Melanie Ball’s career as a travel writer fell off the back of an overland expedition truck between London and Johannesburg. Over the four decades since then, her articles and images have been widely published across Australia, including RACV’s Ryal Auto magazine. Her love of bushwalking well predates that big adventure, however, and she is still happiest with only hiking-boot tread between her and terra firma. Melanie has walked widely throughout Australia and in overseas regions from Tierra del Fuego to Ethiopia’s Simien Mountains.