Mt Wedge sits in between Lake Pedder and Lake Gordon and has views over most of the surrounding peaks from the Sentinels, Mt Anne, Mt Field West etc etc....Overall a great view of the area from the top. It is a constant climb all the way and is great excercise! My legs are hurting today
The track starts from a car park off Gordon Road about 12km past the Scotts Peak intersection. It is a well signed car park and you can't miss it. The track starts on the Nature Walk circuit which has small signs along the way describing various vegitation. Part way around the circuit there's another track that is signed to Mt Wedge, 5hrs return. It took us 5 hours carrying a todler and having about an hour break at the summit.
Take this track till it gets to the forestry road/fire trail. Take a left turn and walk for a few minutes along the road. I can't believe Forestry have logged along here...it looks devistating and is a bit ironic given that you have to walk through the Nature Walk before you get there.
On the right hand side of the road is the entrance to the Mt Wedge track. It is currently signed but the signs are degrading. The track itself was easy to see and once on the track it is well worn with plenty on reflective markers along the way.
It only takes a few minutes from the car park to this point. The track starts in the wooded area that is pretty easy walking with the odd fallen tree to navigate. There are no views for quite a while along this section. It's one of those walks where you can't see anything until you almost hit the top. And when you get there it all becomes worth the effort.
Speaking of effort, the incline from the start continues until you hit the rock outcrop at the top. I mapped the walk on mapmyrun.com and it gives the incline at about 1/5. The track overall climbs about 750m over 3.5kms.
The forest changes slightly as you head up and it's worth doing some tree spotting to keep yourself entertained on this section. The track then enters an overgrown area with long grasses, celery top pines and some candlestick richeas (I think that's what they are called)...they have a tendency to strip layers from your skin if you're not careful. The flowers on these are edible but to me they just taste like I'm eating a tree. Much nicer just to look at them.
This overgrown section was a little troubling for my todler who cracked it when something flung back at her face. I had to put her and the pack on my front side to keep her protected. Great for her, not so good for my back!
After a short section of overgrown forest the view comes into sight and some alpine vegitation appears. It's not far then to the rocky outcrop and the summit of Mt Wedge. A short scramble up the rocky area and the incline eases off. It is then a few minutes easy walking to the summit. The summit is quite flat but you don't have to walk far to get views in any direction. There is plenty of low lying vegitation around that is easy to navigate. Some Pineapple Grass which has a very tasty red berry is spring. Bit of a warning here though...always check reliable sources before eating any bush tucker...but you knew that anyway!
There is a helipad and a transmission booth at the top of the Mountain. Soem people say this ruins the feeling of remoteness. I found the helipad great for letting my toddler run around and use up some energy. It was also a nice platform to have lunch. For me the highlight of the walk is not the summit itself but the views that you get from the summit.
The walk down is the reverse of what I just wrote. Overall, the walk was ok and the views were great from the top.
Here's a few pics from the trip to give you an idea. No pics from the forested area though.
- View over the Sentinels
- View over Lake Gordon
- Mt Wedge Summit
