Kidaddle to Tidbinbilla

Photo courtesy of kookr.

If you're like me, your anxiety has been growing since Christmas about the prevalence of indoor entertainment and how you must do something about getting the kids outside.

We've made a resolution: an active outing every weekend. Note the emphasis on the active. And we started with Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve. The kids have always enjoyed the fantastic playground there, complete with flying fox, water course and super slides, but we're branching out. The Sanctuary was built after the fires in 2003 and it's wonderful - a series of ponds attracting and nurturing birdlife.

There's no need to do a four hour "challenging" hike up front: just take the kids on the hour walk around the Sanctuary, and don't miss the side walk up the rocks (an extra ten minutes) or the kids' river crossing. We'll aim to up the ante each time, but this was a good start. Admittedly, there was plenty of whingeing initially, but as soon as we stumbled on something slightly interesting, they forgot their pain (!). We repaired to the playground afterwards for a simple sausage sizzle - if the BBQs are as oversubscribed as they were today, keep going past the playground, there are more electric BBQs down at Webb's.

Note: While I think of it, for the family who wants to get out and about beyond the heavily serviced, an investment in a trangia is worth it. Means a cup of coffee is a cinch, but extends your lunch repertoire to anything that can be heated in a small bowl: we've done hot dogs and instant noodles in winter.