Luvapuzzle

Anstey Hill Walk 11/2/20

Bev led the Four Seasons group on a walk starting at Anstey Hill and travelling down into the suburbs.

We started off along the bottom track in Anstey Hill and then made the most of the creek lines.

Lots of drifts of garland lilies – terrible photo, but you get the idea.

There were some treats for us in the local streets…

One house had birds hanging in their trees and black cats walking on the green, green lawn. Just down the street a really old place – maybe one of the original cottages?

A Kurrajong tree with both flowers and pods on it at the same time!!

A house growing some lovely sturt peas (you can actually see the peas in one of these photos)

The little kids at Higbury school were quite fascinated to see adults walking along outside the fence and called out and waved to us.

A really beautiful , smooth trunked tree that needed hugging (but had to make do with some touching)

Then the history treat for the day – the old Hope Valley cemetery, which has many graves of the Wends (or Sorbs) who came out to SA from Lusatia (in Germany) , on the ‘Alfred’, ‘Australian’ and ‘Peter Godeffroy’ in 1848 and in later years. These people had their own language, but largely integrated into the general German community.

Many of them lived in the Hope Valley area before moving on to Peter’s Hill (near Riverton) in the mid north. They came out here escaping religious persecution and a potato famine just like the one in Ireland.

Then back into more streets to be treated to some lovely gardens

Just as we came to the O-Bahn track there were some lovely little Correas to enjoy

The plant of the day was probably the Crepe Myrtle. This area has many along the roads and in the gardens. They are currently in flower and gave us many chances to gasp in pleasure at the varied colours and forms. They really are such lovely trees.

Bev had found a pleasant lunch spot near a small pond so we had some much appreciated shade and a water view to enjoy along with the left over pastries (thanks to Yvanna) from morning tea.

Then we headed up the hill for the last bit of rather warm walking.

This sad little marker reminded us of what must have been a heartbreaking loss of three children in one family from typhoid. (The local water was carrying it)

The cool drink after 15.5 km on a warm day was much appreciated at the Tea Tree Gully Coffee Shoppe. They gave us big glasses of ice to pour our cold drinks into. They also came out with cold bottles of water to rehydrate the warm walkers and let us pay separately (something that Newman’s were not going to let us do!)

Thanks Bev (and your deputy Craig) for the time you put in preparing this walk and your sensitive leading of it. It was much appreciated.

Walking near Underdale

Last Tuesday we had perfect weather for a walk and seventeen of us took advantage of it. Erica and Trevor had planned a walk along the Torrens in the West Beach/ Underdale area. Erica led the walk (Trevor still sitting out due to injury).

The track down that end of the Torrens is a really attractive track. We were able to stay mostly off of the bike paths and closer to the water.

Frogs greeted us down the West Beach end of the walk in the wetlands area which abuts Burbridge road.

There are a good number of areas suitable for stops, and fairly well spaced pedestrian bridges across the Torrens for turnarounds if required.

We started at the carpark by the Henley Sailing Club (end of Burbridge Road)

and walked up on the north and back on the south side of the Torrens (mostly).

We enjoyed seeing the local community garden in Fulham Gardens

and the bike tools on a pole for the bike riders to use.

The walk was about 15km in length.

Alexandra at the Beach Break cafe agreed to open specially for us, and managed our order pretty well, considering that she was just trying to recover form an onslaught of 15 unexpected customers who had given her no warning. It was informal, but the coffee was excellent I’m told.

Musings on life

Today marks 11 years since Trevor “went under the knife” to have a cancer removed.

As I remember those days now it is the days prior to the surgery that come to mind most readily.

The after-hours phone call from the GP that rocked our world. The times of wondering what the outcome would be. Would this be the end of a healthy, happy life and the start of a descent into a terrible and painful death? How much time did we still have to share? Would Trevor see our children grown and married?

Try as we did, the stark reality of what we were facing was hard to put out of our minds. The value of what we already had stared us in the face as we realised we may be about to lose it all.

Difficult times followed. ..The surgery and then the radiotherapy that sapped energy and eventually resulted in extreme and messy discomfort.

Then the waiting and the apprehension as we marked the time between each scan and test result as the months and then years rolled on.

Eleven years on there are two main after-effects from the experience.

One is the lasting scar that Trevor bears-a physical reminder which brings to mind the other effect.

The second is the ongoing sense of wonder at the gift we have in our lives together and what feels like a second chance. We value what we have in our relationship and are mindful of how easily it could be lost. We live in the knowledge that we do not control how long we live. The pattern of our lives has been shaped by a sense of the worth of each breath we take together. Our early retirement is a direct result of this ever-present knowledge.

We are driven to take each moment as we can. To experience each other and what life has to offer. We take up opportunities to travel, see, do, love. We revel in our increased time together in retirement.

Sometimes we have lost sight of this wonder in life, this second chance. We’ve got so busy that we have been blinded from this simple truth.

Sometimes we have forgotten to value each other as we should.

But we keep on coming back to that sense of wonder that we have in our life and relationship and the recognition that what we have is precious and irreplaceable.

I feel grateful for that time eleven years ago, and for other hard times in life that serve as reminders to us that what we have is amazing, priceless and irreplaceable. On this, and every day, we should reflect what is truly important in this life by the use of our time and by our actions.

A Hot and lonely walk at Chambers Gully 28/1/2020

Due to a misunderstanding I didn’t go on the walk with the Four Seasons today up Chambers Gully.

There had been some discussion via email about the walk being cancelled due to hot weather, and it had been decided, finally, that there would be a shortened version offered – but I didn’t get the memo. I should learn to read my email myself.

In the end, Zita sent a photo from Cleland café, making it clear that there was a walk happening. Then she sent information about the orchid they had found, and that did it.

With the aid of her helpful directions I headed off to walk the “10 minutes up the track” to see the orchid. (I had omitted to apply extra sunscreen, change out of my shorts or into my walking shirt and walking shoes, but I did have my hat, water and camera). It’s lucky my daily moisturiser has built in sunscreen.

It turned out to be a bit further than 10 minutes, but was a very enjoyable stroll along. Not the same as enjoying the chatter of the walking group, but time to ponder other thoughts as I walked , and no need to worry about slowing down the group (or catching up) if I stopped to take photos.

I enjoyed stopping to read the history and other information signs, admire the bark of the trees and wait for the little birds to settle so that I could take a photo of them.

When I finally located the orchid (a pink hyacinth orchid) I had time to take photos to my heart’s content before I turned and retraced my steps.

this friendly beast didn’t want to get out of my way and I virtually brushed past as I continued on my way.

It was hot, but the path is delightful and rather impressive cliff faces overlook it some of the way.

I didn’t know what these birds were, but since I’ve got home, I have had a chance to check with my resources (thanks Ross and Jan) and learn that they are mature (hiding) and juvenile (in the open) red browed finches. (also called red browed firetails) The juveniles don’t have the red brows yet.

I also enjoyed watching the little honeyeaters playing and chirping away.

And, of course, seeing a pink hyacinth orchid for the first time. These grow to about knee high, flower in summer and have no leaves at all.

No matter if it is the same track I have walked before, I still enjoy finding the little surprises along the way.

Thanks to Doug and Zita (and, of course, Trevor- who patiently waited at home as he was not able to make the trip with his dodgy achilles tendon) for the heads up and encouragement.

Tour Down Under 22/1/2020

Today we took up the offer of Uni SA and went along to “Tour the Tour” at Stirling. Uni SA (as usual) did a great job of entertaining us on the buses up and down from the city and the Stirling Pub served up excellent platters and wine .

We had Sophie Edwards on our bus on the way up. She’s in the Aussie training squad and told us about track cycling (pursuit in particular) which is her specialty and about what it is like to ride with and for a team. She is only 19 but managed the questions really well and was very informative.

It was Kate’s last full day in Adelaide for this holiday, and we enjoyed having her along with us. Here she is with Trevor waiting to board the bus to Stirling at the City West campus.

The big screens made it easy to see what was happening at Stirling.

The town was looking great, with a carnival atmosphere.

We had great company inside the hotel and then could go out and watch the race when we wanted to.

Delicious food supplied by the Stirling Hotel.

Patrick Jonker (twice an Olympian) gave us insight into the race.

Maybe Sophie will give the insight next year – I think she could.

The crowd get into the excitement in their “TDU” gear . Lots of Lycra around.

And Caleb Ewan makes his final breakthrough to win the sprint finish and take the race leader jersey after a last pileup only a few hundred metres from the finish line.

Another fantastic TDU experience was greatly enjoyed.

Carisbrooke Park Walk 14/1/2020

Kate (our niece) and Erica joined some people from our walking group on a walk through Carisbrooke Park today.

We started at 8 and were finished about 11am on this unofficial walk. This way we beat the heat and were back in time to share morning tea together before heading on our separate ways.

Once again the lovely old trees were a delight to see.

There was evidence of small inhabitants of the area.

…and past inhabitants. We must make it to that old waterwheel museum one day…

It was lovely to sit and enjoy the water running , the green grass and the roses at an early rest break.

There was a bit of reflection to enjoy too.

We passed under the train track (and saw one train- just a local one)

Graham gave a demonstration of how to use some of the fitness equipment.

This Jade Plant (???) was in flower

Doug kept us to the shady paths as much as possible on the way back, as the temperature heated up.

Thanks for spotting these Zita.

Ten of us enjoyed this shorter (9.2km) , flat walk on a warm day.

and then morning tea at the St George’s Bakehouse in the Saints shopping centre nearby.

Kayaking Clayton

We had a chance to take Ken the kayak out for a couple of hours at Clayton with Peter and Belinda and their “Blue ship”.

We gently made our way around Goose and Goat Islands, trying to find a way between them and wondering what it would be like to live on an island.

Lunch was after 3pm when we returned to the holiday house.

It was great to get out paddling on the water again and to spend some time with good friends.

For perspective

Sort of selfie ( of the back paddler)

We also enjoyed learning to play “Labyrinth”- where you push tiles across the board- a simple game which is quite challenging.

The boys even managed to hold the ants at bay to enable barbequed tea to happen.

The holiday place was quaint, with some cute art and lovely native flowers.

Hazelwood Park area 7/1/2020

Beda led a lazy fourteen of us around the creeks of the Burnside area, creating a lovely 7.2km walk , with a lot of shade and interest.

We started and ended at Hazelwood Park, and then moved on to the Basecamp coffee shop for some more chat and some sustenance.

I think that we moved a bit slower than Beda usually does.

There were some lovely bridges crossing the creek.

This little headstone says “In loving memory of Alice Maude White, Died at birth, 17th March 1841”, but was found some distance away and placed here.
Apparently there is no official record of such a death.

The lawnmowing man stopped his mower and waited for us to go past very kindly. The huge old fig tree is near the Ruth Tuck Art School. This school, on Hubbe Court was established in 1955 and specialises in water colour painting and printmaking.

The walk up the southern side of Michael Perry Reserve was a treat, with the trickling creek alongside and shady footpath.

This Koala in the old Oak tree at the top of the path was a hit. Apparently he is also a TV star!

The old pump used to be used to pump water to Clifton Lodge (the initial house on this property)

According to Walking SA website, “The nearby Clifton Lodge, a large Gothic-style house, was built in 1852 for the miller George Sismey, who was an early investor in the mine and quarry industries of South Australia. In 1872 the house was bought by Nathaniel Knox who landscaped the gardens, including establishing an extensive garden along Second Creek, importing many exotic species. There are many remnants those plants within the Reserve. In 1976 the estate was subdivided. The house now stands at 16 Waratah Way (Stonyfell). The former entrance gates and hedge of the estate marks the start of Andrews Walk near 66 Hallett Road, and the former gatehouse is adjacent at 66 Hallett Road.

There is quite a bit of work going on in some of the garden areas and signage tells us that there is a “Historic Garden Adaptation Plan” which will be implemented over some years as resources allow. If you would like to read more about it follow this link https://www.burnside.sa.gov.au/files/assets/public/environment-amp-sustainability/conservation-amp-sustainability/vegetation-management/michael-perry-reserve-management/17031-michael-perry-historic-garden-adaptation-plan-2019-01-17-public-doc.pdf

It is always lovely to see the huge old gum trees.

Toilet and portrait stop.

Our intrepid leader taking us back to Hazelwood Park across the Baseball fields.

Interesting old wall and lovely garden on the way .

As usual Beda did a great job. Thanks Beda for taking us on this walk and getting us back out into nature. A terrific walk for the start of 2020.

2019 Christmas news from Trevor and Erica Diment

We have just passed the two year mark since we made the big break and headed off from work to make the most of our time together while we were still healthy and free. We spent our year:

Sharing time together with Thom, Laura and Ben in Oxford, Bath and The Cotswolds before heading off on a big adventure to Europe (Vienna to Dubrovnik)
Experiencing the Prague hospital system as Trevor recovered from broken ribs and coccyx, which he obtained in a bike accident in Cesky Krumlov. Then rejoined our tour group in Budapest– confirming the diagnosis of Trevor’s two broken arms on return to Australia. He is all healed now.
Orienteering at Easter time in WA, caught up with family and friends and took the slow way home, using “The Track” – a rough road track from the Perth Hills to Albany. We recommend it.
Combining catch-ups with family and friends with the National Orienteering Carnival in Vic, ACT and NSW. It was wonderful to catch up with some more distant special people.
Walking with Four Seasons group (generally 12-15km) on Tuesdays and camped and walked with them near Quorn – finally conquering Dutchman’s Stern (amongst others)
Celebrating our 35^th wedding anniversary in the Barossa.
Managing a few trips to stay at Encounter Bay, enjoying the peaceful water views and beach walks.
Keeping up the blog and decided to move it to a new home to allow us to update it offline when we need to do so. Go to https://luvapuzzle.blogspot.com/ for the old one and https://wordpress.com/home/luvapuzzle.travel.blog for the new one. Subscribe now.
Not staying home for long enough to tackle the cleaning up of clutter or the home maintenance that we should have, but taking time to savour the moments together and be grateful for them.

Thom and Laura have moved to Southampton for Laura’s work and Ben continues in Adelaide, living at Paradise and working for local accounting firm, Affinity in the city. We enjoy more time to spend with Trev’s Mum and Erica’s Dad who both continue to live independent and relatively active lives.

Now we anticipate family time over Christmas as Thom and Laura visit from December 23^rd and send our love to you as we once again give thanks for our wonderful friends and family.

Scott Conservation Park and a BIG birthday

Poor Ray had a bad night… maybe a dose of the gastro that’s been going through their family or maybe we just really gave him…. after a couple of days together. They needed to do a rapid pack up and head for home and their own toilet.

Having been woken by the garbage man at about 7 we were all well awake anyway, so we were all packed up and ready to go.

We did have time to examine the local bugs which all seemed to be having a skin shedding party, leaving behind their old coverings and sitting around in the sunshine on any available place to dry off.

In our case we were needing to be at Goolwa just after 1pm for birthday lunch ( Trev’s sister, Rae, is 60 today) so we had time to deviate to Scott Conservation Park on the way there.

We decided to stop and do the short River Crossing walk there, which was pretty gentle, but lovely and quite interesting.

We saw wrens and various other birds, and listened to lots of bird sounds. Mostly we couldn’t even spot the birds, but a few showed.

The walk crossed the deep creek ( looks like this might be part of Deep Creek itself) a couple of times which has some significant erosion and consequent cliffs. It was dry though, as was the dam.

We made a cup of tea and took our time reading and doing the crossword in today’s paper as the rain pattered on the roof of the Prado and trickled down the windscreen.

We enjoyed lunch with Rae, Denise, Mum, Kathy and Ron as we watched the rain sweeping across the Goolwa yacht club and the river. The family even agreed to have a photo taken!