Willis's Walkabouts Newsletter 80, August 2015 — The Grand Finale Begins

Willis's Walkabouts — The Grand Finale Begins

It begins with Kakadu Easy Overnight Walks No. 2: 29 September - 5 October. I asked myself what would I most like to do for a second short overnight trip and this was it. The houseboat is there because it's something I truly enjoy and do far too seldom.

The Program

The Walkabouts trip list has looked much the same for nearly 20 years. There will be major changes. Every trip on that list is there because I enjoy doing it myself. But, times change, access rules change, what we are allowed to do changes. We have to change too.

I will do my best to run every trip which has bookings by the end of October. If you are interested in any particular trip, best to get in soon and make sure it stays in the program.

2016 — A Memorable Year

2016 will bring the 30^th anniversary of the first trip I ran using the name Willis's Walkabouts.

I have already tied the record, but in 2016 I will become the oldest guide ever to lead a trip for Willis's Walkabouts.

While I remain amazingly fit for my age, I am my age. I am slowing down. (If you're really curious, browse the Darwin ParkRun website results page. You'll find me at #33.)

Combine all of the above and I've decided to try and make 2016 extra special.

It's Time

In the words of the song, link above, "It's time for freedom, It's time for moving, It's time to begin, Yes It's time"

In the words of Oliver Sacks, "There is no time for anything inessential. I must focus on myself, my work and my friends."

For 30 years, I have been blessed with being able to earn a living doing something I love. I have visited many wonderful places and met many wonderful people. I have lived a life that most people can only dream about. But the best parts of that life have come at a price.

In recent years, the price for continuing to run Willis's Walkabouts has been more and more of the office work which I have come to dislike. Worse, I am no longer doing that work as effectively as I should. It's time for a change. It's time to concentrate on the things I truly enjoy rather than paperwork. If that means phasing things down a level, so be it.

2017

I was originally going to cram all the trips I most wanted to do into 2016. My list is too large so the Grand Finale will continue through 2017. In at least one case, if I can't get the permit I need to run a trip commercially, I'll do it on a share cost basis, possibly for as few as one other person.

I have no idea what the program will look like, but if I'm still fit enough to lead a few walks, it will contain those I most want to do.

I'll have more in the next newsletter or two.

2018 and Beyond

There is a succession plan. The details have yet to be worked out but unless something goes very wrong, Willis's Walkabouts will still exist but many of the things I do today will be being done by others. As to what the program will look like — only time can tell.

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Bushwalking, Happiness and a Peruvian Dream

Bushwalkng and Happiness

According to an article in the New Daily "money can actually buy happiness, provided you buy the right things. You just need to spend it wisely on worthwhile experiences, rather than shiny new things."

We offer experiences and memories to last a lifetime — at least that's what some of our clients from more than 20 years ago tell us today. For the full story, see Stop trying to be so happy. You should do this instead. We focus on what quickly fades, when we should be investing in the long term.

Peruvian Dream

On my recent trip to the Isdell River in the Kimberley, I was accompanied by Lani Imhof and Michael Smith, who shared the story of how a bushwalking holiday in South America turned into a life changing experience for them and for a Peruvian indigenous family.

Lani wrote a book about their experience. I bought a copy and was inspired by just how much difference they had made to the lives of the Peruvian family. I suspect that the benefits will eventually spread far beyond that one family. I bought the book and can heartily recommend it.

You can find more information on the Peruvian Dream Facebook page.

If you'd like to purchase the e-book, go to www.lulu.com or, for a print book contact Lani directly at laniimhof@gmail.com.

Note. All profits from the sale of the book go to the charity So They Can.

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Belief

Much of what you believe is determined by your biology.

According to an article in New Scientist earlier this year.

• political belief is rooted in our basic biology.
• Our moral judgements are usually rapid and intuitive; people jump to conclusions and only later come up with reasons to justify their decision.
• What feels right to believe is also powerfully shaped by the culture we grow up in.
• If you hear a new thing, you try to fit it in with your current beliefs. . That often means going to great lengths to reject something that contradicts your position, or seeking out further information to confirm what you already believe.

The full article is well worth reading.

It got me thinking about some of the problems facing our society and how some people can't seem to accept what science tells them. Reality conflicts with belief so it's reality that has to give way.

That led me to think about dysfunctional governments. We've got problems here in Australia but our problems pale into insignificance when compared to places like Greece or the USA. That led me to a piece that appeared in another issue of New Scientist, Think or Be Damned. One of the ideas is that "many civic institutions, built for a minimally networked world, are unfit for purpose." Again, it's worth a read and worth thinking about.

Morality is rooted in the way societies get their energy

That might seem a wild claim, but Ian Morris, the author of The unexpected origin of human values makes a good case. Read it through to the end. The science is there. Your children or grandchildren may live to see a world where our existing inequalities are nothing in comparison to what may come to pass.

Our brains aren't built to cope with a society as complex as ours

A recent Outside the Box from John Mauldin was titled Europe's Greek Tragedy. In it a Belgian medical doctor who brings a unique perspective to the problems facing Europe, problems which are "too complex to fix in any straightforward or dependable way." I will quote one paragraph in full to show how belief gets in the way of solutions.

"The final and most impactful cognitive deficit underpinning the crisis is the Dunning-Kruger effect, or the inability of people incapable of understanding the situation at hand to recognize their own incompetence. I do not mean to say that Europe's best and brightest are stupid; quite the opposite in fact. But their skills – and the skills of any human brain, however intelligent – are far outmatched by the complexity of Europe's contemporary problems, so much so that they cannot recognize their own limitations in forming a solution and consequently cannot counter the negative impact their unwarranted overconfidence has on European policy."

The points made in Europe's Greek Tragedy apply equally well to many of the problems we find in Australia and around the world. Until we are willing to elect politicians who are willing to admit that they don't have answers to every single question, many of our government's policies will be doomed to failure.

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Our Australian Trips

Now Through January

With good bookings on some trips and not enough guides for others, I've had to cancel a number of trips which didn't have any bookings. There are now only five trips available before February.

• Kakadu Easy Overnight Walks No. 1: 1-6 September
  On this trip, you carry a full pack a short distance to a base camp from which you do one or two overnight walks before returning to the vehicle and moving on to the next walk.
  The trip notes, link above, were completely updated and revised on 2 August.
• Kakadu Family Special: 24 September - 3 October
  Guide Rod Costigan and his family enjoyed our family trip last July so much that they ae coming back to do another, whether or not anyone else joins them.
  Price - $1595. 10% off for bookings on or before 17 August. Children's discounts apply as described in the notes.
• Kakadu Easy Overnight Walks No. 2: 29 September - 5 October
  New trip. On this trip, you never carry your pack more than five km at a time. You do day walks from base camps and spend the final night on a houseboat.
• New Year in Kakadu: 27 December - 2 January
  We won't be able to tell you exactly where we'll be going until we see how much rain we've had. The trip notes (link above) give you some of the possibilities. What we can say, is that it will be the best walk we can think of at the time.
• Kakadu Super Circle No. 1: 3-23 January is now a definite departure. This is the only trip anyone offers where you get to visit Jim Jim and Twin Falls and see them at their spectacular best.
  This is our longest and most strenuous expedition in Kakadu. It is also one of the most rewarding trips we can offer.
  Note. We can include exactly what you'd like for your breakfasts and lunches for the second half in the food drop if you let us know before the drop goes out in October.

Probable guides: Russell, Rod, Russell, Russell and Don.

February Onwards

Two Wet Season trips have bookings. There is no one else who can offer amazing trips like these.

• Bungles in the Wet: 7-20 February
  The Bungles in the Wet is very different to the Bungles in the Dry. Have a look at
  some Wet Season Bungles photos
  or the 2008 trip gallery
  or some video clips from 2008 and see just how different it is.
• Kimberley Coast Explorer: 6 March - 16 April
  Four sections any of which can be done on its own. This is the longest and hardest expedition we offer, an experience which we may or may not be able to offer again.If you think there is even a remote chance that you might be interested, you owe it to yourself to have a look at some of our photos and videos.
  Kimberley Coast Explorer 2011 — 14 min 21 sec. this video takes you from pre-trip preparation through to the end. by Tracey Dixon, one of the clients on the trip.
  Kimberley Coast Explorer 2011 — 4 min 46 sec. Highlights from the above, by Tracey Dixon
  Kimberley Coast Explorer 2011 Tracey Dixon's Gallery — a record wet, cyclonic low and the edge of Cyclone Errol certainly made this a contender with the 1995 trip.
  Kimberley Coast Explorer 1995 — the photos are old and a bit small but show how Cyclone Chloe turned this into the most challenging Kimberley Coast trip we have ever done.

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Trans Pacific Partnership — The Saga Continues

The following is from an email I received from GetUp. This is an issue where they have my 100% support.

The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations recently stalled after delegates failed to reach a final deal. And can you believe it, one of the key bulwarks was our very own Trade Minister Andrew Robb, who refused to back down over the US' push to extend patents for medicines. ¹

Public pressure is working, prompting parliamentarians to voice their opposition to parts of the deal — so much so that media commentators today are declaring the future of the TPP "utterly unpredictable". ² What an incredible turn of events!

But despite recognising the risks posed by the TPP, Minister Robb is still intent on seeing this through to the bitter end, and will return to the negotiating table as soon as a date is set for the next ministerial meeting. ³ We can help ensure that before he does, he hears a clear message from within his party about the widespread opposition to this dirty deal.

To give credit where credit's due, Minister Robb has heard our concerns over increasing patents for medicines, a move that would risk "endangering the health of millions of people for decades to come". ⁴ He has ruled out any deal that would increase the price of medicines in Australia — however there are still lots of nasties left in the TPP mix, some of which might still be under wraps.

Lost in the last-minute debates about the price of medicine has been the even more serious assault on the public interest represented by Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) clauses. We cannot allow multinational corporations to hold Australian governments to ransom over laws created to protect the public.

Off the back of Saturday's huge news, and as Minister Robb plans for the next round of negotiations, we can make sure he's feeling the heat from within his own party. Internal tensions are already simmering, with five National MPs threatening to cross the floor over the lack of access the deal offers Australian sugarcane farmers. ⁵ It seems MPs are wising up to the fact that the so-called "free trade" deal, isn't all it's been cracked up to be.

If you live in a Coalition held electoreate, can you take a minute to email your Coalition MP and ask them to put the Australian community before corporations?

A year ago, almost no one had heard about the TPP, now not a week goes by without it being mentioned in the headlines thanks to GetUp members, like you, and the amazing work being done behind the scenes by other groups.

The future of the TPP is hanging in the balance, now let's knock it off!

PS. In a timely twist of fate, the dangers of the TPP's nasty ISDS provisions are being played out right now. Tobacco-giant Phillip Morris is suing for compensation over Australia's plain-packaging laws, using an ISDS clause in an obscure Hong Kong-Australia trade deal. Our Government is spending $50 million defending them — that's more than three year's worth of anti-smoking ads. ⁶ This is the first time ISDS provisions have been used to sue an Australian government, but if the TPP passes, it's likely it won't be the last. Call on your MP to put a stop to it.

The failed talks were held on the island of Maui in Hawaii. Even in a small place like that, there were massive protests. Consumers in every single country that signs up will be losers. thankfully, more and more are coming to realise this.

My opinion — anyone who doesn't take the time to make some sort of protest, no matter how small that protest may be, has no right to complain about the increased prices and other costs that they will have to bear if it comes into effect. They have to accept that their inaction means that they should be happy to live in a world totally controlled by corporations rather than people.

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Sex and Society

Searching for Sex * — People lie about it, but Google knows the truth. Read the article and you may get a few surprises.

Taking Risks in Love * — Put down the phone and treat romance as if it were a start-up.
"ignoring friends and colleagues is bad; doing so in romance is downright lethal. Technology has become a metastatic force for romantic distraction. One survey found that 70 percent of women said cellphones were interfering with their relationship. The culprit is not technology, but we who pursue virtual escape in place of real life."

From Pleasure to Sin is the first of a three-part series, in which the eminent theological historian, Professor Diarmaid MacCulloch explores how Christianity has shaped western attitudes to sex, gender and sexuality throughout history. Travelling from Israel to Greece, Italy and Ireland, he begins by showing how early Christians transformed sex from a biological necessity into a vice, from a pleasure into a sin. Even though Jesus Christ said very little about sex, Christianity soon promoted celibacy as the Christian ideal, turned sex into something dangerous and made even marriage second-best.

This episode is available at SBS On Demand until sometime on 30 August. The next two episoces screen on Sunday 23 August and Sunday 30 August. If you're at all curious as to how western attitudes toward sex arose, it's worth watching.

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Living and Dying in an Aging World

Living

We live in a finite world. At some point, the human population on this planet has to stop growing. if it didn't stop somewhere, eventually there wouldn't even be standing room. The question is when, not if. Does is stop while we still have bits of unspoiled nature left or do we concrete the planet and grow all our food in vats?

Bye-Bye, Baby * explains, "Birthrates are falling around the world. And that's O.K."

Many countries, including Australia, would now have declining populations if it were not for immigration. Can you guess which country now has the lowest birthrate? Hint — Japan now has the second lowest birthrate.

A steady birth rate, longer lifespans, and high net migration, have kept the estimated resident population increasing at 1.6 per cent per year on average in the past five years – roughly 400,000 more Aussies a year. So the hours-worked increase is not quite keeping pace.

We live in an aging society. The sooner we can accept that fact, the better off we'll be. Here are a few interesting quotes from an article about health care costs in a publication called Tech Digest.

• Healthcare costs are going up because the average age of the population is rising quickly. This is the consequence of longer life spans and reduced birth rates, which must yield an older population. Healthcare costs rise exponentially as we age, so a population’s medical bills must go up with average age.
• While the pool of transfer payment recipients is expanding due to longer life spans, the pool of contributors—young, healthy workers and taxpayers—is shrinking. As birth rates drop, so does our ability to pay for the healthcare of an aging population.
• Though many policy makers are in denial about the demographic basis of the healthcare and budgetary crises, the fiscal imbalance will get worse—but the books will be balanced eventually, one way or another. Contributions from payers must equal or surpass the funds transferred to recipients. The alternative is playing out in Greece right now.
• One side of the equation, revenues, is a function of productivity and total taxpayers. The number of future taxpayers, however, is largely outside of policy makers' control.... Productivity could be increased to generate greater revenues, but the "crowding out effect" caused by increasing debt reduces productivity.... The other side of the balance sheet is dominated by a continually growing aged population (tax spenders). This imbalance will continue to worsen as average life spans and the average age of populations increase.
• Fortunately, there is a way to address this imbalance. We must (and we will) increase human capital by extending health spans to allow longer working careers and investment timelines. In effect, we would shift people from the ranks of the aged retirees to the worker/investor column.

Our government sort of gets this. On the one hand, the treasurer has called for more over 65s to keep working. On the other, he completely fails to recognise the obstacles which are in the way. The New Daily ran a story about this, Over-65s tell Joe Hockey: 'Get fair dinkum'. It notes that, "The over-65s get almost no access to workers' compensation and income protection insurance, and it's bothering them." I'm pleased to say that I'm quoted in that article.

Dying

Dying Shouldn't Be So Brutal *
"Where is the public outrage over needless suffering at the end of life?" If we treated our pets the way we treat some dying people, we'd be charged with an offence.

What would you do if you knew you were dying? Oliver Sacks was diagnosed with terminal cancer earlier this year. He says, "I am now face to face with dying. But I am not finished with living."

"I feel a sudden clear focus and perspective. There is no time for anything inessential. I must focus on myself, my work and my friends. I shall no longer look at “NewsHour” every night. I shall no longer pay any attention to politics or arguments about global warming."

"This is not indifference but detachment — I still care deeply about the Middle East, about global warming, about growing inequality, but these are no longer my business; they belong to the future. I rejoice when I meet gifted young people — even the one who biopsied and diagnosed my metastases. I feel the future is in good hands."

You can read his full essay My Own Life * here.

There is a lesson there for us all. We need to focus on the essential, on family and friends and not on the relatively unimportant things which take up so much of our time.

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Photos & Videos

• It's back. In my May newsletter, I mentioned the video, Land of the Wandjinna. It has some amazing wildlife footage. It screened again on 9 august and will remain online until sometime on 23 August.
• National Geographic Travel Photo Contest winners
• The physics of popcorn. * We now know what happens when popcorn pops.
• Alfred Wegener *
  This animated documentary tells the story of polar explorer Alfred Wegener, the unlikely scientist behind continental drift theory.
• MegaMix (Card Hit Wonder) — one of the most amazing card tricks I've ever seen.
• A woman found a badly injured lion in the forest. She took it with her and nursed it back to health. When it was better, she made arrangements with a zoo to take the lion and give it a new and happy home. This video was taken when she returned to the zoo some time later to see how her lion was doing. Do you think it recognised her?
• Frozen soap bubbles
• Hiding in plain sight.
  A friend emailed me these photos.
  While I was trying to find a link I could use in this newsletter, I found a bigger challenge. This one comes with a tool to help you spot the hidden animal.

And finally Lost in the 50s tonight. I'm old enough to remember the 1950s. When I saw this, I immediately sent it to all my friends and relatives in America. As the person who sent it to me said, "Some of us 'Aussies' will remember some of this, those with American connections will remember a whole lot more, enjoy!!

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News About This Newsletter

Contents

Before I finish one newsletter, I'm already working on the next. I often find that I've got too many interesting things for a single newsletter. I'm also always looking for other interesting items I can add. I'm particularly interested in environmental issues, especially those which might affect bushwalking and in the technology which is shaping our lives. As I said in the last newsletter, Suggestions welcome.

Sending the newsletter

While I now send most of the newsletters using MailChimp, I still send about 200 newsletters using a program which is hosted on the same server that hosts our website. In both cases, the newsletters are sent from walkabout@bushwalkingholidays.com.au. This is the contact address on our website. If you would like to continue to receive these newsletters, please include this address in your "friends list" so that it isn't blocked.

For some reason, some servers block the newsletters no matter what you try and do. I send these in small groups from my normal email. It's not a simple problem. If anyone thinks they might have an idea how to overcome the problem, I'd love to hear from you.

Emails sent to walkabout@bushwalkingholidays.com.au are currently automatically forwarded to rrwillis at internode.on.net. If you want to send an email to that address, replace the word "at" with the symbol @. I am trying not to put that address any place where it can be harvested by spam bots.

We don't want to add to the mass of email spam. If you don't want our newsletter, please send us an email and let us know. We'll then delete your name from our newsletter list.

Our email address is walkabout@bushwalkingholidays.com.au.

Note. Both MailChimp and the other program we use to send some of these newsletters have an automatic delete at the bottom. Clicking that link will delete you from the mailing list on the server but it will not delete you from our main database. One of the programs will not allow the auto delete to send me an email notifying me that a deletion has been made. If you want to be sure that you are removed from all further mailings, please send an email to walkabout@bushwalkingholidays.com.au

If you know someone you think would enjoy this newsletter, please forward it to them. The more people who get it, the more likely it is that I'll be able to run the trips which might interest you.

Best wishes to all.
Russell Willis

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