South Cape Rivulet - Please somebody come and feed the rats!

[shazcol]

Given the perfect weather in the south with the high pressure system coming through finally and the quite deep snow at Cradle we abandoned the planned overland trek and headed south to Cockle Creek to start an interesting adventure. We had a tentative plan to go through to Granite Point on the South Coast Track but after reading some posts here, experiencing the mud on Coal Bluff and finding the South Cape Rivulet crossing would be quite tricky we thought better of it and crossing the South Coast Range was not really worth the effort for a trip like this with the daylight hours available.

The first part of the walk is pretty easy and flat to South Coast Bay. We were passed by a guy in fury lined gumboots early on and thought that it was a bit odd, latter on we found out why they where so practical. The part of this track as you approach South Cape Bay could do with some basic maintenance as a tree has fallen across the track and the ferns have to be pushed through for a bit as they have covered the track. An hour or two with some hand tools would have it cleaned up.

Once we got on the beach and got away from all the surfers and day walkers we checked out the camp-sites at the end of the beach, then we hit the mud on Coal Bluff. The route on the beach was not easily passable with some nice swell rolling in both days. Sharon could not "embrace the mud" on the way in and it was a slow trip. I can now cross off any trips that involve walking in the snow or walking in mud more than boot deep with her now!

We setup at the Rivulet camp-site and the wildlife started to appear. While cooking tea I noticed some small animal in the shadows and heard a strange noise a few times but thought nothing of it. Turns out a native rat had chewed a hole in the side of the Nallo, right next to us. My jocks must have tasted pretty fowl as he left it at that! There was nothing in the tent except some cloths, our mats and bags. Some time latter the rat ate the bottom out of a food parcel on top of a pack right next to us without either of us seeing it. On top of that it tried to get into our packs all night about every hour or two keeping us quite sleep deprived by the morning. I had triple bagged the the food and had my pack inside a plastic ground sheet so we heard him rustle it each time he tried to get in. I was NOT going to have a hole in the pack as well!

A few very small squally showers came through in the morning and a nice rainbow appeared over the rivulet. A Sea Eagle was hovering overhead while we packed and eventually started our return journey. Another night of that rat was not on the cards. Sharon "Embrased the mud" on the return trip and it was much quicker on the way out.

We spent the next few days camped at Cockle Creek and explored the area with fantastic weather compared to the rest of the state. We got up very early on the last day to another frozen solid tent to photograph the lunar eclipse. The only night that had any cloud was that night of course but we got a reasonably good showing.

An interesting introduction to the South Coast Track, now on my list to do the full length but probably not with Sharon!

A short speeded up video of the Coal Bluff mud here: http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24031787/June20 ... 20x240.mp4

Nallo 2 rat hole - repair required here!

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Rainbow

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From Coal Bluff looking towards the Rivulet

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Interesting piece of washed up junk

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Lunar Eclipse at 4:55am - milky due to cloud cover

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[Nuts]

Is there mud on Coal Bluff ?

Love the few piccies...
Do you need a patch for that?

[shazcol]

Yes Nuts I do need a patch for that! Not sure how to approach the repair? Hoping some suitable advice will come from here.

Yeah I know the mud is not that bad but it was for Sharon....

[ILUVSWTAS]

Thats a bugger about the rats! Seems they are becoming more common along the SCT and the Western Arthurs! A shame.

You made the right choice not going any further if that bit of mud put you off. The South Cape range is probably the worst part of the track, rather than ankle deep the mud can be thigh deep.

[Walker]

The rats are a problem down there, they got me at Granite Beach the same way. Mentioned in this post.
I had the tent fixed by a company in Melbourne, they did an excellent job, with this fancy patch stuff they use on both sides, like it irons together or something. It is remarkably thin, but has been going fine since with no signs of peeling off or anything. I would highly recommend having your tent repaired the same way.

This is them - Remote Equipment Repairs.
Just give them a ring to tee it up then post the inner over there in a prepaid post satchel, worked for me. Send a post bag already addressed to make the return easy. There's further instructions on their website under Repairs.

[shazcol]

I must say getting across the rivulet put me off more than the mud. It was deep and flowing really fast in both directions as it surged in and out. Does anybody know if there is a campsite on the other side of the bank if you get stuck on that side?

[ILUVSWTAS]

Yes that crossing can be one of the hardest on the whole walk. It's usually shallow out near the ocean part of the river. You wade out into the breakers and it's usually below knee deep. At the beach it can be over waist high easily.

There's no real camp site on the other side, but you can pitch a tent over there in several places if need be.

[Azza]

Yes that crossing can be one of the hardest on the whole walk. It's usually shallow out near the ocean part of the river. You wade out into the breakers and it's usually below knee deep. At the beach it can be over waist high easily.

There's no real camp site on the other side, but you can pitch a tent over there in several places if need be.

Its a bit deceptive like that. Last time I just charged straight through and almost went down to my waist, the rest of the guys crossed about 20m down stream and barely got up to their knees.
I figure with the rat thing you've just gotta camp near someone messier than you and their stuff will get munched.
Seems to be working for me so far.

[Azza]

Also with the rats - its advisable not to cook near or in your tent. That's what I was told on a recent trip to Patagonia where they have a few rat issues as well. They asked they we cooked away from the tents, the smells gets into the tent material and I guess they are attracted to that.

[ILUVSWTAS]

I figure with the rat thing you've just gotta camp near someone messier than you and their stuff will get munched.
Seems to be working for me so far.

So THATS why you always pitch next to Ollster. Very smart!! what he does in his spare vestible would be enough to turn anything away!

[north-north-west]

Its a bit deceptive like that. Last time I just charged straight through and almost went down to my waist, the rest of the guys crossed about 20m down stream and barely got up to their knees.

There's a stretch that leads to the rocks that's easier than anywhere else. Seems like your mates hit it - 20m downstream of the track sounds about right.

[abowen]

The rats are a mongrel! The first time I camped there, a group from Monash Uni had their gear trashed by the rats. All brand new gear too - a Macpac Olympus and Cascades pack (from memory) amongst the damage.
I couldn't believe the amount of effort they put in to get at food or anything that had a wiff of food. My hip belt harness had some oily residue from my hands and they ate a 50mm section of foam without leaving any foam bits scattered anywhere - they just consumed the foam without a trace - ouch that can't be good for their digestive system. On top of that, I had borrowed the pack and then had to get it repaired!
The Macpac tent was a good effort. The rats started with a hole in the inner, then proceeded to chew a hole in the bottom of the pack, then chewed a hole straight through a decor container to get some crumbs inside a plastic ziplock bag. And all this happened while the guy was using the pack as a pillow to sleep on - lucky they didn't take a liking to his ears, hair, nose, etc! Scary!

[ollster]

I just make sure I put a big pile of rat food about 10 metres from my tent. They never bother me then.

[north-north-west]

I just make sure I put a big pile of rat foodpoison about 10 metres from my tent. They never bother me then.

Fixed.

[Genesis]

I am heading off to the SCT Nov-Dec, this RAT has me worried especially with my new pack!
I do keep all my food in containers and keep a clean campsite but any tips would be welcome.

What campsites are the worst? on the SCT ?
Does anybody hang their food ?

What other tactics do people use ?

Cheers in advance

Genesis