And then there are Australian wildflowers. Over recent years I have found endless pleasure in photographing indigenous blooms in macro, with a point and shoot Lumix camera which allows me to get into places my SLR can’t reach.

So my app – Australia Bushwalking, published by Sutro Media – is an effort to inspire others to check out this extraordinary country on foot.

I never intended the app to be a walking companion to replace maps and guidebooks, so rather than having detailed walking notes and electronic maps it summarises each walk and provides links to online information pages and recommended books, including favourites for identifying wildflowers, fungi and birds. I endeavoured to provide everything to help inexperienced and more frequent bushwalkers from Australia and overseas discover the wonders of Australian bushwalking from the comfort of an armchair and choose walks to suit their fitness and areas of interest in different states and territories. I grouped the walks by difficulty, location, and main attractions, and an update, underway as I write this, will include more Victorian walks and some dog-friendly hikes, among them Victoria’s new Surf Coast Walk from Torquay to Fairhaven.

I love the idea of people scrolling through my suggestions, looking for an afternoon walk they can fit into a Sydney getaway (Manly Scenic Walkway) or a challenging multi-day hike in Queensland (Great Walk Carnarvon).

Something I greatly enjoyed about writing Australia Bushwalking was determining my own focus and being able to expand – rant even – about personal bugbears, including people who take short cuts (causing erosion and risking getting lost) and litter. It also gave me freedom to promote bright coloured hiking clothing – and not just because people then stand out in photographs (all my walking companions know that they have to wear red, orange or yellow at least when we hike together because environmentally sensitive colours disappear in the scenery).

My favourite attire is rainbow-striped thermals and I have often remarked, when people comment, that my plan is to never be run over by a snow plough: so far so good! I took particular pleasure in quoting Sgt Ian Colless, Coordinator, Blue Mountains Police Rescue Squad, who told me, unprompted, during an interview about bushwalking safety, that he doesn’t don’t know why walkers wear blue, grey, and black, because such hues make lost and injured walkers almost invisible to air and ground rescue crews and that, “Walkers should wear high-visibility clothing!”

Of course, recommending walks is a matter of personal opinion and there are undoubtedly many spectacular walks in this country which I have not done, so are not in my app. I am looking forward to discovering them and writing them up. I am also keen to receive recommendations from others, in particular about walks outside my home state of Victoria, which I know best.