Competition: Tasmania January 2011

Lake Burbury & Frenchmans Cap ranges from Mt Jukes - Stuart Bowling

BWA December 2016 | 31

Club LakeJohn Walker

WINNER

Dry fallBrian Eglinton

The unique Club Lake is situated on one of my favourite day hikes anywhere - the spectacular near 23 kilometre Main Range-Lakes circuit in Kosciuszko NP. On this occasion my final bushwalk for 2015 on a glorious New Year's Eve. I even managed a swim in the upper Snowy River. The walk starts and finishes at Charlotte Pass and can be done in either direction. My usual preference is to go anti-clockwise which I think places the many spectacular views to their best advantage. Club Lake is one of the five glacial lakes and tarns on the range and is impressively viewed here from below the summit of Carruthers Peak where I had enjoyed lunch. I have previously visited the lake itself, but it is surrounded by sensitive vegetation and needs to be approached with care from the north-east. As you descend the track from Carruthers heading toward the windswept feldmark atop the western fall of the range, the unmistakable shape of Club Lake appears dramatically way below your viewpoint as seen here.

BWA December 2016 | 33

Camping high has its rewards - crepuscular rays over Pokana Peak by MJD

WINNER

Lake Oberon from Pegasus (with R. pandanifolia) North-north-west

An evening, almost alone Osik

Evening wonderLouise Fairfax

Blue Peak from an unnamed lakePeter Grant

This is one of the more spectacular light displays I have seen, with the sun setting behind Pokana Peak. We were camped along the ridge beyond Bonds Craig, just before the drop off point that leads towards Badger Flats. This was an awesome sight that lasted quite a while.

BWA December 2016 | 35

Last light at Lake Oberon North-north-west

WINNER

Land of a thousand lakes, Blue Peaks, Tasmania Peter Grant

This is why we do it Louise Fairfax

Presenting Mt KosciuszkoJohn Walker

Wading the New River Lagoon below Precipitous Bluff MJD

The weather's never bad in the Western Arthurs, just "challenging". And "changeable". It had been challenging on the leg from Cygnus to Oberon, and then changed while a couple of peaks were ticked off the "to do" list. So I had one perfect evening at one of our most beautiful mountain lakes. Which reminds me - it's time to go back.

Black Hill gully Brian Eglinton

Red night, bushwalker's delight Osik

BWA December 2016 | 37

Broken reeds, Little Throne LakePeter Grant

WINNER

I love the smell of Boronia citriodor in the morning North-north-west

Looks like ants for lunch again MJD

Blue skimmer Iandsmith

Take offBrian Eglinton

The photo was taken in very early December. There had been a wild storm a week or two before, and the waves whipped up by the wind had broken a lot of the reeds along the lake shore. Gradually the dead reeds had blown to the eastern end of the lake, forming a miniature log jam of floating reeds.

Feldmark Sunrays John Walker

Murray Falls Caedencekuepper

BWA December 2016 | 39

The storm has passed Whitefang

WINNER

Downclimb in Rocky Creek Canyon AJW Canyon2011

Across the barJohn Walker

Serene morning at Rifle ButtsBrian Eglinton

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WINNER

IrreplaceableTortoise

Morning on Melaleuca LagoonNick Morgan

It's said of cushion plants that they "grow by the inch and die by the foot". Each mound is not one plant, but hundreds, thousands, potentially millions of individuals, often of different species, and they all depend on the integrity of the mound to survive against the harsh conditions in which they grow. It takes just one unnecessary and uncaring step - such as this on a small patch up on Walled Mountain - to compromise that integrity and possibly eventually kill all those plants.

Sure, it makes for a fascinating opportunity to see the inner detail of the mound, but sometimes you'd really rather not have that chance ...

BWA December 2016 | 43

Separate rooms, please North-north-west

WINNER

Weather over the Boggy Plain John Walker

Wilson Bight Nick Morgan

Last light Tortoise

Grand Canyon AJW Canyon2011

Solo walking is my thing but when a mate invites me on a bash out to one of the more obscure and harder-to-reach Abels it's hard to say no. The trip had many highlights but the best was possibly this lazy afternoon, evening, night and morning on Walled Mountain on the way back out. So many places to pitch up there, and we both managed to find the perfect spot for our tents - albeit with a hefty buffer in between. And then we waited, fingers crossed, for the sun to finally drop below the cloud and light up Hyperion and its companions.

Weed mountainsBrian Eglinton

Guy Fawkes NP Iandsmith

BWA December 2016 | 45

Common flatwing damselfly Iandsmith

WINNER

Early morning tracks Brian Eglinton

SundewNorth-north-west

Kicking back at Reids Flat, Royal National Park John Walker

Rafting the Grose River AJW Canyon2011

Damselflies are so small that it's so difficult to see them at times, especially when they're in any way camouflaged by the surrounding fauna. Though "common", I've only seen them near Phantom Falls at St. Ives and at Blackdown Tablelands in Queensland, this shot taken at the latter venue. Blackdown is a great place to link with nature in so many ways. I'd never heard of it but the falls there are a very spiritual place to visit, should you ever find yourself there.

To see the all the entries check out http://www.bushwalk.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=22&t=22573

46 | BWA December 2016

BWA December 2016 | 47