Home 
More...
More...
New!
Wildwalks the Book!
Wildwalks the Book!
|
The Great North Walk CompanionMore in this categoryAuthors: A. Henderson-Sellers,K. McGuffie,B. Henderson-Sellers Edition: 1 Publisher: Mynhed Pty Ltd ISBN: 9780646522135 Number of pages: 362 Year of Publication: 2009 Format: Soft Cover Books Website: http://www.thegreatnorthwalk.com/ Cover price (au$): 27.50 Subject titles: Australia,Hiking - Australia - History,Trails/ Australia,Fiction / General Our overview of the book: Described as a ‘companion’ to the Great North Walk, this is not a guide book nor a history book but a tale of a family’s adventure on this classic walk. This book is a piece of fiction, with a many interesting facts thrown into the mix. The book seems to have been written for people planning on walking the GNW and for the arm chair travel who want to get a feel for the journey. A strong theme through the book is the ‘puzzle’ to uncover the mysterious companion on the journey. Our review of the book: I found this a good book, worth reading. There are parts I found confusing and many parts I found interesting. It is clear that the authors have put a lot of work into this book and they should be congratulated on their efforts, they have done a good job promoting this classic walk. The book brings to life much of the history on and around the Great North Walk. The history includes; Dream time, pre-1799, early colonisation (or ‘Invasion’ p.10), early exploration through to more recent events. The book is filled with quoted conversations among the walking party. Much of the historic and environmental information is parted through these conversations. There is a chance to get to ‘know’ the member of the walking party, and there is a sense of ‘truth’ as they explain details of becoming lost, and finding their way again. But if I had walking buddies who talked as much as these people, I would struggle – but that’s me. Books about long walks are broken up into section, this is no exception. This book breaks the walking into 17 sections, but does so in an odd order, making it difficult for people wanting to dive into sections of the book. The order of the sections walked is not even constantly north to south (the ‘traditional’ direction of the GNW). The resources section at the back of the book details many of the points of interest along and near the Great North Walk. I found this a particularly helpful and interesting section of this book. In addition you will find information on other books and websites, including wildalks.com :). In this section you will also find a paragraph summarizing each of the sections of walking described in each chapter. Each of these bits of information has a Lat/Long position and a paragraph explanation. The authors have really pushed the ‘puzzle’ to be solved. I did not engage with the puzzle, in fact I found the companion a little annoying (especially early on), and could not be bothered to even think through who they might be. But I think I approached the book wrong. Approach this book as a novel, a story about a family’s adventure mixed with a puzzle to solve. At times I struggled with the ‘companion’ style. I found it difficult to separate the mix of puzzle, personal stories, historic facts, environmental information. Much of the information provided through the stories is accurate and helpful for travellers, but is mixed with other information from different times and spaces. So enjoy the story, and take any ‘facts’ mentioned with a grain of salt. Authors Comments: Experience the best Australian bushwalk on foot or with your feet up in ‘The Great North Walk Companion’. Read the tale of a family walking with someone (the puzzle) on the full length of ‘The Great North Walk’. Each of the 18 chapters describes a part of the Walk with pencil sketches to illustrate natural history and social happenings along the route. This ramblers’ novel recounts a family history over more than 250 years as the identity of the mysterious walking ‘companion’ is slowly revealed. Those planning on walking this track for the first time, as well as readers retracing an earlier ramble, will enjoy this literary, historical and environmental treasure hunt along Australia’s most accessible wilderness trail. The Great North Walk connects New South Wales’ two largest cities from the obelisk in Australia’s first planned town square to the wharf from which its oldest home-built steamship still sails in over 250 kilometres of history, mystery and fascination. Although this trail only turned 21 in 2009, some of its component paths are many tens of thousands of years old; it has been completed in a record 66 hours and walked over decades; its story impinges on diverse faiths passing Australia’s largest provincial Anglican cathedral while the walk’s highest peak – Mt Warrawolong – is the site of ancient Aboriginal ceremonies. Walkers are amazed to pass right beside examples of the oldest rock engravings in the world and very modern street art. Elsewhere you cross dramatic and beautiful waterways by means as diverse as the world’s widest steel-arch bridge to its oldest operating river postman’s boat. Most of all, readers and bushwalkers alike continue to be puzzled by trail-side mysteries including more than a dozen murders, disappearances and inexplicable deaths. Treasure Hunters want to locate the southern hemisphere’s largest salt-water swimming pool and the park dedicated to the longest-lived Australian cartoon character. Others visit every Aboriginal site en route or make the Great North Walk an obelisk odyssey. Begin at the Macquarie’s Obelisk erected in 1818 to anchor road distances in the new colony of NSW; appreciate those created as navigation aids from the one on North Head dated at 1807, Middle Head’s 1850s’ obelisks at Obelisk Beach and on Laings Point and Bradley’s Head’s sandstone column ‘stolen’ from the Sydney General Post Office in 1871; chuckle at the ‘smelliest’ obelisk designed in 1857 to vent Sydney’s sewers above one of its oldest parks; recognize Captain Cook’s discovery of Botany Bay in the 1870 park obelisk; commemorate a whole Aboriginal community at an obelisk in the Sackville Reach Aboriginal Memorial Reserve and the naming of the Hawkesbury River by Governor Arthur Phillip at the Brooklyn obelisk. End at Newcastle’s Queen’s wharf just past The Great North Walk’s most impressive obelisk: the sea-farers’ - demanded in 1850 by ship captains so they could safely enter and exit New South Wales’ most dangerous harbour. |
Loading the images 
not too much longer now :)
not too much longer now :)-server web1.wildwalks.com- Page was generated in 0.364020 seconds Copyright | Privacy | About us | Disclaimer | Contact Us | Sponsorship | Newsletter