4 year old that likes to do things on her own. We too are managing all the different desires and abilities in our family on our holiday in NW Tasmania. Glad you are enjoying being back home after your Tasmanian getaway. :)
Twenty-four years ago, I arrived in Syney with the Lonly Planet Guide of Tasmania in my backpack. But Australia was so much larger than it appeared on the world map, and the distances were not like I was used to in the Netherlands. So I never made it that far. Since then, I have been reading about Tasmania. It is still on my list but now my personal sustainability goals prevent me from flying to the other side of the world. A lot of words to thank you for sharing your adventures in Tasmania.
Thanks for reading Alexander and for your lovely comment. You’ll have to make it back one day and visit this beautiful Island, perhaps a sea and land journey, you might need a few months! For now I can share this place with you here on Substack.
I loved this piece, Kate. So lyrical and alive!! Thank you for mentioning The Middle, I love how supportive you and the substack community is xx
I've thought a lot about your question this week, about how I 'get wild' and the truth is that I think I have forgotten. It's very easy for me to get caught up in the house/toddler/to do list/writing projects that I always seem to put off going outside and letting myself unravel. I think this has been a beautiful and timely reminder for me but here are my favourite memories of it, something I will try to get back to:
- Hiking before the sunrise with my Dad when he was training for Kokoda. He would take us out to this mountain on farm property owned by his friend and we would have a coffee basking in the morning sun at the top
- Being at the beaches on the Eyre Peninsula (home for me), jumping waves in the surf, climbing reefs, walking along a shoreline
I agree with you: taking risks is when you feel most alive. They give you the most pay off too.
Beautiful memories Sian, thank you for sharing. I too also know what it is to feel a little trapped by all the responsibilities of family life with small children. Sometimes my children are the best reminders to let go and just dance or run and climb a tree. And on that note I am going to follow my kids down to the beach to build a cubby out of drift wood (the joys of being on holiday). Take care :)
Thank you Kate for the mention! I love that you called me "an Australian cartoonist" - it makes it sound like this small thing I do in my office for fun is real! So interesting naming what you do isn't it? Especially when it is not your profession or your area of training. Thank you for that, I might just start calling myself a cartoonist! I also love this post, especially this quote: "Everybody needs beauty, as well as bread, places to play in and pray in, where nature may heal and give strength to body and soul." I have the bread and the praying places sorted - the playing not so much, I need to commit to a promise the make adventure fit too! xo
Sometimes you just have to say it over and over, just to hear the sound of it, then you know it’s who you are! I have the same feelings about saying I’m a writer when I haven’t published a book. Small steps but being is helping with this. Kate :)
Thanks Kate for bringing this story back from your files. My wife and I used to seek out secret places in Upstate New York and the Niagara Peninsula on the other side of the border. We never had the stamina and strength to attempt anything like your adventures but we found a few hidden gems on our little half-day getaways. The best place ever is a little nature preserve on the Canadian side of the Lower Niagara River called Niagara Glen. The river gorge is nearly vertical there, but there’s a set of steel stairs that take the risk out of descending into the gorge. At the bottom of the steps there are rock layers that are impossibly ancient, fossils, wildlife, and three charming trails that are an easy but enchanting hike. There is some danger there, because if you got too close and fell into the river the current is twenty-two miles an hour and nobody will see you again until the river spits your corpse out into Lake Ontario near Queenstown, Ontario. Our second favorite secret place is Chimney Bluffs State Park on the American shore of Lake Ontario. I’ll have to tell you about that charmer some other time. Nowadays we don’t have any adventures outside. My wife is confined to a walker and a wheelchair, and I can walk a mile or two in good weather using a cane. My other activity is tenpin bowling. I used to be quite good at it and occasionally won some good money in local tournaments. I threw eleven strikes in a game five times but I never got the elusive perfect game. These days it’s just a twice-a-month outing, but last time out I managed to break 200 my first game. That’s the extent of our adventures, but I like reading about the stuff you guys have done. Enjoy it now, and give it all you’ve got, because it might be over and done before you know it. B and I are not sad that our nature adventures are over. We’re thankful for the forty-three wonderful years we’ve had so far.
So long for now, my friend from the Antipodes. Thanks again for this post and the inclusion of that thoughtful poem. P.S. We love your photos!
Hello Rafael, I loved hearing about your favourite nature places and that my stories have inspired memories of your own adventures. Thank you for sharing and for the thoughtful reminder about making the most of the time we have to be outdoors. Time is precious. Wishing you more success at the bowling alley.
Kate :)
A lovely essay, Kate. It's true what you say about risk. I always feel the most alive when disappearing into the sublime. And your story, although it's from your past, speaks to my present with two small children, 21 months and 4, and having to tailor our once risky adventures to suit their needs. We haven't yet had an opportunity to spend a day in the wild on our own, (let alone the weeks or months we used to go rogue bikepacking, trekking), but managed a quick dinner out twice 😆
As for our wild moment, we had a quiet weekend in our beautiful spring garden after our two weeks away in Tassie, but last week, as we made our way north to the ferry, we stopped at Freycinet and took the girls up to the lookout. The view was stunning, as always, and while our hearts wanted to keep travelling the full loop around the park, our short tailored moment had its joys and we were so proud of the girls, our 4yo walking up and down all by herself and our youngest (who has a love for stairs) insisting on walking down them all.
And thank you kindly for the shout out. I'm glad you enjoyed the essay 🙏
Thanks Ali, for your lovely thoughts here. The hike to the wineglass bay lookout is such a great family adventure. I love that your toddler wanted to walk all the stairs down. We have a very determined 4 year old that likes to do things on her own. We too are managing all the different desires and abilities in our family on our holiday in NW Tasmania. Glad you are enjoying being back home after your Tasmanian getaway. :)
Twenty-four years ago, I arrived in Syney with the Lonly Planet Guide of Tasmania in my backpack. But Australia was so much larger than it appeared on the world map, and the distances were not like I was used to in the Netherlands. So I never made it that far. Since then, I have been reading about Tasmania. It is still on my list but now my personal sustainability goals prevent me from flying to the other side of the world. A lot of words to thank you for sharing your adventures in Tasmania.
Thanks for reading Alexander and for your lovely comment. You’ll have to make it back one day and visit this beautiful Island, perhaps a sea and land journey, you might need a few months! For now I can share this place with you here on Substack.
I just subscribed, eager to follow your amazing running adventures on the other side of the planet.
I loved this piece, Kate. So lyrical and alive!! Thank you for mentioning The Middle, I love how supportive you and the substack community is xx
I've thought a lot about your question this week, about how I 'get wild' and the truth is that I think I have forgotten. It's very easy for me to get caught up in the house/toddler/to do list/writing projects that I always seem to put off going outside and letting myself unravel. I think this has been a beautiful and timely reminder for me but here are my favourite memories of it, something I will try to get back to:
- Hiking before the sunrise with my Dad when he was training for Kokoda. He would take us out to this mountain on farm property owned by his friend and we would have a coffee basking in the morning sun at the top
- Being at the beaches on the Eyre Peninsula (home for me), jumping waves in the surf, climbing reefs, walking along a shoreline
I agree with you: taking risks is when you feel most alive. They give you the most pay off too.
Beautiful memories Sian, thank you for sharing. I too also know what it is to feel a little trapped by all the responsibilities of family life with small children. Sometimes my children are the best reminders to let go and just dance or run and climb a tree. And on that note I am going to follow my kids down to the beach to build a cubby out of drift wood (the joys of being on holiday). Take care :)