Racing a steam train

Race the rattler. Monday 11 June 2012. Gympie, Queensland.

The region around Gympie and the Mary Valley in the sub-tropics of Queensland, is the gateway to the world heritage listed Fraser Island in the Great Sandy National Park. But the national park and the island are just by-attractions of this area. Gympie is known as ‘the town that saved Queensland’ after the Gympie gold rush back in the 19^th century rescued the state from bankruptcy. Gold mining has since ceased but Gympie became the regional centre of the beautiful Mary River Valley, a thriving agricultural district. This scenic area around the Mary river has wide open spaces stretching through pasture and farm and state forest and meadow. Every year in August the Mary River Valley hosts the thousands of visitors who come for the week-long National Country Music Muster, but that’s just a by-event. During this early winter time of year, Mary Valley is the home of the historic Valley rattler (and no this rattler is not a snake).

A drive around the valley is a pleasant way to take in the sights, try local cuisine and some good old fashioned country hospitality. This way you can immerse in the amazing views, rolling hills, forests and surprises that unfold with every village as you travel along. Some of the wonderful towns in the Mary valley include Dagun, Amamoor, Kandanga, Imbil and Kenilworth. At these village stops are antiques and art shops, weekend country markets, lookouts and picnic spots, camping and recreation etc. There is a natural history walk at Dagun. Amamoor boasts Muster merchandise, and abundant wildlife and bird life.  Each year Kenilworth hosts a cheese wine and food festival. An international driving rally is held in Imbil in May. The valley also holds rodeos and other festivals every year. But better than a driving tour of the valley, is a relaxing ride on the Valley rattler.

The Valley Rattler C17 967.

I’ve ticked all the above previously except for the rattler. Well, that and the many other activities in Mary valley: horse riding, bush walking, kayaking, bird watching, fishing, camping, watersports, mountain biking etc. There’s enough to do here to last a lifetime. (I did camp out at Amamoor forest a couple of times).

So back to the rattler- the Valley Rattler is a steam train. One can ride this historic iron horse for a unique tour through the valley’s spectacular countryside and view the forested hilltops and see the beautiful Mary River wind her way through the valley.

A ride on the rattler has been on my to-do list for a while, but something better presented by way of a running event - Race the Rattler.

The rattler has the historic C 17 967 locomotive engine built in 1950. After I boarded the train, I found myself in an even older relic - the 1921 carriage Car D No 992. So this was more than a ride on a historic steam train. It was a privileged journey back in time. 

Race the rattler is described as a race between man and machine. Runners get the opportunity to experience a ride on the rattler from Gympie to Dagun, and then race it back all of 18.5km the other way.

Buses transported supporters and relay runners during the race. 

The rattler was building up a head of steam just prior to the start. Its engine was humming, all the nuts and bolts in place. 

Around the bend up ahead my round objects were freezing. My nuts or balls were rattling in the shadows at the start line. 'That's not fair' I steamed up in my head.

I tried looking at a looking glass. It told me I wasn't going to win, and snow white was still the fairest of all.

Well that ole steam train gave us a 1.85km head start, and I was in front of it by a long country mile. However, at the first changeover point (4.5km), it had already gone past me with a lead of about one minute.

I did not give up. I stumbled on the side of a mountain. I walked and I crawled on the Mary Valley Highway. It held all the aces though. It spewed smoke in front of us and ran on flat steel rails. We had to negotiate cross-country roads and byways on bitumen and dirt and gravel and creek, up and down steep hills and gullies. Then a railway line and the Mary River and the Bruce Highway. Lucky there were bridges on them. Still, it was a close run thing. The rattler only beat me by 0.8hour!

The 'race the rattler' this year was held on the queen of england's birthday holiday. 

Next year I might race the rattler again - on the queen of australia's birthday.

Heading to the race start in Dagun.

All along a southbound odyssey, 

the train rolls out of Gympie,

rattlin' on past houses farms and fields.

(sounds like a country song)

If it sounds country...

It's the city of Gympie.

A by-event to the rattler, the iconic Gympie Music Muster, is held amidst the towering gums of Amamoor Creek State Forest near Gympie each August. More than 50,000 visitors are drawn to this music extravaganza. Some camp at the site for up to many months in advance. 

A tent city goes up almost overnight at the height of the festival. Rome may not have been built in a day, but every year since 1985 a city – a tent city is built in a day, at the Gympie muster. Most of Australia’s finest country and blues artists have the muster on their touring itineraries, and many of them perform on any given day in any of at least 10 venues throughout the 6-day festival. The muster also features a few international artists each year. This year features a gambler http://www.muster.com.au/.

After racing against the rattler, I drove out to Amamoor to set up camp for the muster. Then I realised I did not pack my tent. 

Pick up your tent Martin, you ain't goin' nowhere.

Map of the 18.5km race the rattler route.

2012 Queensland Half Marathon

Sunday the 3rd of June 2012 was wet and wintry cold. But Doomben racecourse, the home of the Queensland Half Marathon, was a-buzz with eager runners. Many of them are elite runners training for upcoming marathons and other events. 

Waking up in the morning on race day I was thinking that some runners would not bother showing up due to the weather, but Doomben was crowded.

Umbrellas were handy on the day. As were jumpers, but runners don't wear them in races.

Runners did not seem to notice the drizzle which started just before the get go. I did though. I was shivering cold.

As the maps show, the course is like a series glyphs: a tee on top of a tee on top of a zed joining a very skinny ess appended to an ell facing backwards. If you can’t follow that neither can I. It is like a compound stroke in some script or calligraphy turned upside down and inside out. I believe it is the same as in previous years.

Perhaps they can cut out a section of Sugarmill Road and include a lap around the racecourse grass track at the end.

The course is mostly flat except for the railway overpass on Schneider Road which we had to go over four times (out-and-in twice) at approximately the 5.5km, 10.5km, 14.2km and 19.2km marks.

This race is definitely for runners. Funrunners like me join just to make up numbers and for a bit of fitness. 

The finishers area in front of the grandstand.

Add colour to your life. Run. Look at all these bright people.

Fact: running makes you bright.

Am not that bright but I managed to get under 2 hours, a PB.

A sprint finish.

But any finish is a good finish.

Good job by all participants.

Well done everyone.

Thanks to all involved especially the volunteers. See you again next year.

Ammung na Paracelis

Paracelis is the easternmost town of Mountain Province. The municipality is bounded on the west by Natonin, and by the provinces of Ifugao, Isabela and Kalinga on the south, east and north respectively. It was formerly a barangay, but was created as a municipality due to its remoteness from Natonin. First called Paracale, it was renamed Paracelis in 1966. 

The 'paracale' mayor or 'spokesperson' put up a welcome sign.

I got to Paracelis on the final day of their Ammung on 25th April 2012. All the native dancing had finished.

(Perhaps they should hold municipal fiestas in sequence, not at the same time. Officials can also look at shortening these to two or three days at most. A festival season in summer time in Mountain Province can be held from February onwards. The various towns can take turns holding festivals. Then there will be a festival every week for a 10-week period to culminate at the Lang-ay in Bontoc. Barangay fiestas may also be held in between. That's just me thinking out loud, but wouldn't tourists love that.)

I run a bit, and I heard that there's a race in Paracelis. Paracelisians are comprised of three main ethno-linguistic groups: the Balangao Gaddang, and Kalingas. These peoples speak Ilocano, Kalinga, Gaddang and various other local dialects in this town of more than 100 sitios (hamlets) in nine main barangays (villages). 

The municipal government is in Daggawe (Poblacion). It houses all the local government units. I went to visit the municipal hall, but some basketball game was going on. My plans were thwarted yet again. Sport is an integral part of festival activities.

Clusters of small businesses such as sari-sari stores, vegetable stalls, food and other commodities outlets, are found within the central business area. These sell groceries, hardware, housing merchandise, agricultural supplies, etc.

Two-wheels,

three-wheels,

or four. Have wheels will travel.

Farm to market transport.

Situated on the lower foothills (about 200-250m) of the ranges abutting Natonin, Paracelis is much warmer than the mountain towns of Barlig and Natonin. The warmest times are during April when it holds its annual festival. The municipal fiesta aims to attract tourists and features dances and other cultural activities participated in by all the barangays.

A relieving activity is a practical way of dousing fire.

Getting sacks of grain ready for drying.

During the summer months (March to May), national roads are used for drying grains such as rice and corn. Vehicles keep to the free lane, but during busy times help turn the grain. 

And it's not surprising to find the odd pebble or small piece of car tyre rubber in the dinner plate of rice.

The soil types of large portions of Paracelis are the various clay loam and sandy loam that are ideal for farming. Grown here are crops and grains and cereals, vegetables and fruits, root crops, coffee, tobacco and nuts. However, conversion of huge tracts of forested rolling hills into farmlands is making the already severe soil erosion worse. 

A watchtower of a bus stop.

Farms, pasturelands and potential hydro-power projects pose more threats to the thinning vegetation cover of Paracelis which consists primarily of dipterocarps. Mossy forests have all disappeared.

The drying season goes on and on.

What do you do when you come to a fork in the road?

"at the parting of the way, ...he consults the teraphim, he inspects the liver"

A couple of micro and mini-hydro power projects are mooted for the rivers flowing past Paracelis. The bigger Siffu river originates at the Kadaclan River in Barlig. It flows through Natonin as the Saliok river and then through Paracelis (Paracelis river), and then through to Isabela where it joins the Cagayan river. Up in the mountains at the northwest of town is the village of Maducayan in Natonin. Apparently plans have been finalised and start-up activites are ongoing for a micro-hydro power project there. It is hoped the I-Natonin were consulted, the pig's liver inspected, and the river respected.

The race in Paracelis is not a running event after all, but I enjoyed meeting and mingling with my fellow race of people there. There is a natural hot spring around here which I wanted to see, but it can wait. Maybe when its geysers spurt again. If it's still there. For now I wish I had a rocking chair, so I can watch time flow - whispering past the wisping of my hair...