Mt Woodroffe, #7 of the State 8

Is it OCD? That sees a list of the eight highest peaks in Australia's states and territories and then wants to tick them all off? Maybe. This one, Mt Woodroffe - South Australia's highest peak - was my number seven, of eight, the so-called State 8, or Aussie 8. Apparently I'm not alone in my affliction, there were 28 other people booked onto this tour.

SUMMARY - Mt Woodroffe climb/hike
Duration	1 day hike (3 day trip)
Start/end	Ngarutjara (3 day trip to/from Uluru)
Friday	Drive from Yulara, Uluru, to Ngarutjara camp (base of mountain)
Saturday	Hike up Mt Woodroofe (Ngarutjaranya) 1435m
Sunday	Drive from Ngarutjara camp (base of mountain) back to Yulara, Uluru
Area	APY Lands (permit required)
Bookings	Diverse Travel Australia, SEIT Outback Australia
Topographic Maps	1:250 000 Mt Woodroffe SG52-12: printed map, on-demand 1:100 000 print, free download (official map)

The only way to access Mt Woodroffe, in the remote APY Lands in northern SA, was via a tour group. Once a year they run a trip in, and it's the only one with permission from the Traditional Aboriginal Owners to do so. It's also rare for them to give anyone else permission, so the tour is the most practical way to do it. It makes Mt Woodroffe the most difficult of the State 8 to organise.

With the permission in mind, at our camp on the first night near the foot of the mountain, we were visited by Lee, one of the Custodians. As can happen in these situations, we took him all a bit too seriously, almost missing his first joke and his fine sense of humour.

When he first sat by the fire, he took his shoe off to warm his foot, complaining about the severe pain in his foot that a heel spur was giving him. Of course we doubted - I can hear your mocking cries now - that he would make it to the top of Mt Woodroffe. We were equipped with all our expensive hiking gear, when he looked more like he had come from fixing a car (he had, as it turned out). Of course, how wrong we were, it was Lee who led the charge up the first steep waterfall rockface. Few followed up the waterfall though, preferring to pick an easier route over a gung-ho approach. There was no doubt that Lee got into as much mischief now as he did when he was a ten year old boy.

Later Lee's father, aged 82, arrived. It quickly became apparent that he would talk in exchange of cups of tea, and if the tea disappeared so would he. He talked with a hint of humour in his slow words. He'd only been learning English in the last 10 years, evidently taught by the many school girls that came out here on school trips (SEIT tours core business is ten-day school Aboriginal cultural camps, this being one the campsites they use for that). I'm not sure how much that skewed his vocabulary, but in exchange he would teach them his language.

On our first day, after arriving at camp, we were taught how to not use the supplied swag, and a discussion ensued about the wisdom of camping in the creek bed, with it soft sand and shade. Normally, of course, this is a poor decision - to camp in a creekbed - but when you can see the headwaters, just a mere 7km away up the mountain, it's pretty safe to camp, even in a wide creek. I've done it before when the headwaters can be seen. If it rains, and especially if it rains a lot, then it's time to move. Pretty hard to miss rain in a swag.

We drove over to the foot of the mountain, to assess routes to hike and climb up the following day. Being a rogainer, I was already formulating a few options into plans, and on the drive closer was able to clarify some of them. At the foot, with most of the mountain obscured behind the immediate base, advice was given as to the easiest routes, and as to where the harshest spinifex lay.

Before dawn the following day, we drove back to the base and at first light set out. It was a case of each to their own, or better still, in small groups. A few set out directly from the cars with a short but sweet route, a straight up the mountain. It was a route plotted through the harshest spinifex, but nonetheless a sound route. Most others followed Lee to the waterfall rockface, before quickly dispersing by a variety of routes. For a while there it looked like we would find about 29 different routes up the mountain. I took a gentle route around the waterfall, taking my plotted course up to the ridge in the east, before hiking up the long spur to the summit. It was the easier route, relatively free of spinifex, and easy to navigate. Although I got to the top first, even having taken the longest route, I had hiked alone, and no doubt that allowed for some speed. It was just seven minutes later that the next group arrived, having taken the most direct route up from the cars.

For all my efficiency and speed in getting to the top quickly and with minimal spinifex injuries, I must have banged my head on the way down - maybe I should wear a safety helmet on such climbs - for I momentarily lost my mind. I decided against taking the three additional people now hiking with me along the long distance ridge, and decided on a shortcut down. Ricky, perhaps sensibly, decided to hike on along the ridge to the western end and it's unnamed summit. It wasn't long down our shortcut that it became obvious - this was no shortcut, and indeed, it took us longer to complete then the distant route. Thankfully I brought those three companions to share the misery of my foolishness. Ricky, having completed his second peak climb, caught up with us near the base. So much for our shortcut. Encouragingly, it seemed that everyone was slower on the trip down, compared to their trip up.

The view from the top took in distant Uluru and Kata Tjuta, some 130km away across the NT border. The Musgrave Ranges spread out to the east and west, a mess of scraggly mountains. Many South Australians don't know what lies up here, thinking that St Mary Peak in the Flinders Ranges, on the Wilpena Pound rim, is the highest peak in South Australia. It's not. Here in the Musgrave Ranges lie 21 mountains over 1,000 metres, and the top seven mountains of the State. St Mary Peak comes in as the 8th highest. Mt Woodroffe rises 680 metres above the surrounding plains.

An old stone surveyor's cairn marks the top of the mountain. A famous photo, taken in 1933, with three Pitjantjatjara guides, shows how the cairn originally appeared. The mountain was named after George Woodroffe Goyder, the 1857 South Australian Surveyor General highly regarded - at least now anyway - for his work in establishing what became known as Goyders Line, the line across the state that marks arable farming land from that which is not sustainable farming land. He was mocked at the time, but hey, at least there's the odd thing around the state named in his honour.

My skills in the exploration of the stone cairn fell well short of my skills displayed in getting up the mountain, and it was someone else who found the logbook in a rusted old can buried deep in the stone cairn. The word 'logbook' is a somewhat generous description, it was almost entirely a collection of rotten indecipherable paper fragments, with the odd modern addition of single pieces of paper. Why some people feel the need to describe the 'marvelous' or 'spectacular view' they saw is beyond me, it's really quite self evident to others who have managed to get there to read the logbook. Anyone with the misfortune of climbing in poor weather, which really is misfortune in Central Australia's stable weather, would hardly find enlightenment with the description of the view in the few moments they spent huddled on the leeward side of the stone cairn before heading back down.

With 29 people on our tour, every one of them made it to the top of Mt Woodroffe that day. Whilst it's cliched to say "there's one in every crowd", it was nonetheless true. If there is one thing more fun than 29 people on a tour, it's this: 29 people offering advice to the one person who is scruffing around in the red dust under the vehicle with a car jack replacing a blown tyre. That wasn't quite true, we had two vans and a ute for the tour, so whilst there were plenty offering advice, it wasn't quite as bad as 29 people. It was a big tour group, I had been warned when I booked that if the tour didn't reach the minimum of four people, it would be cancelled. Last year it was cancelled, with just two bookings.

So in my State 8 pursuit I've been all around the country and found many hiking places to return to. My first peak, Mt Ossa, in Tasmania was mostly accidental, a side trip on the Overland Track. I almost gave up climbing it too, if it hadn't been for Tim's enthusiasm. Now five years later, only one remains. A crazy plan is in place to complete it - Queensland's Bartle Frere. We shall see my friend, we shall see.

View photo album in Google Plus (9 photos).

More photos to come

View in full screen format Download GPX file of the Mt Woodroffe summit climb hike - for use as a navigational aid in a GPS unit Download KML file of the Mt Woodroffe summit climb hike - view in Google Earth

My State 8 (Aussie 8)

The highest peak in each Australian state and territory:

1. Mt Kosciuszko, New South Wales (NSW), 2228m, March 2012
2. Mt Bogong, Victoria (VIC), 1985m, March 2012
3. Bimberi Peak, Australian Capital Territory (ACT), 1913m, March 2012
4. Bartle Frere, Queensland (QLD), 1622m, NOT YET DONE, June 2013?
5. Mt Ossa, Tasmania (TAS), 1617m, December 2008
6. Mt Zeil, Northern Territory (NT), 1531m, July 2012 (first attempt August 2011)
7. Mt Woodroffe, South Australia (SA), 1435m, May 2013
8. Mt Meharry, Western Australia (WA), 1252m, June 2010

Western Arthurs, South West Tasmania

SUMMARY - Western Arthurs, Tasmania
From Port Davey Track carpark to Junction Creek, Alpha Morraine, Western Arthurs and Kappa Morraine.
Duration	6 days
Location	South West Tasmania
National Park	South West National Park (note there is no mention of Western Arthurs on their website)
Start	Port Davey trailhead carpark, just south of Scotts Peak Dam
Day 1	Carpark to Junction Creek (3h). Recommended time: 2-3 hours Junction Creek to Lake Cygnus (4h30m, total 8h15m). Recommended time: 3h30m-5h
Day 2	Lake Cygnus to Lake Oberon (4hrs). Recommended time: 2-3 hours
Day 3	Lake Oberon to High Moor (8h). Recommended time: 5-7 hours
Day 4	High Moor to Haven Lake (8h20m). Recommended time: 4-6 hours
Day 5	Haven Lake to Two Mile Creek, via Kappa Morraine and McKays Track (2h45m to Kappa Morraine junction. Recommended time 1h30m-2h30m. Total time 8h30m)
Day 6	Two Mile Creek to Carpark trailhead, via Junction Creek (4h)

If before I had set out on a trek along the Western Arthurs, someone had asked me a simple question, "Do you like rock climbing?", I might have thought more about tackling this difficult hike. The answer, you see, to that question, would be "no".

I don't mind rock climbing, but I certainly don't love it (or even like it?). I didn't hate the hike - it was exhilarating - more a case that I didn't realise just how much rock climbing there was. Of course I knew there were difficult sections involving scrambling, and possibly ropes, I had read enough guidebooks, articles and blogs to know that, but I underestimated just how much rock climbing there was. A solid two days of the six contained this, and a lot of it.

During the most dreadful weather, a bit of me wanted to get off that mountain range, and quickly. No wait, I lie, all of me wanted to get off asap, we were in the most exposed campsite - at High Moor, and it was a difficult day's hike either backward or forward to reach an exit off the range. By dreadful weather I mean some kinda squall. We had 3G service earlier that day and had checked the weather forecast: light winds and some showers. That forecast was soon questioned though when we saw a solid block of cloud approaching at speed in the valley well beneath us, indeed, we could see over the top of the cloud formation. It looked pretty solid, and visibility soon dropped as the cloud ramped up over the range enveloping it. Soon the rains began, turning to fierce horizontal rain. Not pleasant for hiking in, but even less pleasant for camping in. It was a true test for each of our hiking tents, and one I'm afraid neither stood up too well in. Fierce horizontal rain has a way of working its way into a tent, these single pole tents just didn't have enough defences.

Regardless, we were safe: warm and dry. The leaks in each tent could be contained. When we reached camp we hurriedly set up our tents and crawled in, drenched to the bone. In lulls in the wind we shouted out to each other, "Tim, are you in dry clothes?", "Tim, are you warm?", "Tim, is your tent holding up?". Next time I tackle a hike in South West Tasmania it will be in better tent: something with three poles, a fly that sits lower to the ground (that gap was the source of the water leaks), and probably a shared tent, something like 2.5-3.5kg I suspect (not the 1.5kg tents we each had).

The hiking was difficult, the first day showed us that. Accustomed to being fast hikers, we were alarmed to do the first section at the upper limit of the recommeded time. Two to three hours was the recommended time, we did it in three hours. This pattern continued - even alarmingly, got worse - we completed some days in longer than the recommended maximum time - 8.5 hours for one 4 to 6 hour section. Others we met hiking were doing similar times. I had read of others doing similar times too, but in all those cases I figured they were fat (oh really), not so fit, or weighed down by two litre bottles of coke.

The rock climbing was a real challenge. Scaling wet rock walls, climbing down rocky chutes. Tree roots were a real life saver. They're not the wisest thing to stake your safety and weight on, they can easily break or pull out, any read of a guidebook for the South West will warn you of that. But they were well used, and without them the climbs up and down would be impossible. Of course it paid to be extra careful not to step onto them, a foothold sure, but they could be slippery. I couple of times I resorted to getting my rope out, tying my pack to it, and dropping it down beneath me. It scratched my pack and its contents up a lot, but it was well worth it. Without my pack on, I had no trouble with the rock climbing. Carrying a 19kg pack on your back does somewhat dent your rock climbing confidence!

Despite it being a challenge, Tim and I are level-headed chaps, so it was all good. Tim lead on the climbing, but I took heart from a memory of the two of us working on a rooftop of the shed at Biggs Flat. We'd climbed atop, and I remember turning around to see him sitting straddling the ridge, with me wandering up and down on foot. Give me a structure I understand, I'm happy wandering around at height. Not so for Tim, but give him a cliff or a tree, no worries. Each day's hike was rewarding, I'm just not sure I'm ready just yet to again tackle the two days between Lake Oberon and High Moor, and the Beggary Bumps between High Moor and Haven Lake.

The Beggary Bumps had us scared. The day before, from Lake Oberon to High Moor, was the first of the very difficult days, with lots of rock climbing. It barely rated a mention in the guidebooks in comparison to the ominous Beggary Bumps, how impossibly hard was that going to make the following day on the Bumps?!? Alas, our fearful impression put us in good stead for the Bumps, it was no more difficult than that Lake Oberon to High Moor section, but just as rewarding.

We sometimes got a little lost. John Chapman's guidebook, South West Tasmania, easily had the best track notes. But the guidebook, although in it's fifth edition, is still well out of date. It frequently refers to track conditions that seem very different to what we saw. We were surprised by how much track work has been done by the Parks & Wildlife Service, especially outside the Lake Oberon to Haven Lake section. In areas across the moors there is either boardwalk or laid stones, avoiding what would have once been a very muddy track. Each campsite had timber tent platforms, and fly-in fly-out toilet capsules. Near Haven Lake we noticed that the rock had been cut away to form perfect footholds, making scrambling dead easy. Marker arrows made other areas easy to follow. John Chapman's guidebook makes no mention of these, it warns of hard to follow routes where there is now a clear track, and multiple false leads where there are none, just a clear track. There are still false leads, we sometimes went down routes which looked well trodden, to find they went no-where at the bottom, or top, and so we had to return back to the main track. My advice would be to always examine the track, to assess how walked on it was. If too few feet seemed to have passed along it, almost certainly it is a false lead and not the actual track - so return right then and find the actual track, it's often quite obvious where you went wrong as you backtrack.

Apart from one afternoon, night and short morning of mental weather, we had excellent weather. Some cloudy, some sunny, always changing, as the weather on mountain tops is wont to do.

Our bodies were hurting, the weather and our tents spooked us, so we elected to get off the Western Arthurs range at Kappa Morraine. It would save us one further day on the range, and two further days of hiking. My arms were pretty sore on this hike, and I suffered numerous supersized blue and black bruises from falls.

We ate well, this being the first trip I had dehydrated all the meals for. We had plenty of Indian (Saag Lamb is a real winner), and spaghetti bolognase and chilli con carne. For lunch pesto was delicious spread on crackers. Gotta get more into this dehydrating thing, sweet meals, easy as, and quick to cook on the trail.

Would I do the hike again? At the time, during those two difficult days between Lake Oberon and Haven Lake, I definitely thought not. This was easily the hardest hike I had ever done. I've done remote, and long, and with water challenges, difficult to navigate, but never this degree of rock climbing. But having said that, and that I don't really enjoy rock climbing, each day was still rewarding, I didn't need to wait to the end of the hike to appreciate that. I'd like to explore some more of the Western Arthurs, and indeed the South West National Park, perhaps a Southern Ranges Traverse, an almost circuit via Lune River, Mt La Perouse, Hidden Waterfall, New River, Precipitous Bluff, the South Coast Track and Cockle Creek.

View photo album in Google Plus (47 photos).

View in full screen format Download GPS files Hike along the Western Arthurs from Alpha Morraine to Kappa Morraine. Available as GPX files (for use as a navigational aid in a GPS unit) and KML files (for viewing in Google Earth). Carpark trailhead to Junction Creek: GPX | KML Junction Creek to Lake Cygnus, via Alpha Morraine: GPX | KML Lake Cygnus to Lake Oberon: GPX | KML Lake Oberon to High Moor: GPX | KML High Moor to Haven Lake: GPX | KML Haven Lake to Kappa Morraine Junction: GPX | KML Kappa Morraine Junction to carpark, via McKays Track and Junction Creek: GPX | KML

Black Magic on Wilpena Pound's Peaks

A bushfire back in January cleared the way for us to tackle some of Wilpena Pound's peaks - this time Mt Karawarra, Point Bonney and Tumburru Peak. Previously the vegetation was so dense it was a difficult 1km/h, but now that fire had blackened the landscape we could get in.

SUMMARY - Wilpena Pound peaks
Duration	3 days
Start/end	Wilpena Pound Resort/General Store
Friday	Wilpena to Hills Homestead for water, on to base (1h45m). Base to Mt Karawarra (1109m) and return 4 hours
Saturday	Base camp to Point Bonney (1133m) 2 hrs, along ridge to Tumburru Peak 1hr, return to base camp via deep gorge 4 hrs
National Park	Flinders Ranges National Park

We weren't certain how much had been burnt, despite the fire maps we had, or how clear the vegetation now was. Numerous previous trips had shown that the vegetation on the Pound walls, including on this southern side, meant walking was slowed to 1km/h and was tough going.

From the pound floor it took 90 minutes to reach the summmit of Mt Karawarra, despite the burnt vegetation not being as extensive as the fire map detailed. It wasn't until the following day, when looking at Mt Karawarra from Point Bonney, did we really appreciate just how steep Mt Karawarra really was.

We base camped on the pound floor, enjoying each other's company each night. We shared stories around our small fire, and exchanged gear talk (a favourite of hiker's everywhere). Tim mixed and baked a carrot cake on his wood burning emberlit, promising a self-saucing chocolate cake next time! We shared wine, crackers and blue cheese. Inadvertently we later shared the blue cheese with an inquisitive wallaby or goat, but they showed no interest in our rocket and basil dip.



On the second day we climbed up Point Bonney, skipping past Iluka Hill, saving it for another day. Simon and Vicki had previously climbed it, it was a relatively easy climb from the outside. It's true, I had been up it twice before, and failed in both attempts due to time constraints, but this time it was better left for later. At the summit of Point Bonney we found the logbook, with just 32 entries over 20 years. One entry from this year, one from 2010, one from 2008, 2006 and 2003. That dense vegetation kept people away.

The rock slab cliffs beneath the peak were enormous and dramatic, and a stark contrast to the gentler slopes inside the pound. We lunched at Tumburru Peak overlooking the cliffs.

Walking down from Tumburru Peak we descended quickly to a creek below, pushing our way through the burnt out sticks of the vegetation. It's hard to imagine getting through this vegetation at all prior to the fire. We dropped into a deep gorge we had been eyeing off for a while. It had escaped the fire, was shielded by high rock walls and filled with boulders and rock pools. Kate nearly stepped on a colourful long snake, which wasn't particularly aggressive, and later identification from parks staff confirmed it as a carpet snake.

On Sunday we walked back out from our base camp, partaking in more than one icecream on our journey home, spending an pleasant hour in the courtyard of the Cradock Hotel for lunch.

View in full screen format Download GPX file of the Mt Karawarra, Point Bonney and Tumburru Peak hike - for use as a navigational aid in a GPS unit Download KML file of the Mt Karawarra, Point Bonney and Tumburru Peak hike - view in Google Earth

Finishing off the Larapinta Trail

Two years ago I had to pull out of completing the 233km Larapinta Trail though the West MacDonnell Ranges, west of Alice Springs. I returned mid last year to finish off the eastern half, but wildfires closed the trail, so we occupied ourselves with other hikes. Now, for a third - and successful - attempt, I tackled the more challenging section of the Larapinta Trail.

SUMMARY - Larapinta Trail, Ellery Creek to Alice Springs Telegraph Station (Sections 6 to 1)
Previous trip	Redbank Gorge to Ellery Creek (Sections 12-7), 2010
National Park	West MacDonnell National Park
Location	West MacDonnell Ranges, west of Alice Springs
Start	Ellery Creek (Section 6/7 Trailhead)
End	Alice Springs Telegraph Station (Section 1 Trailhead)
Time	6 days
Distance	138km
Day 1	Ellery Creek to Rocky Gully (Section 6), 4h20m 15.2km
Day 2	Rocky Gully to Fringe Lily (Section 6/5), 7h40m 23.6km
Day 3	Fringe Lily to Brinkley Bluff (Section 5/4), 8h5m 17.0km
Day 4	Brinkley Bluff to Jay Creek (Section 3/2), 9h15m 23.4km
Day 5	Jay Creek to Simpsons Gap (just west of) (Section 2), 6h15m 27km
Day 6	Simpsons Gap to Alice Springs Telegraph Station (Section 1) to nearby caravan pak, 6h15m 27.2km

When you've done half a trail, you think you've got a good feel for it. I'm not sure I had with this one, it held more surprises than I imagined. My week was filled with tough climbs, glorious views, cool breezes on hot days, pregnant rain drops on hot climbs, good company at campsites, plenty of other hikers on the trail, and, as with any Central Australia walk, rocks, and plenty of them.

This time, I'm telling most of my story through photos, and their captions.

View photos on Google+.

View in full screen format Download GPX file of entire Larapinta Trail - for use as a navigational aid in a GPS unit Download KML file of entire Larapinta Trail - view in Google Earth

Mt Zeil - NT's highest peak (The State 8)

Last year we'd tried to climb Mt Zeil, but with the summit cairn in sight, had to give up. We had hiked in from Redbank Gorge on a three day hike. This time we had permission from the NT Parks and the local pastoral station.

SUMMARY - Mt Zeil
State 8	Northern Territory's highest peak
Location	West MacDonnell Ranges, west of Alice Springs
Access	Glen Helen Station and West MacDonnell National Park
PERMISSION REQUIRED	Contact both: Gary Weir, Deputy Chief Ranger, West MacDonnell National Park Gary.Weir@nt.gov.au (08) 8951 8273 0405 603 152 Fax (08) 8951 8290 Ian Morton, Glen Helen Station - pastoral property (not to be confused with Glen Helen Resort) (08) 08 8956 8548 or (08) 8952 3063
Maps	1:50 000 topographic Special map - contact Rangers at West MacDonnell National Park to obtain. 1:250 000 SF53-13 Hermannsburg (this map is not sufficient alone, use in combination with 1:50 000 map available from rangers)
Time	4 hours up
Route	Follow long western spur
Start elevation	650m
Peak elevation	1531m

We drove the three hours in from Alice Springs, along the Tanami Track, Gary Junction Road (Papunya Road), then on station tracks through Glen Helen Station to the base of the western spur of Mt Zeil.

With the pre-dawn moon, we hiked across the plains to the base of the spur. As day broke, we climbed up to the plateau some 380 above the plains (at 1070m). There are various routes to choose from to access the grassy plateau. From here we tried following the official route provided by Parks NT, which is to skirt around the ridge peaks. We found this to be tricky: it was harder to navigate, psychologically harder, harder to walk on a constant side incline, and having to dodge obstacles such as patches of rocks or denser vegetation. Soon, we instead followed the ridge, it was much easier. It was easier to navigate, and the ridgeline was clearer of rocks and vegetation.

Reaching the summit in four hours, and whilst filling in the logbook, updated my Facebook status - yes, there was Telstra NextG coverage.

This summitting was my second attempt, I had tried last year to come in from Redbank Gorge as a three day trip, but did not quite reach the summit.

This was part of Ricky, Paul and my State 8 challenge - to hike the highest summit in each of Australia's eight states and territories. For all of us, this was Number Six, although we differ in which ones remain.

Thanks to my traveling companions, Ricky and Paul, and some of their photos are included below.

View photos on Google+.

View in full screen format PERMISSION IS REQUIRED, and highly recommended, to access and climb this peak. Detailed maps and advice will also be provided when permission is granted. Download GPX file of Mt Zeil climb - for use as a navigational aid in a GPS unit Download KML file of Mt Zeil climb - view in Google Earth

Stats	Mt Zeil
	Monday
	9/7/2012
	Up	Down
Distance	10.3km	10.1km
Start Time	6.08am	11.52am
End Time	11.04am	3.14pm
Moving Duration	3h17m	2h52m
Total Time	4h47m	3h22m
Moving Average	3.1km/h	3.5km/h
Overall Average	2.1m/h	3.0km/h

Mawson Plateau traverse

A remote wilderness area in the Northern Flinders Ranges, the Mawson Plateau is almost untouched by people and their activities. There are no roads or tracks, no buildings or fences, and unlike much of the Northern Flinders Ranges, no history of mining.

Mawson Plateau, Northern Flinders Ranges

SUMMARY - Mawson Plateau traverse
Start	Mt Shanahan - northern tip of plateau where Granite Creek meets Hamilton Creek. Dropped off by heli-charter from Arkaroola.
End	Arkaroola
Time	6 days
Distance	90km
Mountain Ranges	Mawson Plateau and broader Northern Flinders Ranges
Topographic maps	1:250 000 scale Frome SH54-10; 1:50 000 scale Yudnamutana 6737-1; 1:50 000 scale Wooltana 6737-2
Pastoral Stations	Mt Freeling Station; Arkaroola Wilderness Sanctuary

La Nina, one of the weather phenomenons that so drastically affect Australia's weather patterns, brought the gift - as she is wont to do - of a huge downpour of rain to the deserts back in early March. Over five days 247mm fell at Arkaroola. It brought the rain we needed to make this hike possible. There are no rain gauges on the Mawson Plateau, which is a couple days walk north of Arkaroola Village, but it is thought that rainfall on the plateau is similar to the Gammon Ranges, both being of higher elevation than Arkaroola Village, so more rain falls.

Almost all the dirt roads across outback SA were closed in the days after the March deluge, and many had to be graded to be reopened. This kept grader operators busy, so the runway at Moolowatana Station, the first station and servicable runway north of the Mawson Plateau, was still damaged. So like last year, we had to charter a helicopter to drop us out. More expensive, but being able to drop us almost anywhere it saved us two days walking in from Moolowatana Station.

The plateau spans an area seven kilometres wide and 30 kilometres long. The area is littered with large areas of exposed granite, capturing water in numerous rockholes. Granite Creek and its many tributaries drain the plateau, flowing to the north to meet Hamilton Creek before making their way out to Lake Callabonna - one of the many large salt lakes that form a horseshoe around the Northern Flinders Ranges. Its highest point is Freeling Heights, a bluff on the south-western corner of the plateau. Originally the plateau was named Freeling Heights, but was later renamed in honour of Douglas Mawson.

The plateau is largely untouched, it's quite hard to find any sign of human impact. There are no roads or tracks, no buildings or fences, quite possibly no weeds (I've heard tell, I'm no expert), and little impact from feral animals, even goats (which are rampant in the Gammon Ranges to the south.) We found a couple of stardropper stakes in a clearing on our way up to Freeling Heights, marking the site of a government photo survey of vegetation. On stardroppers, one of the waterholes on upper Granite Creek is called Star Dropper Waterhole, so named after the single stardropper there that marks a corner boundary of the Arkaroola and Mount Freeling pastoral leases. We knew of this waterhole, we had seen photos, but did not know its exact location as the pastoral lease boundaries are not usually shown on the topographic maps. We did, unbeknownst to us at the time, see the waterhole on our return from the summit of Freeling Heights. In the back corner of a photo of the waterhole the star dropper can clearly be seen!

A single old track makes a small incursion on the plateau just south west of Mt Shanahan, an old mining track, the type such as litters the Northern Flinders Ranges. Without maintenance these tracks suffer from washaways and soon become undriveable. This one stretched a few hundred metres onto the plateau. It's unusual to hike in the Flinders Ranges somewhere that no 4WD could possibly travel, or has ever travelled.

There were are few other signs of human impact. Behind a rock above the Tee Junction Waterhole, one of the few permanent waterholes on the plateau (after decent rains it is thought to last ten years or so) we found an emergency cache of food and essential items. You know the essential things one might need: coffee, chocolate, cigarettes, toilet paper. From the logbook it seems to have been first placed there by Reg Sprigg in 1987, and has been well stocked since, very little was out of date. As the permanent waterhole, and one of the few named ones, it is a popular spot with hikers to camp at. That said, there were few entries in the logbook, but that may be due to hikers, such as us, not knowing the cache was there; we stumbled upon it on our second night there.

A couple of old stone cairns built by surveyors mark summits, there is one on Mt Shanahan, a summit which seems remarkably insignificant, and on Freeling Heights. Towering drystone structures, they never cease to amaze me in how well the surveryors of old constructed them. The Freeling Heights one, like all good summit cairns, is complete with a logbook of sorts, in this case loose paper in an old jar. Of all the notes in there, and there were not many - it seems there was only one, sometimes two, visits each year. Some year had no visits. Tafe was a common visiting party - the outdoor education course - they also featured quite well in the cache at Tee Junction Waterhole. Up at the Freeling Heights summit there were several cleared campsites, perhaps most clearly noticable by the large slabs of stone that had been carefully positioned to form chairs and even side tables.

The March rains filled all the rockholes, even after seeing so many waterholes we did not grow tired of them. It's hard to imagine what hiking here might look like in drier times. The waterholes were often an obstruction, a few times we had to scramble around them, many times over and around them. There were upsides to this though, by lunchtime on the first day we were already swimming in a vast waterhole. Every day on the plateau featured a good swim.

On our second day we decided to leave Granite Creek, with its many obstructing waterholes. We followed a spurline for two kilometres up to the escarpment edge, from here we had dramatic views over the eastern plains and Lake Frome. Following the escarpment to the south west, the escarpment grew increasingly dramatic. We crossed back across the plateau, which was no easy navigation task, to Granite Creek and its rockholes.

The views from Freeling Heights were also dramatic, we had a very clear day, one of the clearest I have seen up there. We could easily see Mt Painter, which we climbed in 2011, and further south Benbonyathe Hill (2010), Mt McKinlay, Patawarta Hill (2009) - 110km away - and Rawnsley Bluff on Wilpena Pound - 180km away.

On the fourth day we hiked to the escarpment, dropping off 400 metres in elevation down a long spur line to a creek. From here we followed it downstream to the hot springs at Paralana. The days were all hot, and most sunny, and we often sought out the shade of trees, no matter how small. A Paralana Hot Springs we sat in the cool reeds beside the hot flowing spring water. It was here we saw our first people since leaving Arkaroola, a couple visiting the springs in their 4WD. An offer of a cold beer would have been nice. Alas, unrefreshed we hiked on in the hot sun.

We camped beside a waterhole every night, and it was only one night where we forewent a swim, in that case to preserve the water from contamination for drinking. Our last night was possibly the best swim, in Bararranna Waterhole. Here the creek was flowing and the waterhole large, it reminded me of some of the rocky vegetationless gorge waterholes in the Kimberley, it was enormous.

On the sixth day we sidled into Arkaroola, and showers, cool drinks, food and chairs. Ah the things you miss hey.

View in full screen format Download GPX file - for use as a navigational aid in a GPS unit Download KML file - view in Google Earth

TRACK NOTES - Mawson Plateau traverse
Download larger version of track notes
Label	Location	Grid Ref	Time	Note
Sunday 15/04/12
Start	NE of Mt Shanahan	GR 559 770	8.20am drop-off (15min flight from Arkaroola)	on hill NE of where Granite Creek meets Hamilton Creek. Hike along Granite Creek.
1	waterhole on Granite Creek	GR 542 747	12.01/1.05pm	Lunch + swim
2	Break	GR 535 731	2.05pm
3	Turn around - too far	GR 533 726	2.50pm	Gorge narrowing, gorge exit missed
4/Campsite	Campsite day 1	GR 535 731	3.10pm. Day's hike was 9.2km/6hr walk	Camp beside creek on sandy area beside large shallow waterhole
Monday 16/04/12
4	Campsite day 1	GR 535 731	7am	Leave camp, hike up spur to escarpment (5)
5	Escarpment	GR 547 717	7.56am	Follow escarpment to pt 7
6	Break	GR 538 700	8.50/9.18am
7	Leave escarpment edge	GR 520 686	10.35/10.55am	Begin to cross plateau from escarpment edge back to Granite Creek
8	Break	GR 513 682	11.45/11.57am
9	Lunch at head of creek	GR 505 282	12.25/12.55pm
10	Rockholes on Granite Creek	GR 498 681	1.19pm	Lots of rockholes here, continue up creek to point 11
11/Campsite day 2	Tee Junction Waterhole	GR 489 678	2.15pm. Day's hike was 13km & 7h15m	Explored further to tee junction, waterhole a few hundred metres downstream from junction.
Tuesday 17/04/12
11/Campsite day 2	Tee Junction Waterhole	GR 489 678	6.50am	Leave camp with daypacks for hike up to Freeling Heights summit and return to camp here again
12		GR	8.36am	Proceed up southern arm of Granite Creek, contour around to more open flatter area to west. Yes got a little sidetracked turning too far north when cross-country.
13	Clearing	GR 458 665	8.50am	Break in open clearing. Proceed across clearing, then following creek lines to vicinity of 449 655. Proceed up spur to flatter ridge near summit
14	Freeling Heights summit	GR 448 643	10.30/11.10am	Summmit marked by stone surveyors cairn in SW corner of ridge. Numerous campsites near summit, some shady.
15	Clearing	GR 457 664	12.35pm	Lunch. Follow creek lines across clearing and open country. Easiest way is to continue following creeks into major Granite Creek. Last 1.5km into Tee Junction difficult due to waterholes.
11/Campsite day 2 & 3	Tee Junction Waterhole	GR 489 678	2.15pm. Day's hike 16.9km, 5.5hr moving, 7.5hr total	Camp here again for a second night.
Wednesday 18/04/12
11/Campsite day 2 & 3	Tee Junction Waterhole	GR 489 678	7.10am	Leave camp. Proceed up SW branch of Granite Creek to waterfall
12 (oops duplicated)	Waterfall	GR 479 667	8.07am	Contour around hills beside creek, hills clearer than creek here
13 (oops duplicated)	Break, clearing and stand of trees	GR 473 655	9.09/9.27am	Clearing in creek
13 (oops duplicated again)	Escarpment edge	GR 473 650	9.50am	Proceed down long spurline
14 (oops duplicated)	Start of steep spur	GR 478 642	10.28am	Continue down spur, this section is very steep
15 (oops duplicated)	Hot Springs/Paralana Creek	GR 484 630	11.40am/12.20pm	Lunch in creek at base of long spur. Proceed downstream along creek to Paralana Hot Springs.
16	Paralana Hot Springs	GR 499 607	1.45/2.15pm
17	Exit Yudnamatana Creek	GR 483 588	3pm	Proceed up Nicolls Spring Creek, go right at major creek junction after a narrow gorge
18/Campsite day 4	Camp north of Nicholls Spring	GR 482 578	4pm. Day's hike was 17km, 5.5hr moving, 9h overall	Camped beside two-step waterfall, pools of water under each, pink granite rock
Thursday 19/04/12
18/Campsite day 4	Camp north of Nicholls Spring	GR 482 578	7.07am	Proceed up creek
19	Nicholls Spring	GR 477 573		Marginal spring, spent sometime verifying location
20			8am	Spring found, returned to packs, continue following creekline up
21	Head of creek		8.45am	Break. Proceed up to saddle and ridge, skirt around 450m peak, proceed down long spur to East Painter Creek
22	East Painter Creek	GR 457 5444	10.30/10.45am	Break. Follow East Painter Creek downstream to East Painter Bore and tank.
23	Old Mine Track			An easier start to tackling Humanity Seat? No, doubt it, track not long enough.
24			11.30am
25	East Painter bore	GR 479 521	12.00/12.40pm	Bore and tank. Creek enters plains here. Proceed along 4WD track to Paralana Hot Springs road, south past Lady Buxton Mine for 1.25km, turn south-west along an Arkaroola 4WD track past White Ants Mine
26	Top of hill	GR 469 492	1.40pm	A real bastard this track. Why didn't we navigate around it? Continued down track.
27	Creek/Road T-junction		2.20pm	Take south track to Bararranna Waterhole
28/Campsite day 5	Bararranna Waterhole	GR 457 479	3pm. Day's hike was 19km, 5.5hr moving, 7.5hr overall.	Very large waterhole in gorge. Two waterholes at present. Carpark at end of road, but road looks out of service since March rains.
Friday 20/04/12
28/Campsite day 5	Bararranna Waterhole	GR 457 479	6.50am	Leave camp, proceed along track back to Arkaroola, track follows creek
29	Echo Camp Waterhole	GR 429 497	8.10am
30	Arkaroola Bore		9am	Break
31	Arkaroola (reception)	GR 400 455	10.15am. Day's hike was 14km, 3h moving, 3.5h overall

Mt Bogong, #5 of the State 8

A 700-metre ascent from a humid, fern-filled valley onto an alpine summit could not be more of a contrast. Mt Bogong, Victoria’s highest peak at 1968 metres, lies in the Victiorian Alps near the 50s town of Mt Beauty.

Mt Bogong, the High Country, Victoria

The final of three blog entries for a week spent around Canberra doing three of the State 8 peaks - the highest mountains in each of Australia's eight states and territories.

SUMMARY - Mt Bogong hike
Start	Mountain Creek Picnic Area
End	Mt Bogong summit, re-trace steps to Mountain Creek Picnic Area
Time	3h15m up, 2h30m down
Distance	7km each way
Elevation gain	1370m
Topographic maps	1:30 000 scale, T8324-1-3-S

The alpine environment of Mt Bogong was quite different from the alpine environment of Mt Kosciuszko. Bogong has quite a lot of prominence, how much it rises above country around it. So the alpine area around the summit is small, contrasting with the large alpine area that surrounds the rather indistinct Kosciuszko.

Mt Bogong was the third peak on the week’s list of the State 8 summits – the highest peak in each of Australia’s eight states and territories.

Starting from Mountain Creek Picnic Area, we hiked up the aptly named Staircase Spur. The most direct route, so the steepest, with a few short sections that taper off the constant ascent. We hiked up in the warm, humid afternoon to the halfway point, Bivouac Hut. The noisy school kids didn’t put us off for long, we set up our tents in the large clearing beside the hut – the hut itself is quite small and designed for emergency use. It does have a wood heater though, and a water tank. We did try and look further afield for some tent spots, but being on a steep spur halfway up a mountain meant there were limited camping options, so we settled down with the teenagers instead. Lightning rolled around us the sun set, but we sat outside cooking dinner as the rain spared us.

The following morning, with the summit shrouded in mist, we set off again to the top. Conditions changed as we got higher, we walked past the treeline into the cool breeze, and then into the mist. Nearing the summit paths led off to the right, but in the mist it may have been certain death, so we continued along the snow poles to the ridge, then walked the short distance to the summit. Marked by a large stone cairn which provided us with shelter from the strong, cold winds, Vicki did her little summit jig. We were thankful we had brought along extra clothes, not needed back near the hut but a life-saver up here. A small blue spot emerged through the clouds in the sky above us, but we soon gave up on waiting for any clearing of the weather, and instead started heading back down.

Finishing back at the cars Mountain Creek Picnic Area, we sniffed out a dozen tents that appeared, absent of people and cars, before enjoying a swim in the freezing waters of the creek.

View in full screen format Download GPX file - for use as a navigational aid in a GPS unit Download KML file - view in Google Earth

TRACK NOTES - Mt Bogong
Download larger version of track notes
Label	Grid Ref	Location	Note
1	225 383	Mountain Creek Picnic Area, carpark	lawned area beside creek, picnic tables, carpark, toilet
2	242 383	Base of Staircase Spur	30 mins from carpark
3	263 368	Bivouac Hut	Small hut with stove, water tank, nice toilet, camping area. 1h30m from base of spur (1), 2h from carpark (1). 4km from carpark (1).
4		Treeline
5		Memorial
6		Ridge junction	Turn west for summmit, east for Eskdale Point
7	273 347	Mt Bogong summit	Marked by cairn, 1h15m from Bivouac Hut (3), 2h45m from base of spur (2), 3h15m from carpark (1). 7.1km from carpark (1).

Mt Kosciuszko, #4 of the State 8

Mt Kosciuszko, Australia’s highest peak at 2228 metres, sits in the midst of an alpine area. The summit itself is not particularly prominent, the walk in from Charlottes Pass is a gentle steady ascent. It is along an old road, closed in the 60s, which led close to the summit.

Mt Kosciuszko, Kosciuszko National Park, New South Wales

The second of three blog entries for a week spent around Canberra doing three of the State 8 peaks - the highest mountains in each of Australia's eight states and territories.

SUMMARY - Mt Kosciuszko hike
Start	Charlottes Pass, end of Mt Kosciusko Road from Jindabyne
End	Mt Kosciusko summit, re-trace steps to Charlottes Pass
Summit Walk
Time	1h45m one-way
Distance	9km each way
Elevation gain	390m
Mt Townsend from Main Range Track
Time	1h one-way
Distance	2.5km each way
Elevation gain	100m
Main Range Track
Time	2h45m one-way
Distance	12.7km each way
Elevation gain	390m
Topographic maps	1:25 000 scale, Perisher Valley 8525-2S

The summit is visible from Charlottes Pass, but can be difficult to identify. Charlottes Pass is at the end of the bitumen road, not surprisingly it is Australia’s highest town. Town might be a bit too much to attribute to it, it is a ski resort with a collection of ski lodges. We were able to stay in one lodge, the Pygmy Possum Lodge, with our keen alpine hiker lodge host, Ziggy.

Following the dirt road to the summit from Charlottes Pass, we crossed the infamous Snowy River, a mere few hundred metres from the headwaters. Passing an old stone hut, Seamans Hut, we got our first definitive glimpse of the summit of Kosciuszko.

After an obligatory stop at Australia’s highest toilet, located at the track junction with the ridge Boardwalk that comes from the ski-lift at Thredbo, and where the road used to end at a carpark, we continued on the short distance to the summit.

In the sun Vicki and Shea did a jig (oops no sound), and we sheltered on the leeward side of the summit cairn to eat lunch.

From here the easy hiking ended. We returned to Charlottes Pass via the Main Range Track, diverting off track to the summit of Mt Townsend. It wasn’t really off-track, a foot track marked by stone cairns led from the Main Range Track to the summit. Mt Townsend used to be called Mt Kosciuszko, and Mt Kosciuszko called Mt Townsend. After being named surveys revealed that the now-named Mt Kosciuszko was higher than the previously named Mt Kosciuszko (Mt Townsend), so instead of re-educating people as to the name of the Australia’s peak, they simply swapped the names.

A short cut back from the summit of Mt Townsend to the Main Range Track saw us skirt around Muellers Peak with views of Albion Lake. Back on the Main Range Track we were triumphantly welcomed into the Blue Lake Junction by Vicki and Jack, who had gone ahead and waited for us. Rather exhausted, we plodded on down the valley, crossing the cold waters of the Snowy again, and up the other side to Charlottes Pass.

The following day, eager for a rest of sorts, we did a half-day hike from Charlottes Pass, off track up to Blue Lake, past Hedley Tarn, and then returning via the Main Range Track. Our tired legs and foggy summits put us off climbing to the summit of Little Twynam and Mt Twynam.

View in full screen format Download GPX file - for use as a navigational aid in a GPS unit Download KML file - view in Google Earth