Near the Eco Lodge, there were a few private
72 guy that I am, and bepools, and being the nice
ing part of a nice team of adventurers, the young
couple who run the lodge took us down to a secret spot, and allowed us the opportunity to relax
and clean the dirt and pain from the day off. The
rocks, made of a naturally occurring granite also
trap some of the heat from the sun, so we were
able to relax, and take full advantage of a sneaky,
naturally occurring hot rock treatment, which was
really well received.
After day one, the Eco Lodge helped heal and relax the body, bringing me back to life and after a
great night sleep, I was ready for day two.
We were up early on day two, and hit the trek at
around 8am, with the knowledge that there was
only around 16 kilometres left.
About one kilometre or so into day two, we came
to our first real challenge of the day, a swing bridge,
which was situated around 15-20metres above the
flowing water beneath.
From there, we moved on, eventually coming into
the beautiful Megalong Valley. Now, if you ever
travel to the Blue Mountains, I vigorously recommend acquainting yourself with the Megalong
Valley – it is mesmerising. An open valley among
mountains, littered with gorgeous fields and open
spaces, as well as naturally occurring small creeks
and river systems, it is a wonderful place.
As the name might suggest, Megalong, is just
that, “mega long” and we trekked through it for
quite some time on day two. In fact, after Megalong, we only had a few kilometres until our final destination, and Katoomba.
Personally, I’m fine with heights, and was keen to
tackle the bridge. In fact, it was one of my favou- As with many challenges, the hardest part of the
rite parts of the trek. It bounced and swung ever
journey is right at the end, and JENKAT46 was no
so slightly, and for the avid photographers on the
exception. Darren and Shane had both warned
team, it made for some great pictures.
me throughout the journey about “Dummy Spit
Hill”, which basically made up the last kilometre
However, not everyone was quite as okay with
heights as I was, and we had a few worried faces of the trek.
crossing over. For some of the team, the bridge was
The name is a little deceptive, as “Dummy Spit
one of the realest challenges on JENKAT46.
Hill” is not really a hill, but rather a ridiculously
steep set of stairs that climbs up the side of a
mountain. It was by far the hardest part of the
trek. My legs wanted to give up, and I must have
drank close to three litres of water making my
way up that staircase. It was tough.
However, I don’t often get to feel the sort of elation I was thrilled to experience once I reached
the top of those stairs, and made my way to the
end of the trek. It was a fantastic feeling.
JENKAT46 was definitely a challenge that pushed
me. I felt uncomfortable and worn out along the
journey, but I also felt excitement and life. It was
an awesome adventure and something that I
will remember for a long time yet, and it was in
my own backyard, which is really just an added
bonus.
Next time, you feel as though you need an adventure, but need something close, and attainable, I would highly recommend pushing yourself and tackling the full Six-Foot Track, right here
in Australia’s beautiful Blue Mountains.
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