Northey Street City Farm

  • Blog
  • Learning
    • Permaculture Education
    • Youth Education
      • School Activities
      • Earth Kids Holiday Program
      • Earth Kids Homeschool Program
      • Earth Arts
      • Workshops for Teachers
    • Workshops & Short Courses
    • Group Tours and Experiences
    • Fact sheets – useful tips and recipes
    • Self – Guided Walks & activities
  • City Farm Nursery
    • Products
    • Plants
    • Useful Information
  • Market
  • Events
  • Online Store
    • Ethical Gifts
  • Get Involved
    • Membership
    • Volunteer @ NSCF
    • Tuesday Farm Tour
    • Allotment Gardens
    • Donate to Northey Street City Farm
  • Contact
  • About
    • E-News
    • Meet Our Management Committee
    • Meet Our Team
    • Farming
    • Our Organisation
    • Decolonisation Action Group
    • Jobs @ NSCF
You are here: Home / Home / Learning / Self – Guided Walks & activities

Self – Guided Walks & activities

  • Bowen Heritage Trail Nature Connection and Mindfulness activities.

  • Useful Native Plants Walk


Bowen Bridge Heritage Trail  Nature Connection and Mindfulness Activities

 

The Bowen Bridge Heritage Trail, which runs along Enoggera Creek to the south of Northey Street City Farm (NSCF), was established by volunteers in 2000-2001. The purpose of the trail is to raise environmental awareness, support bush regeneration efforts, and educate the community on the benefits of nature and the history of the area. Signage along the trail describes the First Nations and colonial history of the area.

Today members of Northey Street City Farm make up Walan Bushcare, a Habitat Brisbane Group which works to enhance the biodiversity of the area along the creek.

 

The NSCF Education team has developed some activities that can help ground and connect you to the area along the Bowen Heritage Trail, available as audio recordings and written activities.


Eastern entrance

About half way

Western Entrance


Audio Recordings

Here are two audio recordings to guide you through these nature connection and mindfulness activities:

Mindful Walking Activity

https://www.nscf.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Mindful-Walking-Activity-Audio.mp3

 

 

Sit Spot

https://www.nscf.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Sit-spot-Activity-Audio.mp3

 


 

Written descriptions

Alternatively, here are some written descriptions of activities to choose from :

  • Expanding Sensory Awareness Walk
  • Gratitude Walk
  • Sit Spot

Grounding before each activity

Before beginning each activity, start by doing some deep breathing.

1) Stand still or find somewhere to sit

2) Let go in the shoulders and relax your body

3) Breathe in through the nose for a count of 5

4) Exhale out through the mouth for a count of 5

Repeat 3 times

Expanding Sensory Awareness Walk

This activity focuses on noticing everything. Begin with the breathing activity above. Start your walk with an open mind and curiosity. This exercise focuses on sight, sound, smell, and touch. Take your time to walk along the trail, expanding your senses as you do.

What can you see? Really look. You might like to walk up to a tree and feel its trunk.

What can you feel? Look up while under the tree, what do you see? Take a moment to admire the leaves above. What do they look like? You might want to pick up a leaf, hold it in your hand, what do you notice? Do you see its distinct features?

You could get down in the dirt, feel it between your fingers. What does it feel like? What does it smell like?

Can you hear anything? What sounds of the natural world can you notice? What is the quietest sound you can hear? Take it all in and let go into your surroundings.

 

Gratitude Walk

Having a thankful heart allows us to feel connected and grounded. This activity involves being grateful for what is right in front of you in this place. Begin with the breathing activity above. Then take your time to walk along the Bowen Heritage Trail. While on your journey, feel your gratefulness for what you are experiencing and observing. It could be the sun beaming through the trees, or the leaves brushing against the wind. It could be gratitude for this place, those who care for it today and the First Nations people who have cared for it for countless generations. While doing this activity, whisper “I am grateful for …” slowly to yourself or in your mind. When you think of something, let yourself really feel your gratitude. Take your time and allow your heart to grow by giving thanks.

 

Sit Spot

A sit spot is a place we can come back to again and again, a place where the natural world can be our teacher, and a place that can ground us and support us to feel connection to nature. Find a comfortable place to sit, perhaps away from the track so you can have a little privacy.

While sitting, feel the earth beneath you, your feet pressed down onto the soil, and allow yourself to be guided by your breath. Open to a childlike state with curiosity and joy. Allow yourself to open your awareness to all that is around you. You might want to slowly do a 360 scan, notice the movements, sounds and brush of the wind on your cheek.

Try to breathe long and lengthen the exhale. During this activity allow your emotions and thoughts to be there but keep coming back to your senses. By coming back to sight, smell, sound and touch you can become more aware of the life that exists in this place.

What are the animals doing? Notice the plants that live in this place. How are they connected to the animals here? What relationships exist here? What questions do you have? Perhaps over time you will find answers to some of them. If you have something to write on, once your sit spot is complete, you might like to draw or write about some of your observations and/ or questions.

 

Additional Information and Resources

The Sit Spot is a Core Routine of Nature Connection, as described in the ‘Coyote’s Guide to Connecting With Nature’ by Jon Young, Ellen Haas, and Evan McGown.’ As described by Richard Louv, ​“This is good medicine for nature deficit disorder. Coyote’s Guide should become the essential resource for anyone who wants to revive their sense of kinship with nature but needs some help. . .”

You can read about the core routines of nature connection here:

https://www.canmoreforestplay.com/uploads/1/4/1/7/14171255/core_routines_of_nature_connection.pdf

 Walan Bushcare Group

Walan Bushcare is a Habitat Brisbane group that works to enhance the biodiversity of the area along Enoggera creek to the south of Northey Street City Farm. The group has a working bee on the third Tuesday of each month from 3-5pm. New volunteers are welcome!

 

Thanks to Kylie Reid for her work on developing this nature connection and mindfulness activity project.

We acknowledge the First Nations people of this land, the Turrbal and Jagera.

 

Related Posts:

  • Past DAG activities
  • About
  • Contact & Find Us

Categories

  • eNews (69)
  • Events (13)
  • Farming (14)
  • First Nations (1)
  • Jobs (18)
  • News (2)
  • Nursery (24)
  • Organic Farmers Market (43)
  • Permaculture Education (15)
  • Solstice Festival (11)
  • Uncategorized (3)
  • Volunteer (5)
  • Workshops (4)
  • Youth Education (10)

Recent Blog Posts

  • December 2022 E-News December 20, 2022
  • Enterprise and Support Manager December 6, 2022
  • Education and Farming Manager December 6, 2022
  • November 2022 E-News November 2, 2022
  • Acknowledgement of Country October 24, 2022
  • City Farm Nursery volunteer October 13, 2022
  • October 2022 E-News October 7, 2022
  • September E-News September 9, 2022
  • Events Coordinator August 23, 2022
  • August E-News August 3, 2022

Tags

#adulteducation #chaicafe #CityFarmNursery #eartharts #earthkids #firstnations #jobvacancy #organicfarmersmarket #permacultureeducation #summersolstice #volunteer #wintersolstice #youtheducation AGM Bees City Farm Nursery Container Gardening Courses Education ethical gifts Events farming festival Gardening info Jobs kids activities NSCF Nursery organic organic farmers market Organic farming Organic Gardening Organic Markets Organic Nursery permaculture permaculture course Permaculture Design Course Recipes Slider Sunday Organic Markets Sustainability Useful Information Winter Solstice Workshops

Copyright © 2022 · Executive Pro Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in