Bushwalk Australia

Between October 25 and November 2 I was fortunate/lucky/brave/crazy enough to venture to The Spires. I spent the first two days with forum member Minty, and was solo after that point. I must state that this walk is extremely difficult, mostly off track, and should not be considered by inexperienced parties, and probably shouldn’t be attempted solo, not that I am an exception. The Spires are a very remote wilderness area, and there are no formed tracks. I will attempt to not disclose any specific routes, as I do not wish to see this area degraded and abused. I wish for this to be a report on my experience only.



Day one saw us walk in to Lake Wugata, just below Bond’s Craig, following track the entire way. We started walking at about 9:30 in the morning. The forecast wasn’t exactly favourable, but the Gordon was low, and we didn’t encounter any rain until well along the Rasselas Track. We were making very good progress towards Lake Rhona, and we stopped up there for lunch at around 2pm. After a lengthy break, we were ready to tackle the steep ascent up Reed’s Peak from behind the Lake Rhona campsite. It wasn’t wet at this point, but it was misty, and the temperature was dropping fast. Upon reaching the final ascent of Reed’s, there was almost zero visibility. Minty somehow managed to lead us around a well-padded sidle to Great Dome, which I was unaware of its existence. We corrected ourselves and stumbled along the slippery rocks to the summit saddle of Bond’s Craig. It was near freezing by this point, and we didn’t dare attempt the summit in such conditions. We followed a rough pad down to Lake Wugata where we quickly set up camp and jumped into our sleeping bags to warm up. There was very little campsite conversation here, we were both exhausted.

Day 2 saw us head towards to Lake Curly. Again the weather wasn’t favourable. We started off in freezing conditions and no visibility. We spent 45 minutes wandering around on the wrong ridge, looking for the right way down. After we finally found it, we descended quickly through forest, where we encountered scrub. It took some serious bashing down through a mix of bauera, tea tree and button grass until we reached the bottom of the valley. North Star loomed above us, but neither of us had the energy to climb it, so we had lunch, and then sidled around to a subsidiary ridge of North Star, until we dropped down to Badger Flat. The flats are a wide button grass plain, dotted with tarns. After a quick crossing we found ourselves at the Gell River, which was surrounded by scrub. We decided to walk up the river to see if we made faster progress. The current proved to be quite fast, and progress was slow, despite Minty being fine with heading up this way. I decided that I would make better time through scrub ad hopped out of the river. I soon emerged on button grass, and the lake was looming near. The final kilometre seemed to take forever, as we stumbled through the waist high button grass. It was nearing 6pm, and it began to snow. We crossed the river twice more before we stumbled upon the lake. We found a small gravelly beach where we set up camp, too tired to look for better sites. Despite being on a slight angle, I had an amazing nights’ sleep. This was possible the toughest day of walking I had ever done.





On the third day it rained constantly. Minty was up early and wandered back to a camp on Great Dome, while I had a rest day from the exhaustion of the previous two days.
I woke on day 4 to overcast and misty conditions. The lake was dead calm; it had an eerie feel about it. Today I was hoping to make it to a camp up on Shining Mountain. I packed up my gear and quickly set off up the ridge to Conical Mountain. It was mostly button grass and easy enough to walk in, but there were a few stages that involved some light scrub. The final ascent was a little scary, and I am sure there must be a better way to get up. The mist had begun to lift, and the views of Lake Curly, Windy Lake, Pokana Ridge, and Shining Mountain were amazing. I got my first good look at The Spires up here too.

I pressed on quickly and dropped down to the saddle and quickly up Shining Mountain. The weather just kept getting better. I decided that 2pm was far too early to stop and set up camp, and decided that I should have plenty of time to reach The Font. I crossed the beautiful alpine meadow on top of Shining Mountain and proceeded down the ridge where I would drop into Reverend Creek before starting the 300m ascent to The Font. By the time I had reached the creek, the heat was sweltering, being suffocated by the button grass. The main ridge looked rather thick and scrubby, so I looked for an alternative route up the moraine. I found a mostly grassy lead and followed it for as long as I could. After an hour and a half of climbing, I reached the registration logbook, which has been there since 2005. I noticed that I was only the second person for the year to reach The Font, and only about 9 parties had visited the area in the almost 8 years since it has been recorded. I proudly finished off the first page of the book! I set up camp and cooked myself a big meal, proud of what I was able to achieve in the day. I was very tired by the end, so a few cups of vodka put me straight to sleep.

The next morning I awoke to heavy mist. I was concerned that I may not get to see anything from the peaks. I set off up the track out of The Font to climb Flame Peak, and then attempt to traverse to the southern Spires peaks. After finding my way through various gullies, I was on top of Flame Peak in around 30 minutes. The rocks were quite slippery, so going was slow. The mist lifted on the way up and I was treated to spectacular views, none quite like the view straight down to The Font, some 200m below. I proceeded to climb the highest of the Spires, hauling myself up slippery gullies and cliff lines – certainly not the safest way up! I wandered on down the other side of the Spire to look for a point to traverse across to False Dome. I came to a point where the rock was slippery, and it was a 10m drop to the next safe ledge. I decided at this point that I wasn’t going to be able to go this way. I turned around and dropped off the Spire at a different point, but this took up valuable time, and heading south was not an option for today any more. I returned to camp where I enjoyed an afternoon of sunshine. I had a visit from what I now believe was a wolf spider. He certainly looked scary enough!



Day 6 saw me head off to the remote peak, Innes High Rocky, which is to the north-west of The Spires. It had been a windy night, but the morning was clear and there was not a cloud to be seen. I set off up to the ridge top where I followed for the best part of 2 and half hours until I was on the summit. It was very hot and I was thankful for a couple of steady creeks in some valleys. I had unimpeded views of the Prince of Wales Range, Frenchman’s Cap, The Eldon Range, and other peaks in the Southern Reserve, as well as the Denison, and King William groups. On the way back, as the heat increased, I became increasingly paranoid about snakes, which is odd because they have never bothered me before. Alas I made it back to camp without seeing a single one. I toyed with the idea of having another try at False Dome, but I decided that there just wasn’t enough time. I would save it for a return visit one day. Again I had a relaxed afternoon, lounging around at The Font before I rested for a big day to come tomorrow.




The next morning I was up early, ready to retrace my steps back to Lake Curly, with the hope of climbing Mt Curly in the afternoon. I made quick work of getting back up to Shining Mountain, where I stopped for a snack. I then pressed on the get back down the ridge from Conical Mountain. I made a slight navigation error and ended up bashing through some tough scrub to get down to the beach on Lake Curly, but by 3pm I had arrived. I found a lovely little sheltered campsite in amongst the trees. It was flat and very dry, making it a nice change. I started to feel a little bit unwell at this point, but I was determined to get up Mt Curly. The clouds were looking ominous and I thought I could be in for a rough night. I left for the mountain, making use of grassy gullies and rock slabs until I hit the main ridge. At one point I had to climb up a small crevice with few holds in it, maybe 7m high, with a longer way to tumble if I fell. From here it was a case of negotiating the many false summits. I reached the true summit at 5:30pm. It took me less than an hour to get back to camp. My upset stomach was getting continually worse, so I called it a night early, hoping it would be gone by morning.



The next day I rested. I still wasn’t feeling 100%. I spent most of the day in bed, reading Henry David Thoreau’s Walden, which was my choice of literature for the trip. It certainly proved to be interesting reading and I do recommend it. I also managed to reduce my pack weight considerably by eating nearly all of my food!
During the night I had a crazy idea that I would be able to walk out to the car in a day from Lake Curly. I set my alarm for 6am, and packed up and set off early, leaving camp just before 7:30am. I found it far easier going through the sections we had trouble with on the way in, always seeming to find a better route. I was sitting on top of the summit of North Star at 11am, which was about what I was hoping for. I pushed on up the slopes of Bonds Craig, until I hit the wall of scrub that we encountered on the way down. Although it was only 200m of altitude to climb through it, it took the best part of 90 minutes to get through it. I then hit the scree and alpine shrubbery of the pinnacle. I sidled around to the base of Reed’s Peak, then around to Great Dome. It was 3:30pm when I was sitting on the Dome. I still figured I could be at the car in 4 hours or so. I was getting clumsy as I walked down the moraine on the Lake Rhona track. I was getting very hungry too, so I stopped at the bottom for a quick snack. It took an hour from the top of Great Dome to the creek. I tried my best to move quickly through the muddy plains to Gordonvale, but the harder I pushed, the more elusive Gordonvale became. I eventually stumbled into a rather deep mud hole and looked up to see a pink tape. I knew now that I was at Gordonvale, and not that far from the Gordon River crossing. I refuelled again and set off. I reached the log crossing an hour later, about 7pm. The river had risen to be about halfway up the log, but still easily crossed. I picked up the lilo I had left behind as an emergency raft and headed back up the hill. As always, it dragged on and on, until an hour later I could see the registration box. I shouted with joy and ran to the car, where I slammed my pack on the ground and lay down in sheer exhaustion. Over 12 hours of walking, most of it off track as well. I really needed that rest. I had made it from Lake Curly to the car in a day!



This has to be up there with the best trips I have ever done. The fact that I was solo didn’t bother me at all this time. Having walked 8 days solo through the Western Arthurs about the same time last year, I knew what I was in for to a degree. The Spires only came about after 2 other planned trips had fallen through, but I felt confident about where I was going; I had put plenty of research into the area throughout the year. It was an absolute privilege to visit this unique, rarely visited part of Tasmania. I certainly could feel the remoteness of the area. I would gladly go back, but not too soon. A rest from button grass is in order for the short term!

Here is a link to a slideshow I made as well.

Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7-5pRn-eqzg&feature=plcp


Cheers,

Jared

Hi Pazzar

Good trip report and glad though a hard trip you arrived home safe.

Cheers

Awesome Jazz!! Buttongrass sure is a killer after a while. People often think it's so easy to walk on.

You've finally done something im very very jealous of. Well done sonny!!

Cheers- don't worry, you have still done plenty that I want to do yet

Maybe.. but this has been a place I've wanted to visit since learning about Olegas Truchanas many many years ago!! Your report is bringing it all back for me! So thanks for taking the time to write it up.

Nice report Jared, also very jealous!

I'm sure this is a story you'll be telling for many years to come. Thanks for sharing.

Thanks for sharing Jared, very jealous, the Spires is an area that really appeals to me

Yeah great work Jared, sounds like a top trip!

Nice one! Certainly rugged country! You climbed Flame Peak in 30mins, must be easier than it looks from that side?

Great walk Jared. Makes me hate the time restraints of my uni choice even more!

I swear I was following you on our little side trip to Great Dome.

This is just awesome. What tent is that?

Flame Peak is pretty easy Nuts - You just wander on around the back of it.

The tent is a Mountain Designs Neutrino 1. Brilliant little tent. Only 1.4kg, and plenty of room to get all my gear inside, and I had enough space to cook in my vestibule a couple of nights.

Congratulations on completing your hike Jared, great trip and thanks for posting. Brings back some old and good memories.

what an awesome trip!

top stuff bud!! making me miss home!! love all the little *&%$#! ups...ace

Nice Paz. Spires have just gone up the list a bit in terms of "want to dos".

Great write up mate. Hardcore

Awesome stuff. Thanks for posting.

Currently only have a tablet whilst away.
Same result on Ipad and Samsung.
When I try viewing it says the owner hasn't made that post available for mobile and to save and view on PC.
Know nothing about that side but curious anyway.

A great effort mate & thanks for sharing.
Some day...

Great stuff Jared, definitely my next 7day+ trip, hopefully!!

doogs wrote:Great stuff Jared, definitely my next 7day+ trip, hopefully!!

Give yourself at least 10 days - not an area that should be rushed!

Well done on both the trip and the report. Very inspiring!

Hi Jared

Just returned from an aborted trip to the Spires via the Denison Range. Having read your trip report beforehand, I wanted to acknowledge your superhuman effort in walking from Lake Curly to the car park in 12 hours. Amazing achievement!

Hobes

Thanks Hobes,

Certainly not something I'd be capable of doing now. I think the last 4 hours were just shear determination to get home.