Eventful training walk,birth at collingwood childrens' farm and yabbie attack

Today we did a training walk from Ferntree Gully to Mt Evelyn. The start is the 1000 steps memorial kokoda trail. Took all of us 31 minutes to get up, and with the humid weather-we were all dripping. Poor Justine was not well thanks to some roadhouse food, but made it to the top of the steps. She decided to walk back down and catch the train home - just as well that she did as the day turned out to be a challenging one. The trail beyond the steps is undulating. You are either walking up hill or down. LLyods track may seem harmless enough - but beware of the attack yabbie.

A rather small yabbie decided to take on Team Nurofen on the trail. Brave Brian fended it off into the undergrowth with a large leaf, but not before it snapped its nippers so vigourously at us as to topple over backwards. We dropped in on Poets Lane Motel - which will be base camp for the walk- to check it out. I think we scared the staff as we were rather red faced and sweaty, but they remained polietly composed. Comments from the team - we thought you booked us into a dump but this is very nice - thanks team for your vote of confidence.

Reaching Sassafras, we decided it was time for lunch - or should I correct myself, coffee - the first of two coffee stops. Off again after 25 minutes or so, and heading for Olinda. The trail was very undulating - either steeply up or steeply down, but we were still in good form. Found our way to yet another coffee shop in Olinda for a well earned break - the sun was beating down by now and it was quite hot. We set off for the final leg of the trip, boyed by the gentle downhill profile in the Oxfam trailmap - be warned - there are some steep and long uphill sections which do not actually appear on the map, as well as some significant downhill sections. Just before we got to the Hamer Forest Arboretum - Kate gets a phone call from her sister in law who just gave birth to a baby girl - at Collingwood Childrens' Farm. It all just happened a bit too quickly on the way back to the carpark, so there was nothing to it but to have the baby beside the path to the car park. They did not even make it to the stables! Luckily everyone was fine, if not a bit shaken. Apparently the goat feeding went on undisturbed some 50 or so feet away. We spent some time thinking of appropriate names for the new girl - collingwood? Yarra? Maybe not.

We underestimated our water consumption - we should have filled up at Olinda - and so ran out about half way through the next leg about the time we became geographically embarrished. We must have walked blissfully past track 10 gate and kept going to Silvan Reservoir. A zepher seduced us from the still and muggy atmosphere and we missed the turnoff.

I managed to strain a knee through a misstep on the path, and had to take it slowly - lucky I had the walking poles to help. Finally we made it down the steep hill to the Mt Evelyn Reserve. Brian's new socks passed the test - I think he may save up for another pair - he said this one cost him $112 but I think that was a slight exaggeration. Everyone else - John Kate and Brian seemed to be fine save a few sore muscles - but I was a bit wrecked - two badly bruised toe nails and a sore knee. The next day I am not so bad - just a bit sore.

Lessons learned: check your water, pay attention to the map/trailnotes, beware of attack yabbies.