Walking the Bibbulmun

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Last Monday, we sussed out part of the Bibbulmun Track between Balingup and Donnelly River. The Bibbulmun is a long distance walk trail in Western Australia. It covers 1,003 kilometres (623 miles) and stretches from Kalamunda, an eastern suburb of our capital, Perth, to Albany on the south coast. The Bibbulmun or Noongar people, indigenous Australians, travelled the path regularly on their nomadic wanderings either following food supplies or visiting other tribes for cultural get-togethers. The path is only open to walkers and is marked by triangular pointers painted with the wagyl, a mythical serpent from aboriginal dreamtime stories. Most of the track passes through National Parks or state forests. Each section of a day's walk culminates either at a town or a campsite which has a shelter for campers, a pit-toilet, water tank and picnic tables. There is vehicle access at various points along the way. Our friend Lynn has walked most of the track over a period of years. While she was with us, she covered another 58 kilometres. We drove the bus and were able to meet her each day. She was able to have a hot shower, a decent meal and a comfortable bed. Many walkers cover several days without support but have to carry a sleeping bag plus food and water for however many days they're walking. Lynn is now 65 and 5 foot nothing. By providing support along the way, she was able to walk with just a small backpack. Several times we were able to catch up with her part way through the day's journey. Once we'd seen her on her way we'd drive to the next designated meeting spot. While waiting for her to arrive, we took photos or read books or napped. She completed the 58 kms by Thursday lunchtime. The weather was ideal for walking and the scenery was pretty stunning. The karri forest area in particular was very impressive. We enjoyed camping out in the bus and it was nice to be able to help Lynn achieve another of her goals.