Snow camping on the Alpine track

NSW & ACT specific bushwalking discussion.
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NSW & ACT specific bushwalking discussion. Please avoid publishing details of access to sensitive areas with no tracks.

Re: Snow camping on the Alpine track

Postby mountainhigh » Mon 25 Aug, 2014 2:35 pm

I wonder if some nice person might offer a gpx track of the route between Schlink Hut and Tin Hut via Gungartan Pass?

I'm heading to Kosciuszko later this week for 3 days/2 nights with a small group. It would be great to have that route in my GPS in case the weather permitted an off-track walk to visit Tin Hut.

Thanks in advance! rick(at)hikeout.org :D
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Re: Snow camping on the Alpine track

Postby weeman » Tue 26 Aug, 2014 12:16 pm

This is my track from 2 weeks ago. It was a white out so probably not the best line through Gungartan Pass but will get you back to the main trail. Track meets up with Schlink Trail just north of Schlink Pass, not at the hut:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/f896w3ncbxqhj ... l.gpx?dl=0

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Re: Snow camping on the Alpine track

Postby mountainhigh » Tue 26 Aug, 2014 1:04 pm

weeman wrote:This is my track from 2 weeks ago


Thank you weeman, much appreciated! Tin Hut is looking pretty special in the snow and the current weather forecast suggests that a visit will be possible :D
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Re: Snow camping on the Alpine track

Postby paidal_chalne_vala » Thu 27 Oct, 2016 10:56 pm

The winds on the Main Range can blow person off his/her feet and the tent and everything in it will blow away like a feather. It happened to my friend on his first trip out there in Spring snow , 2016. I tried to warn him but he knew better!! :-0. The weather warnings said get off the mountains on Sat. before dark but he headed out while sane people packed up and headed back to Jindy or Thredbo etc.
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Re: Snow camping on the Alpine track

Postby rcaffin » Wed 23 Nov, 2016 7:12 pm

The winds on the Main Range can blow person off his/her feet and the tent and everything in it will blow away like a feather.

Not quite: it all depends on the tent. A good genuine double-skin tunnel tent with snow stakes can handle it easily.
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1st night, near Club Lake - the 2nd night was on top of Anton in 100 kph winds - mainly because I was having trouble seeing the snow on my snow shoes. OK, poor judgement and we should have stayed down in Pound Creek that night. But the really bad weather did happen rather fast as we went up from there.
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Dinner on the saddle at Mt Anton. Position verified by GPS! Visibilty outside: 1 m.

Footnote: we did bail out the next day as some of the guy ropes fretted away all night and I lost quite a few titanium snow pegs under the snow. It was still doing 100 kph when we jumped the cornice off Anton - me by accident (I could see nothing), and my wife because it was too cold to dither up there.

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Re: Snow camping on the Alpine track

Postby paidal_chalne_vala » Fri 13 Jan, 2017 6:13 pm

My Friend had his tent blow away at Seaman's hut in Oct. 2016. I warned him not to go out above the NSW snow country treeline when bad weather is forecasted . He took no notice and was lucky to get out alive.
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Re: Snow camping on the Alpine track

Postby rcaffin » Fri 13 Jan, 2017 6:37 pm

That is a combination of lack of skill and lack of the right gear.
What sort of tent? Pop-up?
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Re: Snow camping on the Alpine track

Postby andrewa » Fri 13 Jan, 2017 10:44 pm

Agree. Proper tent. Decent pegs. Proper pitch. Noisy night, but these days should stay up.

Roger's posted piccies of his own tent, which is a great design. Probably many Hillebergs would be similar, and some other brands as well.

It's all about choosing position, and pitching a tent designed for those conditions properly.

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Re: Snow camping on the Alpine track

Postby rcaffin » Sat 14 Jan, 2017 5:53 am

A Macpac Olympus would come a close second to mine, followed by a couple of Hillebergs - imho. Then maybe some other Euro brands at a little distance, but NO American brands. The Yanks are not in that market.
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Re: Snow camping on the Alpine track

Postby GBW » Sat 14 Jan, 2017 5:55 am

What about Exped?
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Re: Snow camping on the Alpine track

Postby rcaffin » Sat 14 Jan, 2017 6:16 am

They fit in to the 'other Euro brands at a little distance' category. I have reviewed one of them at https://backpackinglight.com/tunnel_tents_part1/
They are mostly 2-pole tunnels - apart from the 'other' pop-ups they have. Two poles just does not hack it in comparison. Their Orion could be a bit stronger with its ridge pole, but it is rather heavy.

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Last edited by rcaffin on Sat 14 Jan, 2017 5:01 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Snow camping on the Alpine track

Postby GBW » Sat 14 Jan, 2017 2:45 pm

Looks like an interesting review rcaffin but unfortunately I can't read it without paying.
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Re: Snow camping on the Alpine track

Postby rcaffin » Sat 14 Jan, 2017 5:02 pm

I know, I know, but you should see the costs for the software and the servers. Horrible.
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