Note to self. Don't leave The Husband
full control of the course planning as it always leads to hills,
unnecessary pain, and suspicions of being lost (which can never be
confirmed as The Husband always confidently trots out comments like
its OK we just keep going South a little further then turn East: who
really thinks in terms of comapss points?).
The running program is now all about
'going further' over the the next few weeks. This is as much about
mental prepraration as physical.
We are visiting my Mum in Sydney this
week and ,along with enjoying family and catching up with old
friends, I have been looking forward to some new trails and the
picturesques options around the Northern Beaches. Mum has recently
moved to South Narrabeen. What better way to rediscover and explore
old and new territory than by foot.
Narrabeen Lakes is a pretty spot that
has been a popular location for water sports for some time. The beach
and lake are in close proximity and offer a few excellent running
options. A newly refurbished 8km trail circumventing the lake was
our starting point. There are some testosterone laden ducks that are
to be negotiated at the start (or were they geese?). In no time we
are away from the busy hustle and enjoying a hard packed trail, with
a mix of boardwalk and bridges through the pretty lake-side scrubland
and wetlands. We then turned off the trail and skirted the Cromer
Golf course and wove our way through some very undulating streets!
My suspicions that a couple of waywide child cyclists had
mistakenly following us off path was proven correct. We redirected
them back to their mother who, no doubt would have soon noticed them
missing .
I am a little vague as to how we
arrived at Dee Why but it was hard work, very hilly and involved
stairs. We joined another green stretch on the cycle way behind Dee
Why Lagoon and North Curl Curl Beach. There is a fantastic dog
walking spot behind North Curl Curl beach and the lagoon. Happy
pooches of all shapes and sizes enjoy off leash time in the sand
dunes with a chance to also swim in the lagoon.
With the beach on our left we ran
towards Harbord and Freshwater Beach, which is a place I spent many
happy days as a child, surfing and sun baking with coconut oil
lathered all over through the melanoma and ozone free 70's and 80's.
The boardwalk between South Curl Curl and Harbord is as good as it
gets for scenic ocean views and closeness to the powerful surges of
the ocean. In blustery conditions, we turned around hailed the
statue of the Duke on Freshwater headland, a Hawaii'n who apparently
introduced surf board riding to Australia, and headed on a more
direct route back towards breakfast. There was one more large hill to
take on at the end of Curl Curl beach into Dee Why. The hard packed
sand of Dee Why beach beckoned us towards Long Reef headland.
Stunning! Adding to the cooler conditions the sporadic side stepping
of blue bottles ensured we weren't tempted into the water. At this
stage I took the lead and remained so, with The Husband needing a
'moment' at kilometre 22 as we descended our last headland at Long
Reef beach. We trudged the last couple of kilometres towards
Narrabeen and Driftwood Cafe, and ended up exceeding the targetted
24km by an extra 1.4km. I have not felt the level of fatigue before
that I experienced when I finally stopped. Perhaps a hint of what was
ahead. Surely nothing a cup of tea and good meal couldn't repair.
Driftwood has an attractive street
frontage and is a popular location on Ocean Parade in Narrabeen.
While prepared to revel in a delicious
menu, Driftwood produced a fairly standard breakfast experience,
lacking in imagination and with a Sunday 10% surcharge was a little
underwhelming. Caitlyn and I enjoyed the taste of our Ocean Breakie:
poached eggs , a meagre portion of smoked salmon on hash brown,
avocado and a sad and lonely looking herbed tomato with home made
hollandaise ($21.45 with surcharge). The eggs were a little over-done
and the the hollandaise was a little bland and orange. The Husband
was very happy with his Driftwood breakfast ($21.45 with surcharge),
a generous portion of bacon, sausages, sauted mushrooms, eggs,
grilled tomato and sourdough. Baked beans out of a can are always a
little disappointing for me.
The strength of the Driftwood Cafe's
fare is the size and mass of its offerings, but there are places
which offer tastier food and much better value. BOTR have another
Sydney run to enjoy next weekend and I and am determined further
research will unearth a jewel for week 36.
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| Ocean Breakie |
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| Driftwood |
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