An –ish walk
22 walkers assembled at Meadowbank station at 9.00am on a cool-ish overcast morning – excellent conditions for walking.
The walk took us first across the [very old-ish], now disused, Meadowbank-Rhodes railway bridge, which has been converted into a new-ish cycle- & walkway, then around the waterfront of Rhodes on a new-ish “promenade”, beautifully planted with natives.
The next 2 points of interest were crossing the, again new-ish, Rhodes-Wentworth Point bridge which is for buses, cyclists & walkers only and walking through the middle of Wentworth Point, a brand-new-ish suburb where the Homebush Bay Industrial Area used to be not so very long ago.
The path then resumed beside the Parramatta River to the morning tea stop at The Armoury at Newington [very old-ish, but fairly new-ishly opened to the public as part of the Olympic Park precinct.
The mid-point of the walk was reached at the old-ish Silverwater Bridge 20 minutes or so after morning tea.
Crossing Silverwater Bridge, the walk turned back east passing the, once again new-ish, Royal Shores residential development on the site of the demolished Navy Stores at Ermington and the [old-ish] Henry Kendall Sports Fields before a delightful stretch of new-ish board walk through the mangroves.
The lunch stop was taken at a new-ish play area just east of Ermington wharf which boasted some new-ish convenient sandstone edging to sit on.
By then a chilly wind had blown in and after the restart a few drops of wet stuff fell from the sky for a minute or two. Some walkers remembered this as a substance called “Rain”, although most had forgotten its purpose.
After negotiating the last uphill pull to Meadowbank station, the coffee reward location came into sight and the sun came out to congratulate us on a fine achievement.
It was a pleasant walk with many new-ish sights & developments to marvel at. Along the way we saw plenty of birdlife, Blue Wrens & White-faced Herons, in particular, plus 3 crows who “owned” the lunch stop but had to remain unsatisfied. Special mention must be made of the [very old-ish] toilet facilities at The Armoury where many commented on their cleanliness & the fact that soap & towels were available.

 
                                                                                                                          An Assembly of Walkers

                                                                                                                                                  Last Chance for Coffee                                                                                                                     Crossing the Old Railway Bridge
                                                                                                                             Formation Walking (almost)

                                                                                                                      Morning Coffee Stop at Newington
                                                                                                               Michael and Lyndy by Parramatta River
                                                                                                 Annette with Birds of the Mud Flat

                                                                                         Wendy and the Sea-Eagle                            A Chilly Wind
                                                                                                 Lunch near Ermington Wharf

Leaders:  Sue and Michael   

Walkers:  Ida A, Sue B, David C, Annette E, Andy & Sue K, Lilian K, Helen L, Lyndy L, Christine McA, Robyn Ma, Lydia M, Robyn Mi, Lea O, Wendy P, Liz R and Don Wa, together with 3rd time visitor Steve P (who signed his application form on the spot at the coffee place), 2nd time visitor Jan P & casual visitor Elizabeth P.

Photos by:    Christine McA (1,4,7,8,11), Lilian K (2,3,5,6,9,10)

Words by:     Michael