I am someone who is guilty of not spending enough time in nature. Of being the sort of person who rushes around, darting from picking kids up, and hurrying from an interview, to grocery shopping.
When I do take the time to be out to be in nature I am often still fast in my stride, and my thoughts, which move rapidly from kids to work, to what to cook for dinner.
Fortunately, my work brings me in contact with some phenomenal people, and a variety of experiences that open my eyes to seeing the world from a different angle.
One of my tasks this week, was to write about a new sound walk along the Campbells Creek Track that meanders through the bush behind the busy road that stretches from Castlemaine to Campbells Creek.
Compiled by Campbells Creek local Rob Law, who has a background in both environmental science and sound production, the sound walk is full of the sounds of nature from different times of day and spread throughout the year.
The interviews on the sound walk are with locals who are are knowledgeable about different elements of the creek, from micro-bats, to plants, and history.
Listening to them feels like going on a walk with a friend, hearing their unique perspectives and gaining fascinating insights into the different elements of the landscape.
Throughout the walk I felt a change in the way my body felt, the way I listened, the things I saw and the way I walked. Hearing local First Nations Peoples talking about the importance of connecting to Country, made me view connection to the natural environment around me differently.
Rob told me that over time he has started to listen to the creek more and he wanted others to have that same opportunity to connect with the urban waterway and hear the different layers.
“The goal of this project is to invite people down there to spend some time, getting to know it, slowing down and listening more deeply, rather than just passing through for exercise, because it’s much more than that,” he said.
“Through doing this project, I uncovered all of these amazing people who live here, who have some knowledge of the creek that is specific.
“There are a range of different perspectives as well, from children through to people that have been here their whole lives and are in their 80s, which gives that sense of how the place changes over time as well,” Rob said.
Living alongside the creek Rob has noticed a huge upsurge since the missing link opened last month, with at least a 600 per cent increase in usage.
“I’ve been down there a lot with my kids and their friends and spending time in their world and watching how for them, they are already very immersed in it, and we kind of have this separation, but they are very much in the place, I think that’s important for adults to think about how we relearn that, there is no boundary for them between their imaginative world and what we call the real world.
“Being able to tap into that sense of wonder that they have and we forget about as we become adults.”
Downloading the sound walk is really simple. All you have to do is visit: soundtrails.com.au/campbells-creek download the app on the apple store or Google Play (make sure you give it access to your location as it is connected to your GPS), grab a pair of headphones and head down to either end of the track (at the Forest Street entrance through to the Campbells Creek playground), open the app and once you’re in place it will take you on an incredible journey through the beautiful hidden wilderness that sits right in the middle of suburbia.
* Make sure to practise your walkers acknowledgment nod to give as you pass fellow walkers because it has become quite a popular spot!
