VTH3 #653

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02 November 2014
LONG SON ISLAND - "The lost trail"

It was a nice, sunny day as we boarded the "Hashmobile" at Offshore 1 and headed out to Long Son Island, stopping only long enough to pick up Smokey and partner near the Seaview Apartments.
We reached the island a short-time later and co-Hare and duty Bus Captain KFC directed the driver to end-point "B" to drop off the eskies.  Then we headed back to start-point "A", where we dismounted for a Chalk Talk by KFC that included some cautionary words about vines, thorns and "not getting lost"!
Basil was nominated "Ailing Hash" for the day, bringing up the rear with his walkie-talkie to help shepherd any strays, including Hash virgins who would not be as familiar with the terrain as the regulars.
And so it was that Hash virgin Collin, a New Zealander, became privy to lots of "Hash stuff", including some history about Long Son Island that tourists would rarely ever hear.
It was a long way up the mountain, with some fairly steep and varied terrain here and there, but we made it!
However, everyone had to stop and think for a moment at the top because there was a clear red arrow ("On On!"), very close to some yellow marker tape ("Wrong way, go back!").  Undaunted, we all somehow managed to find the correct trail down the mountainside - but the going was far from easy, with undergrowth more than waist high in places.  An extremely narrow trail took us through tall and thick bushes and lots of bamboo - ideal terrain for the unwary to lose their way!
But the trusty walkie talkies proved their value yet again, with front to rear communication ensuring everyone made it safely to the end-point, after some very steep stairs and a short stroll at ground level where we practised our English with the local children by swapping "Hello, what's your name?" back and forth!  Such efforts were greeted by the kids with howls of laughter!
And then they were in front of us:  the lovely red eskies brimming over with ice-cold San Migs, softies and water to help wash down the delicacies provided by Ice Water and Mother Teresa.
After a suitable interval for socialising, Duty Ring Master Camel Bone called the Circle and Viking rated the trail a worthy 7/10.  He and KFC then did the honours with a rather "thorny" Down Down that packed some sting!
Hash Virgins and returnees (including former GM Vulgar Bulgar, Hare extraordinaire The Gardener, and their partners) were welcomed by the Circle; Hard Drive took a "hit" for those who got lost; KFC and CollinNZ were penalised for foot faults (new shoes); and Ice Water and Mother Teresa were publicly thanked once again for their culinary efforts, which are appreciated by all - week in, week out!  And dare we mention that Superteen has found an ally for her "ice pourings" - we shudder to think what's coming next!
STOP PRESS:  Hares SamSon and Basil have confirmed a "long'ish" trail on Small Mountain for this Sunday, which they've called "The Bamboo Trail" because there's plenty of it alongside the track (so watch out for thorns...).  If we've got your email address you will have already received the GPS route map.  If we don't have your address and you'd like to receive email updates, let us know via vthash@yahoo.com or via the "Contact VTH3" page on this website.
In the meantime, we'll meet on Sunday as usual in the Offshore Bar 1 beer garden at 2 pm for 2.30 pm start.  See you there!
On On!

Reporting:  Basil, Uncle

Hares:  SamSon, KFC

Hash Flash:  Camel Bone, Hard Drive, Smokey, KFC, Basil.  GPS:  SamSon

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