Survival - 15. Surv Chapter 15

“By the way Bailey is here too, he was just putting on some shoes in the car, and probably went back to reading his book” Chris said to me, as we prepared to carry the tray into the lounge area, and Uncle Nat had already retrieved the dining chairs, so everyone could sit.

“Good evening Colonel Hammond” I said to the base CO, “Good evening Corporal, this is my son Will Hammond. Son, these boys are Chris Harding, and Jacob Blackwood, and that is Bailey Harding” the Colonel said making the introductions. “Father, why did you call Jacob, Corporal?” Will asked. “That was a slip of the tongue, as I was reading a report about Major Blackwood and Jacob earlier today, and something inside the report seemed to have stuck in my mind” the Colonel said to his son.

“But why Corporal, he isn’t in the Army?’ Will persisted, “If you don’t mind sir, I would like to explain, as long as everyone in this room does not repeat anything that I say” I said, and the Colonel just nodded his head, yes. “I am a sworn in member in the Australian Army, and I hold a rank of Corporal, because of a number of incidences that my uncle and I were caught up in, which I cannot divulge.

Chris and I also spent the past few months of our school year, on special duties, protecting the son of a Canadian diplomat, mainly because he was in the same year as us, and Chris and I were the two senior ranking cadets in the school, which wasn’t an easy feat, especially with 5 school bullies hovering around” I explained, as I retrieved my wallet, and pulled out my Army ID Card.

“What are those letters and numbers in the bottom corner?” Will asked, “I was hoping you wouldn’t ask, or I might have to get Chris to punish you” I responded, which made Will looked scared, and the Colonel laughed. “Ignore that bit son, he is just kidding, and if he did, he would have me to answer to, since I am technically his superior officer” the Colonel said.

I nodded in agreement to what the Colonel said. “So, why didn’t you salute to him when he came in?” Will asked, “If I had, there would be no tea to serve to everyone” I responded, and that had all the adults laughing, and Chris smiled, “I will explain the numbers and letters to you at another time” the Colonel said to his son.

Over the next 40 minutes, Chris and I explained everyone about all the planning that we had made for the trip, including the food drop at the end of day 4, on the 31st, and that we would be camping in tents. “We went out and bought a three- man dome tent today, that Bailey and Will can share, and he already has a sleeping bag” Chris’s mum added.

Once the meeting was over, we had a small list of things that needed to be done before the trip, of which I had to call the Kayak company to book a second double kayak, and to let them know we would email the food list on Boxing day, and Uncle Nat had agreed to allow Will, to stay at our apartment for two days, from Boxing day till we leave for the trip on the 28th.

Once all the guests had left, I was about to ring the kayak company when my phone rang, and the caller ID said it was Langley calling. “Hello, my Canadian friend, I was just talking about you, a short time ago, how are you?” I said on answering the call. “Hello Jacob, I am ok I guess, just very bored with nothing to do, what are your plans for the Christmas holidays, off anywhere exciting?’ Langley replied.

“Well not really, Christmas with the family, which will be nice, as I really missed having Mum and Dad at Christmas time last year, then Chris Harding and I are going on a Kayaking trip for a week on the Coorong” I said, “Oh, that sounds good, so nothing wild and dangerous this time” Langley responded, which had me chuckle softly, “No, not this time, just seven days of kayaking, nothing too challenging” I said, as I thought that I should have invited Langley to join us, but it is a bit late now.

“I see, well I just rang to wish you a happy Christmas, and a good New Year” Langley said, sounding a little disappointed, “Hey, how about you and I get together on Boxing day, I will probably be feeling like a whale with all the food I have eaten, but I will need to work it all off, before the trip” I suggested, “That would be awesome, how about you come over here, and we can work off all the food on the tennis court, as long as you don’t throw up all over the place” Langley suggested.

“That sounds great, I will come over at around 11am, the day after Christmas, is that ok” I replied, “That sounds wonderful, I look forward to it, see you then and Merry Christmas” Langley said, sounding very happy, and we ended the call. “So, you are going over to the Consulate on Boxing day morning” Uncle Nat said to me, “Yes, is that going to be ok?” I replied, “Yes, it is fine, just remember that Will be coming over in the afternoon, and also remember to tell Nanny and your parents” Uncle Nat said.

After I had called the Kayak company, to book a second double Kayak, Uncle Nat ordered some pizza to be delivered, and we sat down in front of the television, watching Christmas movies and scoffing down pizza, before heading to bed. I was almost asleep, when I heard my phone buzz with a message, and I sleepily looked at the message, then flicked on my bedside light, to look at the message carefully.

“Bailey has come down with the chicken pox, and I am probably infected too, so we have to cancel our kayaking trip, which really sucks. Merry Christmas. Chris”, and I groaned in annoyance. “I heard that, what is wrong?” Uncle Nat said from the hallway, outside my room. “Come in Uncle, I have some bad news” I responded, and Uncle Nat came in and sat at my desk.

“Just had a text from Chris, Bailey has come down with the chicken pox, and he thinks he may be infected too, so they can’t come on the trip” I announced, “Well that is not good news, but I know for certain, that you had chicken pox, just before you started school, at the age of five, you better let Will know, in case he hasn’t had it yet” uncle Nat said.

“I don’t have his mobile number yet” I replied, “Never mind, I have the Colonel’s home number, I will call him” Uncle Nat said leaving my room and closing the door. A few minutes later, Uncle Nat knocked on my door, and opened it. “The Colonel said, that Will had chicken pox when he was 10 years old, so he should be fine, goodnight” he said before closing the door again.

Christmas day was wonderful, with lots of traditional African food, that I really enjoyed, and was spoilt with lots of presents. In the late afternoon, as we were resting after our big feast, I received another text message from Chris. “Bailey and I are both covered in calamine lotion, I am not a happy chap, what a way to spend Christmas day, it really sucks. Chris” and the message made me laugh.

“Its official, they both have the chicken pox, and Chris is not very happy” I said, letting everyone know. “Simba, let me see if you have a rash on your stomach” Nanny Afya said to me in Swahili, which made my parents chuckle, “Oh Nanny, I’m not a little kid no more, I will go to the bathroom and check myself” I responded, jumping out of the lounge chair to avoid Nanny, and I locked the bathroom door, so she wouldn’t follow me in.

I was pleased to report that I have no rash on me, so I was most likely chicken pox free, and I thought I had better let Langley know, in case he has not had them before, which it turned out he hadn’t, so I was advised not to go to the Consulate home tomorrow, which Langley was really disappointed about.

The next day, I sat at home watching the television until Will arrived just after lunch time, and once he was settled into my room, we went for a walk around the base, with our Army ID cards attached to our shirts, and once we had done that, we called into Uncle Nat’s office.

“Hello boys, what can I do for you” Uncle Nat said after we knocked and entered his office. “I was wondering, how long is the Colonel away for, and can I organise a camping trip for the weekend somewhere” I asked, “The Colonel will be away for about 5 days in total, and yes I see no problem with that, as long as you are both responsible, and don’t do anything dangerous” Uncle Nat replied.

“Well, I haven’t discussed it with Will yet, but I was thinking of a return trip on the Overland train to Melbourne, with an overnight stay there. The train leaves at 7.45am tomorrow, and instead of staying just overnight, we could stay at the YHA backpackers for a few days to explore Victoria and come back on the Tuesday morning train” I suggested, and Will was nodding his head in agreement.

After a few moments of thinking about it, Uncle Nat smiled, “Very well, but you must telephone me every night at 1900 hours, and again at 0700 hours in the morning, so I know that you are both fine, take your Army ID cards with you, and no alcohol as you are both still under age” Uncle Nat said, and after thanking him we dashed out of the office, nearly knocking over a Corporal in the process, and sending a number of folders flying in the air and scatter all over the floor, and we shouted sorry as we left the building.

Back at the apartment, I started up my laptop computer, and typed in the Great Southern Rail web address, and clicked on the Overland train link. We were pleased to see that there was still seats available in the premium seating, and the rest was all booked out, so we booked and paid for tomorrow’s journey, and the return journey on Tuesday.

Next, we went onto the YHA website, and we booked a twin private room at the North Melbourne YHA hostel, for a total of four nights, and while on the site, we booked a full day tour of Phillip Island, for Saturday. Once that was done, we checked out other things that we can do while in Melbourne, and we decided to go and watch the Big Bash Cricket on Sunday.

“What about we skip the cricket and spend a few days hiking?” Will suggested to me, and so we began researching hiking trails in Victoria, until we came across the Great Ocean Walk, from Apollo Bay to Port Campbell, which is 104 kilometres, that will take us about 7 days to do.Will assured me that he was fully capable of doing a long-distance hike, and not afraid to camp outdoors for a week, so I gave Uncle Nat a call at his office.

“We have an idea, we want to run by you, we would like to give the Great Ocean Walk a go, it is 104 kilometres, and the information suggests that it will take us 7 days, and there are camping grounds evenly spaced out” I said to my uncle, unsure how he would respond.

“Ok, as long as you are both sure that you can do it, that is fine by me. How will you get to Apollo Bay?’ Uncle Nat said to me, “there is a train to Geelong, from Melbourne, then a bus to Apollo Bay, that take 2 ½ hours” I replied, “Ok, I guess I will hear more about it later, bye” Uncle Nat said, and he ended the call.

Over the next few hours, we adjusted the accommodation in Melbourne to just one night, and cancelled the Tuesday return train journey, and we did a lot of information searching about the hike, including where to get the best maps for the hike, and borrowing Uncle Nat’s backpack, we started to pack what we need for the trip.

I explained to Will what is best to wear for long distance hiking, and I retrieved a list of food from the trip, that Uncle Nat and I took in the WA Cape to Cape walk, which will be very similar, and we would do the shopping for food on the morning before we catch the bus to Apollo Bay, which leaves at 10 am on Saturday.

Will had only five days’ worth of clothing with him, so I packed an extra jumper and windbreaker jacket, plus some extra pairs of socks, and my spare pair of hiking boots for him to use. By the time Uncle Nat arrived home from work, we were well set with our preparations for the trip, and we showed Uncle Nat all the information that we had gathered during the day, and he seemed pleased that we had managed to get everything packed and ready in such a short period of time.

The next day, after an early breakfast, Will and I said goodbye to Uncle Nat, and we caught the suburban train into the city, to catch the Overland train to Melbourne, which would take most of the day. The train journey was long, but it was very comfortable, and we watched a few movies on Will’s tablet, during the journey.

During this trip, we discussed the plans for the hike, and at some stage, the discussion of alternative locations was brought up, and between movies, we did some more web searching for other possible hiking trips. I mentioned that I was originally thinking of doing the South Coast Walk in Tasmania, which would take up to eight days to do, and Will seemed very interested in this, so we did some more research on this.

By the time we had arrived in Melbourne, we were now in full planning mode for a hiking trip in Tasmania, and we had decided on trekking the Port Davey Track, and we booked a cabin on the Spirit of Tasmania ferry, with a 9 pm departure, giving us just 90 minutes to get from the train station to the ferry terminal. We had let them know that we were coming straight from the train station, and would allow us less time from the usual 45 minutes before departure for check

It was a bit of a rush, but we managed to get to the terminal, with 35minutes to spare, for our overnight journey across to Devonport, with a twin share cabin booked so we could get a good night’s sleep, which we needed, after the long train journey from Adelaide.

We had grabbed a bite to eat before boarding the ferry, so once we had settled into our cabin, and taken showers, we headed straight to bed, as we would have an early start, with the ferry arriving in Devonport at 7am.