By the Wild Women Team
If you’ve ever gone looking for a bushwalk you can reach without a car, there’s a good chance you’ve stumbled across Great Walks with Pat. Pat has built a community around one simple idea: that nature is closer than you think, and you don’t need a car to find it.
We’re thrilled to welcome Pat as a Coastrek ambassador. Before he hits the trail with us, we asked him to share where his love of walking began. What he told us goes far deeper than a happy. Here’s Pat’s story.
By the Wild Women Team
Not Quite Belonging
I grew up in a small country town in the Upper Hunter Valley, and even from a very young age, I knew I didn’t quite belong.
Growing up queer in that environment was, for me, an incredibly difficult and at times dangerous space to navigate. Bullying entered my life very early in primary school and followed me into high school. I became withdrawn and gained a lot of weight as a child, which unfortunately only gave people another reason to target me.
Being aggressively told I was queer before I even understood what that meant – before I’d had the opportunity to understand who I was for myself – had a profound impact on me. I struggled deeply with my mental health and, at a very young age, experienced suicidal thoughts.
But I remember reaching a point around 13 or 14 where I’d simply had enough. Somehow, even at that age, I had the foresight to realise that I didn’t want to end my life – I wanted to change it. I wanted to take control and start choosing myself.
And, perhaps unexpectedly, two women became enormous sources of inspiration for me: Jennifer Garner, who I watched playing incredibly strong action heroes on television and in film, and Beyoncé, whose music became something of an everyday prayer for me. I saw strength and confidence in these women at a time when I didn’t necessarily see those things in myself.
So I Started Walking
I would wake up at 5am before school, put my earphones in, load up every Beyoncé song I had on my MP3 player, and just walk.
I walked and walked and walked.
And from that point on, I never really stopped.
Naturally I became fitter, but something much more important was happening at the same time. My confidence grew. My strength grew. My resilience grew. My sense of self-worth grew.
Walking gave me something I desperately needed at that age: a sense that I had some control over my own life.
It also reconnected me with nature. Growing up in the country, the outdoors had always been around me, but I began experiencing it differently. Nature became somewhere I could breathe, think, move and simply be myself. Walking became as important to my mental wellbeing as it was to my physical wellbeing.
Finding Home in Sydney
Fast forward to 2020. After moving around quite a bit, I’d eventually made my way to Sydney and finally found somewhere that felt like home.
Naturally, I wanted to keep connecting with nature, green spaces and the outdoors. But when I looked online for inspiration, I couldn’t find a great deal of content showing just how much Sydney had to offer. And much of what I could find seemed to assume you owned a car.
I don’t drive and don’t own a car, so I started figuring it out for myself.
I explored Sydney on foot and by public transport, discovering walks, bushland, national parks, wildlife and pockets of nature I couldn’t believe excited in Australia’s biggest city. Eventually I thought: why am I keeping all of this to myself?
So I started sharing what I was finding online. And that’s how Great Walks with Pat began.
Even today, I’m still blown away by how green and beautiful Sydney is. Despite growing up in the country, I’ve never felt more connected to nature than I do now, living here.
Why Coastrek Feels Full-Circle
That’s why becoming a Coastrek ambassador means so much more to me than simply another partnership.
I know firsthand what walking can do for someone – not just physically, but holistically, for the mind, body and soul. Something as simple as putting one foot in front of the other genuinely helped change the direction of my life.
To now use the community I’ve built around walking to raise both funds and awareness for Beyond Blue feels incredibly full-circle.
I think most of us know someone who has struggled, or continues to struggle, with their mental health. I certainly do. I’ve seen first hand what can happen when somebody reaches a point where they feel there is no way out – and I’ve also been that person myself.
That’s why organisations like Beyond Blue matter so much. People need to know that support exists, that conversations about mental health can be had openly, and that asking for help is an option.
To think that the thing that helped me through one of the darkest periods of my life – walking – is now giving me the opportunity to help other people through Coastrek and Beyond Blue is incredibly special.
I feel genuinely honoured to be part of it, and I’m looking forward to spreading the word!
Pat’s story is a powerful reminder that every step counts – and that you never know where one walk might lead. Every kilometre trekked and every dollar raised at Coastrek helps Beyond Blue support people right across Australia, at every stage of their mental health journey.
Feeling inspired to walk alongside Pat? Gather your team, find a Coastrek event near you and register today at coastrek.com.au
If this story has brought anything up for you, support is available. Contact Beyond Blue on 1300 22 4636 or visit beyondblue.org.au.
