An article by Carolyn MacDonald
Photos: Carolyn Macdonald
While volunteering on the Orange Hawkweed program this year I learnt from the local Park ranger that Bob the taxi driver in Corryong can drive people up the Cabramurra Road in winter. Coming from Adelaide this made sense to cut out the Alpine Way and reducing our drive time and distance. This was especially relevant this year as we would have been trying to drive the Alpine Way just after it had been blocked by the landslide. Not only that, Bob supplies you with a pile of yummy homemade sandwiches, tea, coffee and hot chocolate to help you on your way.
That certainly made a cheerier send off as we headed off into poor visibility and rain. The snow was heavy and wet and loaded up for a 2 week trip the start was not inspiring, however there was snow all the way to Round Mountain Hut. Arriving at the hut we immediately went out wood gathering which ensured that all our outer clothing particularly our gloves were saturated. We were the first winter visitors and were very grateful to the last summer visitors who left kindling wood inside the hut. Water drips down the chimney and various places around the fireplace so lighting the fire was still a bit of a challenge. Later that night safely tucked up in my sleeping bag I listened to the rain drumming on the roof and imagined that next morning there would only be grass and no snow.
Next morning we woke to sunshine and amazingly there was still snow cover. We headed off to Derschkos Hut. There was snow cover on the fire trail but not much anywhere else. Apart from crossing the bridges which were devoid of snow we were able to ski all the way until the junction with Hell Hole Creek trail and those last 2.5km took a long time and a lot of walking.
Having taken 7.5 hours to do the trip we decided that a shorter day would be better so next day we headed off to O'Keefe's. There was snow cover until we joined Grey Mare Trail when cover got decidedly patchy. Our first serious creek crossing was just after the met station so out came our new knee high waterproof socks and "walk in the water" shoes. With water only about mid calf height and not too much current the crossing was easy. Last year we had plastic bags over our boots and just hoped for not too deep water!! Arriving at O'Keefe's we sat in the sun at the back door drinking tea and eating cake.
Thursday was another sunny day and we started on the road to Mackays. There was more or less snow until the downhill to Bogong Creek. We walked down with our skis and packs then back up to collect our sled. Bogong Creek was much deeper (over 1m) and flowing faster. When carrying the sled over I had it tied to my waist as an extra precaution. Another walk this time up the hill to Farm Ridge. A little skiing and more walking to Doubtful Creek (mid calf deep) then a mixture of walking and skiing to the ford. From there we had to walk all the way to Mackays, dropped our packs and skis and back the 2km for the sled taking our head torches with us as it was getting dark. Finally got there at 6.50pm after 10 hours on the road!
With snow forecast for the next 2 days and not wanting another long walk we decided to camp at Mackays and wait for snow. The first day there was not much sign of snow so we spent the day collecting wood. Next morning there was only a "light dusting" so we decided to wait another day (and collect more wood). The wait was worthwhile as on Sunday we awakened to a winter wonderland with snow covering the ground and all the tree branches. The day was overcast and we got some more snow in the morning. The sun managed to force its way through for about 5 minutes during the day. With the good snow cover we knocked 3.5 hours off our time for the journey back to O'Keefes only to discover that only using bricks to secure the back door is not enough and I spent about an hour sweeping and shovelling snow out of the hut. We added the dutch oven and block buster to the bricks and that worked to keep the door shut.
Monday was back to bad weather- poor visibility, more rain than snow and lots of wind. We managed to get 1 bar of phone coverage so rang a friend in Adelaide for an update on the weather: bad today, much worse tomorrow, bit better the next day, 2 days of frost then sun and for our last day warm and rain. Not a very encouraging report! Listening to the wind howling we decided that we would stay 2 days at O'Keefes until the weather improved and that we would ring Bob to collect us a day early as we didn't like the thought of warm and wet on our last day. It was too wet to go outside and gather firewood so dressed in all the clothes we had with us and with sleeping bags wrapped around us we read the hut book, played cards, did detailed analysis of the Kj, protein, fibre, weight etc of the foods we had for lunches (various bars and dry biscuits) with the result that we will change what we bring next year. Lying in bed at night we heard the wind and several crashes as snow slid off the roof.
We were happy to leave on the Wednesday and the snow cover to Derschkos was fantastic. We couldn't stop looking up at Jagungal towering over us covered in snow. Again a much faster trip than the outward journey so arriving at Derschkos we swapped skis and boots and had a bit of a play before taking our emptied sled out to collect firewood. With the fire lit in the hut I suddenly realised that for the first time in days I wasn't cold!! We tidied up the hut and removed a bag of rubbish.
With much improved snow cover our trip back to Round Mountain was about 3 hours faster than the outward journey. So again at the end we swapped skies and boots and skied up to the carpark at the trailhead. I discovered that not only were Louise's boots more comfortable, the fish scales on the underside of her skis were far superior to mine. It was little wonder that she had been climbing hills much faster than me! And to cap it off I could put the skis on and off without bending over – a serious consideration at my age!!
With no wind our last night at Round Mountain was really quiet. After a leisurely start we left our gear at the trailhead carpark and headed up the road to check out Bradley's and O'Briens Hut. That experience emphasised to us the difference between the people who drive to huts vs those of us who walk or ski. There was a lot of graffiti and no character. Picking up our packs for the last time we skied down the road until we ran out of snow which turned out to be about 600m up the road from where we had been dropped off. Although the forecast had said sunshine we sat on the side of the road in the rain waiting for Bob. We had arrived early but luckily for us Bob with his sandwiches and coffee was also early.
Compared to last year the weather and snow were bad and there were several times when I caught myself thinking "what am I doing here?" but as always when the sun shines even briefly and you look around and marvel at the wildness of the landscape you know that it will take a lot more than bad weather and snow to keep you from returning.
Coming in from "the other side" was different. No steep climb up from Guthega Power Station and being able to ski most of the way in were definite pluses. Although happy with our own company it would have been nice to meet up with other skiers to swap stories, routes and ideas so hopefully after reading this there will be a few more of you out on "the other side" next year.
Carolyn Macdonald and Louise Hutchinson
