Showing posts with label bush. Show all posts
Showing posts with label bush. Show all posts

Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Surviving Westleigh's secret creeks

 I explored Elouera Creek the other week. That's not a name you'll find on a map. It's officially unnamed, so I took it upon myself to name it, after the street that runs down to the start of it.

There are several unnamed creeks here in the newly created Berowra Valley National Park at Westleigh: http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/NationalParks/parkHome.aspx?id=N1187

I took a renewed interest in exploring these little known and unnamed creeks recently, when one of them featured in the international news. A local boy with a medical problem took off with a small amount of food, and disappeared for nine weeks. His parents and the police feared the worst, but he was discovered in a little-known creek bed, alive, though only just, covered in leeches and with only half his previous body weight. A couple of senior citizen bushwalkers, keen off-track creek explorers like me, had stumbled upon him by chance. He was helicoptered out to Ruddock Park and taken to Hornsby Hospital. Rescuers said he'd have died within a day or two. 


 
Elouera Creek was a joy to behold. Waterfalls, caves, fabulously colourful angophora trees. Even things to eat, methinks, at least for the fit and functional survivalist: water dragons, fish, colonies of ants even.......

I've hatched the idea of exploring all of Westleigh's creeks and putting them all together into a boy's own adventure walk for the bushwalking club later this year. I'll keep you posted.

N