Bluey and the 100 Kilometre Hike (Part 1)

It had just turned midnight.

I put on my hiking boots, tightened my green cord, and slung on my backpack. It truly wasn't as heavy as I thought it would be. It was mostly the octopodes in my bag that were the heaviest, and they would all be eaten within a few hours. This was only step one to becoming the Ultimate Scout, and the CEO of Scouting. I guess I truly was ambitious. One hundred kilometers in a day? I wasn't sure anyone could do that. Obviously Tommy the Water Bottle did, because he's the current CEO, but he's Tommy the Water Bottle. Of course he could. He just had to roll down Mount Everest a dozen  times after falling out of Lucas's bag (God rest his soul). I, on the other hand, am not either spherical or cylindrical in shape. I also don't have a human who is willing to chase me all the way down Mount Everest a dozen times. I am a Pygmy Whale. I am Bluey.

So I spent the last several months mapping out a hike that would cover more than a hundred kilometres. It was definitely worth it. I would both get this over with and see more than I've ever seen in a day. The route takes me all the way through Bussleton, meaning I can go out on the Jetty, down to Esperance using the Eyre Highway, and all the way up to Broome and Karratha (I can't wait to see the camels). Obviously I have a rest stop in every major town, each lasting for fifteen minutes each. I might even be able to go fishing in some places, if I'm quick enough.

Anyway, it was time for me to leave my cave and head out. I started off swimming at twenty kilometres an hour, because I didn't want to get winded too quickly. It was also still midnight so I couldn't see as far ahead as usual. I kept swimming, always with the coastline in sight and enough distance from it so as not to become beached. I didn't want a bit of sand to ruin the entire thing.

12:15 AM - Tuesday September 15th 

After fifteen or so minutes of swimming, I arrived at Rockingham right on schedule. I get up to look out at the lighthouses, and take myself on a quick tour of the facilities at Point Peron Camp School. With the abseiling and archery, I could definitely see myself camping there. After that, my fifteen minute break was up and I hopped back into the water. 

Then I felt a stinging pain in my dorsal fin. I whipped myself around to see what it was, and I gasped. It was a bluebottle jellyfish. These waters had them every two meters! How had I not noticed? I dragged myself back onshore, still feeling the pain. I ripped off the jellyfish, then flopped up to their kitchen, already feeling the welts forming, and started running the hot tap. The water began steaming by the time I hopped in it, but the pain of the water was nothing to the pain of the sting. After twenty minutes, the water was almost boiling, but because this was the only way to cure the sting, it was necessary, and I could take it. I would have to go to a doctor later today, but at this time I could keep going with the hike.