Out from the rolling waves of the ocean, the ships tender, a large open boat powered by a diesel motor at the rear, headed up into the protected cove, in a small chop. A diverse range of hardy grasses and trees stunted by the salty blast of the roaring forties pushed up from the rocks into rugged hills, with decent sized trees only in protected gullys. Good weather in these parts was as rare as a cat that liked dogs, although she had known some of them. They were surrounded by land on all sides and the chop stilled as they chugged further into the protected waters. The vee of the bow wave spread out behind them.
Anne held her dog, Max, on a tight leash as he strained to get his nose into the breeze. His ears quivered and peeked with excitement,
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To her right three women and two men in yellow and green coats stared at the dog with a mixture of disapproval and oochie coo, while one of the boatman sat on the prow. The other steered the boat from the rear.
She had always wondered what it would be like to be a bird or a dog. Her girl friends endless pursued the dumb klutz’s that comprise the male sex, and she liked them too, but the amount of time the girls spent on make-up and endless discussions on the manipulation of their hapless victims, she wondered that they had any time for study at all. A country girl by heart, she always yearned for the open country, and felt more sympathy for the kangaroo with a broken leg that she had found by the side of the road, and nursed back to health, than she could dredge up for the vast mob of throbbing humanity.
The craft headed for a small beach sheltered on either side by rocks. Behind the rocks stunted tangled trees wound their way up the hills. The corner of a hut pointed out from behind the higher
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“Call us if you have any trouble. We will be staying in the huts at the base just here. The best one for you is over on the east of the island. Great views over the colonies.”
Anne slotted the radio phone into the side of her pack. “Can you see Adams Island from there?”
“You can if you head south. It's a decent day walk down to the tip, through fairly rugged country. Use the track if you can find it although it might be overgrown by now. We try to keep the main tracks clear, but the minor tracks soon get covered in grass. Be careful. You may end up following a kangaroo or a wombat trail, instead of a human.” He picked up some bags. “You'd better get moving. You have three or four hours hard walk to get to your hut before nightfall.”
She headed up the track away from the beach, with only Max. The path was narrow but the freedom exhilarated her. A short distance along the flat preceded a long climb up to the ridge line. Walking with her dog, she couldn't have been happier, as far below, deep ocean waves rolled in. She hurried her pace wanting to get to her destination while she still had