A winter's ramble

It was a crisp mid-morning in June, a hint of warmth from the sun, but no wind. Perfect for a short walk along the coastal cliff from Parsons Beach to Waitpinga Beach, a mere 15 minutes from home. We've done this walk a number of times, but not for quite a while. 

I love this part of the coastline - wild surf, rocky cliffs, low-growing vegetation, all bordered by the vast sweep of the Southern Ocean.  Here's a glimpse.

But I'm getting ahead of myself. Part of the pleasure of this walk is the drive to it, as the road meanders past bucolic farmland, rolling green hills and dense eucalypt forest.

I loved these tiny sculptures that I spotted atop a gate at the entrance to a farm.

So by the time we arrive at our destination I'm perfectly relaxed and happy and can see Parsons Beach stretching before us.

There's a very steep track down to this beach which we've navigated before but today we're heading east, so we turn left and begin the coastal walk to the next beach at Waitpinga; this section is just a tiny part of the 1200 kilometres-long Heysen Trail, as the signpost indicates.

The surf was indeed surging as we walked on.

The path itself is easy to follow, though it's little more than a jumble of limestone rocks in some places.

I always marvel at how the vegetation manages to survive in such a hostile environment. Today I even spied some moss.

At times it almost looks like a landscaped native garden.

A few more twists of the trail and we could now see Waitpinga Beach in the distance. Once we got to the vantage point to see the beach clearly, we decided we would turn back. 

We ambled on, breathing in the fresh air and admiring the scenery, while managing to pick our way over the rocky path. 

... and stopping to take photos.

We decided to stop. This was as close as we would get to Waitpinga Beach before retracing our steps. We've been down the steep track to the beach a number of times. Such a wild beach today, but in the summertime a gloriously peaceful and calm spot.

On the way back I took a lovely panorama with just a glimpse of Waitpinga Beach on the far left.

Steve takes another photo of me to remember the day.  You can see I was enjoying this.

So I reciprocated.

Eventually we were back at a slightly calmer Parsons Beach.

At the lookout, we saw a group of young guys back-packed up and setting off on their Heysen Trail adventure.

This one spotted me taking the photo - cheeky guy! 

This short walk is perfect for that get-away-from-it-all feeling. So if anyone comes to visit us, you're certain to be taken here. Just put yourself in this photo (as Steve has done) and imagine ...

By the way, the next stop across the ocean is Antarctica.