Oxfam Trailwalk

How much stuff do 4 girls need for 1.5 days of hiking?!

Caz, Alex, Hughie, Duff, and Sam taking a break at CP5.

Teams were required to check in and out of each checkpoint. A myriad of support tents and porta-lou's (better than portapotty, huh?!) were set up at each checkpoint to provide food and drinks, first aid, medical attention, and lots of encouragement.

Duff, Sam, Caz, and Alex left CP5 around 1:45AM for another 9km hike before bed.

Yes, I was a part of this. I actually CAN set up tents.

Sam, Duff, and Caz immediately fell into bed upon arrival at CP6.

Alex looks far too chipper here...


Back to daylight, and off to walk another 37km.

My friends Alex, Duff, Caz, and Sam are crazy (like me) and volunteered to torture their bodies in the name of a good cause. Together they raised over $5,600 to donate to Oxfam to overcome poverty and social injustice in the world. The event consists of teams of four that stick together throughout the completion of a 100 km hike to be completed within 48 hours. There were 2,762 Australians insane enough to take on this massive challenge. Of course, a task of this magnitude requires lots of support. Hughie (Alex's boyfriend) and I were allocated the undersirable graveyard shift from 11PM Friday to 11AM Saturday. We first stopped by Sam's parents' house to load up on supplies and were shocked to find a massive pile. How much could four girls possibly need in a day and a half? A lot. Hughie and I loaded up the back of Alex's mongo SUV and set off toward the Dandenong ranges.

We met the girls at checkpoint 5, which was approximately halfway through the trail. We arrived at 1:15AM with energy, excitement, and motivation to project onto them. I gave backrubs, leg massages, and kept them laughing. They had freshly wrapped feet and were tired but prepared to complete the next 9km chunk before resting for a few hours. We sent them on their way and headed off to checkpoint 6 to set up camp for the evening.

Hughie asked if I had a lot of experience camping. I laughed and said I'd been ONCE. We fumbled around struggling to set up strangers' tents in complete darkness. Mission accomplished. Then we sat around making bets on what time they'd arrive. The last section really took it out of them, and they were completely exhausted when they arrived at 4:30AM. We tucked them into bed for a quick powernap before their wakeup call at 6:45AM. The sleep did them well, and most felt better after resting. Still burning calves, sore joints, aching knees, chaffing, and blisters abounded. In every direction of sight, participants hobbled along winging and strategizing for how they would withstand the next 10 km. We set them up with breakfast then sent them on their way... only 37km to go!

We met the next support crew (Mel and Jojo) en route back to Melbourne to transfer the goods. They asked if we were up for a coffee, but after only 2 hours sleep in the last 24 hours, we were ready to head back home. The things you do for friends...