From Our Coaches

Over the Easter long weekend, my wife and I decided to go on our first camping adventure and spend the weekend completing the 26km Coastal Walk from Bundeena to Otford in the Royal National Park, about an hour out of Sydney.

It was raining miserably on Saturday morning, but we’d already packed and prepared everything so we decided to give it a go. Luckily for us, the rain stopped and the weather cleared up for a perfect afternoon.

After getting lost and losing about two hours, we were in a race against the sun and were running out of time to make it to our camping spot – North Era. We decided to set up camp at Wattamolla (even though you’re not meant to) as we thought this was safer being around other campers rather than continuing on and having to set up anywhere along the trail.

Unfortunately, we didn’t make it all the way to Otford and we had to stop at Garie Beach after I fell and sprained my ankle on our walk downhill (I’m very accident prone).

There are some amazing beaches along the way. Marly, Wattamolla and Garie are all pretty special.

These are my top 7 tips for anyone deciding to go camping and hiking for the first time:

1.     Bring a map (a real map made of paper, not Google Maps) – yes I know this may seem like a real obvious one to anyone reading this, but signage was definitely few and far between on this walk and there were countless opportunities to get lost (which we did). There is no reception for most of the walk, so your iphone won’t save you.

2.     Invest in hiking boots – Your Nikes just aren’t made for hiking. If I had the choice, I would honestly invest in a pair of hiking boots over a map! Because even though you’ll be lost, at least your feet won’t hurt – which is better than being lost with sore feet J

3.     Don’t overestimate how far you can walk in an hour (especially while carrying +20kgs of camping gear on you back over variable terrain). Our pace was approximately 3km an hour.

4.     Invest in some good wine like Bud Naked which tastes great and comes in a easy to carry package.

5.     Tell your friends and family where you will be and when to expect you back – don’t try to be James Franco in 127 Hours.

6.     Bring a first aid kit and include a disposable instant ice pack – this was a huge help after I sprained my ankle.

7.     Have fun and enjoy being active and being away from the city.

Would we do it again?

Definitely! It is a great walk with variable terrain, awesome views and beaches and I would highly recommend it. We are already planning our next adventure, which will be a mix of canoeing, hiking and camping. We will also be organising a She FITNESS bush walk in July for all members, friends and their partners so stay tuned!

Cheers,

Richie Garard

She FITNESS

Founder