Another sleep in this morning, a windy hazy day but with no threat of rain according to the Weather app. We packed up our simple lunches of salami, cheese and savoy biscuits. We drove the short distance to Fortescue Bay, parked the Pajero and started our walk to Cape Hauy. The track has been extensively refurbished as a part of the Three (actually 2) Capes Walk rejuvenation of this section of the park. There is no denying the spectacular scenery offered by the capes and sea cliffs, and is an appropriate venue for this sort of hiking ecotourism. We spoke to several of the walkers who spoke highly of the huts that they use along with the track! Our memory of the walk to Cape Hauy is that it had steep treacherous slopes with abundant opportunitity for tumbling into the bracken or worse. The good news is that the steps are excellent, the bad news is that the descents and ascents are exactly the same. The walk skirts the bay before climbing up into forest, burnt only a few years ago, I suspect, the blackened trunks and abundant bracken, banksia, cypress all saplings proof enough of bushfire. Then the ascent truly begins, wobbly legs at the top! Then the descent to the cape, by now we are in strong wind, the high humidity of the forest forgotten as we both stashed our caps into pockets or backpacks. The final views are terrific,white scarred dolerite launches vertically up out of the southern sea, the Candlestick, the totem pole,and Hippolyte. Jennifer researched the last, Hippolyte was the Amazon who married Thesus in Greek myth and in A Midsummer Night dream by Shakespeare. She pretty well called the tune in Thesus’ city, a lady with attitude, a characteristic in other women Jennifer finds concerningly appealing.
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