A day for going over gear, repacking food, and making adjustments. I waxed my boots, patched the hole in my food bag, decided which food to pack and which to leave, and did innumerable little chores for the section ahead. I went through everything and tried to find stuff I could send home. I cut another strap off my backpack that hasn’t been used. I’m heavily tossing up whether to send my...
Day 11 – Things will be great when you’re downtown!
22km +1155m -826m The road goes ever on and on Down from the door where it began Now far ahead the road has gone And I must follow, if I can Pursuing it with weary feet Until it meets some larger way Where many paths and errands meet And whither then, I cannot say Tolkien Back to some nice views and off fire trails for a bit. I’m really not in the mood. Looks like gold diggings I’ve been curious...
Day 10 – If you can force your every nerve and sinew…
25.61km +1684 -1499 Huge storm last night. Just as it was starting a possum came down one of the trees I was hanging from and made angry noises at me. But the hammock weathered both the storm and possum. My first fuel bottle finally ran out. Considering I’d budgeted three to Hotham and I’m nearly there, that’s pretty good. Ron said he nearly used a whole one before Rumpff. I guess a windshield...
Day 9 – And miles to go…
25.68km +1780 -2372 The view from the toilet at vmumble gmumble hut. No storm overnight. Hopefully I’ll be as lucky again tonight. Crosscut Viking Rod was dead weight so I left him on the approach to Crosscut and continued on alone. (This is terrible storytelling; you should never have two characters with easily confused names, such as Rod and Ron.) Rod disappearing in my dust Storms forecast for...
Day 8 – I go up the mountain, I go down the mountain. This is my life now.
25.2km +1611m -1375m Distant thunder rumbles, rumbles hungry like the beast, Tupelo bound. Sage? Rod was walking slower than I needed to be going, so I left him behind and pressed on up Mount Clear. Many of these names will pop up later Spooky! The day has cleared up, but there’s more weather on the way later. King Billy one and two. I’m about to pass over or around the two King Billy mountains...
Day 7 – Two worlds and in-between
18.05km +1432m -1013 I’ll have to be more careful with my phone usage. Uploading blog posts with poor reception in particular is a big battery drain, so I’ll ration those out or wait until I get to Hotham. When we awoke there was a third tent in the campsite. Neither of us heard him get in at the late hour of 8pm. He’d left Walhalla at 3pm the same day I started. He’s trying for Chester’s Yards...
Day 6 – This ramblin’ and rovin’ has taken its toll…
20.5km +745m -1144m Had a nice sleep in and reorganised my food from the comfort of my sleeping bag. Onwards! Into the wild… (grey?) yonder! I’m beginning on the section that includes Mount Buggery, Crosscut Saw and The Viking. There should be some amazing views assuming it’s not all cloud. Oh no! Not my vehicle! I told you water wasn’t going to be a problem. A better warning than the sign. Swim...
Day 5 – Vimes’ boots
30.1km +1565m -1421m Farewell, Bob’s Hut, you creepy fucker. I’m going to head to Black River, and then make a decision whether to strike out for Rumpff Saddle or leave it as a short day. A cold start. I wonder if the clouds will pass as they did yesterday? The blackberries have taken Australia. We merely live here at their whim. Usnea? I hardly know ‘er! I am informed that the track down to...
Day 4 – …and I would walk five hundred miles…
24.07km +1709m -1045m I do miss my hobbit hole. Why did I ever get it into my head to go on an adventure? The Hobbit (poorly paraphrased) I put my still-damp clean clothes in my hammock’s underquilt before retiring last night. This morning they are perfectly dry. A tantalising glimpse of sunlight, but I can’t tell if it’s coming or going. I am ashamed to say that I then wished the cloud would...
Day 3 – Mushroom mushroom mushroom… oh no! A snake!
28.54km +666m -1658m (Edit: sorry if you got this in your emails. I just realised it didn’t come over in the migration and had to do it manually) Morning: things are looking up. The fog that blanketed everything all of yesterday lifted overnight, and this morning the sun is rising bright and clear through the snow gums. Chapman’s book gives the 25km to Thompson River as taking 12 hours, but...
Day 2 – Up, up, up the ziggurat, lickety-split!
19.95km +1492m -368m I’m just going outside, and I may be some time… Lawrence Oates [The original version of this post got lost in the shitty reception out here somewhere somehow. Here’s an artist’s recreation:] The 1500m climb was accurate. And don’t call me Shirley! Tyers River. You will not find more leech-infested hive of bloodsuckers. Some weird proto-snail Silly lyrebird...
31/10/23 – OneZeroGo!
13.2km +478m -473m “When guys in camouflage pants and hunting hats sat around in the Four Aces Diner talking about fearsome things done out-of-doors, I would no longer have to feel like such a cupcake. I wanted a little of that swagger that comes with being able to gaze at a far horizon through eyes of chipped granite and say with a slow, manly sniff, “Yeah, I’ve shit in the woods.” A Walk in the...