After flying into Melbourne I arrived in Natimuk that same day after a hellishly hot day and travel absurdities. Bizarre as it was to leave on one of the shortest days of the year and to arrive on one of the longest, I have found it an easy adjustment to get used to. My last two weeks have allowed me to settle into the community quite well. It is an easy place for a wanderer to get lost and for a dirtbag to call home.
I am camped out at The Pines, the campground at the base of Mt. Arapiles and about 10k from Natimuk, the small town of about 450 people where my friend Enga is based out of. The Pines is ideally located. Hundreds of climbs are only about a five minute approach from my tent. Decide to walk ten minutes and you will find hundreds more. The climbing is nearly all trad. The routes are spectacular, and unlike most climbing crags, some of the best routes are easy and moderate. My little bum camp is now my home, my ukulele my most trusty travel companion. All around the camp are other bum camps, some more permanent (with sofas and lazy boys) and others that belong to the weekend warriors, gone before you even realize anyone was there. Slack lines strung throughout the camp serve as entertainment during the day and obstacles at night.
In the mornings I wake up at first light and watch the inhabitants of the campground shift from kangaroos and wallabies to other early rising climbers. There are all sorts of beautiful birds here, parrots, cockatoos, cruellas, magpies and the like. There is a resident fox that has already stolen a dozen eggs from me and a pound of butter from my kiwi neighbor. The climbing bums are plentiful, a lot of kiwis and aussies, a few germans, a strong Irish lass named Mary and the odd brit.
My days are busy, filled with combinations of climbing, running, yoga and ukulele. Weekends I work at the small cafe in Natimuk, which has been great for meeting people and earning a little spending cash, not to mention feeding my caffeine addiction.
Internet is running out. Less than a minute! I will write more when I get the opportunity and hopefully post pictures soon!
Happy December to you all!