Recently, I had some friends ask me to take them on a small adventure. This adventure requires driving a long way on a dirt trail, where a 4WD is required if wet weather is forecast, then navigating a small unmarked track down into a canyon, and at some points, the trail can be a bit hard to find. Then, of course, wandering through the canyon itself.

Text and photosSonya Muhlsimmer

Eating protein balls in the canyon, as you do ...Danielle

50 | Bushwalk February 2024

The canyon is a short and sweet canyon that you walk through and you will potentially get wet up to your thigh or chest. It depends on how tall or short you are. This canyon is a perfect introduction to canyoning for non-canyoning friends as there are no abseils to contend with, just a few slippery rocks to scramble over.

The River Caves Canyon is near Lithgow, north of Newnes Plateau and south of the Wollemi National Park. Although this canyon has been here for a very long time and was discovered in the late 1940s, it seems like it is a recent discovery with all the hype it has been getting recently, thanks to some folk posting it on Instagram ... It is a beautiful spot to explore, and I was very happy taking my friends out for a day. I am glad however I did not see a huge amount of people trying to get their best Insta shot.

What made this canyon impressive is once you get down to the creek, then turn left, the canyon just opens up to a beautiful constriction immediately. The walking is easy through two main constrictions. The first one has towering walls with wide slots for sun rays to light them up, then the second one is more cave-like with narrower slots, so it is darker. You can choose how wet you get or how dry you stay as you can avoid the waist or chest deep wade by scrabbling over a boulder and taking the ledge. The canyon itself is short and you have a choice to either reverse the canyon or do a loop walk. We chose to reverse the canyon as it was so nice, and you get to see it from the other side, so to speak.

I took this opportunity to try a new quick and easy recipe as I had some willing testers. The night before I was researching some ingredients to make into a high protein and

Left to right: Kat, Danielle, Mel, Sonya, Es

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energy snack. Protein is important in our diets as our muscles are made up of protein. They are the building blocks of life, as every cell in our body contains protein. I chose a few ingredients that were readily available in my pantry and I must say, the Protein balls tasted good.

I will just call out the nutritional benefits of just a few ingredients here before I share the recipe. Due to the fact that these were only tried on a day hike, I mean canyon, I do not know how they would fare on a longer multi-day hike as they were pretty soft. I guess there is only one way to find out.

Health benefits of some ingredientsOats are a very healthy grain. They contain manganese, phosphorus, magnesium, copper, iron, zinc, folate, vitamins and minerals. Oats are also high in carbs, fibre and protein.

Peanut butter, or at least the peanuts, are high in protein, folate, magnesium, copper, manganese. Peanuts also contain healthy fats and vitamins and are low in carbs. However, the manufactured product does contain a bit of sugar.

Amaranth is an ancient grain high in fibre, protein, manganese, magnesium, phosphorus, iron and antioxidants.

Chia seeds are high in fibre, protein, calcium, zinc, phosphorus and omega-3 fatty acids. Chia seeds are a complete protein, which means the seeds contain all the nine types of amino acids your body needs.

Whey powder is high in protein and other beneficial nutrients like cysteine, which helps make protein in your body.

Honey is a natural sweetener and is rich in antioxidants. It also contains a mix of amino acids, vitamins and lots of minerals.

So, you can see these snacks are pretty healthy and pack a punch of protein. They are also so easy to make. Oh, by the way,

my friends really enjoyed their first taste of canyoning. I wonder where they will want me to take them next time. I better jump on Instagram to see the next point of interest of where the influences are going next.

Protein balls Ingredients

MethodIn a food processor, pulse the oats and chocolate chips together for about 20 to 30 seconds. Add all other ingredients to the mixer and pulse for about 2 minutes until the mix starts combining together. Scoop out the mix with a spoon and roll into balls in your palm. Place in a container and store in the fridge for a couple of hours. Enjoy on your hike, or canyon.

The River Caves CanyonKat

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