Oct 30, 2016

Trekking the Overland Track in Tasmania – awesome but gruelling!

The minute we stepped off the plane in Launceston the drop in temperature from mainland Australia was shocking. My down jacket and gloves were whipped out immediately and we hadn’t even started trekking the Overland Track!

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Night one at Cradle Mountain

Night one was at a camp site at Cradle Mountain and we woke up to a frozen tent which crunched as we dismantled it…brrrrr….the six day trek was awesome but gruelling. Lugging a 23 kilogram backpack which was nearly half my own body weight, through rain, sun, mist, snow, hail, sleet….and that was all in one day! We never did get to see Cradle Mountain as the mist rolled in on day one. After our first night freezing in our flimsy tent we decided to sleep in the wooden huts that are provided along the route thinking this would be a much warmer option. Oh no it wasn’t. The first tiny wooden hut was colder that our tent! The ranger refused to light the gas fire unless the thermometer fell below 10….it stuck at 11 for hours….it was rigged I’m sure!

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Natural Surfaces were tricky to traverse

Over the next six days we trekked through forests, button grass plains, rocks and ‘natural surfaces’ which the brochure described as the non boarded sections. Natural surface turned out to be huge tree roots and rocks that were filled with mud and water. Balancing on slippery tree roots whilst carrying nearly half of your bodyweight on your back is somewhat tricky. In the end we just waded in the puddles and overflowing streams as we were wet anyway! As I say, awesome but gruelling.

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The amazing hut race

It turned into the amazing race with everyone wanting a bed in the huts due to the freezing temperatures. It was first come first served with limited beds. A very basic affair. The beds comprised of a strip of hardboard where six people had to lie side by side with an inch between your face and some random stranger’s face. Sleep was impossible. There was an orchestra of snoring every night.  Clothes were hung from every possible wooden beam in a desperate effort to get them dry for the following day. We successfully (and I use that word very loosely) got a space on the hardboard strip every night of the trek.

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Gourmet food every night!

We ate well. Nasi Goreng, Thai chicken curry, roast chicken dinner – you’d be amazed at the selection of freeze dried meals available. Breakfast was three weetbix with chia bran and powered milk followed by an energy bar lunch.

Our huge gas stove was very popular with our hut sharers, in fact, it ended up being the star attraction every night!  There was nothing lightweight about this vintage camping stove compared to the tiny three clawed effigies everyone else had.  But it turned out to be the Belvedere of all cookers. Took up pretty much all of the bench but heated food much faster than all the modern models. Everyone knew when Matt and Sharon had arrived as it didn’t leave much table surface for other diners!

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Toilet roll was prime commodity on the track

Toilet roll was a such a prime commodity on the track. I was absolutely devastated when I used my last square on the penultimate night. I could’ve cried when a kind fellow overlander bestowed upon me his dog eared end of roll which believe me was like he had given me the Crown jewels!

Side trips, mileage and advice

There are several side trips you can do along the way, so on day 2 we walked an additional 3 km in the pouring rain to Lake Will.  Day 5 we back tracked roughly 4 miles (7 km) and attempt to climb to the top of Mount Pelion East which has an elevation of 1,461 metres (4,793 feet) but the ice and snow made it impossible to reach the very top.

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What an experience!  One of the hardest trekking I have ever done.  The actual length of the Overland Track is only 40 miles (65 km) which isn’t such a huge distance.  However, due to the weight I was carrying and contending with all the ‘natural surfaces’ it made for a very challenging and strenuous trek.  My description of awesome but gruelling pretty much sums up trekking the Overland Track.

My only advice for the Overland Track would be to perhaps invest in some modern equipment before packing your bag with that old camping stove that has been sat in the garage for years!

Links:

Explore the top hotels and restaurants in Launceston

Compare hotel prices in Hobart on TripAdvisor

Check out modern camping stoves here!!!

For more funny travel tales you may also enjoy reading the bizarre world on top of Mount Roraima and living off falafel and making hummus in Jerusalem

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4 thoughts on “Trekking the Overland Track in Tasmania – awesome but gruelling!

  1. Pingback: Whale watching in Mexico...such a magical experience! - Sharon Cracknell

  2. Pingback: Memories of a detour through Pakistan - Sharon Cracknell

  3. metanoia.space

    The Overland Track is a “significant undertaking”, according to Tasmania Parks and Wildlife Service, with a large part of the hike above 1,000 metres in elevation on exposed plateaus in a remote area.

    Reply

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