Planning to hike the  Overland Track  from overseas can be challenging. We found it quite hard to organise from a different Australian State several years ago. Sourcing the best information takes a lot of time and effort as there was no one easy, trusted place to get good advice.

That is the main reason we created our guide, How to Hike the Overland Track in Tasmania. We researched everything we could and created a downloadable eBook  drawing on our experience of over 20 trips between us. It is now up to the fifth edition.

Heading towards the end of the Overland Track

From Bruce:

Just signed up to receive your blog by email. I’m in the USA, traveling to Australia/Tasmania in March/April.

Thinking about doing the Overland Track.- why isn’t March a “popular” month? (National Parks website said the most popular months are Dec., Jan., Feb., and April.)

We are not sure why March is not considered a “popular” month.  December to February is summer in Australia and many people have holiday time so the walk is popular during that time.

Easter often falls in April where there are school holidays and many people walk the Track to enjoy the spectacular Fagus or Deciduous Beech (Nothofagus gunnii) Click here to check out  some great photographs of Fagus by local photographer Dennis Harding 

So what’s wrong with March? Nothing!

If you go solo (not guided), do you have to keep to the 6-day itinerary?

There is NO itinerary. If you are walking on your own you can do it at any pace. Stay somewhere 2 nights or skip a hut and walk on to the next one. It’s totally up to you.

These articles might be of interest to you from a trip we did a couple of years back with another  fellow from the States. The first one is a guest post by Alan on Backpacking the Overland Track, a view from the States the second one is our review of the trip tacken over 4 days –  The Overland Track – What scenery?

Its seems “too easy” – is the terrain that tough that a 7 – 1o km day is adequate?

The terrain is not that tough. It is just the spacing of the Huts and camping areas that dictate how far people walk. Of course there are side trips to waterfalls and mountains that are not included in the times.

Many people do all the side trips each day.  A  mate of ours Jim shared his recommended itinerary with us recently.  It may be useful for your planning. We think it is a great plan for anyone who wants to take in all the area has to offer.

Day 1

Ronny Creek – Waterfall Valley – 3-5 hours

Make sure you take the route over Marions Lookout – very speccy.

Sidetrip – Climb Cradle Mountain – 2 – 3 hours. Quite steep towards the top. Brilliant views in good weather.

Day 2:

Waterfall Valley – Windermere (my favourite hut) – approx. 2 hours.

Sidetrips:

1: Leave packs at Waterfall Valley  Hut, take day packs and backtrack to climb Barn Bluff. 3 – 4 hours. Steep climb, lots of rock scrambling, great views. Then back to hut, pick up packs & onto Windermere. This makes a good full day.

2: Head off to Windermere, drop packs at turn off to Lake Will & head in – about an hour return, nice little beach, good place for lunch. If you head South along the lake shore (can be a bit muddy), there are some excellent falls at the end, worth the trip.

If the weather is good, I’d do option 1 – however, depending on the makeup of the group, you may split and some do one and the remainder the other.

If the weather is lousy, not good for either, I’d hang around the hut until late morning, head for Windermere & have a lazy afternoon there.

Don’t be tempted to keep going to New Pelion – it’s about another 5-6 hours further on and makes for a very long day – I did it once, that was enough!!

Day 3:

Windermere – New Pelion – 5-6 hours.

No side trips apart from a 5 min stroll to look down over the Mersey Valley – worth a look

You should visit the Old Pelion hut and there is an excellent swimming hole there if the weather is warm enough. Best to head to New Pelion, drop packs, settle in & then backtrack – it’s only about 15 mins away.

Day 4:

New Pelion – Kia ora – 3 hours

Side Trip: Mt Ossa – 3-4 hrs return. If weather good, a must do, highest mountain in Tassie. Not hard – easier than Cradle & Barn Bluff.

If, not all want to climb & weather is good, then those that don’t MUST at least climb up part of the track to the side of Mt Doris (you sidle around Doris to climb Ossa). It’s a beautiful spot, like a laid out Japanese garden almost.

Excellent views across the valley and both North & South from that spot.

Day 5:

Kia Ora to Windy Ridge / Bert Nicholls Hut – 3-4 hours.

Hardest part is over Du Cane gap which seems to go on forever.

Side Trips:

3 excellent falls to visit on the way. Dalton, Ferguson & Hartnett.

Dalton & Ferguson grouped together. Drop pack, take camera & check them out.

Hartnett – largest & most speccy – great spot for lunch, especially if weather good. There’s even a swimming hole at the top of the falls – if you are game. Drop packs & take cameras & food.

Next hut is the Bert Nicholls hut the newest and worst hut on the track. Designed by an architect .. need I say more??

Day 6:

Windy Ridge – Narcissus – 3 hours

Ferry and out!!

I suggest you stop at The Hungry Wombat for lunch – at Derwent Bridge. Their hamburgers are magnificent!! We ALWAYS stop there!

Optional Days:

If you have an extra day or two – here’s some options:

1: Mt Oakleigh – 4-5 hrs return.

Stay 2 nights at New Pelion & do Oakleigh from here. An easy climb with good views

2: Pine Valley

Head there from Windy Ridge, about 3 hrs. You could head off at, say, 9:00, hit the Pine Valley  Hut about midday, quick lunch then a foray up into the Labyrinth.

Beautiful area and deserves more than a quick visit. An easy 2-3 day walk coming up from Hobart.

However, if you are there & have time it might be worth nicking in.

 Are there any camping sites other than at the Hut sites?

The rules in the Park are that camping is not permitted inside the Cradle Mountain day walk area. It is legal to camp in various other spots – well away from huts and tracks  but this is discouraged. The major reason is environmental. Hut sites are hardened and have water and toilets provided so that damage from trampling and camping is contained and minimised.

The other reason is social (and also environmental), and would applies much more to the Overland Track than other Tasmanian walks. With over 8 000 walkers, there’s a strong “herd mentality” among the walkers. Once a few people are seen to camp off-track or walk off-track near the OT, the potential for unwanted routes and increased damage is greater.

This area is pristine and in our view, should be protected as much as possible to keep it that way. Hard line? Yes!

If you are forced into camping away from the designated areas due to injury or really bad weather it is very important you follow all the Leave No Trace principals to protect the Park’s environment.

Any reason to not use Cradle Mountain Coaches for transport? [You do not mention them.]

No reason at all. They are not mentioned because we did not know about them. Thanks for pointing this out, they will be in the next edition of the book!

Can you explain the option of walking around Lake St. Clair more? [You assume that everyone will want to take the ferry. Is the walking option unattractive?]

We don’t go into a lot of detail about the walk “along” Lake St Clair. It  basically takes you through some absolutely magnificent rainforest for about 17.5km. There are minimal  views of the lake, the track can be very muddy and many people find it a drudge.

Some of the magnificent forest along the Lake St Clair track

Image: TassieEye via Flickr

If you have the time, walking along the lake track to the Visitors Centre can be a good option. It also saves you the ferry fee! Echo Point Hut is about 7.5 km from Narcissus Hut  and some hikers spend the night in (or around) the hut. There are only bunk spots for eight people and it is  very small inside. There are a couple of campsites and a toilet nearby.

Realistically, what is the likely low temperature on the Overland Track in March? (can I use a 0-degree (Celsius) sleeping bag?)

John Chapman has some great weather charts of expected daily temperatures across the Overland Track. It is important to note that the northern end of the Track up around Cradle Mountain can be colder than in the south.

According to his chart on average in March you can expect daily maximums of 15 degrees C with overnights of about 5 degrees C in the north and 8 – 16C in the south. Maximum and minimum temperatures can vary a lot depending on the season. For more detailed information check out John’s Overland Track weather page.

So, a zero degree sleeping bag in March? Not a problem unless there is a blizzard. Just add some clothes and you will be fine.

Have you got any other questions about hiking the Overland Track? If so, shoot us an email at enquiry@ourhikingblog.com.au and we will try and help you out.

This sign will become an iconic image for the thousands that hike the track each year. Well done Parks and Wildlife Tasmania.

Hannah,  our mid 20’s daughter, was until then the only member of the  family who had not hiked the Overland. This trip was her chance to experience our favourite place and join one of the many who have experienced this fantastic World Heritage area.

New Overland Track signage – a magic photo opportunity

There are many articles around Our Hiking Blog about planning and hiking the Overland Track so this article will focus on some lessons others many find useful.  If you want comprehensive information about planning the trip, arranging transport, selecting gear, planning meals and stacks of other information, check out our eBook – How to Hike the Overland Track.

1. Clothing

We walked in the first flush of winter. It had snowed for a couple of days and on the day we left there was a bushwalking alert. Not unexpected,  so we were well prepared.

Breakfast at Pelion Hut – down jackets are in!

Tips?

• Layers of clothing are winners. You get hot even hiking in snow and cold weather, so being able to remove (or add) a layer or two can make you much more comfortable.
• Down jackets are magic.  They pack up small, are relatively light and oh so warm once you stop for the day and cool down. We all took them and had them on within 5 minutes of reaching the huts at night.
• Don’t over pack. Think carefully about what clothing you really need. Even though it is winter, if you have good waterproofs your inners should stay (relatively) dry.
• On this trip Frank did not wear:
  • two pairs of thermal longs
  • one light weight thermal top
  • one merino mid weight long sleeved top
  • one mid weight polypropylene top
  • one pair of hut socks (Explorers)
  • waterproof pants
  • two pairs of gloves —- in total, that is a LOT of weight!

2. Prepare quick snacks for lunch

Each morning, before you pack up and start hiking ,  pop your head out of the hut and check out the weather. Is it raining or snowing? Is the wind strong and are there black clouds on the horizon? Is it freezing cold?

If any of the above exist, and you plan to stop for lunch along the track that day,  think about how you will access and prepare your lunch.

Tips?

• Prepare wraps or dry biscuits and toppings like cheese and salami in a zip loc bag ready to grab at a stop. They need to be  easily accessible and not in the bottom of your pack!
• There are protected areas from the wind and rain, and a cup of soup or coffee might be great. Have your cooker, cup and a pot right at the top of your pack ready to pull out and fire up some boiling water.
• Have your scroggin or snack bars in the pocket of your coat and remember to eat them regularly. Just a few jelly beans or nuts will give you almost instant energy when you are struggling against a bank of sleet. You can almost feel the energy flow through your body!

3. Don’t rush, its ok to relax and enjoy the walk

Oh the frustration and sadness of seeing a pair of hikers up and leaving a hut pre-dawn to get on the track. Alternatively, while we were having breakfast in Bert Nichols Hut at 10 am, greeting a couple of hikers who had walked the first hour in the dark to get there from Kia Ora hut, made us question what was the purpose of their walk. A time trial or one of relaxation and enjoyment?

You don’t see these little jewels in the dark.

Why rush? Why hike in the dark?

Ok, many people love the physical challenge of a long distance hike. They want to burn the miles and achieve their goal of “doing” the Track. Fair enough but what are they missing out on?

We had allowed 6 nights for this trip. The standard is usually 5 but we allowed an extra night in case of bad weather or heavy snow. Even though the weather was ok we still stuck to walking from hut to hut each day. Some days were only 3-4 hours walking so we often left at lunch time and arrived in the next hut well before dark.

It made for a very relaxing trip.

 4. Expect the huts to be full or busy at any time of the year.

So, you decide to sneak off to Tasmania in winter and hike in glorious isolation? No one else will be around, it’s cold and wet and winter……

Think again, it was VERY busy during our trip.  It was school holidays in a couple of Australian States but there were also people who thought it would be quiet.

Steamy sleeping quarters at Windemere Hut in Winter

Our experience:

• Around 20 the first night at Waterfall Valley in the new hut. There were also a few in the old hut.
• The least we had were 9 lovely people at Kia Ora Hut.
• There were about 15 at  Narcissus and Bert Nichols
• 20 damp souls spent the night at Windemere Hut
• 30 plus enjoyed the cold cavernous  Pelion Hut

We will be publishing a “hut etiquette” article in the future. A few people should have read it before they shared the huts!

5. Wet Feet

After long consultation with other walkers on the track we decided  “waterproof” boots are a myth perpetuated by hiking shoe manufacturers.

Nearly everyone had wet feet for most of the Overland Track.  It is possible to avoid some of the deeper mud and water but not ethically right. You can ‘rock hop” or go wide on tracks but it only leads to track degradation and ultimately you will slip and get wet feet.

Some tried plastic bags others just accepted it! Wet feet are a certainty.

Some people tried to dry their sock and boots each night, not sure how successful they were. Frank just put on wet socks, wacked his feet  into wet boots and took the icy cold hit. Sue and Hannah spent some time drying their socks but usually ended up wet after a couple of hours.

Our new friend Dave (above) tried plastic bags that failed 5 minutes after the photo was taken……..

6. Food to take

Winter is a great time to take food that would usually spoil in summer. The air is cold and conditions perfect to carry some fresh supplies.  As usual, we ate pretty well on the track. Fillet steak and pepper sauce was a highlight on the first night after a very hard slog through ice and snow.

We took some dehydrated meals that worked out really well other than one small disaster caused by Frank rushing the packaging and adding dahl to a mincy type meal. Strange tastes but filled our bellies……

Cabbage lentil chow dahl with damaged and uneaten cucumbers ready for the composting toilet.

With little opportunity to sit outside and enjoy the views,  or bask  in sunshine,  having tasty meals and snacks can keep your morale high. We took a couple of serves of pancakes, packets of honey and jam  AND a slab of butter. Delicious!

Cooking pancakes at 10am in Bert Nichols Hut

7. Take a great headlight

It gets dark early in winter and the light was still weak until about 7:45 am.

Most of the huts don’t have huge windows as they are designed to keep in the heat, not let it leach out through glass. That means you often need to use your headlight in a hut.

Windemere Hut and a group playing cards under headlight.

You do need a good reliable headlight. It is probably something worth not compromising on.

Points to consider when purchasing a headlight

• You need a quality one that has variable intensity
  • it should dim down to save battery life
  • by dimming, the light won’t blind everyone you accidentally shine it at
• Consider one that has a good strong spotlight beam in case you need to hike in the dark to get to a hut.
• Many people also used red lights to protect their night vision. A handy option.
• Check how much power the headlight uses and take the appropriate number of good quality batteries. Frank didn’t and had to swap a treasured Cherry Ripe for some spare AAA’s……

8. Heating in the huts

Yes it was winter, yes the Overland Track Huts have heaters and yes it was cold.

But do they work? Not all of them do.

Do they warm up the huts? No not at all.

Do they dry your clothes and boots? Some of them, maybe.

Heater at Bert Nichols Hut. Special.

On this trip we discovered the fires in Kia Ora and Bert Nichols huts have been replaced with gas heaters. Excellent. The small problem was that neither worked. There was gas in the tanks but neither heater would ignite.

Is it a disaster? Should we write a letter of complaint to Parks and Wildlife Tasmania? Is it their responsibility to heat the Huts?

Our view is that we decided to bushwalk the Overland Track in Winter. It is our responsibility to ensure we have the correct gear and warm clothing. It is up to us to ensure we stay warm and comfortable. It is not Park’s responsibility (at great cost to the Tasmanian people) to provide heaters to keep us warm.

A bonus if the heaters work? Yes!

A right? No.

9. Yippee it’s free in winter! Let’s “do” the Overland and save some money.

We decided to hike the Track in Winter because Sue is a teacher and we are stuck taking our breaks in school holidays. We also love the challenge of walking in variable weather and always have our fingers crossed for “blue bird” days. The dream of stillness, blue skies and a white,  winter,  wonderland is always in the back of our minds.

There were three of us so it did save us $600 on track fees. A substantial amount.

We did inject a significant amount of cash into the Tasmanian economy. The credit card statement that arrived three days after our arrival home tells the story:

• Flights – into Launceston out of Hobart – around $600
• Transfers – up to Cradle Mountain with Howard of Cradle Coast Tours (ph: 0407 335 925) and from Lake St Clair to Hobart with Ian from Mountain Bike Tasmania – $500
• Accommodation at Cradle Mountain Lodge for a night, dinner at the restaurant and assorted coffee’s , wines and snacks – $700+ (extravagant we know,  but we were on holidays)
• Ferry from Narcissus Hut down Lake St Clair – $120
• Accommodation at Shippies in Hobart (including a couple of wines in the bar) – $180
• Incidentals including meals in Hobart, airport transfers etc – $200

The total? You work it out, it’s too scary for us!

10. Lighten the load

We have never been obsessed with lightweight or ultralight bushwalking. Sure, we have been careful in our gear selection and made sure it was as light as possible and especially versatile. We never double up gear with others in our party and try to share the load where possible.

This trip we both bought new Aarn backpacks. There is a lot of interest in these and a full review article will follow.

Sue with her Aarn pack heading through some mud

The Aarn packs were around 1.5kg lighter than our One Planet Strezlecki’s. This combined with new, lighter,  One Planet sleeping bags (review to follow) saved over 2kg each.

That is a significant weight loss and made the trip so much easier.

In short Frank found his new pack excellent. Very comfortable and managable. The reduction in weight was fantastic and there were no sore feet or blisters on this trip, a first!

Finally:

“Doing” the Overland Track in winter is not something for inexperienced bushwalkers. Tasmanian weather can be brutal any time of the year but winter can throw up particular challenges. This is a very isolated area where you are generally on your own, there is no mobile phone service for most of the Track. We carried a PLB but would have only used it in an extreme emergency. We were well prepared (as were most of other walkers we met)

That being said, winter is a fantastic time to enjoy the Tasmanian wilderness and we had a brilliant time.

We have also posted a few more pictures over at our Facebook page you might enjoy.

After moving into our new home about 12 months ago the dust is finally settling. This weekend the garden went in and NEXT weekend we finally head off for a long awaited winter trip on the Overland Track in Tasmania. Heading from north to south, allowing six nights we are taking our middle daughter Hannah on her first Tassie hike. She  had a bit of experience hiking a few years back with Wollongarra, completing a section of the Australian Alps Walking Track. She is the last of our three children to walk the Overland.

It has been almost 3 years since we set out on a trip in Tasmania in Winter. That is far too long. This video and article will remind you of our trip into the Western Arthur’s in Tasmania’s south west. Great trip, in retrospect…..

This video also tells the story:

 Gear for the Overland Track

We have updated a fair bit of gear for this trip. We are trying to reduce our pack weight. While age is being kind to us so far, carrying 20+ kg is not fun.

In addition to a new hat for Frank we have each updated to an Aarn pack , saving around 1.5kg each. We also updated to light weight Sea to Summit sleeping bags. (saving 300g-500g each)

Two kg saving to our baseweight equates to not carrying a 2 litre milk container for the whole 85km, winning! (gear reports to follow)

Getting geared up with a new hat

We were also blessed with our first grandchild, Elliot Thomas  three months ago. What a fantastic addition to our family and he has already been on his first camping trip. Clare and Jay are both outdoors people and Clare has a terrific site called, well, The Life of Clare! Here is the article about camping with the Reilly’s.

Connecting with people 

We recently updated the look and feel of Our Hiking Blog. It is now mobile, tablet as well as web enhanced. We hope it is a much easier reading experience for the thousands of people who read our information on their phone or iPad.  It may interest you that 40% of people who visit our site do so on a portable device. Who said a phone is just a phone!

Over at Facebook there has been a lot of action on the Our Hiking Blog  page – please join us there and like the page. We share interesting stuff from across the hiking world, post fun things we find around the globe and have great chats with our readers. It is also a place where you can share your trips or ask questions of our 600 plus followers.

Google+ is another great way to connect. We find it a very visual medium and follow some fantastic outdoor people from across the world. The quality of many of the photographs are stunning. Check us out on Google + here.

Finally, for you Tweeps, we love Twitter and hang around there sharing great stuff from the outdoor world. With over 2000 followers there is always something happening. Check out Our Hiking Blog on Twitter, it’s amazing what you can learn in 160 characters!

Early on in our adventures we both struggled at times.

It may have been the weight of our packs, the mud, the roots, the long days or the  extreme weather. Early on,  the Overland Track and Tasmania’s wilderness always tested us, sometimes to the edge of our ability to cope. It can be an extreme experience.

Over time we have grown comfortable with the challenges. We have definitely not become blase nor do we set off under prepared. We just know what to expect and prepare mentally.  We always have the correct gear, clothing and food for the trip.

Recently we came across Ally’s trip report of her Overland Track adventure. Reading it bought back a lot of memories and highlighted to us how challenging, stressful and exhausting the trip can be to a first timer.

We will just share a few of Allys quotes from her very entertaining article.  You need to read her full trip report over here: The Overland Track – Ally International.  Don’t forget to check out here full  photo gallery over here.

Ally at Pelion Hut ready to head off for the day

The climb to Marion’s lookout:

All was good until I had to climb a rockface, with my pack on, and nothing to hold besides a chain held into the rock by metal poles. From there, things got nasty. It started snowing badly, and on a plateau like the one I was on, the high winds don’t make for easy going, and the fact that no trees were around didn’t help either.

Walking:

By that point I had forgotten what dry boots felt like. My right knee had begun to feel like it had been run over by a car. It’s still recovering as I write this. I had fallen a few times since day one, and my knees were littered with bruises.

More walking:

Walking with other people takes your mind off of the monotony of walking. But, it’s kind of hard to hear people when you have 2 layers of hoods on because the sky won’t stop pouring on your head. I fell twice that day, once in high, fast-flowing water on a rock and the other time on a very sleet-covered rock.

Clothing:

Putting on all attire that morning was miserable. Everything was still soaked and also freezing cold. I couldn’t feel any extremity for 30 minutes of walking. I didn’t use my trekking poles that day and managed to not fall, another success.

Thoughts on the trip?

I am alive. I made it. It was the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life. I loved it and I hated it at the same time.

Well done Ally! A great trip report on the Overland Track.  We hope it has not left you too damaged and your are ready for another adventure!

Some of you will know we have an eBook designed for first time hikers planning the Overland Track in Tasmania. Hiking the Overland Track was last updated in 2014 and it is a great guide on planning your trip.

Have you hiked the Overland Track?  We are off there in June and cannot wait!

Please share your experiences below.

We would love to hear about your trip.

Drum roll…… the Overland Track now has its very own weather forecast.

Yep, a specific seven day forecast for the Cradle Valley.  It includes forecasts for “the Overland Track area”, New Pelion Hut and Lake St Clair. Up until now we have always relied on the Mt Reid and Lake St Clair forecasts. That left about 80km in the middle!

Head off to the B.O.M. site to check it out – Cradle Valley forecast.

Because this is a very short note, we thought some indulgence with a series of “weather” photos taken along the Overland Track might be fun.

Barn Bluff topped lightly in snow. This trip was in winter heading back to Cradle Mountain from the Walls of Jerusalum.

A wet day on the track as a walker tries to use a plastic poncho to protect his camera gear….

This was a trip in July, lots of the track was like this. Snow shoes weren’t necessary but the snow and ice was very slippery.

Speaking of ice, we loved these patterns.

This shot was on day five of a quick trip through from Cradle Mountain to Lake St Clair. We had not seen the top of ONE range in four days because of low cloud, rain and fog.  As we headed out on the boat, out came the sun!

Echo Point, a top spot to camp when the lake is low.

Ah, the last day on the track on a February trip. A few of us rinsed out some clothes or swam in them to freshen up. It was a beautiful day as we camped at Echo Point.

What sort of weather have you experienced on the Overland Track?

Have you had all days of sunshine, a mix of sun and snow or just terrible weather?

Shoot us a comment below or post your Overland Track weather images on our Facebook page. We would love to see them!

Overland Track from rfphotographics on Vimeo.

.
If you have done the Overland Track and want some great memories, check out this video. Alternatively, if you are planning the trip from Cradle Mountain to Lake St Clair, study this video closely. You will learn a lot and see why you need to be prepared for all types of conditions.

Thanks Mark for giving us the heads up on the video and letting us know our How to Hike the Overland Track ebook was very helpful.

What do you think?

How was the video?

On Thursday,  Sue and three friends head off to Tasmania to hike the Overland Track.   This will be her 8th time  walking from Cradle Mountain to Lake St Clair.

They are well prepared for this trip, no matter what the weather or conditions. By drawing on her experience and using the information in our How to hike the Overland Track guidebook she has the right gear for the Overland Track and Tasmanian walking conditions.

Sue wandering on the Overland Track on a cold crisp day

With  excellent gear, great lightweight  food, appropriate clothing and a great attitude to the walk,  wet or cold weather will not ruin the trip, rather make it uncomfortable at worst.   In addition, they are psychologically strong, ready for the demands this walk can produce.  For example, even though it is early Autumn,  there has been a bit of snow around……

This article is not an advertisement for the Overland Track Guide, rather a few points outlining why it is useful for first time walkers on the Track.

Recently on Trip Advisor, McGalio write up his Overland Track experience.  It made interesting reading and reinforced our initial reasons for writing the guide.

Over to McGalio:

We had a pretty good time, but we were unprepared. Physically we were ready to go, but our equipment (especially shoes) were not up to the task.

So, there were some hard times. We were naive, but the official website is misleading. This is a hard hike. You need to be able to tromp through long stretched of mud. The website would lead you to believe that there is a lot of boardwalk. This isn’t the case. Even when there is boardwalk, it’s in disrepair to the point that you’d rather it wasn’t there.

The huts/camp sites were very nice though. The surroundings are breathtaking.

Just make sure you’re prepared before you go, or it may be lost on you. Also, take your time. We did it in 3 1/2 days. I wish we took 5 or 6. 12 hour hiking days can be hard to enjoy. Also, some sites say its a 65 km track. This is “how the crow flies.” It’s actually around 85 km.

Failed boots on the Overland Track - they were ok 10 years ago....

McGalio adds a few tips and words of advice:

• Make sure your shoes are waterproof and bring gaiters!!!
• Take your time. The best times you’ll have will be in camp making new friends. Don’t limit camp to being “just the place you sleep.”
• Don’t cheap out on equipment. It will make it a completely miserable experience if you’re unprepared. I feel lucky that it was just our shoes that weren’t up to the task. I can’t imagine having a wet sleeping bag or an uncomfortable pack.
• Have fun. It can be great. But you have to make it that way. It can also be terrible if you don’t respect it.

Great advice from this young fella!

So what is Sue’s plan with her three friends later in the week?

They are just taking their time, wandering from hut to hut, stopping and enjoying the scenery and native animals, eating well, keeping dry using good gear and allowing six nights for the trip.

A nice way to enjoy yourself and have a very relaxing journey.

If you are planning the Overland Track and want more information about our ebook, How to hike the Overland Track click on the link. There are also a lot of testimonials from people who bought and used the guide that may reassure you.

For those of you who already own the book, expect an email early next week with your free copy of the new, updated edition.

Editing is almost complete and the book ready to release. It has had a major design overhaul, lots of editing and tidying up with a few additional sections. Many thanks in advance to Georgie Bull for all her hard yakka trying to make it more like the “Queen’s English” and getting rid of a lot of brackets etc….

Have you hiked the Overland Track?
Looking back, what would you have done differently?
Shoot us a comment below, you know we love to share your thoughts!

On this trip he walked with a small group from north of Sydney in Australia.  We met via Our Hiking Blog and because Frank had some spare time and needed to do the trip before we release an updated version of our eBook, How to Hike the Overland Track.

As an aside, we try and walk the track each year to keep the book as up to date as possible. (plus it is was a great excuse to bushwalk this beautiful part of the world again)

Rather than do a detailed trip report, in this article we will share the many reasons he rediscovered why you should take the time (and effort) to visit this spectacular area.

It is a great “beginner’ bushwalking trip
If you have some hiking or bushwalking experience and are looking to hike in Tasmania then this journey is a great one.

• There are regularly spaced huts providing shelter and very basic facilities if the weather is poor
• The track is well marked and in good condition compared with others (that are more muddy and wet) in Tasmania.
• In season there are rangers along the track that can offer advice and assistance if required.

Narcissus Hut after a great cleanup!

The scenery is spectacular and varied

Two of our party had previously hiked in New Zealand and this trip was their first on the Overland Track.  They were surprised and really happy that on each day there was a huge variety of walking conditions and “environments”.

There are beautiful ancient forests, wide open spaces with button grass plains, wild and craggy outcrops and magic streams and rivers.  You sometimes walk through all of them in one day!

The people you meet
We generally shared the huts each night with the same people who had started the Overland Track on the same day as us. There were two German couples and two fit young guys from the USA. On other nights we met a guy from the UK, a group of six Spanish people, two girls from Sydney and a small crew from Cradle Huts.

This is one of the great parts of walking the Overland Track. You meet fascinating people from across the world, get to chat about each others countries, check out their gear and exchange tips about different places to visit in each country. It is a lot of fun and lifelong friendships can be made.

The side trips are great
Some sections of the Overland Track are quite short for example from Waterfall Velley to Windemere Hut is about three hours walking.

We had a lazy start to the day, starting to walk around 9 am. After a quick break along the way we went into Lake Will and explored the area. Barn Bluff dominates the vista and on a hot day the lake is fantastic for a swim off the sandy beaches.

At this point we had some rain and decided to walk straight through to Windemere Hut and take a late lunch. The original plan was to have an extended break on a rocky outcrop that overlooks a beautifiul area of tarns. Lunch was eaten around 2 and the rest of the day was spend snoozing and exploring the area (without packs!) Three of our party “swam” in Lake Windemere……

Another day we went into D’Alton and Ferguson Falls. There was a HUGE volume of water roaring over them! A terrific day and enjoyed at a leisurly pace with plenty of breaks and a nice easy pace.

Part of the Ferguson Falls - Overland Track Tasmania

The Food!
Frank was responsible for the food on this trip, it was just easier and gave him a chance to share a few recipes from our hiking recipe book, Food to Go.  It worked out very well and the group seemed to enjoy each meal.

Rehydrating and heating dehydrated spahetti bolognaise

We will do another article of the type of food we took in the near future.

The Weather

The forecast was for showers, rain, rain, rain, HEAVY rain and rain.  A couple of years ago Frank walked with Leon and Alan and it was shocking weather. This was a worry before we left. In fact we got minimal rain other than some drizzle patches and on the Pelion to Kia Ora day light rain that stopped us from climbing Mt Ossa.

Mt Ossa platform - Overland Track Tasmania - our only wet day

Many thanks to Leigh, Tracey and James for being such great walking companions.  It was terrific to walk with a well prepared and fit group of people.  It was also wonderful to share that beautiful part of the world with people who appreciated the wild and wonderful Cradle Mountain National Park!

Over to you!

Have you hiked the Overland Track?

What was your favourite part of the trip? Leave a reply below, we would love to hear about your “best bit”!

It is their first time in that part of the world and Frank is “leading” the group (more like taking responsibility that stuff does not get forgotten)

They had all read our guide to planning the Overland Track in Tasmania , read more about it by clicking here.

We thought it was worth sharing the information here to emphasize some important points about planning the trip but also the process we are going through to make sure everything works out well.

Over to the email:

The weather has been quite “changable” in Tasmania so please stick to the clothing plan in our Overland Track book. I am not being a prophet of doom but always expect the worse as regards weather, especially rain, cold and snow. Your “outer shell” or raincoat will be the most important piece of gear you carry / wear. Please make sure it works well and treat it with water repellent stuff if you have any concerns (I will be!) That being said, we will be fine!

Also expect to get wet feet, even with “water proof” boots. I expect the track to be wet and muddy this time of the year. Getting boots dry at night can be a challenge, even with the heaters in the huts.

Looking at the bookings, there are a lot of gaps on the days before and after we leave, with 17 spots still available on the day we go. This is great as “pressure” on the huts won’t be too strong and we should have a bit of space. We all have tents anyway, so no stress if they are busy or you want a bit of space.

Food
Just a reminder: You need to take your own breakfast and snacks for throughout the day. I find this much easier to prepare and package from home in a ‘controlled” environment. Make sure you reduce any unnecessary packaging and don’t forget powdered milk if you like cereal.

Snacks:
Put simply, I take some scroggin to nibble as I walk along or when we have a break. In addition I’ll  take one bar (like a Mars bar ) for during the day or when we reach camp. I’ll also take one other snack thing per day such as fruit cake or another bar. I used to take heaps more but find I don’t need to eat as much, AND it weighs heaps!

There are heaps of ideas and a good plan in the Overland Track guide.

Lunch:

I suggest we buy ALL our lunch stuff in Launceston together (if everyone is happy) Suggest a combination of:

• Dry biscuits
• Flat breads
• Cheese
• Cold meats
• Tomato
• Spreads
• Sprouts

(you get the idea)

If you like a hot soup at lunch time, bring them from home – I will be taking five, one for each day.

I know that supermarket pretty well so it won’t take too long and is quite simple to work out.

I will start dehydrating the meals tonight, still finalising the menu but it will all be fine in the day(s)!  I plan to use recipes out of our book, Food to Go

Blisters:

There is every chance one or all of us will get blisters. The best method of attack is protection before you walk each day. If you know you are particularly susceptible then please make sure you bring your usual treatment / tape.   I will have a small first aid kit for “emergencies” but not enough tape for 4 people each day if we all get blisters!

I use stuff called SLEEK or LEUCOPLAST which looks a bit like medical duct tape. It sticks really well and is great for prevention i.e. if you get a hot spot you tape it up THEN. I will have some antiseptic and padding stuff if anyone gets a real blister, rather than a “hot spot” but you need to carry your own daily requirement.

Gear Check

I think it might be a good idea on Wednesday, once we get to Cradle Mountain Lodge to double check all our gear and get rid of anything we don’t need (or is doubled up) This can go with our bags to Hobart.  My (boring) old saying is that, unless you eat it, you will still be carrying it at the end, your base weight will not get lighter!

We hope this has been interesting for anyone planning a trip with a group that is spread out across your country or State.

Key Points:

• Agree on a “leader” or someone to coordinate all the preparation. This may not be the most experienced person, just the person who loves “lists”
• Give everyone a job such as the First Aid Kit or cooking gear.  Make sure they feedback to the group they have it or any problems they are having.
• Check and double check people have taken what they have been allocated.
• Trust no-one, imagine the first night, ready to cook dinner and the pots are no where to be found….

Have you ever been on a trip with a group and someone forgot a vital piece of gear?

Shoot us a comment below, we would love to read about it!

Many thanks to Dennis Harding – Tasmanian Wilderness Photographer for his terrific image of Dove Lake and Cradle Mountain

Over to Nik

We had arranged for a 2:00pm pick up at Ronnie Creek with the ‘Whiskeylovers’ but we knew that the deepest snow was yet to come, and the German bloke at Windermere said he’d taken 9 hours to do this section of the walk 2 days earlier. So we set an alarm for 5:00am to give us time to cook our pancakes and get going as soon as possible after it was light.

Well the pancakes were a complete flop due to the new thin-metal titanium pan I was using. They burnt in the middle before cooking around the edges, as I’d been warned by other bushwalkers would happen with such a pan (unlike my good solid Trangia fry pan). So I ended up having two scrambled pancakes before giving up and filling up on dry ryvita biscuits and other odd bits and pieces of food. We ended up leaving Waterfall Valley at 7:10am, hoping we’d get to Ronnie Creek before 3:00pm.

Sure enough, the snow on the first few hours walking was deeper and slushier even than before. There had been 45 millimetres of rain overnight at Cradle Mountain and it had blown a gale all night, but had settled down somewhat by the time we left. Kim said that the rain had washed out about 2 feet of the depth of the snow from the day before.

Snow drift dropping off the edge of Cradle Cirque - Tasmania

With our snow shoes on, we nearly kept up with Kim’s quick walking pace, even though she had no snow shoes. Although walking is hardly the word. Nearly every step was between knee and waist deep in snow for Kim, and for us snow-shoers it was about 1 in 10 or 20 steps went down deep.

Kim and Heidi taking a break while walking around Cradle Mtn with Barn Bluff in the background

However, after rounding the corner at the north west of Cradle Mountain, the snow became more solid and better for the snow shoes at which point we were able to finally walk with confidence with the snow shoes, which was to last well all the way to Marions Lookout.

Walking past a nearly covered track marker

Kitchen Hut’s lower level was almost completely under snow, with a small snow ramp having been built up to the reach to top level door. I was like a little kid being very excited to be able to actually use the top door at Kitchen Hut for my first time ever. We enjoyed a relaxed lunch there before continuing on across the plateau.

Kitchen Hut - Overland Track - Tasmania

The snow ended abruptly just before Marions Lookout. It was moderately deep on one side of a clear line, and none at all on the other side of the line. Below Marions Lookout we still had the occasional drift of snow all the way to Ronnie Creek, but not terribly deep, and it became more and more patchy the lower the altitude. On the way down from Marions Lookout to Crater Lake, Mrs Beach enjoyed bum-sliding through any remaining snow drifts on this steep section of track, considering this easier and quicker than battling through these snow drifts on foot.

We parted ways with Kim at the Dove Lake turn off as she’d left her car there, and we met up with the Whiskey Lovers at Ronnie Creek at 2:15pm just after they’d returned from Crater Peak – only 15 minutes late, and 2 hours better than what we’d anticipated might be the case. 7 hours for the day from Waterfall Valley.

So here we end this epic trip report.  Many thanks to Nik for sharing this terrific information. Remember, Bushwalk Tasmania is a fantastic resource for all things bushwalking,  in not only Tasmania, but across Australia.  Drop by and check it out, you won’t be disappointed.

In this article we combine two days, from Frog Flats to Waterfall Valley Hut!

Nik did not have any images for this section but he mentions wombats in a section below. We found a movie on Flickr that may please!

Over to Nik:

Well this was the day that had been forecast for heavy rain, but we managed to get the tent packed away before any rain came. In fact the heavy rain did not come all day, and there was just some light drizzle occasionally, but nothing of any significance.

I had always swore I would never camp at Frog Flats due to the abundance of both leeches and mosquitos for which it is renowned. A great place to stop for a break or even for lunch, but never camp there. However, we figured there’d be no mozzies in the winter cold, and the leech activity would be much reduced under the weight of snow. And we were right, we saw no mozzies at all, and only one leech on the outside of a shoe the entire time we were there. It was a great camp site and we really enjoyed our stay there. Great views of the mountains around us above the tree tops again.

This was expected to be a long tiring day to Windermere and we were not disappointed. The snow was again quite deep after we’d gained some altitude ascending out of Frog Flats. However the snow as getting quite slushy and again we were frustrated by the snow shoes over Pine Forest Moor and the other snow-laden areas. They were definitely better than boots alone, but were still sinking deep sometimes.

The clouds were getting darker, and there was a gentle but freezing cold breeze from the west, but the rain was only minimal. The Fourth Valley Lookout was completely sheltered from the wind and we enjoyed a relaxed lunch taking in the views from there.

Late in the afternoon, the highlight of the day was when I spotted a nice looking snow drift in the distance, and then realised that the track passed close by both the bottom and the top of the snow drift. Unable to let such an opportunity pass us by, I insisted on doing a few goretex toboggan runs down the snow drift, some of which we captured on video. Great fun for those of us who are still little kids at heart.

It took us 7.5 hours to reach Windermere where a young German bloke already had the heater going and the hut was pleasantly warm, but smelling somewhat of shellite or petrol from his chooffer. He was not terribly well equipped (jeans!) and carrying a months worth of food and was somewhat discouraged by the very difficult snow walking he’d had over the last two days. He warned us that it took him 9 hours to get from Ronnie Creek to Waterfall Valley and 5 hours from Waterfall Valley to Windermere.

Dinner was home made from scratch chicken curry, home dehydrated with rice – this was absolutely brilliant and completely restored my faith in my abilities to dehydrate top quality meals for bushwalking. Thanks to Frank and “Food to Go” for the tips and confidence building.

Supper was Port, turkish delight and cherry ripe chocolate.

Windemere to Waterfall Valley

The next morning the weather had finally started to close in properly with some significant wind, and rain starting to get a little heavier. The German chap had decided to stay at Windermere for another night and have a rest day. He had a month’s worth of food, so why not?

We headed out into the deteriorating weather for another slushy snow slog to Waterfall Valley. This is usually a 1.5 to 3 hour leg of the trip, but the German bloke was right – in the current snow conditions, even with snow shoes, it took us a full 5 hours. This leg of the walk was not terribly memorable except for the sleet stinging into our faces as it was blown by increasingly strong wind, by my reliably bad memory of “just over that spur of Barn Bluff, then across the flat” (when it was actually over the next spur).

Part way across the last flat section leading to Waterfall Valley hut, we disturbed a wombat on the track which then headed off along the track in front of us. After following it along for about a hundred metres or so, we eventually realised we were no longer on the track at all. So we then corrected our position and followed the actual track to the last small ascent of to the hut turn off.

These last few metres were the most frustrating of the day. After picking up a pair of home made dodgy-looking snow shoes I’d found discarded by the side of the track, I sunk deeper and deeper into the snow as we came across the most difficult section so far where it is normally very simple walking. I finally caught up to my wife in my number of dummy-spits and hissy-fits for the day, as I sunk in deeper with every step and then resorted to crawling to the turn off, only to find that then my arms also sank in as far as my shoulders. With both legs and both arms in the snow as deep as they could go and having face planted the snow in that position, and trying to carry somebody else’s discarded snow shoe rubbish, I spat it and cursed and winged like 3 year old tantrum (and I know about 3 year old tantrums this year).

After recovering my composure, we waded, slipped and skidded the last few metres to the hut and settled in for a late lunch and to await the arrival of our friend Kim who’d promised to meet us there later that day after walking in from Dove Lake, and who’d promised to bring us some fresh steak for dinner.

Kim is a very fit and very fast walker, however, she’s only just started bushwalking this year, and was very inexperienced, particularly when it comes to snow and bad weather. I had warned her of the possibility of deep snow and bad weather and that people died up there in bad conditions and therefore she should not attempt the walk if the weather was bad, but she was determined to come no matter what. So with the weather now being near blizzard conditions, it was a bit of an anxious wait for us, not knowing for sure if she would turn up or not, and if she didn’t turn up would it be because she cancelled, or because she was stuck out in the bad weather or lost in the snow?

The weather had been getting worse all day, and the rain was getting progressively heavier still as the afternoon wore on, but Kim did arrive late in the afternoon very wet and very tired after a solo deep-snow slog with no snow shoes. A very valiant effort, if not entirely a good idea.

And she had brought not only the promised fresh steak for our dinner (meaning we didn’t have to eat home dried dahl), but she’d also brought fresh lettuce, bread rolls and a variety of other ingredients to make comprehensive steak burgers which were delicious.

But it got even better still – she’d also brought large pieces of freshly made berry brownies and a large portion of double cream.

What a luxuriously extravagant meal and dessert for the sixth night of a hard snow-wading bushwalk!

Wow, FUN Nik?