Bushwalk Australia

I have just returned from an A to K traverse and have to warn people intending to go there this summer 2012/13 that the hygene of the Lake Cygnus and Haven Lake camping areas and water collection points are suspect due to full toilets. The Lake Oberon and High Moor pods are 3/4 full as well so it wont be long until all pods are out of action.

I spoke with parks today (Mt Field office)and was told there was no date fixed for the helicopter work to replace all 4 campsite pods. The date fixed a fortnight ago met with bad weather apparently.

I might also add the layout of the toilet, tent platforms and designated water collecting point for High Moor should be viewed by those staying there with caution, as the collection point is downstream of the loo and platforms with water flowing freely over the ground when it was raining there last week.

I hope the Police Search and Rescue don't find themselves tasked with flying out sick bushwalkers due to parks current poor management of this stunning and popular area.
Please contact Parks before venturing into the Western Arthurs to see if the situation has been or can be rectified soon.

Not that I have any intentions of doing a walk in this area in the immediate future, but thanks for sharing the info.

Sometimes you've just gotta push the refuse to the sides with a big stick. I'm seeying a niche market for ultralight elbow length rubber gloves

Do Parks provide any sort of update/status service? I haven't seen one on their website.

Binder usually keeps us updated on all things Sputnik. He's probably doing the Xmas thing right now.

If they were scheduled they would still be on the books Wayno, weather dependent. I didn't use those (tend to hold tight for a few days) but did have similar thoughts about runoff. Not an easy area to work either way i'd imagine.

G'day all

Sorry for the slow response, been doing the Christmas thing interstate.

We have had a couple of goes at getting the Sputniks out, but got tied up with fires at Bruny and Poatina that ran for a couple of weeks and drained us of critical staff that can manage the heli lift, and helicopters that were tied up with water bombing, obviously a priority. Our last attempt we ran into bad weather, so will be attempting in the first week or two of January.

We always attempt to get the Sputniks swapped over before Chrissy, but we need to line up a minimum of six heli trained trained staff, a helicopter, sewage pump truck that is willing to go to Scotts Peak and a full day of low wind and no low cloud on the Arthurs. Probably one of the most logistically challenging things we do out here.

We will do an update on here and the Tasmania Parks Facebook page.

Cheers and stay safe out there !

Am going there soon so hope they're not overflowing.

With all the toilets overflowing, do they send in the No. 1 and the No. 2 chopper in these situations?

flatfoot wrote:With all the toilets overflowing, do they send in the No. 1 and the No. 2 chopper in these situations?

I think No. 2's are a more pressing priority. No. 1's can be done in the scrub with little evidence left behind.

All jokes aside, no.1 chopper no.2 chopper and no.3 chopper have all been busy fighting fires, so the situation is unlikely to have changed.

I think they have the priority right here though.........

They are never Really 'full' are they.. I cant handle that smell- Do the business on paper somewhere then chuck it in- poke it with a stick.

ILUVSWTAS- correct about the helicopter availability. The machines that are capable of flying and lifting in the Arthurs are also the ones that have been doing the water bombing across Tasmania, along with the Parks crews that are trained in helicopter operations.

Now that the fires have quietened down, we will be trying to get the Sputniks swapped over, but the weather in the SW isn't playing the game as usual. Anything with South West winds generally means showers and low clouds on the Arthurs, so maybe early next week going by the charts.

In the meantime we ask that you do your normal routine of burying it away from the water courses where possible.

Will keep you posted

personal pootubes?

Personal Poo tubes for interstate visitors?

Nuts wrote:Personal Poo tubes for interstate visitors?

@#it stirrer

Just rename the range Bethselamin, and treat visitors accordingly.

Actually, we should do that with the whole island . . .

Just got back from a week on the range. The sputnik's are all full from Lake Cygnus to Haven Lake, so take your trowels

Lizzy wrote:

Nuts wrote:Personal Poo tubes for interstate visitors?

@#it stirrer

No stirring required!

Take some kitchen paper and a bio doggy bag, bury it down on the plains... it's really not that hard!

Any updates on the loos in the this part of the world, I am considering heading that way in a week or two
bw

We went through the Western Arthurs 4-12th March 2013. (Fantastic!) The sputnik at Haven Lake was overflowing slightly, and nearly full at Lake Oberon and High Moor (and water was scarce at High Moor campsite). We didn't see the toilet at Lake Cygnus. No sputniks east of Kappa Moraine. Don't let this put you off though - it is a wilderness area and (responsible) bush toilet use is part of the experience!

PWS must be really busy to let this go for so long.

Any Pics? Theyr'e always good! How's the recovery around Junction Ck end?

tibboh wrote:PWS must be really busy to let this go for so long.

You could say that...

The Sputniks were finally swapped over last Wednesday. Apologies for the delay but we had ongoing issues sourcing a suitable chopper for a day (machines that can use a 'long line' were mainly tied up with fires or on standby), crews (mainly tied up with fires or on standby), and getting the weather right out there.

We are trialling a replacement for the old Sputniks at Lake Cygnus, and are keen to hear thoughts ( but not too much detail...). We are thinking the new ones will be easier to use and they hold more. The pedestal was adapted to take the Sputnik style screw lid, so hopefully people get the idea. We still wanted them to be low key, and they pretty much fit where the old tanks were.

Cheers

Good job. The platforms look like a great idea.

These look much more user friendly...more like a real toilet.
No more precariosly balancing over a ton of poo! What luxury.

I think you were missing some extra Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)

tastrax wrote:I think you were missing some extra Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)

Pic_0320_235.jpg

Priceless....
Makes him look better too !

That's positively civilised. Takes all the 'fun' out of it.