Trail Tales WA - Episode 2 - New Country, New Trails: The Impact of First Hike Project

In this episode of Trail Tales WA, we chat with two passionate volunteers — Sarah and Lou — from the incredible not-for-profit, First Hike Project.

First Hike Project helps newly arrived refugees and asylum seekers explore their new home through the simple, powerful act of hiking. By connecting people with nature, culture, and community, their programs help ease the transition to life in Australia and build a deep sense of belonging.

The idea began over a decade ago when founder Neil McCulloch, an immigrant from South Africa, was hiking WA’s iconic Bibbulmun Track and wondered how he could share the experience with young people from refugee backgrounds. Today, First Hike Project operates across WA, NSW, VIC, QLD, and the ACT.

Sarah and Lou share the heart behind the project, what it’s like to guide someone on their first ever bushwalk, and the life-changing impact these shared experiences can have — not just for participants, but for volunteers too.

It’s a conversation about welcome, inclusion, and the way walking together can break down barriers and build new beginnings.

This episode is full of warmth, perspective, and unforgettable trail moments.

To find out more about First Hike Project, signing up to become a volunteer or to make a donation visit firsthikeproject.org.au

Check out First Hike Project on Instagram -https://www.instagram.com/first_hike_project_in_perth

Make sure you are following Trail Tales WA on Instagram for the latest updates on episodes - https://www.instagram.com/trailtaleswa/

To find out more about Trail Tales WA podcast, visit offthebeatentrackwa.com.au/trail-tales-podcast 

Hosted by Tracy Jones.

Produced by Cindy Jones.

Music by Andrii Poradovskyi from Pixabay.

Transcript

New Country, New Trails - The Impact of First Hike Project

Tracy: [00:00:00] Trail Tales WA acknowledges the Whadjuk people of the Noongar nation as the traditional custodians of the land on which this podcast is recorded. We recognize their deep and continuing connection to land, waters, skies, and community. We pay our respects to their elders past and present, and we extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples listening today.

We are so grateful to be sharing stories from the trails on this beautiful butcher where we walk, reflect and connect with nature. From here on wood jug, Noga land, and wherever you are tuning in, we honor the enduring strength, culture, and care of First Nations people across Australia. Welcome to Trail Tales wa the podcast where we break down barriers and share the stories we hear on the trails.

I'm your host, Tracy Jones, and I'm so excited to share this journey with you. Each episode, we shine a light on the incredible people and programs that are making the outdoors more [00:01:00] accessible and inclusive for everyone. In this episodes of Trails Tales WA, we chat with two passionate volunteers, Sarah and Lou from the Incredible Not-for-Profit First Hike Project.

First Hike Project helps newly arrived refugees, immigrants and asylum seekers connect with their new home through the powerful act of hiking by fostering connection to nature, culture, and community, their programs ease the transition to life in Australia and build a strong sense of belonging. The idea began over a decade ago when founder Neil McCulloch, an immigrant from South Africa, was hiking WA 's iconic Bibbulmun track, and wondered how he could share the experience with young people from refugee backgrounds

Today, First Hike Project operates across Western Australia, New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, and the A CT. Today, Sarah and Lou will be sharing the heart behind the project, what it's like to guide someone on their first ever bush walk. And the life-changing impact these shared experiences can [00:02:00] have, not just for the participants, but for the volunteers too.

It's a conversation about inclusion and the way walking together can break down barriers and build new beginnings. So let's get into it. Hi Sarah and Lou. How are you guys going today? 

Lou: Fine, thank you. And thanks for inviting us along. 

Sarah: Yep, same. I'm good. And thanks Tracy for inviting us onto the podcast. 

Tracy: No problem guys.

I think you guys do an awesome job and something that's really unique. So I'd really love to share this, um, share your story and share what you guys are doing with more people. So first of all, can I get you please to introduce yourselves and tell us how you got involved with First Hike Project? Lou, would you like to go?

Lou: Yeah, sure. I guess I, I, I love hiking, you know, I've always been a, a hiker and one of these days this thing popped up on the socials about First Hike Project and I thought, what's this all about? Did a bit of a dive into it and thought, this is great. So I went along to an info [00:03:00] night and signed up that night as a volunteer.

Uh, so that would've been back in 2018, I think. And before I knew it, I was involved in helping organize hikes. The first of which was a crazy, huge, fun manic, overnight hike to Wellington Dam with 25 participants, which is a little bit large, but it was great. Met a lot of other volunteers that time, a lot of which are still with the organization.

Made some great friendships and just watching these young people engage with each other, with us, uh, just made me think this is the right thing that I wanna be involved with. Neil is the, the, the main man. As we say, at First Hike Project, he was based in Perth. He needed some help with the organization, so he did ask me if I would mind helping out, which put my hand up and said, show me how I'm happy to, but then around COVID, he had to relocate his family back [00:04:00] to the Eastern States and asked me if I, you know, thought that there was any of the volunteers that might be interested in helping. I immediately thought of Sarah. We'd had some great connections on our hikes and also, um, our other coordinator, Anne, uh, good thing about Anne is you get a two for one deal with her because her husband is also a volunteer.

Tracy: Nice. Love that. 

Lou: So I think between Sarah, myself and Anne, I think we're a pretty good team. We've all got our strengths to. To get through everything we need, and it's been a, a joyful ride ever since. 

Tracy: Oh, amazing. It sounds like it's been pretty impactful for you and like you said, it's, it's about the feeling that we get out of what we're doing.

Lou: Yeah. Yeah, definitely. 

Tracy: And Sarah, how did you become involved? 

Sarah: Similar to Lou, actually, as you know, I've got a, a background in hiking and guiding as well, and it just popped up on my socials one day and I was like, what's this thing? And for me, you know, it ticked a couple of boxes. One was the, the, you know, being out in nature and hiking and introing other people to [00:05:00] that.

But the other one for me was about helping people from the background that, that our participants come from. I'd always felt a lot of empathy for new migrants and, and particularly people from refugee backgrounds and had been looking for something that I could do to help them. And yeah, this just seemed like the obvious choice.

So that was my intro, my first in-person intro was actually a volunteer's hike. And lo and behold, there were so many people on that there who were like one degree of separation from me. Very strong representation from the Hills community where I live, which is great. So, you know, for me, I've also solidified some friendships and, you know, that's, that's been a real positive for me, let alone what we can offer the participants.

So, yeah. 

Tracy: Yeah, that sounds amazing. And I, I know you both personally and professionally and just know how passionate you are about nature and inclusion, so this just absolutely seems like a perfect fit for you. Can you explain to me why you think [00:06:00] connecting refugees to the outdoors is such a powerful idea?

Lou: With the, the, the young people we take out, a lot of them are refugees, asylum seekers, but there's also migrants as well that have come here through choice, not through life circumstances, dealing them a really bad blow. So we meet a lot of people from all sorts of backgrounds and cultures. I think the thing we can offer them is a safe outdoor activity where they can just come out and relax and be these beautiful young people that they want to be.

They've probably seen a lot, been through a lot. We just want to offer them a, a safe environment out in nature. Letting them appreciate the beauty of the, the country they now find themselves in and take it from there. 

Sarah: Yeah, I think that's, um, sums it up quite well. I think connecting them with nature gives them, well, I believe that the more connection we can offer people with nature, the more they're also gonna care about it.

So, you know, from a perspective of, of caring for. These participants. It's, it's amazing. [00:07:00] But also from the perspective of caring for our country, it's, it's really important as well. 'cause we want, we want people to know about how to look after our country as well so that we have, you know, a future with it.

Tracy: A hundred percent. And I imagine the first time some of these participants step out on the trail, it's a little bit of a culture shock for them being in the Australian bushland. They would've, wouldn't have had an experience like that before. Can you tell me what potentially a typical first look or a first hike with First Hike Project might look like?

Lou: Before we even step foot on a trail, there's a massive organization that needs to be done, as you can understand with your group. So first of all, we contact our volunteers on the volunteer group, put out some dates to see who's available. Can't run hikes without volunteers, and we actually need quite a large number of volunteers because we provide everything from logistics to transport to food.

You know, someone's gotta go and buy the food, gotta transport the, the kids. So first we contact the volunteers. Once we've got people, we then contact the schools. We [00:08:00] engage with two schools here that do intensive English courses. They are a great asset to us. They work really closely with us and provide the, the student's. Um, access to us, which is much appreciated. We have to get forms out to the school to have permission for the students to come along. We have someone do the logistics of a pickup run where all our, uh, volleys go and pick up the students from their places, their homes around Perth and take them to the start point.

Someone's done the shopping. We've got all the gear, which is mostly stored at Sarah's place, and bring that along to all the hikes. So that's before we even start on the trail. On the day itself, we have our volunteers pick up the students, take them to the start point. If we are going on a day hike, we provide them with food, water bottles, rain jackets if needed.

If it's an overnight hike, we provide them with a pack, the sleeping bag, the tent, the sleeping bag liner, food, and then our volunteers, bless them, become the pack horses carrying all the extra gear, like the cooking gear, the the kitchen requirements, the [00:09:00] food and things like that, as well as their own gear.

Uh, a day hike is just that. It could be anything from 10 to 14 ks in and out. Overnight hike is, we'll hike out, set up for an overnight camp, possibly do another little explore around the area. And I think the highlight of the hike is sitting around a campfire at night. 

Tracy: Oh, everyone loves to sit around a campfire and reflect on their day and connect.

I know some of my favorite memories out on the trail is, you know, at the end of the day sitting around those mesmerizing flames and just thinking about the day and having a good old chat. But Lou, it sounds like it's quite a huge task to coordinate and execute these experiences, which just shows to me how passionate the First Hike Project volunteers really are. 'Cause you're giving up your time to also do this for these, for these participants. 

Lou: Definitely it is. Yeah. We are blessed with some great regular volunteers, so we much appreciate them. It is a hundred percent volunteer driven, no cost to the students who attend. 

Tracy: That's amazing. And what kind of skills and experience to the students or [00:10:00] the participants gain from their, from the program or from their hikes with you?

Sarah: Well the kids or participants, sorry, vary a lot in how fit they are. So if they don't have great fitness, just that can be a challenge for some of them. And you know, obviously that feeling of accomplishment when they do successfully complete something that's out of their comfort zone, we all know about that. It's amazing. But that's definitely one skill that they gain. I think the trust. So, you know, trusting a group like us to take them out there can be a really big thing when you come to a new country. And that extends right back to the families because. The families are trusting us to take these young people out there, albeit most of them are around adult age, but you know, different cultural expectations and things like that.

Some of our participants that we've had have never done something like this, particularly at nighttime, away from their families. So yeah, huge amount of, of trust, but also, you know, gaining that trust in our, in our outdoors and learning that coming across our wildlife, for example, doesn't have to be a scary experience, [00:11:00] albeit they usually still leap higher than the kangaroos when they see one. But we've had experiences with snakes as well, which was interesting to say the least. But yeah, you know, and of course the skills for overnight hiking, if it's an overnight hike, learning how to put up a tent and how to be a little bit uncomfortable in the outdoors.

Uh, a lot of them, even though they come from, they might have come from backgrounds that could have been perhaps more rural based. A lot of them haven't spent time actually, you know, on the land they've, they've. Yeah, quite different and, and in fact, some of them might have come from areas where it was quite dangerous to head out away from civilizations.

So yeah, definitely new skills for them and also just the. Because these participants aren't necessarily all from the same cultural groups. They can be from a variety. They're also learning to interact with each other. They go to the same schools. But at schools, what we tend to find is they stay in their little subgroups.

That's their comfort zone as we know. But out there. We kind of break down the barriers and, you know, [00:12:00] we're all just one sitting around that campfire and, you know, it's, it's a wonderful experience. 'cause that's often when, you know, the shields come down a little bit and they, they start talking and, and perhaps revealing themselves as well without being prompted. We are very careful not to go there, as volunteers. We are there, you know, to take them out into this environment and facilitate their experience not to, not to open up any past negative experiences they might have in life or anything like that. But yeah. 

Yeah. Lou, anything to add to that?

Lou: No, no, I think that's a good summary. Yeah. Interesting point that we let the, the students direct conversations. In most cases. We don't wanna, as Sarah mentioned, open up any bad memories or tough situations they've gone through. We wanna make it a positive experience and let them know they're safe with us.

Tracy: Cool. Yeah, it sounds like quite a beautiful experience for them, and it also sounds like First Hike Project are actually breaking down barriers in more ways than you think just by those conversations around the campfires from different cultures integrating with each other in this [00:13:00] experience, which is just really beautiful.

So, just whilst we're talking about inclusion a little bit more, can you share with me how First Hike Project ensures that the hikes are inclusive and supportive, especially for those that have never been on a trail before? 

Lou: Historically, we have done some female only hikes. These became important and we really are overdue to do another one because there are certain cultural groups that we offer hikes to, and their culture dictates that, you know, females shouldn't be out alone or in mixed company, particularly overnight.

I've learned a lot from some of these girls by speaking to them about why, I was a bit confused one day about why these girls couldn't come over and stay overnight when they're with us and we had, you know, girls camp, we had boys camp, everything was separate. Volunteers in between sleeping with one ear open, listening for any, anything.

But these students are the most, I don't know how to describe it, respectful of their own culture and their own background, and just probably wouldn't go there like some Australian teenagers might [00:14:00] do. But the, the fact that we have support from the school helps us a lot to get that trust, as Sarah mentioned from the parents.

If we can offer something like a female only hike, I think that will gain more trust. We also take into consideration little things like religion. If they need prayer breaks. We'll organize times for the prayers to be held. Food wise, we have Halal students coming along. All food is Halal, certainly make provisions for those to, to make all inclusive for everyone.

Tracy: That's amazing. And it just would absolutely just make them feel really welcome and at ease. And like you, like you said before, it's all about building the trust so they have trust in your organization and in you guys as. As their hike leaders or the volunteers. So they just keep coming back, I imagine?

Lou: Yes.

Sarah: One of the schools, well the schools work a little bit differently on how they select the kids for the hike because basically we let the schools do that process. So, you know, sometimes they do it on sort of merit [00:15:00] base how well the kids are, not necessarily how well they're actually performing at school, but you know, whether they're turning up or they'll use it as a bit of an incentive, you know, to, to drive them in their education.

And then one of the other schools will do it. More, well historically has done it more based on what their social needs perhaps are and if kids are more vulnerable. Yes. So part of, part of that process, we do kind of leave, you know, up to the to schools, but we've been pretty happy with how it's worked to date.

In terms of inclusiveness, it seems to have covered most bases. The kids would love to return every hike. But what tends to happen is once they move out of the, the ESL program and into the mainstream education at those schools, they, we, we then take the new intake, if you like, in the ESL. So we have this continual sort of flux of, of different participants coming through.

Albeit sometimes we'll be seeing siblings and, and stuff like that who might be coming through in a different group. So yeah, it's quite, quite lovely. Yeah. 

Tracy: Oh, amazing. No, it sounds amazing. And I have, [00:16:00] I, I have seen something on your socials that it was about a guide training workshop that you guys delivered for some of these participants. Can you tell me a little bit more about that? 

Sarah: We were lucky enough to get a, some funding through a grant to run this program, which essentially was another amazing idea of, of Neils from our founders. So to select some suitable participants. To become guides. So we developed a program, we did that with the help of the Bib Track Foundation actually.

So that was amazing. We did some training through them and then established our own program, making it very practical, taking the participants out onto the track as many times as they needed, really to tick off the box and get them feeling comfortable to become guides. So we had three in the first intake, all amazing young people, and they have all remained.

With First Hike Project now as volunteer guides and some of them have also branched off sort of doing their own thing as well, [00:17:00] you know, being amazing leaders in within their own communities. So yeah, I'm sure Lou, you've probably got some more to add to that. I think 

Lou: The, the three that we sort of offered the participant to guide program too, as Sarah mentioned, they're amazing young people.

The, it's two boys in particular that I know. I, I knew well from hikes, they just kept coming as many times as they could on day hikes. One I'd met on the first overnight hike I ever went to, and he just kept coming back and they would always ask so many questions, you know, where were we going? What trail were we going? How, what would we expect to see there? How long would it take? What's this flower? You know, all sorts of questions. They became a no brainer to offer the, the program too, and they both accepted eagerly plus a third participant to guide a female. It's lovely to have a, a female in amongst us and she is an amazing motivator.

Very much promoting safe environments for women to be involved in as well. So part of the reward, I guess you would call it for them. Was a trip to [00:18:00] Tasmania, which was funded by a, a benefactor, and I was lucky enough to go along with them. So there was me and the three of them. And we met other volunteers from First type Project groups in the Eastern States, uh, Queensland, New South Wales, ACT all sent participants along.

So there were nine participants from seven countries, three of them from Perth, and we did the Overland Track. It got delayed a few times with COVID, but we finally got there. We did it. As part of that Overland Track adventure, these three participants to guides, we set them challenges every day to to lead us along the track.

Even though we had a, a professional guide with us, he was amazing too. He would sit down with them, go through the map, showed them places that we were heading to, told them to pick out where are we gonna stop for morning tea? Where are we gonna stop for lunch? How long is it gonna take us to get there?

Where can we get water along the way? So they all did a big dive into that and just were amazing. 

Tracy: Oh, what an incredible reward for those participants. And I [00:19:00] think we were actually on track a day apart, weren't we? Well, this was in 2022. 

Lou: Oh yeah. I kept leaving messages for you. 

Tracy: Yes, yes. So that was pretty special for us as well.

So what have you guys personally learned or gained through your involvement with First Hike Project ?

Lou: Compassion's the biggest thing, I think, and sometimes for me personally let go of some of that little stuff and just think, you know, life's not too bad. It's also encouraged me to get more involved with people from different communities, and I now volunteer with Red Cross in their humanitarian settlement program, which is all about families that have come from refugee migrants and found themselves in Perth.

So I, I help them, I volunteer with them, and along that way I've met families who have got students at the schools mentioned to the students about the hikes and then meet them on the hikes so that's lovely to see that go full circle and also learning more about the cultures of the people we take out.

Sometimes we live in our own little world and and don't understand their culture, so it is really interesting to be on a [00:20:00] learning journey with some of them. 

Tracy: I bet it's been very eye-opening for you. 

Lou: Very much. Yeah. 

Tracy: And Sarah, what have you gained out of this experience? 

Sarah: Yeah, definitely that cultural stuff and just some of the, and the empathy as well.

You know, we did one exercise with, with Red Cross at a training program we won, ran one night, which, which kind of blew my mind a bit, where they kind of set you up as if you're a refugee and put you in a, in a bit of a scenario and you have to step through and make decisions as if you were someone in that situation and that it's something I've recalled and told other people about on numerous occasions.

So, you know, that. That was pretty, pretty amazing, to be honest. Well, I've learned that we need more volunteers, definitely.

Tracy: Okay, so we're doing a call out for volunteers as part of this podcast. Is that what I'm hearing? 

Lou: Yes.

Sarah: Totally. Like the more volunteers we have, the more hikes we can run. You know, we've got quite a lot on the books, but when it comes to the crunch, because we'll pick a day, you know, and put it out there, it's. We kind of gotta have that availability on, on the day. [00:21:00] Calendars can be pretty tight, even though we usually give as much notice as possible. And you know, sometimes we are lucky if we just get enough to run, to run the event, or sometimes we have to change it down to a day hike rather than a, an overnight or something like that.

So, yeah. More volunteers, please.

Tracy: I'll put my hand up and like, like you've just said though, very busy, but I would love to, if I'm a, uh, if I'm available, I will be there. 'cause I think this, this program is just, has so much impact and is so important and I absolutely love what you guys are doing. And Neil is such a visionary for creating this so many years ago, but now that it's even, it's even nationwide. So you guys are making even more of an impact, which is incredible.

Just before we go, I wanna ask each of you, if you could just pick up one standout moment or story that has stayed with you during your time volunteering, and obviously we're not gonna talk any specific details about the participants, but if there's one standout moment, what would you say it is?

Lou: I have one that sticks in my mind because I've actually got a photo [00:22:00] of three girls. Their faces aren't in the photo. I took it from behind. We were just on a day hike through near Mundaring Weir and we'd on our way to Hewitts Hut. We stopped for a moment after a little bit of a climb, just catching our breath, and these three most beautiful girls were just standing with their backs to me staring out back towards the weir.

They all had different colored pastel scarves on their heads, and they were just lost in the moment. They just stood there for ages, just looking out, talking to themselves. I didn't wanna interrupt took a little sneaky photo from behind just to capture the moment. And then later on when we started walking again, I was asking what, what they thought, you know, did, were they enjoying the hike? What were they thinking about at that moment? And one of the girls said, I'm just so happy to be here. This is the first time I've ever been allowed outside of my home environment without a family member since I arrived in this country. So that almost made me cry and the made me really appreciate the trust that the family had put into us [00:23:00] and that that came hand in hand with the, the schools that we, we work with.

Because obviously they promote us a trustworthy group to be organized with, but these families who have probably been through some horror times have put trust in us to take out their child. You know, young adult, I should say and get them home safely. 

Tracy: That was serious. Goosebumps there. Thank you so much, Lou, for sharing that.

Lou: It's alright.

Tracy: Sarah, do you have a standout moment? 

Sarah: Um, look, I, the, those three girls, I remember talking to them at Hewitts. We, we stayed at Hewitt's at a, a fire before and, and dinner before we left on a day hike. And yeah, you know, very, very similar feelings. But I won't repeat that one. 'cause Lou covered that one pretty well.

I think other than that it's, you know, we were very fortunate that we got funding to take a whole group of them down to the Srirling Range and, you know, getting them, getting them that far away from Perth on such a big trip. You know, seeing their faces when they climbed up Talyuberlup was, was just, just amazing, you know?

And, yeah. Yeah. And thank you Tracy, for your involvement in that event too, because [00:24:00] you, you were heavily involved in that as well. It really was epic adventure for all of them. And, you know, getting people to the top of Talyuberlup is who? Who, Aren't used to those kind of environments is, is crazy at the best of times, let alone with that group.

So yeah, just blew my mind. Yeah. 

Tracy: Yeah. It's definitely heartwarming to hear those, those stories or those memories that you guys have, but it has been equally as heartwarming for me to talk to you today. We're almost outta time, but do you guys have anything else to add at all before we wrap this up? 

Lou: No, just maybe perhaps if people are out there and see us on a trail, just say hi.

Sarah: Yeah. And if anyone is interested in volunteering, jump on our website. Have a look, you know, send through any queries you have. But there's no harm in signing up. 

Tracy: Absolutely. No, a hundred percent. And I'm gonna rally the troops for you guys. 

Sarah: Thank you. 

Tracy: I think it's admirable the way that you guys are being part of this program and breaking down the barriers.

And we just need more people doing things like you guys are doing. So thank you so much and thanks so much for giving us an insight into [00:25:00] First Hike Project today. It's been so great to hear you talk about the. Incredible program and I can hear it in your voice. It's just how, how much passion and heart you have for what you do and the difference that it's making.

If you are listening and feeling inspired or want to get involved, check out First Hike Project Online. Visit First Hike Project.org au. We'll also post some links on our Instagram page at Trail Tales WA. So be sure to follow us. We'll be back soon with another inspiring tale. But until then, keep walking, keep talking.

And remember, inclusion isn't an add-on, it's a right.