Kind Gestures

[Michael_Kingston]

On Saturday, while waiting for the boat at Narcissus after 8 days walking from Lake McKenzie via the Plateau, Chinamans Plains, the Mtns of Jupiter, Traveller Range and a partial traverse of the DuCane Range, a female Cradle huts guide gave myself and my walking partner oranges. She could obviously see the look on our faces as the clients all unpacked their lunches next to us on the jetty!!!

There must be plenty of examples of kind gestures by walkers ... anyone like to share some?

[tastrax]

Years ago I was walking the Overland North / South and wanted someone to run my car around from Cradle to St Clair - I hadnt been able to find anyone so headed off anyway. At waterfall valley there was a scottish backpacker ( walking south north) who looked an honest type so you can imagine his surprise and delight when I offered him my 4WD for a week on the proviso that he was at Lake St Clair on a set date to pick me up! Sometimes you just need to trust people.

I walked the track, he spent a week touring around and duly picked me up at the desired time. He then came to Hobart with me and continued his touring.

[ILUVSWTAS]

Thats amazing Phil! Credit to you!

I had a day walker offer me his choccy bar at south cape bay after I told him I'd walked from Prion beach, Being only 2 hrs from the car on a 14 hr day though I declined! Although I really really really wanted it!

Mmmmmm Snickers........



What about acts of non kindness?? Stubowling did the anne circuit, came out at the bottom creek and mentioned to a tourist he wanted a ride up to the car, the person chatted to him for a while then said "well good luck getting your lift BYE"

[Michael_Kingston]

i agree with you Phil - you need to put your trust in people at times. Life would be pretty poor without it.

The other act of kindness that sticks in my mind was when I was 20 and cycle touring. I was in Kakadu and an elderly couple pulled up at the side of the road offered me a drink. I got talking and it turned out they lived a few blocks from my parents. I described my parent's house, which was opposite some tennis courts, and they knew which one it was. About a week later I rang my parents from a phone box to let them know everything was ging OK (this was prior to lightweight mobile phones!!). My mum told me that a letter had arrived from the couple to say they had seen me and I was doing OK and they had written because young people don't always stay in touch! It was addressed to the cream brick house opposite the tennis courts in W.... Avenue, etc...

[tastrax]

Great story Michael,

I know what that feels like with kids...at least these days we have facebook and sms etc so I have some idea of what my kids are up to when they are interstate.

I also try and do the right thing with hitchhikers as I used to do a bit myself. Last Saturday I picked up a couple at Triabunna - they had been there for an hour and a half and there was heaps of traffic on the road. They were headed to Freycinet and despite the fact I was only going to Swansea I kept going and dropped them at the Coles Bay turn off. At least that way they should only have to get one more lift for the day.

[tastrax]

[quote="ILUVSWTAS"]Thats amazing Phil! Credit to you!/quote]

What is even more amazing ILUVSWTAS is that the same guy managed to track me down about twenty years later when he returned to Tassie. He remembered that I worked for Parks and some staff helped him find me as I had moved around a fair bit since our first meeting. We shared a few more stories and had a meal in Hobart before he headed off again.

[Taurë-rana]

When I did the Anne Circuit years ago we swapped keys with some people going the other way.
This time after NE Ridge when I came down to Condominium Creek, I waited for some day walkers who had offered to give me a lift to my car. They got down, then one of them drove me to my car, which was quite a distance away, while the others rested and organised themselves. He then drove back and picked up his companions and would no doubt have then driven back down the road past where my car was to get home. These things absolutely make my day.

I picked up a hitch hiker today before Pontville - I'd decided for some reason that I would pick up one if I saw one. He had no luggage, and a 2 day growth so I wondered about him as he was going to Launceston. I was going to drop him off at Mood Food so I could go through the Lakes but decided to do the Midland Hwy instead because it was nice having company on a beep long drive. He had very little, certainly no money, and has lived somewhat outside of regular society for much of his life. We talked all the way to Perth where I bought him a coffee, then I took him to his friend's place in Launceston - could be looked at as a kind gesture by me, but what his conversation and company gave me including lessons in humility and life in general was worth far more than my "kind gesture". It also turned out that I once knew his older sister and brother - Tassie's a small place.

[north-north-west]

Thats amazing Phil! Credit to you!/quote]

What is even more amazing ILUVSWTAS is that the same guy managed to track me down about twenty years later when he returned to Tassie. He remembered that I worked for Parks and some staff helped him find me as I had moved around a fair bit since our first meeting. We shared a few more stories and had a meal in Hobart before he headed off again.

What's particularly interesting to me is that you've been working for Parks that long. I'm starting to wonder if I might know you . . .

[Turfa]

Walking the Appalachian Trail in the US in 2006 I was constantly amazed by the kindness & generosity of total strangers. Never had problems hitchhiking into town to re-supply after 5 days walking (dirty, smelly, wet etc.) would often have people take me direct to the supermarket, wait for me to buy food & then take me back to the trail, miles out of their way. Had people invite me home for a meal, & then lend me their car to drive around town. Lost count of the times people offered me food at places where the trail crossed roads or accessible lookouts.
One instance in particular will always stay with me. Was in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park & the weather was foul, temps just around freezing, howling wind, horizontal rain/sleet/snow, the outside of my gear was encrusted with about 1cm of ice, I was covered in mud from head to toe from slipping in the ice & slush. Got to a road crossing & decided to bail out & head into town & get dry, but it was about 18km into the nearest town so had to hitch. Never thought anyone would pick me up in my state in that kind of weather, but after only 5 minutes a little hatchback pulls over & the lady gets out into the freezing rain & helps me fit my muddy, dripping wet pack into the car. I hop in to the car & it is warm & dry...wonderful. The lady then tells me that she was on her way into town for a job interview !
I still wish her good karma.........
Amercans get a lot of bad press, but I was constantly amazed at their generosity & kindness.
That trip really made me realise how much small, random acts of kindness can mean to someone who needs it. Something I have since tried to do myself......

[Michael_Kingston]

I have to agree Turfa about Americans in their home country - I was in the States for 3 months on a fellowship a few years ago with my wife and young kids (one was 2yrs and the other 6 mths old at the time). At the end of each day my wife would constantly comment on the friendliness and helpfulness of people. In Chicago, a couple of female uni (college) students stayed on the El (the elevated train) a number of stops past their own stop because the kids were 'so cute' and they wanted to make sure my wife had no trouble getting them down the steps from the train back to street level.

And on the subject of the Appalachian trail - ever since reading Bill Bryson's 'A Walk in the Woods', I have thought that it would be an amazing experience to walk it (although I probably wouldn't choose Katz as a walking partner if you have read the book).

[Orion]

Well, as an American I can attest to the fact that the majority of us are *&%$#! at home as well as abroad.

But as always there are exceptions. Walking in our Sierra Nevada several years ago a friend and I came upon three college students who were handing out free cans of beer and hot dogs to hikers. This was on a high remote pass (3600m) about 30km from the road. To get there you first have to cross over another high pass. These three had carried over 100 cans of beer and accompanying hot dogs, buns, and condiments on their backs. They had to do more than one trip to get it all in there. Each return trip was 60km and about 2500m in elevation gain/loss. They stored the food and beverages submerged in a lake to keep it cool and safe from bears.

I don't know what their motivation was for this "kind gesture" but I did hear that they repeated the whole thing the following year.

[Michael_Kingston]

i could see this working at Pelion Gap - must have been a shock coming across a cold beer out there!

[stepbystep]

Had one today,
Having just walked out of Betts Road after coming off Cathedral Rock via Mt Montagu and Thark Ridge, I needed to get back to Big Bend to get my car - 20km approx.
A farmer pulls up without me needing to stick out a digit and offers me a ride to Pinnacle Rd turnoff - got chatting and he was on his way to his best mates funeral - heart attack at 60.
After sharing stories he says, "Ah mate I've got some time, how bout I take you up the mountain" - he then tells me he never picks anyone up and never drives the Huon Road, but his mate much preferred the drive on HR rather than the Southern Outlet, and his mate always picked up bushwalkers. He did it this day because it took him by his mates property and wanted to "smell the roses".
On getting out I thanked him profusely, but he thanked me for the company and conversation, said he really needed it.

Just goes to show, they're out there just waiting to be kind, even if it takes a while to get around to it.
sbs.

[juju]

The kids and I were on a very out of the way coastal car camp. there was one other group near us, a man with his two children. The day before we went home we had our near empty 10L water container set on the picnic table and were returning from a beach walk late in the afternoon. As we walked toward our camp I saw the man and his kids had packed up and left and I noticed there was no level in our water container. I was alarmed that it was empty, thinking all sorts of things - 'Who emptied our water!?'.
On reaching the table, I found the container full. The man had brim-filled it before he left. We were able to stay another couple of days because of his thoughtfulness. Julie

[Steve]

When doing the Western Arthurs over the new year the night I got into Oberon all the tent platforms and camp areas were taken. Before I had a chance to even ponder where to set up a pommy fellow by the name of John jumped in and offered a spot in his tent for the night. He was a real character and quite the legend.