From Nick's house we walk about three blocks. In the space of ten minutes we change suburbs from Five Dock to Rodd Point, cross Timbrell Drive, and arrive at the shore of Iron Cove, one of the many large, unpredictably sprawling side hustles which the Parramatta River forms as it merges into Sydney Harbour.
The Bay Run makes a 7km circuit of the cove, crossing a small bridge over Iron Cove Creek at one end and a large one carrying Victoria Road at the other. The path is flat and paved: it is a "pram walk" designed to be family/toddler/expectant mother friendly, with playgrounds dotted around it at regular intervals and cafes sited just where you need them to be.
We try and walk it several times a week, preferring the very early morning. The track is always busy with cyclists and joggers, but not so many that they are a nuisance. If we time it right we'll be treated to a gaudy sunrise over the city, but this morning it's just a little too cloudy, so daybreak is more muted.
We have walked it many times over several years, and have some parts that seem like old friends. The Haberfield Rowing club, for instance which has a conveniently sited cafe,
and the lovely little bridge over Iron Cove Creek
There are some old dinghies, floating near the park, which seem not to have moved since we first saw them four or five years ago.
Victoria Road which spans the water at the far end of the Cove is a busy four lane thoroughfare, but the walking track is set on the cove side of the bridge and it's easy enough to ignore the traffic on the other dide. Occasionally we glance through the bridge superstructure to the city beyond.
On the other side of the bridge we glance down at the Drummoyne Swimming Centre, where people are using alternative methods of preserving their fitness.
Our circumambulation takes a couple of hours including coffee and banana bread, before we trace our way through the streets to our waiting family and breakfast.
