When the indigenous people of Australia go walkabout they embark on a rich experience that connects them to their land, their ancestors and their culture. I was fortunate enough last week to walk into a part of Australia that is very sacred to the Aboriginal mobs living there.
The story was for Australian Geographic Outdoor and I was travelling with writer Dallas Hewett into this magical land. It wasn't just a story for a magazine – it was a journey for us both as we explored by mountain bike and on foot for six days in a remote part of tropical North Queensland. The journey took us across the red earth and gritty sands of the Daintree National Park to a mango tree where elders of the Wujal Wujal community dazzled us with a tiny glimpse of their 56,000-year-long connection to the land.
We then walked for an entire day along a songline running through thick jungle teeming with snakes and leeches, the latter feasting on us every step of the way. We arrived at Cedar Bay missing a lot of blood, but excited at the reality of camping for a few days on a remote beach known to be the habitat for at least one very large crocodile.
But we weren't alone. Other travellers were visiting the remote bay and reconnecting with their own journey, fueling generous conversation and heart-warming tales as if they were permeating from the land itself.
Three days later we emerged, a little wilder than when we went in and with a heap more understanding about what it means to be connected to the land.
"You may be a white fella, but you've got a black heart now," we were told by Par – one of the elders. I was filled with pride.
After a couple of dives on the Agincourt Reef I left tropical North Queensland and returned to Dunedin to discover a 24°C beach day on Sunday. Does it get any better than this?
See you at the beach ...
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