U3A Ballarat Hikers

 U3A Hike No 339 Hike Report By Colin Fraser On a cool, overcast morning 20 eager hikers departed Kirks carpark for Moorabool Reservoir on Spargo Creek Rd, Bolwarrah to circumnavigate the reservoir.     Leader : Mark Hawley     Whip : Jan Herberger     Distance : 9.95 km     Difficulty rating : Easy   Weather : Overcast, mild, pleasant     Terrain : We walked on mostly flat dirt tracks, fairy grass and coarse crushed bluestone on forestry roads .      Fauna : Kangaroos, Wallabies and Black Swans     Flora : Sequoia trees, fairy grass, pine plantations     Lunch : We had lunch at the Moorabool Reservoir Park , which is where the walk started. The park has BBQ facilities, picnic grounds and well maintained gardens. The historic Moorabool Lodge is situated in the park.      The Reservoir :    Moorabool Reser voir was built between 1914 and 1915 to supply water to ...

 U3A Hike No 338 Hike Report by Kath Cape Fifteen seasoned and new U3A hikers gathered for the first hike of 2025 at the start of the sensory trail off Katy Ryans Road in our lovely Woowookarung regional park. (Welcome Kim) It was a mild  day and Andrew had planned an easy but informative walk for us through the park – a gentle  start for 2025 – much appreciated by those, like myself, who had fallen out of the habit of  regular exercise over the festive season. Our walk commenced on Australia’s first dementia-friendly forest and sensory trail. The path was initiated and inspired by Edie Mayhew and her partner Anne Tudor, (2021 Premier’s Victorian Senior of the year), who worked with other carers and people with dementia to design an accessible path designed to evoke positive memories, feelings and sensations for people living with dementia at a range of different stopping places. We soon veered off the trail to explore another much older and less gentle but also sign...