{"id":1651,"date":"2022-02-14T21:20:00","date_gmt":"2022-02-14T11:20:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/geoffgoodyergmail.direct.quickconnect.to\/wordpress\/2022\/02\/15\/australian-alps-walking-track-prelude\/"},"modified":"2023-07-07T16:14:38","modified_gmt":"2023-07-07T06:14:38","slug":"australian-alps-walking-track-prelude","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/geoffgoodyer.synology.me\/wordpress\/australian-alps-walking-track-prelude\/","title":{"rendered":"Australian Alps Walking Track – prologue"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\n

All things are ready,
if our mind be so.<\/em><\/p>\nWilliam Shakespeare.<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

The Australian Alps Walking Track (AAWT) is a logistical* as well as a physical challenge. I started planning, cooking, dehydrating, vacuum-sealing, purchasing and researching 6 months before undertaking the walk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Finally the day arrived and I loaded the Tangerine Dream (my Subaru XV) with six food drops and the gear I would be taking on the walk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Ready to load and go<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

I would spend around 23 hours driving 1500kms over the next 3 days before starting the actual walk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My sons accompanied me on the drive from Sydney to Gundagai where we lunched and parted company. They went on to their homes in Melbourne. I continued to Kiandra and Dead Horse Gap (near Thredbo) where I hid my first two food drops. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There were three brumbies snorting around the site of my food drop at Dead Horse Gap, still very much alive. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Each food drop contained 6 days\u2019 food, fresh clothes, and fresh water. They also contained maps and track notes for the upcoming week\u2019s walking. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

My first night was spent camped at the Tom Groggin campsite, popular for car campers and kangaroos alike. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Tom Groggin campsite<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Next morning I continued driving. I could see the Main Range to the east, which I would be walking through in a month’s time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Main Range from Scammells Ridge lookout <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

I drove on through Corryong to Benambra, leaving my third food drop near where the AAWT crosses the road. I stopped at Omeo for lunch and a visit to the “comfort station”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Omeo Comfort Station <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

From there I drove to Mt Hotham and on to The Twins, where I camped for the night and hid another food drop. Nearby was the site of the St Bernard Hospice, marked by this memorial.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
St Bernard Hospice memorial <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

More driving the next day, along a variety of dirt and paved country roads. I walked in to Macalister Springs and visited the Vallejo Gantner Hut, where I hid a food drop nearby.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Vallejo Gantner Hut<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

I had a quick walk around the area to get some views of Mt Howitt, the Crosscut Saw and the Viking, which I would be walking through in less than a fortnight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
View to Crosscut Saw and The Viking<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Then I spent another afternoon driving, through Licola and up towards Mt Skene, the site of my final food drop and my camp for the night.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

* Not everyone needs to undertake the same logistical preparations that I did. I met one crazy young German en route who had no food drops and ate a single meal per day. He carried an ancient pack. He was built like a Clydesdale. However, his pre-walk training included 8,000km Germany to Spain and the 3,000km Te Araroa Track in New Zealand. I reckon he probably made it to the finish on strength and willpower.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\nPhoto Gallery<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/span>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

All things are ready, if our mind be so. William Shakespeare. The Australian Alps Walking Track (AAWT) is a logistical* as well as a physical […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1860,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":true,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[34,33],"class_list":["post-1651","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-bushwalking","tag-aawt","tag-australian-alps-walking-track"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/geoffgoodyer.synology.me\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/img_3046-2-scaled.jpg?fit=2560%2C1256&ssl=1","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/geoffgoodyer.synology.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1651","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/geoffgoodyer.synology.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/geoffgoodyer.synology.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/geoffgoodyer.synology.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/geoffgoodyer.synology.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1651"}],"version-history":[{"count":32,"href":"https:\/\/geoffgoodyer.synology.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1651\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3125,"href":"https:\/\/geoffgoodyer.synology.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1651\/revisions\/3125"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/geoffgoodyer.synology.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1860"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/geoffgoodyer.synology.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1651"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/geoffgoodyer.synology.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1651"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/geoffgoodyer.synology.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1651"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}