Congratulations, you've made it through the week!

  Have a Happy Thought:    There exists in this world, crabs that wear sponges on their backs like little fluffy coats.   In fact, there are a bunch of species of crab that do this, they are known as sponge crabs (family Dromiidae). I know, it’s going to be hard to remember that…   Apparently when the crab is young, it finds a sponge and cuts a piece of the sponge off (this doesn’t hurt the sponge; this is how they propagate, really). Then the crab dedicates a couple of its limbs to holding the sponge in place on its back.   Over time, the sponge grows to cover the entire carapace (outside skeleton) of the crab, and they live out their lives together.   A new species of sponge crab was recently named, in Western Australia - Lamarckdromia beagle (yes, named after Darwin’s ship). Here’s some cool photos so you can see just how “fuzzy” these crabs can get: A–B, male holotype, 40.5 × 39.0 mm (WAM C15512) A, frontal view carrying sponge c...

Have a Happy Thought:  We love our pets these days. Every once in a while, someone grumpy says that this is a sign of societal collapse. But the truth is that humans have always loved our pets. Here’s some proof from medieval manuscripts that were illuminated with these Very Good Doggos.   Wearing a collar:                                                 BnF, Supplément Persan 1111 f.14v   What’s with this tail?!                                                   BnF, NAL 3241 f.167 Making frenemies with the other animals…                                         ...

Just some quick thoughts about our gear, including where we changed things along the way. Apart from changing some items we didn't really add a great deal of new items. What we finished with is pretty much what we started with. We didn't go ultralight, but we tried to save weight where possible. For another $1000ish we could have reduced our base weight by maybe 2 kgish each but it's all about trade offs.  Note that we are not sponsored by anyone, and we actually paid out of pocket for everything here, so you can actually trust our comments. That being said, if anyone wants  to sponsor us for a future adventure... Pack: We both had Osprey packs. Eliza used an Aura 65 litre (L) but left her brain (detachable, top mounted day pack) at home, and Vaughan used an Aether 60L but took his brain with him. We both love these. Even though there are lighter packs out there, the "Anti-gravity" hip-hugging waist belt and support structure really do make a difference when carry...

While walking, we talked about some of the lessons we learned on the trail. Here they are, distilled for you.  Once you've made a decision, stick to it (unless it is about to march you off of a cliff...). The back-and-forth will just add an hour to your day. Don't beat yourself up about yesterday. You can't change the past, so there's no purpose in thinking "what if?". But you can always learn from your past - both good and bad decisions! Have a long term destination (Cape Reinga) and a short-term destination (tonight's campsite; the next resupply town). Don't worry so much about the in between, it'll take care of itself. Check the map whenever you're unsure. Better to check more often. You know what? Just go ahead and check that map again... Enjoy the scenery along the way! Even when there isn't much of a view. You need less stuff than you think. Except food and wat...

Have a Happy Thought:  Yep, I'm resuming your regularly-scheduled weekly dose of awww-ful... or awe-ful... or, occasionally, awful. Just a reminder that if you also get my emails directly, you'll be getting these twice - so you may want to unsubscribe from one (or both, that's fine) lists. You may, at one point, have heard that a lot of the fruits that we call "berries" are not actually berries, botanically speaking. Raspberries, for example, are actually an aggregate of drupes. What the &#*@ is a drupe, you ask? Delicious, is my answer! Drupes are fruit where there is an outer fleshy bit that surrounds a shelled seed. The delicious thing about drupes is that the outer fleshy bit is there to be, well, delicious! It's not a source of energy for the seed, it's actually evolved to be eaten by an animal, so that the seed can be dispersed along with some... natural fertilizer. Some of my favourite drupes are: Peaches Nectarines Avocados Coffee (goes without...