After a short walk we arrived at the caving site where the boys had to abseil two at a time - one with Scotty and one with Matt. Every boy made it down to the cave with the exception of one who, credit to him, tried it and even sat over theedge but couldn't make himself go down the 40m.
I was one of the last and all I can say is wow! What an exhilerating experience! It was so beautiful. I love caves as it is and often visit them with my partner, but never have I entered one by this means. Reaching the ground I was met by the group of boys who were intently studying information about the animals that had lived in the cave previously - giant kangaroos and so on. They were all very excited at going into the darker depths of the cave.
We walked the rest of the way into the cave and once fully in Loz advised that we turn our tourches off and enjoyed the darkness. It was beautiful. Loz also talked to the chidlren about how the Aborigines never went into caves as that is where they believe the souls of the dead go before they finally lay to rest. It was very interesting to hear about the culture and beliefs.
Leaving the cave was only possible via a caving lader. This is a thin metal ladder that swings as you climb it until you reach a slopping metal platform that you can swing yourself up and onto (see below). This was the hardest part of the adventure so far and by legs are covered in briuses. It ws, however, a great achievement climbing to the top and very encouraging hearing the boys support each other as they climbed.
After caving we had to return to our camping site from last night to eat our lunch and collect our bags which we had stashed under a tree when we left in the morning. Unfortunately during this time one of the boys was caught ingraving a massive Karri tree - quite possibly the biggest we had seen during our trek and therefore the eldest. Loz was understandably not impressed. Neither were Steph, Pat or myself I can assure you! Each adult took it in turns to talk to the boy in a circle infront of the rest of the group, explaining the implementations of this act and how it could in turn lead to the death of this tree. Neadless to say no one else was ever caught doing anything so malicious again.
Our walk that afternoon led us to our next camp. This one was, in my opinion, by far the most beautiful. The trees underwhich we would be camping suddenly ended to make way for a massive clearing filled with grass trees (see below). I couldn't help but get images of prehistoric creatures roaming this grassland. It was wonderful to see and no photo could ever do justice to the sudden change in landscape. Even the boys stood in awe on the edge of the trees and just gazed into the grass tree landscape.
While the boys cooked I spent my time watching birds...there are so many different kinds but they are quick and hard to photograph. Below is an image of a magpie which was very courious about the events happening on the ground below, i.e. the food.
Another bird which frequented our camps was the Cookaburra. These wonderful birds love the rain and every morning we would hear their 'laugh' after the evening's storms. I couldn't help but smile as it is a wonderful sound, especially if there is more than one involved.
The night was very wet and dinner was eaten quickly before previously excited boys crashed out as their adrenalin ran dry. I myself was exhausted and looking forward to a good rest before a full days trek in the morning.
