Tasmanian Wilderness Hiker - Day 2

Breakfast was at 7:30 this morning with an 8:30am departure. At least we didn't have to pack our bags as we were returning to the Lake Pedder Chalet for a second night.

View from our window ... Lake Pedder in the early morning

View of Lake Pedder from the Chalet grounds

Today we were doing an out and back hike along the Mt Anne Track as far as the High Camp Hut. This hike was rated as a tough one.

After a drive was just over an hour we arrived at the Mt Anne Track car park which was well populated with cars. Our guides thought that most of the hikers belonging to the cars had probably arrived on the previous morning and would have been doing overnight hikes.

Heading out on the track, our party having been duly logged in by one of the guides, our first stop was the boot scrubbing station. We needed to ensure that our boots were clean to prevent the spread of phytothera [?] into this wilderness area.

The boot scrubbing station

Trevor scrubbing his boots

The first part of the walk was along a mix of ground level tracks and boardwalks and was generally reasonably flat. There were lots of plants in bloom. Some I had seen on Mt Wellington while others were new to me.

The party heading towards the first part of the climb

Once the climbing began we were able to see the lake and ranges. Unfortuantely much of the view was obscured by haze which did clear somewaht later in the day.

The upward track consisted of which were constructed using a variety materials. Part was board, some was rock while other bits had been constructed with a board frontboard and stone filling.

Some of the track was rough hewn boardwalk held together with wire

The track took us over a number of ridges and through the odd saddle or two.

Taking a break

At 11:40 it was decided that time was running out for the whole group to make it to the High Camp Hut. The turnaround time was set at 12:20 and the group broke into a lead group heading for the hut, five of us with Monica as our guide, and the rest in the care of Marie and Lisa.

The Hut group came across a number of hikers on their way down. They confirmed that we were only a short time from the hut and we pressed on reaching it at around 12:25. We had already agreed that we would cut the time allocated for lunch so that we did not delay our return to the bus unneccesarily. The first sight of the green toilet was welcome and we picked out the roof of the hut some 40m or so further on. The track between the toilet and the hut was very rough and not something you would want to negotiate in the dark.

The very welcome "little room"

High Camp Hut

Lunching at the hut

View to Mt eliza from the hut

View across the ranges from the hut

The hut was surrounded by heavy foliage which provided limited views across the Lake Pedder and the various ranges. Still, there were lots of opportunities to view both on the way back.

After a quick lunch break we headed down.

In some places the going down seemed more difficult than the going up. Certainly, great care was needed to ensure that we didn't slip. The stepdowns were sometimes quite large, too, making the return trip challenging. We stopped for a break about halfway down and my legs and knees were grateful for the rest.

Admiring the view on the way down ... a taking a breather

Christmas Bells ... a rare find

Back at the carpark we found the rest of the party sitting beside a rock pool, many with their feet in the water.

Cooling off. Note: The water has a brown tinge due to high levels of tannin

A cold drink refreshed us as it had been quite hot out on the trail.

Back on the bus we headed off to see the Gordon Dam.

Looking down on to part of Lake Pedder

We walked down the many steps to reach the dam wall and walked across it.

The Gordon Dam wall

Unfortuantely, when you go down you have to come back up. The climb up the steps was tough after the hike.

Looking down on to the trickle which is the Gordon River below the dam wall

Tasmanian Wilderness Hiker - Day 1

This is the second week long hiking trip we have done with Auswalks. In January 2013 we did a walk in the Victorian Alpine country. One of our Guides was Marie Killeen.

This Jnauary we decided to head off to Tasmania and Marie was once again one of our guides.

We flew into Hobart a couple of day ahead of the start of our trip. We spent the time walking around Hobart, I also spent a day at the library/archives gathering information about some of my forebears who found themselves in Tasmania. Trevor and I took one of the hop on hop off buses and got off at the Womens Factory where we were entertained by a couple of actors who graphically showed us the life of the women who ended up in this place. After lunch we took a shuttle bus to the top of Mt Wellington which, at 1270m, dominates Hobart. While Trevor returned to Hobart on the shuttle bus I walked down the mountain and back to our hotel. I'll add detail about this walk later.

Tasmanian Wilderness Hiker

This trip commenced on Saturday 11 January and the participants were to meet at 9:30am at the Fountainside Hotel. Everyone was camped in the hotel foyer well ahead of the appointed time.

Day 1

After a briefing by the guides, there were actually 3 of them: Marie, Lisa and Monica, we loaded our bags into the bus trailer, hopped on the bus and headed out of Hobart.

Our first stop for the day was the Mt Fields National Park. After a quick cuppa at the Visitors Centre we headed off to see a number of waterfalls. The first one was Russell Falls, supposedly the most photographed falls in Tasmania. This is probably because it is the most accessable.

Russell Falls

After climbing above Russell Falls the track continued on to Horseshoe Falls.

Looking down on Russell Falls from above the falls

Horseshoe Falls

 By now we were getting used to seeing very tall trees and trees with huge bottoms. These were swamp gums ... in an area that defineitely was not swamp!

The tallest of the trees in this park was some 79m tall.

Trevor in front of the tall tree

Just to demonstrate how big the trees can be, here is Trevor standing inside the shell of a fallen tree.

We meandered through the forest, up and down and around, it seemed, finally arriving at Lady Barron Falls.

Back at the Visitors Centre we grabbed some lunch before heading off to see the Marriot Falls.

The hike into the falls was mostly alongside streams with rather rocky bottoms as the water cascaded over them and filled the air with the sound of running water.

We were walking through a forestry area and it was apparent that these falls do not get large visitor numbers as the track was full of obstacles. There were fallen trees across the track. Some we had to scrabble over while others we sneaked under.

And where is the track actually going?

Going under a fallen tree

Another fallen tree across the track

The track was marked with orange markers, some triangles other just orange tape tied to posts or branches. Being taller would have been helpful as there were times when the route was obscured by foliage taller than most in the group.

The effort was worth it as I thought that the Marriot Falls were the best of the four we visited.

Back on the bus we headed off to Strathgordon and the Lake Pedder chalet for a two night stay.

The Chalet sits right on the edge of Lake Pedder. The view from our window across the lake was very pleasant.

December and 2013 in review

2013 seems to have whizzed by and it is already 2014.

Overall, this has been a big year.

Most Wednesdays see me walking the 6km to the gym, working out with Sue, my personal trainer, and walking home. I do tend to duck in to Brother's Oven on the way home for a coffee if I have the time. It certainly seems to give me a boast and makes the walk home that little bit easier. On the way to the gym I usually take the short route which is the path alongside Athlon Drive. I usually walk along the lake on the trip.

Having got through Wednesdays there has been a lot more walking.

In January Trevor and I spent a week in the Victorian Alpine country walking with Auswalks. It was all very civilised with nice accommodation, great food and good company. Best of all, we only needed to carry a day pack. Even that got heavy when extra water was being carried because of the hot weather.

In the first half of September we did the Coast to Coast walk in England. This was 13 days of walking covering 192 miles, more rather then less, from St Bees on the Cumbrian coast to Robin Hood Bay just north of Scarborough on the Yorkshire coast. Preparation for this long walk occupied us and our walking efforts for much of the year. Would we manage it? In July I spent 13 days parallelling the walk (except for the bogs and the rain). I did both the distance and stated elevation gain so I was pretty confident that I could make it. As always, the proof is in the pudding. And, yes, we both made it the whole way. No slacking off and busing it. Just foot power. Would I do it again? Perhaps ... but not for quite a few years!!! There are so many other places I would like to walk through before I would consider a return to the Coast to Coast route.

I did do a number of longish walks around the Canberra area. There are walks around Lake Burley Griffin and, of course, Lake Tuggeranong. Both lakes were tackled a number of times. Then there were those long walks from Kingston, Manuka, the National Library and even the AIS home. We really are blessed with great walking terrain.

Many of my walking activities over the year can be found on this blog. If you want more information about any of the walks please contact me ... just use the comment area below to send a message.

Trevor and I have become quite keen wildlife spotters. Small birds have kept us fascinated. Just getting enough of a view to determine the distinguishing features has been challenging. Discussions about Weebills,  Variegated Wrens and other small birds became a feature of our post walk conversations.

The kangaroos that I encounter are always a pleasure. Many of the roos in the Mt Taylor reserve are very comfortable with humans as long as they, the humans, stick to their track. Here is a photo of a couple of roos just a metre or so from the track. The just watched me as i passed and didn't get too fussed when I stopped and took out the camera.

In the first half of December I felt off and this impacted my walking. I only logged 191km for the month with 2999m elevation gain.

Statistics for 2013

My walking and hiking activities came in at 3,934.82km ... that averages just on 10.8km per day across the 365 days of 2013. It probably explains why I have gone through a number of pairs of shoes. I was informed that my shoes were designed to do 600km so I should get quite a long life from them ... not at 10km a day!!! Fortunately, some of the walking was in hiking boots.

Overall, the elevation gain for the years was 65,507m. That is just on 180m elevation gain each day, on average.

There is a school of thought that each metre of elevation gain is the equivalent of a km of level walking. Perhaps.

And now for 2014

I haven't decided on this years challenge yet. Trevor and I will be doing a week's walking in Tasmania and I certainly need to think of a challenge for 2014 as a whole.

Canberra Centenary Trail - Section 6

Along with many other activities and permanent additions to Canberra, 2013 saw the creation of the Canberra Centenary Trail. This trail has been designed for walkers and cyclists. It is some 140km trail which takes you urban and nearby rural environments. The trail is broken into seven stages for walkers and 3 for cyclists although you can easily break some of the stages into shorter walks.

Trevor and I decided to tackle Section 6, the section from Stromlo Forest Park to the Tuggeranong Town Centre as this section is close to home, actually crossing our street only a few hundred metres from our house.

We picked 27 December 2013 for our walk. The weather was forecast to be clear and warm with the temperature expected to reach 30.

We left home just after 9am and headed off to the carpark in Stromlo Forest Park adjacent to the 2003 Bushfire Memorial.

When Trevor got his pack out of the car he noticed that it was wet. He was not sure why. Later he determined that the cap on his water bladder had leaked and that he probably had lost about half of his water. Not good on a hot day. If the water problem had been solved earlier we could have topped up the water. By the time the problem was solved Trevor had no water left and we had no way of supplementing it.

Leaving from the car park we headed towards Duffy. Crossing the Cotter Road we headed along Eucumbene Drive, passing the very familiar houses along that street. The views over the Canberra urban area from the vantage point on the western side of the road never disappoint.

Trevor heading up the track along Eucumbene Drive

View from Eucumbene Drive

 Narrabundah Hill, on the western side of Eucumbene Drive, was devastated by the fires in early 2003. The pine plantations, which were a feature of the hillside, were destroyed. They have been replaced by other trees and these are now beginning to look like a forest.

Trees on Narrabundah Hill

The Canberra Centenary Trail is marked by guide posts. Here is an example near the Eucumbene Drive-Hindmarsh Drive intersection.

Crossing Hindmarsh Drive the trail meandered through an open grassy area before picking up a trail alongside Kathner Street in Chapman. This trail took us up onto Cooleman Ridge.

The trail wandered over the ridge. I was a little disappointed that it did not follow the track along the western side of the ridge as I feel that the views across the rangers are superior to views across the urban areas of the city. Still, we did cross the ridge a number of times so got bits of the ranges to the west as well as the city to the east.

We took our first break on Cooleman Ridge. Along with our water we had also taken coffee and hot water for tea. The first break was coffee and perked us up.

Trevor enjoying a cuppa

The trail headed over to the western side of the ridge and I came across a storyboard which named each of the peaks which were visible from the point. A number of the peaks I had already climbed. Others are on my to do list.

Looking at the ranges to the west

While the trail has just been completed much of it is rough and care is required to ensure that you do not slip or trip.

Cooleman Ridge is strewn with boulders and large areas of rocks

On the eastern side of Cooleman Ridge again with views across to Black Mountain and its tower

On reaching Mt Arrawang, walkers were directed down the stepped path to the Stanhope Highway and a clockwise circuit of the mound. The signs direct walkers down on to Namatjira Drive however if you ignore that sign, as we did, there is another sign indicating that you can continue following the fire trail around the base of Mt Arrawang. The views, and walking conditions too, from the fire trail are far superior to lower route. There was no contest.

When we reached the bridge across the drain to the summit track we turned left of the trail and headed through the horse paddock and then down to Kambah Pool Road. Crossing the road we walked along the path which runs on the western side of the Kambah houses, crossing Barritt and heading down towards Kambah Pool. This was one of the few places where the trail was indistinct.

We took another break in the shade of some trees just before we reached the Murrumbidgee Country Club. The flies were a nuisance and we were glad of our fly nets. The odd fly still managed to attempt to become human food.

The Murrumbidgee County Club is a green oasis in an otherwise dry landscape

Passing alongside the Murrumbidgee Country Club we observed quite a few people out playing golf.

The views from the narrow path alongside the Kambah Pool Road took in both the western ranges as well as the rural properties and the odd hill. With the exception of the golf course, the countryside was looking very dry. The grass is quite long and an obvious fire hazard.

It was quite a trudge along the Kambah Pool Road and I was pleased to finally reach the entrance to the Kambah Pool Reserve.

We headed down towards the swimming area looking for somewhere is sit down and have our lunch. We didn't find any tables but there was a bench and we took advantage of it to sit down and have a break.

It is quite a climb down to the river level and we watched a number of people trudging up and down the path. Most of the visitors seemed to be fisher persons.

One of the many fishermen leaving Kambah Pool

 The one good feature of our visit to the Kambah Pool Reserve was the toilet. Definitely a bonus!

After lunch we headed along the Murrumbidgee River towards the Tuggeranong Town Centre. The track had been designed to have relatively gentle gradients and this meant that it is mostly away from the river. When Michael and I had done the Red Rocks Gorge walk back in 2012 we had tracked fairly close to the river with reasonably constant views of the water and excellent views of the Red Rocks area. The Centenary Trail was disappointing as it does not allow a good view of the most startling of the gorge features. When I get a chance I'll go back and do the walk along the gorge proper to highlight the differences.

On the left hand side, in the middle, is a heap of dead trees that have collected on the riverbank

There was very little waterflow in the river although we had had some recent rain.

Christmas Bush in flower

When we drove through Cann Valley last weekend we noticed all the Christmas Bush coming in out in flower. On our return trip it was even more evident. There was quite a lot of this bush in flower along the Murrumbidgee corridor. Along with the Christmas Bush there was an array of plants in flower. They were a pleasant interlude in an increasingly hot day.

About this time Trevor discovered that he was completely out of water. I shared my remaining water with him but he exhausted that supply before reaching our destination.

Views of the river were limited and mostly obscured by vegetation. There were a number of spots where we could see the water and the walls of the gorge although few offered reasonable points for photographs.

Yes, there is white water in the centre of this photo

The rocks in the centre of this photo are an outstanding feature of this section of the gorge. A pity that we never had a good view of them

From time to time we caught glimpses of our destination, the Tuggeranong Town Centre. It always seemed to be off in the distance.

At one point, on a wide sweeping bend of the river, a huge beach of sand was visible.

The trail meandered between the river and the back of the town centre. It would be possible to cut up onto Athlon Drive and save a couple of ks from the walk however we continued to follow the set trail. This took us along the original boundary fence that was erected between 1867 and 1875 between the two large runs that occupied much of the area, namely the Lanyon and Yarralumla properties.

Finally we arrived at the town centre and were able to rehydrate and grab a refreshing coffee before getting a bus home and then going back to Stromlo Forest Park to collect Trevor's car.

All up we had walked 22kms with 430m elevation gain and 441m loss. The temperature had reached 30.

While we will probably tackle the other 6 stages of the full Canberra Centenary Trail I don't anticipate repeating this section. There are better tracks with far better views in the area covered by Section 6. I suspect that the route has been compromised by the need to cater for bikes rather than just walkers. Like many challenges, it is worth tackling at least once and then adding your own variations to subsequent hikes.

Canberra’s Centenary Trail will showcase the true ‘Bush Capital’, taking you on an exploration of the national capital’s natural areas and iconic landmarks.

The 140 kilometre self‑guided trail takes walkers and cyclists on a journey through urban and nearby rural environments. It passes by well‑known locations and hidden treasures and through the urban grandeur of the Parliamentary Zone as well as the quiet beauty of Canberra’s nature reserves.

The trail will have a symbolic start and stop point within the Parliamentary Zone and loop around the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) through locations including ANZAC Parade and the Australian War Memorial, Lake Burley Griffin, the National Arboretum, Stromlo Forest Park and Mulligans Flat Sanctuary. The well planned landscape of Canberra's city will be on show from Black Mountain, Mount Majura and Dairy Farmers Hill lookouts as well as from other high points along the trail.

You can join or leave the trail at many locations and complete as little or as much of the trail as you like. The trail is divided into daily legs, spaced to allow walkers and cyclists a full day of sightseeing. Completing the full trail loop around the ACT will take an average of seven days for walkers and three days for cyclists.

- See more at: http://www.canberra100.com.au/programs/centenary-trail/#sthash.xAxIwXKa.dpuf

Canberra’s Centenary Trail will showcase the true ‘Bush Capital’, taking you on an exploration of the national capital’s natural areas and iconic landmarks.

The 140 kilometre self‑guided trail takes walkers and cyclists on a journey through urban and nearby rural environments. It passes by well‑known locations and hidden treasures and through the urban grandeur of the Parliamentary Zone as well as the quiet beauty of Canberra’s nature reserves.

The trail will have a symbolic start and stop point within the Parliamentary Zone and loop around the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) through locations including ANZAC Parade and the Australian War Memorial, Lake Burley Griffin, the National Arboretum, Stromlo Forest Park and Mulligans Flat Sanctuary. The well planned landscape of Canberra's city will be on show from Black Mountain, Mount Majura and Dairy Farmers Hill lookouts as well as from other high points along the trail.

You can join or leave the trail at many locations and complete as little or as much of the trail as you like. The trail is divided into daily legs, spaced to allow walkers and cyclists a full day of sightseeing. Completing the full trail loop around the ACT will take an average of seven days for walkers and three days for cyclists.

- See more at: http://www.canberra100.com.au/programs/centenary-trail/#sthash.xAxIwXKa.dpuf

Canberra’s Centenary Trail will showcase the true ‘Bush Capital’, taking you on an exploration of the national capital’s natural areas and iconic landmarks.

The 140 kilometre self‑guided trail takes walkers and cyclists on a journey through urban and nearby rural environments. It passes by well‑known locations and hidden treasures and through the urban grandeur of the Parliamentary Zone as well as the quiet beauty of Canberra’s nature reserves.

The trail will have a symbolic start and stop point within the Parliamentary Zone and loop around the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) through locations including ANZAC Parade and the Australian War Memorial, Lake Burley Griffin, the National Arboretum, Stromlo Forest Park and Mulligans Flat Sanctuary. The well planned landscape of Canberra's city will be on show from Black Mountain, Mount Majura and Dairy Farmers Hill lookouts as well as from other high points along the trail.

You can join or leave the trail at many locations and complete as little or as much of the trail as you like. The trail is divided into daily legs, spaced to allow walkers and cyclists a full day of sightseeing. Completing the full trail loop around the ACT will take an average of seven days for walkers and three days for cyclists.

- See more at: http://www.canberra100.com.au/programs/centenary-t

Canberra’s Centenary Trail will showcase the true ‘Bush Capital’, taking you on an exploration of the national capital’s natural areas and iconic landmarks.

The 140 kilometre self‑guided trail takes walkers and cyclists on a journey through urban and nearby rural environments. It passes by well‑known locations and hidden treasures and through the urban grandeur of the Parliamentary Zone as well as the quiet beauty of Canberra’s nature reserves.

The trail will have a symbolic start and stop point within the Parliamentary Zone and loop around the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) through locations including ANZAC Parade and the Australian War Memorial, Lake Burley Griffin, the National Arboretum, Stromlo Forest Park and Mulligans Flat Sanctuary. The well planned landscape of Canberra's city will be on show from Black Mountain, Mount Majura and Dairy Farmers Hill lookouts as well as from other high points along the trail.

You can join or leave the trail at many locations and complete as little or as much of the trail as you like. The trail is divided into daily legs, spaced to allow walkers and cyclists a full day of sightseeing. Completing the full trail loop around the ACT will take an average of seven days for walkers and three days for cyclists.

- See more at: http://www.canberra100.com.au/programs/centenary-trail/#sthash.xAxIwXKa.dpuf

November?

It is already the middle of December and I haven't posted anything about November.

My statistics are all mucked up as Runtastic has managed to show May as a second April and all subsquent months are showing as the previous. That was certainly truw through to October which is just not showing at all. November does seem to be there.

What did I do during November?

My pattern has been dictated by Wednesdays walking the 6km to the gym, working with my PT and then walking the 6ks home. Often I do another 6ks following lunch and then a stroll to the Village later in the day. Wednesday is consistently my high distance day of the week.

Along with my Wednesday activities I did a couple of long walks.

On Sunday 3rd I worked at a swim meet out at the AIS which finished around 3pm. I took the opportunity to walk home. This was interesting as the first part of the walk took me through reserves and then through the suburb of Turner. I skirted around Civic by taking the road that runs between ANU and Black Mountain before doing an anti clockwise segment around Lake Burley Griffin. I picked up a path along the Molonglo River. Which was pretty quiet until I encountered a group of 50 or so bike riders who appeared to be doing a bike tour. I managed to navigate my way through Molonglo without trespassing on any construction sites and then on to Cooleman Court before picking up my regular route from the Weston Creek centre home.

All up this walk was 22.63kms with 309m in elevation gain and 309m elevation loss.

When setting out Trevor had asked when to expect me home. I told him that I thought I would be home by 7pm and I was right on time. It was a lucky guess at how long it would take me to do the walk as I had not determined exactly how far it would be.

I continue to do Mt Taylor Circuits. These some in at around 9.5km with an elevation gain and loss of about 170m. I added a climb up the Richmond Fellowship Track on one of my circuits which adds a further 135m to the elevation gain.

During the month I only walked 242.88km with an overall elevation gain of 3456m.

I'll add some photos in sometime when I get a chance to edit them.