Hiking - 2019 06 - Larapinta Trail (part 1)

It was time again for another decent hike so when I heard that Kristie and Jeremy were planning a trip to the Red Centre of Australia my ears perked up. The Larapinta Trail had been on my peripheral for a while but I was waiting for an opportunity to do it. As a predominantly solo hiker there are a few options ranging from getting dropped off (for ~$300+) or a fully supported and catered package (up to 5 grand!) Neither really seemed all too appealing to me but luckily my Parents were going to head out for a holiday (and help with babysitting) and as they were going to be in the area I was able to sweet talk them into a lift.

The Trail runs East/West, with one end at an old Telegraph Station just north of Alice Springs and stretching almost 231km (by foot) out along the West MacDonnell Ranges finishing atop Mt Sonder.

The others were heading to Uluru / Ayers Rock first and then winding their way back to Alice via Kings Canyon and West MacDonnell National Park. So I picked a time to fly out to Alice when they should be in the middle of their trip back, camped somewhere along the way. 

To make my trip easier, and save me having to do a bunch of shopping when I landed in Alice Springs, I was able to load up my food drops into plastic tubs and send them on their way in the back of Dads (custom built) camper trailer. Standard affair for hiking food. Dehydrated meals, Muesli Bars, Pasta sides, some dried fruit and Skittles. Lots and lots of skittles. 

The day finally came for my flight out with a lot of my gear already in transit my pack was really light. If only it could be this light all the time! You can check out my loadout here. It's definitely not the lightest kit out there but it's fairly light and I feel it's a good balance between comfort and weight.  

Standard check in affair at the Brisbane domestic airport and a nice relaxing beer in the departure lounge before hopping on my plane. Fairly short flight out and a quick taxi into town. Went to the  hostel to check in, then popped over straight away to the National Parks office to pick up the food drop key and then off to the 'Lone Dingo' camping store to pick up a spare gas can and woolies for final food supplies.

Like a lot of my plans the hike deviated day 0. Jeremy had come into Alice for a restock and refuel and shot me a message. So 2 hours after checking into the hostel I checked out... shortest guest ever? He took me out to Ellery Creek to a surprised Chris and Rod who were expecting to drive into pick me up the next morning. After reading a book to Kristina and Emma and a little communal fire time I was ready for bed. Should be a nice cool night.

Day 1 - 15.8km

Wasn't wrong with it dropping 3°c inside my tent over night. Would have been even colder in the wind... As there was no longer the need to travel into Alice the morning was a lot more relaxed than planned. I sorted out the last little additions for my food boxes and was able to drop the first one right at camp.  

The next two also went in pretty easy. Staff at Standley seemed really friendly and the kiosk at Ormiston proved very useful for their sausage rolls! From there is was a short drive to Redbank Gorge to officially start the hike. 

Kristie and Jeremy came out with the girls to see me off as well as do the walk into the gorge itself. After a few photos we parted ways and I begun setting up base camp.  

A few hikers camped in the river bed but I picked a spot just up the bank. Camp was quickly set and it was time for me to hit up Mt Sonder. Plenty of trail markers dotting the well worn trail kept me on the right track. If it wsnt for the chilling cutting wind it would have been a nice temp too. It was a little cold to hike, but with the uphill slog far to sweaty to don a jacket. Still the entire way up the view got better and better until I was at the top and could take stock of the adventure ahead.  

A lot quicker going down. Bit easier too so I had left my jacket on (which I grabbed as soon as I reached the summit) until about half way down. The wind had miraculously stopped! That was until the moment the jacket sleeve slipped off my wrist, then it hit with another gust. Still I got moving fast and kept relatively warm.

Back at camp I spotted a feral cat licking at drips from the water tank. Second one already, the first on the drive out. Both pretty big. I wandered down to some other hikers, they had just finished. It was nice to get some insight about what's ahead and the good spots. Soon after dinner it was too cold to stay out so I sought shelter in my tent and fell asleep soon after.

Day 2 - 18.7km 

Slow rise again due to the cold morning though at 5° it was warmer than yesterday. I half packed before breakfast and then went for the short wal into Redbank Gorge. The trail along the bank soon went into the river bed with sand underfoot. The closer you got to the gorge the more rocky it became and ended in a beautiful canyon. Water was absolutely freezing. Tinknell would have probably swam though...  

Back to camp to finish packing, said goodbye to the guys I shared dinner with, their bus was due to take them back at 11. Pretty flat trail for most of the day. With the wind still blowing I was hiking in my long sleeve Merino top at a fairly pleasant temp. Felt like leaving the gloves on though. 

Stopped at Rocky bar gap for lunch and to get some water. Not long to camp from here so I stayed for almost 2 hours just enjoying the quiet. Wind was still cold but at least it kept most of the flies away.

Made it to camp just after 2 and picked out one of the pre cleared spots. Plenty to choose from. Not a bad place to wait for a sunset. Had a lot of free time so I explored the top of the hill and extended my rock wall wind break a little. The sun fell just by Mt Sonder and lit the sky with some impressive colours. 

Day 3 - 18.1km 

I new it was going to be colder spending the night at the top of the hill but I wasn't expecting -4°c!! Still I don't think I felt it as bad as the first night at Ellery and it was worth it for the view. Mt Sonder was shrouded in cloud this morning, bit of bad luck for anyone that made the climb for sunrise.  

The day started with a pretty steep downhill slog on loose shale rock, made for slight slower going but provided great views to the south the whole way down. 

When I got to the bottom I reached a section that had been scarred by fire but at almost every burnt out tree were fresh green sprouts springing back to life. There were also a heap of creek crossings including the majestic Finke River. It was a little touch and go there, but I managed to keep my shoes dry.  

The side track into Glen Helen was pretty nice, some great rock formations and some of the water holes on the Finke actually had water! Two Mile camp spot seemed like a good place to stay which I spied from across the pool of water. Glen Helen itself had some awesome burgers and the chips and beer went down pretty smoothly too. 

It was time to hit the trail again only 4.5k to camp for tonight. Making it there by 1330... I think I'll need to do some longer days. The shelter setup was good though, solar to charge batteries/phone, water and a drop toilet. About an hour later a west bound couple hiked in, good to have some company for the night.  

Day 4 - 17.4km  

Pack up was a little easier from the shelter with no tent and seats to use so I was on my way fairly easily. This next section definitely had worse fire scars than yesterday. Without any significant vegetation wind seemed even worse as well. It would have been pushing 40 knots or more as a head wind adding to the strain of hiking. However it was a little warmer than the previous days. 

After about 5k I passed the first hiker going the other way. She was a little surprised when I told her how far it was to the shelter and that I had only been hiking an hour. She had left Ormiston (~4k) over 1.5 hours ago. I got a similar reaction from her friends that I passed soon after. Before 10 I was at the Gorge and grabbed my first drop box to resupply. 

After a nice sit in the sun Rod, Chris, Kristie, Jeremy and the girls showed up so we could hike the pound loop together. Dad was very happy to have my overflow food, skittles and pringles. I think the girls were too. The Pound walk is a really good little loop definitely worth doing if you're out this way. Kristie and Jeremy did an impressive job of carrying the girls (who alone weigh more than my entire pack) in their travel packs. Towards the end I gave Kristie a little break by taking Emma for awhile. 

Back at camp to the kiosk for a nice bacon and egg muffin, plus one for the road. We said our goodbyes, some trail magic (in the form of beer) from Jeremy firmly in hand, and I went off in search of a place to camp for the night. The 'Trail Hiker' section was wall to wall with pre-established big tents, belonging to guided groups, so I shuffled a little further to the coach section where there was a great bunch of guys from Melbourne. 

Nice hot showers here and a chance to wash some clothes, they definitely didn't dry as fast as advertised with my shirt still wet before I went to bed. At camp we shared some good stories about various tracks we've done and future planned ones. Luckily Jeremy gave me 2 beers so I was at least able to share one with them. In return I was offered an amazing pudding snack and even some scotch! Good trade. 

Sadly also in the coach area, not far from us, was a school group. A very loud school group. Kinda wished their leaders took them on a longer hike today because they were still hollering as I was trying to sleep, continuing well past 'hiker midnight' (9pm)

Day 5 - 28.3km  

Quick pack in the morning and said my goodbyes to the Melbourne guys before setting off for a little longer of a day. Wasn't far before a 450m elevation gain, biggest since Sonder. There is an awesome spot that would be perfect for the night about 10k out of Ormiston. Naturally sheltered from the wind and 360 views.  

A little further to the summit with a little '3G is here' sign but I was on a roll so kept moving. Heading down the other side was really steep. SE Ridge on Mt Barney steep. It wasn't long before Waterfall Gorge and lunch. This is where the Melbourne crew were aiming for tonight. With a bit further for me I pushed on.  

Passed a few west bounds, including one lady that had spent the night with the family at Ellery and a pair that were cooking lunch right in the middle of trail. Plenty of spikes grass off trail though so it was a good as place as any. 

I thought I was making great time until I ran into a gully with steep walls and huge boulders to climb over slowing me down. Pretty though. There were also a few wild flowers near trail worth stopping to appreciate.   

Got to the shelter with two other hikers setting up and a lot of day hikers finishing a leg for the day. Excitedly planning the following days activities, lamenting the one kilometre they still had to go to the cars and in awe of my 28+ k day. I spared them (but not you, dear readers) the details of the butt chafing I started to experience at the ~22k mark....  

Shelters are easily big enough for 8 hikers with room to spare. Even 12, 6 per side, would be fine. You'd definitely squeeze in a lot more if you were friends or it was a poor weather night. Still with me at one end the other pair each set up their tents less than 10m away from the shelter. I guess despite the Ormiston shower I probably smell.... in all fairness though, they've done 8 sections so they would too.

Day 6 - 27.9km

Another good start in the morning where the ks fell fast. Wasn't too long before I was at the base of the next big hill. Lots of steps on this climb really making the legs work hard. Wind still hadn't let up either but at least with some switch backs it was a tail wind rather than just a head wind. Counts point was an amazing place to stop for a smoko break.  

(Don't tell mum how close to the edge of the cliff I was to get this shot)

On my way down from the point I met another group of 4 that had shared a fire with the family at Ellery. They were all on the lookout for a orange puffy, but it's a little hard to see packed away. Not many East-bounders though so they took a guess it was me. Lots of people are hiking in their jackets or at least wind blazers. I've set off most mornings with my thermal top on but figure being a little cold on the move is good motivation.

I thought the steps on the way up were bad but down was worse. Little loose rocks/sand making every step a calculated move. Wouldn't want to do this bit with a bung knee. After I was down it was a short jaunt into Serpentine Gorge which was a beautiful spot to stop for lunch.  

For a 'mostly flattish' section the second half of the day certainly had a lot of up and down. Pretty significant rocks to navigate past too. At the top of one such hill was the reward of an old Trig Point. Though might hold more significance to me compared to most other hikers.  

Made it to Ellery Creek just before 4. A day ahead of schedule so far. As always I've slightly over budgeted for food so I was able to leave a few things in the box and label it 'Free Food' so hopefully some other hikers can get some use out of it. There was definitely plenty of food in the storage room though! Might be a busy trail ahead....

Ellery Creek is probably the best waterhole so far as well. Great place for the half way mark. Far to cold for a swim but I managed to hold my feet in there for at least a good 15 seconds... 

Back at camp for dinner and some really friendly campers got a fire going and invited me to share. They didn't have to ask twice! They even offered to take my rubbish after a totally innocent "Did you guys notice any bins on the way in?" Their Trail Magic didn't stop there but I had to decline the 3rd beer as I had a 30k day to look forward to tomorrow. 

Countdown to Alice begins!

Hiking - 2020 06 - Ballow Creek Junction (Mt Barney NP)

Thought it was time for another over night hike as it had been a few months. Managed to convince a few others to go with me too which is nice. Had perfect weather; crisp clear Brisbane winter day. Blue skies abound. 

I had thought Barney Creek Junction would have been nice. A good 8km, Lower portals along the way. Goat track all the way to camp. Sadly when I went to book camps it was already half full. Scratching for other ideas I found Ballow Creek. Sparse information but some old notes said established rainforest camp so sounded good.  

Only a short 6km to the camp so we decided to have a later start. Leaving from the Gold Coast through Canungra, took a bit longer than expected but we reached the bottom of Waterfall Creek camp 20 past 12 and headed up to Cleared Ridge. Camp sites were fairly full, I guess lots of people getting out post covid, and there were a few walkers on the 4wd track to the top. The condition of the track has deteriorated a lot since I was last up here. Just over a year ago.  

Eventually we get going and knock over the 4km to Yamahra Creek pretty easy before we turn off for the 'short' 2k to camp. We started with a fairly well defined goat track but it disappeared after 200 or so meters. From there it was following the creek as best you could. Swapping sides, hopping up the centre, finding the path of least resistance. There were lots and lots of fallen trees making it very difficult to push through. Vines slippery rocks and a few hesitations on crossings made for tough, slow, going. The last 2 km took us almost 2.5 hours.  

We got to the Junction, with only my pair of shoes still dry, but didn't spy the 'established' sites. We found a few semi-suitable and they definitely had been slept at before but they were over grown and fairly tight amongst the other trees. In the valley is was starting to get dark before we finished setting up and just as we were done it was head torch time. Cut it a little close, but we made it.  Temp dropped a bit, however it was actually warmer than I expected. Sun was gone for a good 1.5 hours before I reached for my puffy.  

The 4 of us sat about for dinner, various easy to eat meals like Mac n Cheese, pasta, CousCous and 2min noodles. We stayed up chatting for a little bit before retiring to our tents. Temperature didn't drop too low over night. Min/Max Thermometer read 5°C as the coldest (outside the tent) but I felt pretty warm inside. It was only in the wee hours of the morning, just after sunrise, where I felt the chill of the cold morning.  

We had a very easy morning, lying in bed until past 8am, unheard of at camping usually! With breakfast out of the way the sky decided it was time for these smelly hikers to have a shower. I'll have to have a word with the folks over at BOM as it was meant to be a clear sunny weekend!  

With a fresh coating of rain, on top of the morning dew, the rocks were even more slippery than yesterday! It was really slow going for a while and we decided that maybe we could cut across a small ridge to avoid one of the worst bends of the river. It looked goood for about 5 min but then we hit vines... and prickles. Lots of prickles. They weren't new ones to me but I can't remember seeing them often. They had really small, splinter sized burs on a larger head. As soon as they got you the little spurs broke off and dug into your clothes and started to scratch away at your skin.   

After being covered in them, thinking that was bad, we reached some rainforest vine, wait-a-while and even, just for good measure I guess, some thickets of Lantana! It made getting back to the river quite a bit more difficult. Eventually down the other side of the ridge though and once again into the creek. It was my turn to take a misstep and feel just how cold the water was... not too bad. From then on it made things easier for me, they couldn't get more wet. The creek was still hard work though, rocks still slippery and many many fallen trees.

It was odd, there were some parts (seemingly random) along the creek where trees had been cut by chainsaws. No obvious trail near them and we couldn't work out why some were cut and others (that looked to be the same vintage) were left untouched. It wasn't just one or two close to the nearest Vehicle access (Yamahra Creek for Rangers) but some much further up, while closer ones went wanting. 

We actually made better time heading down stream, getting back to the main Upper Portals Track just on the 2hr mark. We stopped for a bite for lunch, some camped in the nearby campsite were still in the process of packing up. Others had obviously left just before... and left a smouldering fire. I had a bit of extra water so doused what I could before we set off back up to Cleared Ridge. 

The hill is just about how I remember it. Long and steep. We took our time going up (though Callan and Thomas seemed to power on!) and eventually made it back to the cars. After this trip, the fact that they were already well loved, and the numerous (like thousands) of little spur prickles I decided to retire my hiking shorts. Even after a shower I can still feel the spurs in the back of my leg. Hopefully just phantom pain though... or they might be with me a while.  

Certainly a more difficult off trail hike and probably should of picked a slightly easier one to ease a few people into it. Despite the prickles and soggy shoes I'm keen to head back and see if I could make it to the next camp (a further 2km up the creek) to a place called T Junction. Would definitely need an early start for it though! Maybe even night hike into Yahamra, then had a full day to get up the creek. Some other time though!

Diving - 2019 11 - Moreton

It was time again for another awesome weekend away at Moreton. Marie and Coralie had organised another Clean Up Dive. A great chance to enjoy a dive but also give a little back to the environment we love to visit. 

About a dozen were able to head over Friday morning, with most coming on the Sat. I had a bit of work to take care of but managed to swing a half day to head over on the afternoon. Hit the first stumbling block when I arrived at MiCat to realise BCC has blocked all street parking. $60 later I was in their carpark and getting on the barge. I wonder who requested no parking on the street.....  

The wind had kicked up quite a lot today and Paul, who was heading over on his own boat, had to pull the pin. 25 knot winds will do that! The plan was to try again early in the morning. With the head wind the 90min barge ride over was a bit lumpy but luckily my chariot (Lintons Prado) was awaiting my arrival.

Far too windy for a dive this afternoon so we resorted to having a few sunset drinks instead. Half way through relaxing we were made aware (thanks neighbours!) that the wind and waves were -not so slowly- filling up the boat. Gary's sprung into action to save it and shuffled it down behind the safety of Tangalooma wrecks. 

The prediction is for it to get even worse later tonight but then start getting better in the morning. Fingers crossed. Sunset drinks were nice though.  

It only got a little bit worse but then improved significantly. The house I was staying in was back off the beach a little and when I woke up not a single leaf was blowing. Slightly different down the beach though... still felt like about 18kn and still too rough for a dive.  

As we pulled the pin the night before most people had decided to sleep in but generally got up by 8. It wasnt too long before we were sending cars down to pick up the new arrivals and retrieve the boat from Tangalooma.  

As soon as they got back to the house it was time to gear up and head out for a dive. Outgoing tide makes for a pretty good drift dive on the Pines. Half way down the wall was a massive MASSIVE anchor. The chain alone would sink our boat... Stainless, probably a 600lbs plough, with a massive shaft and significant chain attached. 

Few Nudies but a bit less life than I'm accustomed too on the pines. the wind and current had taken the boat about twice as far as the divers so when we popped up it was well on it's way to Bulwer. Wasn't too long though and they were back to pick us up.

Back on shore for a very quick bite and turn around before heading out again for the slack low. I put my hand up to be skipper and dropped the group on the MDS. Seemed like a good dive, if a bit milky because of the low tide.  

After the dive it was a little more relaxed. People had a late lunch and then we started discussing the possibility of an afternoon drift... moments after I stripped of my wetsuit... it was still pretty good though despite having to don a wet wetsuit... 

6 of us headed out but Mitch had to abort at the start due to sinus pressure. The remaining 5 of us met some impressive current but it was manageable with the protection of the wrecks. When it was time to surface I shot my SMB up and it whipped down current. As soon as we left the protection of the wreck, so did we. 

Back on land and unfortunately we were having problems with the compressor. It would run and sound fine but cut out, for seemingly no reason, in under a minute. Managed to barely eek out 10 tanks... of 20...  before calling it quits. Despite about 8 'experts' (me being one) taking a look to try fix it. Any Honda Mechanics in the club? 

Carbonara was amazing for dinner and as usual the company here kept us entertaining for the evening. With only a few tanks not everyone could dive in the morning some had to do a hat draw to see who got on. Alex got a spot but kindly stepped down so he could go surface watch.  

Early start for the slack high and a few of the tanks we thought were full were only partially so. Still 8 of us made it out to the Rock Driller/Tram and I was able to duck over to the Nautilus Statue to see how it was going. Definitely encrusted and lots of life calling it home but the sand has encroached a little as well. 

Back after the dive and someone must have gone to church this morning for as if by miracle the compressor was running again. Best efforts to fix yesterday must have paid off. Or it just needed a sleep..  

Coralie, Marie, Jack and Mitch also got stuck into sorting and cataloging the marine debris we recovered. After every dive we separate line, hooks, sinkers and all manner of other rubbish so we can track what were taking out.  Slightly less than past years but maybe that means our efforts are making a difference!

Big gap between dives so some of the group headed off for a drive to check out the light house. Having done that many times before and there being limited seats in vehicles I opted to stay behind and rest. A working compressor was also short lived but in that time we did manage to fill enough tanks for the afternoon dive. 

Slack low again so the vis was as expected. Milky and 5m. We were a little late getting out after lunch and just missed the turn. It was fine when we hopped in and getting around though. We were at the northern end again but still managed to mostly fill buckets.

Towards the end of the dive the current was starting to pick up. The anchor was nice and wedged under a rail on the MDS wreck and as JNR and I were the last divers down we unhooked it (to make it easier to retrieve.) The moment we did the boat shot off with the current, us in tow. Occasionally it would catch on a bit of sand and give us a little tug but it wasn't long before we were back on the surface and heading back to shore.  

8 pax were heading back home this afternoon so they packed up and we got a group shot with some of our haul from the weekend. Compressor was still giving us grief and there was a lot of discussion about what to do with the remaining 3 full tanks...

Running the compressor a little early in the morning and we were able to just get 7 tanks done. Not being the kind of people to skip a dive we dropped right between the Enterprise and the Birambin wrecks. Huge Groper was hanging around where we dropped, starting off the dive on a good footing.  

There was loads of rubbish on the tyre pile. Not so much on the wrecks but 1/3rd of the tyre pile was enough to overfill the bucket! Heaps more for when we come back next time. The vis was better too, almost 15m at one point. Best so far this trip.  

Another great surprise for me was seeing something new. I have done at least 50+ dives on Curtin, probably more, but found a new Nudibranch and a really cool fancy Pipe Fish too. Neither I have ever seen anywhere before. 

When back on shore we sorted 'the catch' again to track what was collected. After that was lunch and then seeing the Gary's off who were driving Diver 1 back. Our Barge wasn't until 330pm so we had some time to kill.  

Some sweeping to be done after lunch and loading the 4wds for the trip back. Lifting the compressor onto a ute tray is always a fun job. As well as 20 ish dive tanks...  then soft and dive gear stacked ontop of that. 

It was a short jaunt down the beach to meet the barge and it felt like no time at all at Tangalooma before we were loading. A fairly smooth trip back, compared to the trip over... on the mainland we reshuffled gear into personal cars, said our goodbyes and headed home.  

All in all another great trip. Thanks completely to the organisers and everyone that chipped in to make sure all the various weekend jobs got done!