Bushwalk Australia

On Friday 16th November, Tracey and I set out to hike Australia’s 10 highest mainland peaks, in an effort to raise much-needed funds for Bowel Group for Kids (BGK)
http://www.everydayhero.com.au/top10
... and also to have fun!

After a 6 hour drive, we began from Charlottes Pass in stunning conditions, following the Main Range track down over the Snowy River. We were very relieved to not have to begin by wading through the icy cold water, and to have no accidental swims either


We continued on a long uphill walk over some snow drifts and past the scenic Headley Tarn and Blue Lake. Leaving the Main Range track, we went in search of a campsite and to bag Australia’s 3rd highest peak and our 1st of the the trip, Mt Tywnam (2195 m).

As soon as the sun went down, were snug in our small tent for what turned out to be a very chilly and windy night. Water left in the pot froze solid overnight, and the tent was covered in a thick layer of frost (brrrr)… We gratefully scoffed breakfast in bed, but the day looked promising, and it was to be a BIG day.
to be continued....

The first peak for Saturday came early and was the easiest of the trip, Carruthers Peak (2145 m). The walk along the next section of the Main Range track was spectacular, crossing ridges in the icy wind and looking down to the lovely Lake Albina.

Soon enough, we moved on to Muellers Pass and our most challenging bit of snow. We had to traverse a rather steep section where the slide down did not look at all appealing :O
Halfway across, I decided to change strategy and head up, kicking steps in the snow. Tracey thought I was nuts but it worked!!
to be continued....

Moving off the track, we headed up over Muellers Peak (not on the list!) with the aim of reaching a further four peaks that afternoon. Leaving most of our gear part-way up, we covered kilometres more of snow, boulders, ascents and descents, as we eventually made it to the top of Abbott Peak (2145 m), Byatts Camp (2159 m), Mt Townsend (2209 m), and Alice Rawson Peak (2160 m).
Phew what a walk! By the end we were utterly worn out and used the last of our energy to retrieve our big packs and wander down into the valley for the night’s camp.

Setting up our tent beside a snow covered creek - you could hear the water running underneath, but I had to walk a fair way down the snow before it finally emerged, so I could collect some to make Tracey her long awaited, well deserved and promised cup of tea (followed by port in a pop-top)!

Sunday morning was another refreshing one - this time with fog rather than sunshine to start the day. Our plan for the final day was to cover the remaining four peaks and about 22 km in distance. With storms forecast, the weather was not looking too promising, so we packed up and were off on our way to Kosci by 7.30 am. We rugged up in our wet weather gear since it was blowing a gale and freezing cold. Once again heading uphill, we crossed lots more snow and finally reached the summit of Mt Kosciuszko, Australia’s highest at 2228m and our 7th peak. We only had glimpses of views as it was very clagged in and no place to linger; except for Tracey to do her practice cartwheel (since her fans had requested one on the final peak)!

We trotted down to Rawson Pass which has Australia’s highest toilet block! Utilised the facilities and added yet more clothes since we were really feeling the chill. Once again stowing the heavy packs, it was time to go up the Rams Head Range to climb Rams Head (2190 m) and Rams Head North (2177 m). Well, this is our dodgiest bit and I hope our supporters will give us a bit of leeway here. It was a little difficult telling which peaks were the highest as they are all pretty big in those parts, but we selected two likely candidates and were climbing once again. We ended up climbing huge boulders which started to get a bit death defying (especially with my dodgy shoulder), but 15 m from the summit, the storms were rolling in and it started to snow, so deciding discretion was the better part of valour, we beat a hasty retreat down to safer ground.

On the walk back I offered Tracey my lighting rod, I mean hiking stick!!! For some reason she refused…. We still had one peak to go, so we convinced our weary legs to move along back toward Rawson Pass the Unnamed peak on Etheridge Ridge (2180 m), our 10th and final peak. Upon reaching the top Tracey did her cartwheel against my OH&S advice!

The day was ticking on so we quickly retrieved our packs and began the march back to Charlottes Pass, as the snow pelted down and the thunder rumbled. We passed some hikers heading in and we were glad to be heading out with that weather closing in. After a very long 7 km, we were back to the car, with our big drive ahead but smiles on our faces after a wonderful walk in some amazing country.
We are blessed to have such amazing friends and families who supported us in this walk and have helped us raise over $2800 for a wonderful charity, BGK, that help families of kids with bowel diseases. Finally I would like to thank Tracey who not only came along on my little mission, which I described to her as “not that tough” (ha ha), but also helped raise lots of money  Thankyou.
Liz and Tracey

Looks amazing! I am suprised at how much snow is still around, I'm planning a Main Range Track hike in 3 weeks time and expected to see very little snow. Excellent job on the climbs.

Tracey has sent along some snaps too....

Great report! Well done, and all for good cause too.

Thanks for the great report Lizzy.

I will be doing the same trip in four weeks (third time), I hope some more snow has melted by then.

Tony

Agree, great report. Good trip. Very envious. Must get down that way myself.

K.

Great TR Lizzy, thanks for sharing. I'm hoping to have a crack at this sometime this summer.

Hi Lizzy - your walk report is truly sick! Prompted me to register for Bushwalk Australia to say thank you. I'll give the top 10 or so a try on 14-15 Dec. Thankfully, I have Tony and some others to hold my hand. Thanks again and I hope there's less snow for me!

Thanks Guys,
Glad you enjoyed the report- we certainly enjoyed the trip! Yep- there was still lots of snow about- looks great but certainly makes it a little more difficult. Enjoy your trips- its a great part of Aus Will be interested to see your pics and if any snow remains by then Tony & Jonny Boy.
Cheers
Lizzy

The snow makes it more fun.

I did my own version of the Top 10 last time I was up there. Climbed the cairn on Kosciuszko, and then hopped onto the 9 highest boulders next to it. Much quicker and easier.

Wonderful !

Great report and pics, well done on the fund raising.

V nice Lizzy, always a great place to visit, particularly if you're not only going there just for yourself.
Nice TR and pix, thanks

Good idea NNW- would have been a lot quicker however those peaks out around Townsend were definitely worth the walk.
Cheers
Liz

Great pics. i'm very envious!

Hey Ladies,

thanks for the great report. A wonderful trip i will be completing in February. Just a quick question, when leaving from Charlottes Pass, is there somewhere that you can park the car and leave (relatively) safely for the 3-4 days? Thanks.
Brad

Hey Brad,
At Charlottes Pass there is a turning circle with short term parking at the end. We just left the car parked on the side of the road a little further down. Didn't have any problems with the car. Enjoy your walk.
Liz