Field Trip to Long Reef

There are some classes at the University of Sydney that have field trips. Yay field trips! The thought makes me reminisce about elementary school. For my Earth, Environment, and Society class, we took a field trip to Long Reef to examine rock formations; Long Reef is an Aquatic Reserve that has unique flora, fauna, and rocks. Unfortunately, on the day of the field trip there was pouring rain and blustering winds, but the professor sent an email saying that the trip would still take place!

Everybody was responsible for their own transportation to Long Reef and the directions on how to get there were quite vague, all I knew was that I had to take the L90 bus from Central station. This bus has limited stops and leaves about every 30 minutes, I had to make it to the bus stop at the right time, otherwise I would be late to meet with the group. At Central station, however, there are lots of bus stands and I didn’t know what side of the street I needed to be on, my worst fear was seeing the bus come and stop on the other side of the road, and then miss it! The worry must have been apparent on my face because an elderly woman came up to me and asked where I was trying to go because I looked lost. She was going to catch the L90 bus as well, so she assured me that I was in the right place. I was so thankful that she came up to me and helped me! One thing I have noticed about Australians in general is that they are always willing to help! This is very relieving if you are in a foreign country and you don’t always exactly know where you are going. The bus ride was about an hour to Long Reef, however, I was excited that the bus ride crossed over the Sydney Harbour Bridge!

I finally made it to Long Reef, and unfortunately it was still pouring rain. My professor was very enthusiastic and insisted that the weather is an important aspect of our environment and that it would be a learning experience. To my dismay, I did not bring any tennis shoes with me to Australia, only two pairs of TOMS, flip flops, and sandals. On the trip to Long Reef, I wore my black sparkly TOMS. They had to endure mud, sand, puddles, walking through bushes, and getting soaked all the way through from the high tides. I was just thankful that I didn’t slip and fall!

Overall, Long Reef was an interesting experience. I wish I had pictures, but I was afraid to get my camera wet. I think it would have been more enjoyable if the weather was clear, but my professor’s enthusiasm helped me through the day.