After an early morning rise and an approx 3 hour drive, mostly through low cloud and mist, it was with great relief that I rose above the fog and was treated to a blue bird day as I approached Mirimbah, at the base of Mount Buller, in Victoria's high country.
I drove up to the entrance gates, paid the outrageous resort fee and then headed up the dirt road to Telephone Box Junction (TBJ). Here I parked, donned my backpack and set off up the Bluff Spur Trail towards the summit of Mount Stirling.
The first section of the walk was through tall Ash forest and the birdlife was noisey and plentiful - and it was with great joy that I got to observe an elusive Lyrebird run across the trail in front of me and then stop to forage just off the side of the path!
It was a cool, crisp and clear day, but the sun was warm,
and the walking was extremely pleasant. The ground was a rock hard underfoot and peppered with patches of needle ice,
and it wasn't long before I encountered snow across the trail and was very glad to have my walking poles with me.
The first open view of Mount Stirling I had was shortly before the Bluff Spur Hut.
Eager to get the summit and take in the views, I quickly passed by and headed up the final 750m to the summit, stopping to take a few photos of the icy surroundings and take in the wonderful view of the misty valley and and plain below.
The view from the summit of Stirling was, as always, a beautiful 360 degree vista, taking in Mt. Cobbler, The Bluff, Mt. Bogong, Mt. Feathertop, Mt. Buffalo and Mt.Hotham.
I got chatting to a group of guys who were out for a day trip, and as I was feeling rather warm I removed my jacket and slipped it through the straps at the top of my backpack - and thus set in motion the subsequent changes to my walk plan.
After a while of soaking in the views,
I decided to head off to Craigs Hut to ensure I could make it a leisurely walk there and also have plenty of time to set up my camp and relax before sunset.
The path beside the Clear Hills Track was, as usual, fairly overgrown and in many places further obscured by low bushes already weighed down with snow and ice. As I walked I was surprised by the number of 4WD vehicles on the track, as it was my understanding that the road had been closed for the winter season. Anyway, I hiked along the trail at a good pace, enjoying the early winter ambience.
When I reached the pond by The Monument, I stopped for a rest and reached back to take my jacket off my pack and put it on. It wasn't there. This was especially not good, as I had left my car keys in one of the pockets following the now flawed logic that they would be safer in there than in the lid pocket of my backpack which I would be opening frequently during the day..!
So, the day became a (slightly panicked) backtrack! I turned round and retraced my steps, heading back to the summit of Stirling where I last remembered having my jacket. On the way I passed a group of four hikers and asked if they had seen my jacket, unfortunately they had not.
Even more unfortunately, it was not on the summit of Stirling either, so I made a few calls and headed back down to Telephone Box Junction to make sure my car was still parked there and hadn't been driven off by whoever had found my keys - it was.
After calling the RACV and starting the process to get them to cut a new key and bring it up to me, I received a notification from my wife (who was all over this!) that my jacket had been found! I called the number she gave me and spoke to a very kind chap called Matt (who was part of the group of 4 I had passed on the trail to Craigs Hut) who told me that they were heading back the next day and could meet me on the summit of Mount Stirling about midday. With that arranged, I relaxed, cancelled the RACV and headed back up to Bluff Spur trail to find somewhere to camp for the night.
Exhausted from my speedy ascent and descent, I stopped at the first decent flat spot I found and set up for the night.
I was testing out a new pyramid tarp and bivy bag combo, seeing how well it worked as it was intended shelter for my future snow camping trips planned for later in the season. It worked well, and my Klymit 0 bag (-10 degrees comfort rating) kept me nice and toasty through the night.
I woke up early and had a snack under the light of the setting full moon,
then relaxed and enjoyed the serenity until the sun just began to start peaking through the trees, at which time I packed up and then headed back up the mountain.
It was another crisp and clear morning,
and I enjoyed the cold air and the small details of the the frost on gum leaves,
as well as some great veiws of the Australian Alps,
including this one of The Cobbler, framed by a cold, pale sunrise sky.
I was up on Stirling, on the Clear Hills Track by 9am. With a bit of time to wait I was able to relax and just spend a few hours enjoying the views and relaxing.
This is something which I don't often get so much time to do on my walks. It was fantastic.
I spent most of my time on the ridge above the Stanley Bowl, where I had a warming breakfast
and took some photos of my favourite tree in Australia - which I noted now has it's own sign as "Australia's Toughest Tree". I've seen it half buried in snow and weighted down in ice, so I can wholeheartedly agree with that title.
I also watched clouds flowing like a waterfall down over the ridge to the East.
After a few hours it was time to head to Stirling Summit to meet Matt and his party and collect my jacket. I gratefully received it from them and they told me that they had got my jacket from a 4WDriver who had picked it up at the summit of Stirling and was intending to hand it in to the Mansfield police the next day - they had heard him asking others if the jacket and keys were theirs and remembered my encounter with them on the trail earlier that day.
They also told me that they had planned to camp at Craigs Hut, as I had, but that when they had got there the car park had been full of 4WD's and the noise and sheer number of people had forced them to retreat back up the trail to camp. Despite their distance they had still been disturbed that evening and night by the noise of engines, a chainsaw and "explosions" from the large gathering at Craigs Hut. I was grateful then for the previous days events that had led to me camping far from any noise!
After taking a few more photographs, I headed back down the mountain to TBJ.
As I approached TBJ I met one of the ski patrol people I had spoken to the night before and he informed me that the roads around the mountain were officially closed and that all the 4WD's I had seen were there illegally. To gain access, one of the closed winter gates had been winched out of the ground!
I arrived back to my car about 2pm feeling very grateful indeed for the turn of events. It may not have been the walk I had originally planned, but, it had still been spectacular, I had experienced the kindness of a lot of individuals, had a great walk and got a much more peaceful night than if I had followed my original plan! I'd also had the privilege of an extended time to enjoy a beautiful mountain environment - all in all, a fantastic two days.
I'm looking forward to next time - but will have better plans for my jacket and keys!
Big Al.
Hi Alex, Am so glad this worked out for you! A valuable lesson but you are a sensible about your solo hikes. The bigger panic would have been if people had not been kind and honest. As for the 4WD's. it could have been me except I would not take down a fence to gain access. I hope their regos are handed in and fines issued!
ReplyDelete