Decided to do some camping with a big day hike. The plan: Drive to the Grampians after work Friday to camp the night, then do the Mount Difficult loop on Saturday. Assume I would be wrecked after this, so spend another night before heading home on Sunday, with a small walk in the morning.
Happy to report that it pretty much went to plan for a change!
Spent far too much time during the week making lists and sorting gear again, but at least I was well prepared; and I didn't over prepare, everything taken was used. I was still packing and loading the car frantically on Friday, but fortunately I got it all sorted and was able to leave just before 5.
What a way to start the weekend! Driving west with the warm sun on my face, endless green rolling hills, a deep blue sky with flocks of puffy clouds drifting lazily by, and the promise of adventure ahead. I was in a great mood and loved every minute of the 2.5 hour drive.
I was able to setup camp and have dinner before the sun set. Gotta love these long summer days! Camping from the car is certainly more comfortable than from a backpack, and I only needed to make 3 trips lugging things from car to site.
The camp ground was pretty much full and I had the good fortune of having a family with 4 young kids next door. The kids were a little loud, but that was fine. My issue was that their site was about 10 meters away and they filled it with 2 small tents for the kids and the adults setup in the neutral zone only 5 meters from me... and did some vigorous air mattress stress testing exercises before going to sleep! I didn't feel so bad about my snoring after that.
It was a chill night and got down to 3.7. Another good test for my sleeping bag (rated to 5 for comfort); I used a sleeping bag liner this time that should have added some support, but also tried a new air mattress that is only 2.5R rating as opposed to the 3.3 I used a few weeks ago. I did ok, was a little cold, but not enough to disrupt sleep and be uncomfortable. The new air mattress slowly deflating and needing a refill half way through the night was more of a disruption!
Up bright at early for a quick breakfast and a few coffees, then I was off. Started the hike at 8:30 just as the sun was peaking over the mountain.
https://www.trailhiking.com.au/hikes/mount-difficult-plateau-circuit/
I didn't bother with the Briggs Bluff side quest as I had been there a few times before, so straight to Mount Difficult, aka Gar.
Got to the Gar summit at 11:45 and enjoyed a lunch break. It is a fun climb up the last little bit, a tad steep, but the views are worth it.
Next was the loop part that I had not done before. Started out fine. It was certainly less maintained and more technical than the path up to Gar, but it was easy to follow and I was quickly surrounded by bushland that differed greatly from what I had seen earlier in the day.
Then it started to become less fun, and it just kept getting worse! Followed a fire track for a while that was very overgrown and scratchy, with many fallen trees and branches to dodge. Then it narrowed to a goat track that was completely overgrown. This part was rough. It seems every plant in the Grampians is very thorny! At times the path completely disappeared and I had to fight my way though walls of scrub while following the GPS track and eventually finding the trail or a marker arrow to confirm I was going the right way. Good times! This was exhausting and draining.
At least I got to see some nice flowers, cool rocks, lots of lizards, and great views.
Eventually made it back to the main track, and was a much less challenging walk back to the camp site. Got back around 5pm. I was very much worn out by then!
Enjoyed relaxing at camp for a few hours before dinner, then kicked back to a beer and fire. Had a miserable nights sleep on the small and slowly deflating mattress, but I think it was mainly due to sore muscles and joints causing me to toss and turn excessively. Stayed in bed until it warmed up a bit before enjoying a leisurely breakfast and pack-up.
Stopped at Beehive Falls on the way home for a quick morning walk while I was in the area. It is an easy 1.4 km walk and return, and it is one of my favourite waterfalls in the area. Simply stunning.
https://www.trailhiking.com.au/hikes/beehive-falls/
Miscellaneous notes for future Tim:
- Don't use the gas can cooker in cold weather, it freezes up and can only produce a tiny flame. Waiting in the freezing cold for your coffee is not fun.
- Large air mattresses are worth it. The small mummy size had me feeling like something was always dangling off it.
- Listened to lots of synthwave on Saturday and some Federale. Rura was nice for the Sunday walk.
- Finished listening to Patrick Stewarts memoir "Making it so". It was very entertaining and he seems like a lovely and charming man. Was very interesting hearing about his childhood, how he got into acting, and his long stage career. Star Trek behind the scenes stories were entertaining, but I can't help but think that Patrick doesn't really "get" Star Trek. My hot take anyway, it is very likely Gene is turning in his grave regarding my interpretation.
- Check Audiable before going offline. Could swear I had a heap of books downloaded and ready to go, but could only find Jane Austin there! Was a bit heavy for my exhausted state. Luckily I had the kindle and found a Steven King book to relax with.
- Toe socks are amazing. I got them so I could have warm feet with thongs and clean socks for sleeping, but they prove to be so much more! After hiking, your feet are sweaty and toes stick to each other... no longer! The toe sock separates toes and makes then feel clean and dry. Amazing. And fashionable?
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