... and back to Bens Walk as Part 2! We are now back on the right path after having left the path and finding the walk a little bit tougher than the advertised "easy" walk!
And where we left off, we were just passing underneath the Hanging Rock of Nowra, from the slightly more impressive side of it... looking up from underneath!
As we walk further, I'm just constantly amazed by how the trees and rock formations have just intertwined everywhere!
... and again, lots of little grottos for fairies or drunk teenagers to hang out in! Actually, quite likely more of the latter... which makes me a bit wary of walking in and discovering it littered with all sorts of disgusting refuse...
These formations were a pretty constant feature throughout the descent down to the river level. Rocks with large gaps between them, just enough to squeeze through... and it was one of these larger gaps where we missed our turn off earlier as we didn't think that it was part of the path!
As we reach closer to the river level, the vegetation turns from the trees that are barely holding onto the sides and slopes to these more bushy and shrubby types of plants that are eking out an existence beneath the tree canopy. After the recent rain, it was more like a little rain forest!
... and we reach the fork in the loop of the walk. We either continue on the same side down the banks which would bring us to the end of the river and loop round... or we cross over this little bridge and do the loop in the opposite direction!
We chose to cross the bridge immediately, as crossing a bridge is always going to be more exciting than leaving it for later! And as we crossed, you could see how swollen the water level was from the previous night's storm. Not fast moving, but pretty full!
... and yes, a swaying and bouncing foot bridge! Lots of repaired rotted planks as well!
The other side brought us out to a wide open meadow like area... I'm sticking to the path... although the sky looks like it is autumn or something like that... it was the middle of summer after a storm, and I'm not taking my chances with Australian snakes somewhere in there!
Past the green meadows... and down this weirdly smooth path.
Oh... that doesn't look good.
Yes, it turns out the river was REALLY swollen...
... and had burst through the banks here. Not heavily, but it was fast moving, and we didn't feel like walking through it. But at least it did explain why that path earlier was crazily smooth... it must have been broken through earlier, and the moving water would have smoothed it out?
Anyway, it meant that we were turning back instead of completing the loop.
... ahhhhh... blackberries... my Dutch nemesis...
Again, that weird melding of tree roots and stones... amazing!
Oh right... probably should have read this sign BEFORE we went on the walk!