Steventure: Barren Grounds - Cooks Nose and Flying Fox Pass

So before I begin, a little update, as I was diagnosed with Leukemia on the 24/8/2020.
My blog detailing this, ended with my first round of chemo finishing.
I was out for 2 weeks, before having to go back in for my second round of chemo, after spending the night in hospital my neutrophils dropped, and I was released home for another week.
I handed my second round of chemo better than the first (I was in remission after the first round). Maintaining my weight and eating by people bringing me in anything other than hospital food.
I was released the morning of my Wedding Anniversary
I had my third round of what they call 'consolidation' chemotherapy and was released on the 30th of November, 2020. After 3 rounds of chemo. Laying in bed for 10 whole weeks, and having not done any exercise for longer than that due to my ankle fracture while rock climbing in June 2020 I was more than out of shape, and pretty worse for wear. My bone marrow transplant is booked in for late February and I have been at home resting and recovering, doing light exercise to try and build back up my strength.
Before my bone marrow biopsy on the 18/1/21 I decided it was time to try a light walk, deciding there were some pretty flat and nice walks up at Barren Ground Nature Reserve (and also because I had previously done the hike with the intention to write about it, and left it too long, having being sitting in my drafts since 25/8/15.

So on the 15/1/21 I booked it in with Dad, our first walk together since his rock climbing accident and we set off up Jamberoo Mountain Road to Barren Ground.

Cooks Nose
Knowing the sort of walks at Barren Ground, and knowing how the chemo had made me very sensitive to the light and heat I sun-creamed up, packed my Akubra, and an over shirt for if the sun began to feel like too much for me. We pulled up with no idea of the path we would take, as the last time I had done Barren Grounds with my Dad we had done all of them. We decided to head up the Griffith's Loop Trail towards Cooks Nose Lookout, as I had parked right next to where this trail began.

We began walking up this way, while I told my Dad I was busting for the loo as I had not to long ago taken some of my cancer medication. "Midostaurin" which I told him after I take it, makes me need to frequently urinate.

We soon reached the cabin while I said I would head down a little path to the right of the cabin called 'Redbank Gully' a 1.1km return service trail to relieve myself.

After relieving myself and feeling the blistering heat I called my Dad to come down the Redbank Gully Trail, feeling like I would test the waters of the 1km walk to see how my body felt afterwards.
We began walking down and I think I appreciated more than usual the beauty of my surroundings, having been so long since I had been able to get out on a walk.

As we walked along I pointed out some Sundrew (a flypaper plant that stick prey to the hairs on them to consume, as I have a fascination for carnivorous plants).

The walked turned slightly downhill and before we knew it it had ended at a little creek. We turned around and began walking back to the cabin. I could feel the sting of the sun still and decided to take out my over-shirt I had packed in my bag just for a bit of extra protection, particularly on my neck which always seems to burn quite easily.

We returned to the cabin and continued upon Griffith's Loop Trail spotting a beautiful little Echidna crossing the path.

As we continued a long a slight breeze began, and the sun became a bit less intense and I was able to remove my over-shirt. We walked past an elderly couple taking photo's and said hi, my Dad inquiring them on whether or not they had seen the Echidna, letting him know they hadn't and we continued walking.

We soon reached the turn off on our left that continued the Griffith Loop track that linked around to the other trail start from the carpark that leads to a lookout at 1km, a viewing platform at Saddleback Trig, and the start of the Kangaroo Ridge walk, the longest trail at Barren Ground. All of which we have done before and I have included the photos and description of those in a story at the bottom of this post. However, we continued forward towards Cooks Nose and Flying Fox path.

As we walked and talked I couldn't help but feel lucky. After all the time in hospital I just appreciated being where I was, and I was so acutely aware of everything. Every little bird call, the changing temperature on my skin as I felt the sun as I walked through the shaded branches of the trees, every little time the wind increased and it's cool gentle blowing on my body. Just the look of every little bit of nature around me out in the sun. It was like life felt more real. There was a time, when I had first been told about my cancer diagnosis where my thoughts were just of my death. I thought that was it, I'd never be out here experiencing this, seeing the beauty of all around me. I had flashbacks to being a kid and just running around outside, swimming, just being a greater part of the world around me. You don't feel that laying in a hospital bed, staring at your phone, wondering what the future holds, thinking about your own death and the things you'll never experience. Feeling so lonely... But I was outside and I felt great, and I knew I had my upcoming stem cell treatment but I didn't want to think about it. I was just happy to be alive here and now.

Bits of the trail were still wet, and we walked past a little puddle filled with tadpoles and into a slightly more shaded area.

We reached the fork were the track split between Flying Fox Pass and Cooks Nose. I could remember from last time that there wasn't much to see at Flying Fox Pass (the site of a former cable-car that transported timber from the valley), just some old bits of cement. Dad recalled this too, though neither of us could really remember Cooks Nose, so we turned left towards Cooks Nose which from this turn off was a 4.4km return, while Flying Fox Pass was a 2.9km return.

The path began to have a slight incline, and I was surprised by how well I was handing the walk, giving everything. I could feel a little pull on the muscle of my previously broken ankle but I was surprised by how well it felt too.

As we reached the top of the incline the path began to drop but where we were we could see the tops of the hills of the valley above the trees.

We reached another sign post pointing us through a small walkway amongst the trees but could also see an obvious, but unmarked track off to the right. Dad wanted to check down there, and I said we would on the way back and began through the trees.

We passed another sign letting us know we were arriving at Cooks Nose, and I wondered about the history of the name. Why was it called Cooks Nose? I stopped thinking about it, thinking I would look it up online later an detail why in my blog. A quick google search unveiled no answers for me. As we approached the lookout we were both hit with the recollection of the last time we were here.

We sat and ate a small packet of trail mix, admiring the view. I reapplied my sunscreen and we looked around the area, my Dad fascinated with a deep hole he said he would love to explore, saying no one had probably ever been down there before, and then the dark thought of "Could you imagine falling down there?"

We made our way back out and took the unmarked trail through the scrub. It was a short walk and led down past some beautiful rocks in the ground just to a cliff edge overlooking a house down in the valley but with no particularly good views.

We made our way back to the Flying Fox Pass split, and asked if we should also walk down that way (feeling great being outside and walking). My Dad didn't want it to be too much for me, and suggested that be enough for the day. So we began our way back to the car.

I thought I would be able to detail the entirety of the walks at Barren Ground, assuming I had ample photos of the other tracks from previous walks, however it turns out that I had overestimated my documentation of those walks, with nothing but a few poor photo's done on a very old phone. Here are just a few simple photo's on the way to Flying Fox Pass.

Which is a little disappointing and left me feeling like I should have pushed to also go down Flying Fox Pass again. Although we only ended up doing just shy of 8km my body definitely felt the strain of it over the next few days. So instead of cramming the rest of the Barren Ground walks into one blog this left me making it as the one walk.

We arrived back at the car and I felt mentally great. The walk had done wonders for my mental health, and now before my stem cell transplant in February I am determined to go and do the rest of the tracks once more to properly detail them in another blog.

I had a bone marrow biopsy today (as I write the latter half of these blog post) on the 18/1/21 to make sure I am still in remission and all good to go forward with my stay in a hospital in Sydney for the stem cells. So I am determined to get out there and do more hiking before my 4 week stay in hospital and potentially even longer recovery time, so please check back in!

I will bookend with a few photo's taken in 2014 (a very long time ago) in which I documented some maps and details of the Barren Ground, Cooks Nose and Flying Fox Pass walk information signage available at the carpark.