Tassie

Hello! Sorry for being silent for so long, we are now ready to update you on our latest whereabouts. Since last time we wrote we have spent a few days in Melbourne, where Pete was looking forward to attending the Grand Prix, as you all know that it is a kind of religion for him. I thought I'd just give it a miss and escaped to french Island where I stayed with my friends Alison and Jane on their small farm where they keep a few lamas and grow organic olives, with a fantastic view over the bay. They fed me plenty of beautiful vegetables from their garden and initiated me to home felting with the wool from their alpacas, and I didn't regret for one moment missing out on Lewis Hamilton's victory in Melbourne!
Then we flew to Launceston, Tasmania, where we had a few days to get ourselves ready to tackle the Overland track, a 6 day hike through the Cradle Mountain - Lake Saint Clair National park. The preparation was full on, we spent a LOT of time and money gathering the necessary equipment, as you have to be ready for any type of weather, including snow in the middle of summer. You have to carry a tent in case you don't make it to the hut before dark or in case they are full when you get there. So we hired a tent, some - 5degrees c rated sleeping bags, a small fuel stove and a backpack, as mine was definitely too small to carry all that gear plus the food for 6 days. We also invested in some thermals and waterproofs in a n attempt to keep warm and dry (it nearly worked!)
We left last tuesday, after having spent a few days walking around Launceston park with our fully loaded backpacks as a form of training. The first day of the hike was meant to be the most challenging, because there is a steep uphill section, but you reach the top quickly, and the stunning views of Cradle mountain take your mind away from the effort involved. We stayed overnight in a small hut on a valley, near a waterfall, from where we watched the wallabies grazing on the plain through the window.
That night it rained and it was still raining when we set off the next morning... Luckily that day there were only two hours of walking planned, but we didn't quite appreciate the views with all that cold wind and rain pouring on us. We were rather glad to reach the next hut and to warm up around a nice cup a soup while attempting to dry our sodden clothes.
The next morning was crisp and bright, and we saw a forgotten sight : ground frost! It was a beautiful day, with spectacular views of the peaks and valleys around. We were lucky enough to spot a "ground parrot" on the buttongrass (a spiky plant endemic to tasmania) plain.
The next hut was right on a plain, and that afternoon we watched the rain fall while the sun was shining, and then the sun setting through the mist shrouding the flanks of Mount Oakleigh. The opportunistic possums were lurking around waiting for a scrap of food to come their way, and we saw a pretty little spotted quoll disapearing under the boardwalk.
The next day the weather was fresh and bright again, and we enjoyed a beautiful misty sunrise on Pelion plains before walking along Mount Ossa, the highest peak in the region, and then entering a dark forest. We spotted a pink robin and an echidna, the local porcupine, which was quite exciting. That night we couldn't stay in a hut as it was being extended, so we had to pitch our tent on one of the platforms provided. It was all good until it started to rain... and packing a wet tent is something that fills any camper with joy, I expect.
The 5th day of the walk saw us reaching the shores of lake St Clair, under pouring rain. We enjoyed sleeping in warm and dry hut before set,ting off under the rain, again. The only slight problem was that someone took with them my waterproof trousers and left me theirs....which would have been ok, had they not been a size XXL!
The great majority of walkers decide to take the ferry at that point to reach the end of the track. We foolishly decided to walk the remaining 15 km around the lake... the track was unmaintained and we had to scramble over fallen trees and under low branches, risking an injury a few times as we fell on slippery roots. After 5 hours of this treatment we had had enough, and were quite glad to pitch our wet tent under the rain at an Overland track campsite near the finishing point. We thought we would wait for a break in the rain and go for a nice stroll.... well 18 hours later we were still waiting! So we packed the wet tent again, this time it was so cold we couldn't actually feel our fingers, and walked the remaining 500 m of the track to the visitorr centre, where we welcomed the sight of a roaring fire. We then hopped on a bus to Launceston, where we enjoyed the first shower of the week, and a nice meal with real vegetables and meat in (not dehydrated ones)
So there we are, after this week filled with all types of emotions we have maybe learnt to appreciate our daily comforts, and have definuitely got a head full of beautiful images of the Tasmanian highlands.
We are leaving Tassie for Sydney tomorrow, then onto New Zealand on saturday. More on that bit later!