Break Loose Adventure Blog

The flight from Sydney to Launceston was reasonably quiet and uneventful,just the way we wanted. Ray, Ken and I had planned for this trip and now it was time for the action to start.

We landed in Launceston at 11.00pm on Friday and went straight to our accommodation. Each of us had worked all day so this was the sleep we needed.

We were in Tasmania to walk the Overland Track in the Cradle Mountain Lake St Clair National Park from Cradle Valley to Cynthia Bay, a distance of 76Kms. Depending on the amount of time you can spare and your itinerary, this walk takes a number of hours (for the tiger runners) or many days. We chose to do a simple walk and so planned for six days (five to walk and one for safety).

Early Saturday morning it was down to the camping store to stock up on fuel, which can’t be taken on aircraft but must be taken on the walk because this is a ‘fuel stove only’ area - no camp fires allowed.

The bus to Cradle Valley took us through Sheffield, a delightful town known for its murals on many buildings depicting town activities. Arriving at Cradle Valley we registered at the Rangers Station giving information on group size, leader name,intended trip duration and ETA at Cynthia Bay. Each person pays a track fee which goes towards track maintenance and the constant upgrading so that other generations can enjoy this area.

Cradle Valley is the recommended starting point. In this way, even though there may be many walkers on the track you probably only see civilisation when you stop for the night at a camp site. If you commence from Cynthia Bay you meet up with everybody travelling south and you feel like an ant on a highway.

After settling in at one of the Waldheim huts we did a side trip to Lake Dove via Lake Lilla. This day was clear, no rain and we saw an impressive Cradle Mountain standing its full 1545 metres. Back to the hut for tea and an early night. So ended our acclimatisation.

The rays of Sundays sun woke us at 6.00am. Breakfasted and packed here we go. To allow for regeneration the track had been diverted past Crater Lake to Marions Lookout. An impressive start to the walk, it makes you wonder if you shouldn’t have had more sleep or done more training. Either way it is worth the slog. The Lookout gives a beautiful vista of Lake Dove. But you have to be quick. We had about two minutes warning of impending wetness. And wet it was. That wouldn’t have been so bad except five minutes later came the wind, probably gusting at 20Km. Welcome!

Pushing on, and I do mean pushing, we followed duckboards and snow poles to arrive at Kitchener Hut. By now it was only drizzling as we went inside for a dry lunch and solitude. We settled in and were then joined by nine others, dripping wet. This is an emergency hut, not designed or intended for camping or twelve wet people. Here we all stood eating, silent, wet and squashed. An interesting feature of this hut is a door two metres from the ground with a snow shovel attached to the wall on the outside, beside the door. Looks like fun in winter.

More rain and wind as we resumed. So much so that we couldn’t even see into Fury River Gorge as we passed. We entered the moorland with more duckboards and reached Cirque Hut nestled below Barn Bluff (1519m). If we had been able to see it through the rain and fog we would probably been impressed.

We noted that the coal in the outside bunkers was wet because previous walkers had left the lids off and they had also forgotten to restock the fireplace inside-nice people. No fire tonight. Then we saw a sign “No toilet here, if you want crap go back to Valley Hut.” That would have been Waterfall Valley Hut, the modern new hut we passed twenty minutes ago. Actually, as we walked past it we decided to keep going in order to give us a good start for the morning-good move!

So we had endured our first day, wet and miserable but what we saw was great and exciting.

Waking the next day we found no change in the weather-they must import the rain to have so much of the stuff. Leaving Cirque Hut we walked in driving rain,leaning heavily into the wind to avoid being blown off the duckboards. You have to be careful not to trip and end up in the water below these duckboards. With your feet in the air and a full pack forcing your head to remain underwater,the temptation is to take a breath. Muddy water tastes foul.

I feel sorry for the track maintenance workers who have to put up with these conditions but was very grateful for their efforts. Their upgrading program is working wonders for this area.

Passing Lake Windermere we sighted Windermere Hut-a dry haven with a toilet. We decided on an early lunch and selected a bunk - for our packs. Having eaten and changed into dry gear we felt quite comfortable. As it was still raining our thoughts turned to a snooze and staying dry. We had originally intended camping out tonight but further progress seemed useless,so we made an executive decision. The rain stopped mid afternoon so we went for a walk. Ray loaded his camera and we sought the locals. We saw a lovely clear lake and friendly Wallabies and Paddymelons. The animals are not to be fed because they become dependent on humans and suffer as a result. Ray also found some friends which became quite attached to him. It was well into the night before he was able get rid of the last leech. If only he had suffered in silence the rest of us would have had a better sleep-some people are so inconsiderate.

Day 3 dawned sunny, dry and still. We set off early in good spirits. We donned our gaiters because it is muddy up to Pine Forest. Here we saw the effect of track degradation as people try to keep their dry. They avoid the mud by walking on or around vegetation with the result that many side tracks are created and fragile planted are damaged beyond repair. Being an alpine area it can take tens of years for flora to recover, if at all.

A short stop at the Forth Gorge Lookout is recommended. Lunch by the shady Pelion Creek is a welcome respite. Now we were complaining about the heat. Continuing through Frog Flats we had to be alert to follow the trail markers and then up to Pelion Hut and another toilet. From here you can do a side trip to Mt Oakleigh (1280m) where you can see a good part of where you have walked. Pelion Hut is deceptive, Quite, peaceful and a river which is freezing and greatly effects male and female alike. Don’t be lulled into a false sense of security. Here leeches set ambushes.

Rising from a fitful sleep we checked our packs for intruders. You have to hang your pack from the rafters on string to discourage the nocturnals.

We struck out for Pelion Gap on a steady climb which meandered through tree trunks.The sensible choice of footwear comes into its own here.Stowing our packs we removed the essentials, camera, some and a jacket for the climb up Mt Ossa (1617m) the highest point in Tasmania. We located and signed the log book. We had a 360 degree view with many point of reference. To the north was the track we had just walked, to the east was the Walls of Jerusalem National Park, to the immediate south the track we were to walk with Pine Valley further south.

From here we ambled into Kia Ora Hut,the best of the trip. As usual we read the comments in the hut log book and added our own. These log books are an outlet for frustrated writers but also help searchers in their effort to locate overdue walkers.

To our dismay we read some comments from people walking in from the south that the ferry from Narcissus Bay To Cynthia Bay would not be running for a couple of days. There goes our one day safety net. Instead of a casual stroll we had to push hard in order to connect with our transport in Cynthia Bay.

5.30am is not a good time to wake up when you are supposed to be relaxing and even worse when you realise that it is raining. Mind and body tend to argue. After a substantial breakfast, the pressure was on.

On the track it is now only drizzling-great. Off we go, past Du Cane Hut which is emergency shelter only and then past the turnoff to Ferguson and Cathedral Falls, into more tree stump dodging and then past the track to Hartnett Falls. These are two side trips we had to sacrifice.

Through Du Cane Gap and into Windy Ridge Hut. The rain had stopped and it was time for lunch. In our original trip plan we had considered overnighting here but cancelled. The first thing to strike us as we opened the door was the stench of rats. We looked around but saw no peering eyes. A check of the log book told tales of terrible nights. There are however camp sites five to ten minutes either side of the hut. A very quick lunch and we were out.

Now with level walking, past an area known as the ’Bowling Green’ and then through the track to Pine Valley. More duckboards and we have Mt Olympus in sight. Over the suspension bridge and into Narcissus Hut and look mutely at the radio we were to use to summon the ferry. Check the feet,have a brew and head to Echo Point Hut in order to be as far down Lake St Clair as possible.

Echo Point Hut, on the western shore of the lake is isolated, private and in the most enchanting setting of the whole walk. A small hut with eight bunks it was crowded with even five people. We arrived at dusk, just as another couple were beginning to settle in for the night, by themselves. I felt sorry them but at that time of day after a hard walk, setting up a tent they could have privacy was the furthest thing from my mind. We had attained our objective and tomorrow would be easy.

Friday morning weather was perfect for walking. Our hut companions were still not speaking to us. We left first. The route to Cynthia Bat is generally level with a few scrambles over fallen trees thrown in for good measure.

Arriving in Cynthia Bay we signed in at the Ranger Station and amused ourselves while waiting for our transport to Launceston where we reintroduced our bodies to showers, razors and a meal cooked by somebody else in preparation for our flight home the next day.

This Track is not hard just a number of relatively easy walks strung together over a number of days. To enjoy it you should be fit, have the appropriate gear, clothing and food. To do otherwise is foolhardy and can be dangerous to you and those charged with the responsibility of searching for you should you be negligent in your preparation

The scenery is magnificent and so are the people.

Article by Jay Watson

To find out more about the The Overland Track visit Parks & Wildlife website.

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This entry was posted on Friday, July 7th, 2006 at 3:12 pm and is filed under Buskwalking/Hiking. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.