A Little Jog in The Wilderness - by Nicki Rehn

I was the only witness to my unforgettable experience, my thoughts and pain and joy the only companions for days on end; and silence, my closest friend. So, it is hard to convey a real and true picture of my journey. It took me 20 days to run 963 km from Perth to Albany along the Bibbulmun Track. I was able to do it alone and unsupported by carrying a 30lb pack, sending food drops ahead, sleeping in the track shelters, and doing without luxuries such as clean clothes, real food and a hair brush. And as it turns out, complete exhaustion is a sufficient substitute for a pillow and mattress. I ran (which was more like an ultra-marathon shuffle) between 50 and 60 km each day, moving slowly with the heavy pack, across the difficult terrain and in unseasonal scorching heat. It would take every morsel of daylight to complete my distance, as well as the first hour by headlamp. I actually wasn’t chasing a speed record, but was hoping to find space … not just wide open physical space that characterizes the Australia outdoors, but the mental and emotional space that comes from lengthy solitude, continuous days of motion, and time defined only by the sun rising and setting. (more…)