Our final day in Australia began at Ku-Ring-Gai National Park outside of Sydney. We met Les, an Aborigine, and several park volunteers who guided us through the day’s activities. Les welcomed us to the land and acknowledged the ancestors, a necessary action to maintain the spirits’ satisfaction.  The Ku-Ring-Gai National Park protects the land that was once inhabited by Aborigines. … Continue Reading →

On January the 19th we took a 2 hour bus ride from Sydney to the blue mountains. Our first stop in the Blue Mountains was an aboriginal dance exhibition. The performers were Waradah dancers and came from several different tribes. The beginning of the demonstration consisted of loud shouting and yelling. The Waradah dancers were calling out to their ancestors, … Continue Reading →

This morning everyone was awake and ready to go due to a good night’s sleep and a great dinner the night before. Last night’s dinner consisted of a huge meal that could have kept us going for weeks. We had vegetables, bread, steak, salmon, chicken, dessert, and more. We are staying at a family owned business that is part of … Continue Reading →

Today was the day we have all been waiting for.  Today, we checked a wonder of the world off all of our bucket lists. Today, we snorkelled the Great Barrier Reef. After a relaxing two hour boat ride to the reef, we geared up and made our way into the ocean. From the instant we entered the water, there was … Continue Reading →

Good thing we love animals. Because the animals at Kuranda loved us. Today, we had the opportunity to spend most of the day in a small town, called Kuranda, which is located right outside of Cairns. We started the day by riding the Skyrail up to the town. The Skyrail is similar to a ski lift, but is consists of … Continue Reading →

Today January 10th, we arrived to Melbourne via the Spirit of Tasmania. We then drove to Sorrento. We were all super sore from yesterday’s hike, but excited to do some kayaking! Upon arrival in Sorrento, we stopped for a quick breakfast a few miles from the beach. A group of us ate at Bakers Boys Cafe, which was delicious despite … Continue Reading →

The Cradle Mountain Challenge Life if full of challenges and pushing yourself to the limit to see how much you can achieve. Today was most certainly one of those days. Last night when we agreed to take a more challenging route, I had no clue what I was getting myself into. After a 6 am wake up, quick clean up … Continue Reading →

Rain Delay As some of you may know, we were scheduled to hike up Cradle Mountain in Tasmania. However, heavy rains all of Wednesday night and continuing showers throughout the day meant a change in plans. Instead of hiking, we visited Marakoopa Cave and a honey farm. First, stop: Marakoopa Cave. While all of us shivered in the 9 degree … Continue Reading →

Conquering Canyons; Forgetting Fears Think about your worst fear. Now think about actually accomplishing it. That is exactly what we did today, on January 7, 2015. We are currently in Cradle Mountain, Tasmania, and today we went canyoning. Basically, we repelled down the side of mountains, threw ourselves off cliffs, and allowed ourselves to flow downstream with the river as … Continue Reading →

Waking up in Melbourne, we headed to “The Dunes” for a beginners surfers lesson. After changing into wetsuits we headed down to the beach to catch some waves. With some initial instructions, we made our way to the water where many of us attempted to catch our first waves. Surfing for about 2hrs, many of us began to show improvement … Continue Reading →