So whats next? We plan on returning, again and again!

It feels good to have the full hike diarised online now.  Its a great companion to my personal journal from the trail and the memories I'll have forever.  So where to from here?  I'm the type of person that loves to have a challenge or goal in front of them.  Since returning from the AAWT I've completed 2 of 4 years of University and have found new employment (casual which studying).  It has been a challenger to keep fitness levels during the school year as the time balance is just not that easy when you have a young family.

I look back at my time on the trail and how I went about hiking it.  I did not set out to go fast.  I set out to be light and have fun.  As per most, I thought I was light till I got to Thredbo and sent more gear home..... whereby actually becoming light.  I often find myself wondering if I could go faster if I had planned to do so.  Carry less food as I will be out there for fewer days between food drops.  Carry less clothes and less fuel, shave grams of comforts like a 20g clothes line and just sleep under a the tarp portion of my tent without the internal tent.  Of course hitting it removes the tent completely!

On the other hand, my now 10 year old daughter Bailey promised she would do the Australian Alps Walking Track with me as soon as I felt she was old enough.  This is a different challenge to prepare for.  At what age could she do it?  What could she carry...at that age?  What additional plans would need to be made?  The more I think about it the more exciting I get for her at the possibility of being able to see all that I have seen, to create her own special memories.  To create those memories with me her Father.  This could be a real coming of age event for her and my other children.  When they get to the appropriate age I can take them 1 by 1 to end to end the AAWT.  Even better I wonder if the whole family will do it together.  Just asked my wife Megan......she said "No shower = No Megan"!  I'll work on a shower solution!

Back to whats next.  We often have done the Mt Lofty Summit hike in Adelaide on a nice Sunday afternoon.  No packs, all bitumen trail.  Bailey loves it (Judd and Andie also).  So lets take Bailey and Judd for a test on the AAWT I thought.  November 28th, 2015 I was able to return with my children to the AAWT to do Section 4 - refer to John Chapman's book.  November 28, 2013 was the day I completed my journey in Walhalla so it was really special to be on the trail with my kids 2 years later.

The Omeo Highway to Mt Hotham section, with a side trip up to Mt Bogong seemed a great first choice to introduce the kids to the track.  It has climbs and descents, bushbashing, fire tracks, roads, and some great huts.  We organised with Sandy at the Omeo Caravan Park to drive Tim's car to the trail head to drop us off then keep it to collect us if we missed the Friday bus off Mt Hotham.  Forgot to mention that Tim Marsden will also be joining us! The kids quickly and affectionately named Tim our 'snake bait' as he was out front...and within 10 minutes had located our first snake of the trail! The hike did not go as planned as Judd twisted his ankle and it blew up like a balloon.  We is a strong quiet kid so when he was screaming to touch his toes to the ground we knew we had to change our plans.

We evacuated over Mt Bogong and out to Mountain Creek over 2 days, successfully hitchhiked from mountain Creek to Mt Beauty and subsequently over Falls Creek to the rad access near Cope Hut.  We planned to rest but the surprising arrival of snow had lifted Judd's spirits and before you know it we were knocking out the 14kms to Dibbins hut in just 3.5hrs.  Although we didn't stay on the AAWT the entire trek, and I had to carry Judd on my shoulders (Tim also), this trip was perfect.  We rolled with what each day gave us and had a blast.  Some real memories for us all.

I've made a small video summarising our adventure.

On the return train ride back to Adelaide from Melbourne I asked the kids what they learned and what their favourite part of the hike was, both responded that the best part was the 2 hours of playing n the snow.  This was at 5:30am!  I asked Judd what he learned.  His response was epic for a 6 year old.  " Dad, If I give you everything I've got, you'll give me everything you've got" .... what a kid.

FNQ - Far North Queensland - local adventures

So since moving to Far North Queensland my athletic endeavours have fallen by the way side.  I've been working hard on the renovations and working with my family to transition to the new life style.

Last week I met a local while running, he was training for the Cairns Ironman in june and after having a 8 km run with him I thought to myself, it's time.

We are only up here for 12 months so we want to make sure that we create some memories and experience what FNQ has to offer.

So here are a couple things I've done since.  This clip is of a friend of mine catching a Sweetlips off the reef of Palm Cove.

I'm running the GoPro.

Easter weekend my parents came up from Adelaide and we brought them up Skyrail to Kuranda and returned via the train back through the mountains to Freshwater.  Periodically you could see down the cliffs to the Barron gorge and some amazing waterfalls and swimming wholes.

So today, I got on my Azzurri and cycled from Port Douglas to Barron Gorge where I met up with a couple friends.  We hiked up the river bouldering along the river banks for about an hour when we can to a great swimming spot and waterfall cliff jump.  To our surprise we looked up and saw the train slowly creeping past us on the cliffs high above.

Shaun explaining where the last group was taken by the crocs! 

The first cliff face about 1/3rd up is where the boys jumped from which is about 10m

Kurt looking for good spot to jump in

The gap in the trees where the train can be seen

Stretching for Hikers

Stretching and hiking

While some of us are good at stretching at the gym or before and after a run, we often forget to stretch before hiking, climbing, or just as part of the daily routine. It’s important to maintain a stretching program year round in order to remain supple and agile due to conditions you encounter outdoors like stepping on and over logs, uneven and steep ground, rocks, river crossings, boulders, and twisting and reaching in unnatural positions to find holds.

Stretching before, after and even throughout the day on occasions when you start to feel leg weary are good ways of helping you get through a days hike and also to reduce soreness that may incur.

Try these stretches designed for hikers, backpackers, and mountaineers at home and at the trailhead keeping the following tips in mind:

• Hold each stretch for a minimum of 20-30 seconds, doing 2-3 reps on each side. If a stretch feels
tighter in specific areas, it is beneficial to stretch those muscles 2-3 times per day.

• Stretch to the point that you feel a good stretch, not pain.

• Make sure that your core muscles are kept tight to help maintain good posture: this ensures that you
are targeting the intended muscle.

• Don’t bounce with the stretch, just hold.

Avoid:

• Not stretching both sides of the body.

• Not keeping other joints straight. (example bending your knee for a Hamstring stretch)

• Not keeping hips and feet pointing forward (on a Hamstring stretch)

• Arching the back because the stomach muscles are not tight (example: Hip Flexor stretch)

There is still conflicting advice whether stretching reduces the risk of injury. One thing for sure is that if you have a greater range of movement then you’ll perform exercises more efficiently and effectively and if you find yourself in awkward positions hiking or climbing then you’ll want suppleness and agility on your side.

Stretching is one piece of the jigsaw in terms of the reduction of muscle soreness and general fatigue. Hydration, nutrition and adequate sleep all play a vital roll and without nailing all four factors then it becomes hard to give yourself the best opportunity to smash through the hills of the next days hike.

Below is a series of stretches that can be easily performed anywhere and anytime.

Gastroncnemius:

With back leg straight, move hips forward until stretch is felt.

Soleus:
Keep back leg slightly bent, with heel on floor, lean into wall until stretch is felt in calf. Use a car, tree, or truck at trailhead.

Hamstring:
Place a foot on stool, log, or car bumper, slowly lean forward and keep your back straight, until stretch is felt in back of thigh.

Piriformis:
Cross legs, with one on top of the others knee, Gently pull other knee toward chest until stretch is felt in buttock/hip of top leg.

Hip Flexor:
Kneeling on one knee, slowly push your pelvis down while slightly arching back until stretch is felt on front of hip.

Thigh:

This is perhaps the most common stretch, the thigh stretch. Where you pull the foot back towards the bum and get a pull at the front of the leg.

Regular stretching will certainly aid any tired and aching muscles and make the whole experience more enjoyable.

Marcus Bourne

M-Power Personal Fitness

Fire Track - Mount Corhanwarrabul

Every couple weekends we will be heading out to the Dandenong Mountains for some intense training.  Although we will not be racing or trying to achieve any great time when Tim Marsden & I are on the Australian Alps Walking Track, it is good to know that our bodies will be ready to dig in for some big efforts on parts of the hike.

As part of the preparation we will be racing up this 1 km track which is about 500 meter direct assent from start to finish.  It burns the legs and puts pressure on the lower back so I know I am shocking the muscles into action.  I expect that doing these intense training sessions now will mean I will be able to enjoy the journey from Walhalla to Canberra instead of puffing and panting all the way there.

Oh yeah, we taped this weekends training.  A little fun.

This was our second session and we had much better results this time around.  Cut 4 minutes off our first effort.

If anyone would like to join us at 7am Saturday mornings please either add a comment on the blog comment page below or reply on Facebook.  We will keep you updated on when we will be heading out next.

Big shout out to Steve Walsh for putting the video together.

Keeping in mind that the original inspiration for the end to end hike of the Australian Alps Walking Track is to raise awareness for "Beyond Blue" the national depression initiative, we all wore the blue wrist bands that Beyond blue has sent to oz4adventure as an unofficial sponsor.  As I may injure myself on the hike I am not able to receive full sponsorship from them.

Beyond Blue is a wonderful resource for anyone who suffers or knows someone who suffers from depression and/or anxiety.  Depression and/or anxiety will effect us all through out our lives in one way or another, whether it be our own mental health or the mental health of someone we know.  What I have found since speaking to people about the Hike & Beyond Blue is that it effects people around me who I would not have know had struggles if I had not been discussing depression with them.  I'd like to thank everyone from Sunday who showed their support by wearing the "Blue" wristbands.

Take the time this week to ask someone how they are going, take the time to look out for each other and lets take some time in the outdoors.  Fresh air and physical exercise can really stimulate your mind and help fight the anxious or depressing feelings that may be holding you back from happiness.

Anyone who is able or interested in making a donation to Beyond Blue can do so at their website

https://www.givenow.com.au/beyondblue

Inspired by an event

So yesterday I was talking with Marcus Bourne of M power personal training and he suggested I enter a race as part of my training.  Its not just any race mind you.  Its tough, it's un-timed and its hard work.

This is a run, crawl, freeze, burn, electrical mud fest that will be taking place on Philip Island in March 2012.  It is a mix of cardio endurance, muscular fitness and mental strength.

Their website lists 16 training exercises to prepare for the event and having read through each exercise I can already say that Marcus has me working on at least 9 of those exercises as part of my current routine.

One of the top reasons for going the weights training I'm doing in preparation for the hike is not because I think I need muscle for the hike but rather I need to strengthen my core and put my muscles under some duress.  Hiking will put my muscles under duress and by training them now I hope to reduce the muscular issues I have during the 40 days and hopefully avoid any tears of strains so that I can just enjoy the experience and my surroundings.

Check out the guy on the Tough Mudder website advertisement under training, movie below.  Intense......

Motivating for sure.  To anyone who wants to join "Tough Mudder" with me and see what we can do just let me know you interest in the comments section below this article. 

Day 4 - Mt Skene then Hitch hiked to Jamieson

So the final instalment of our 4 day adventure was going to be less eventful than the 3 days already travelled.  Wake up, climb from Rumpff Saddle along the Barkly Jeep Track to the Jamieson-Licola Rd and just keep walking till about 3pm when our ride come past.

Tim & I were both keen to get started in the morning for a couple reasons.  We had eaten 3.5 days worth of food so our packs were a couple kilo lighter than when we started, so that was pretty exciting.  We were going to see our wives and kids, so that was also very exciting.

We set out about 8am with a real energy to see the end of the trail.  We started our day with a 400m ascent out of Rumpff Saddle, over 2-3 km or so.  We didn't really mind it, we knew it was the only challenge for the day so we got stuck into it.  From Rumpff Saddle to Mt Skene is a wonderful summit of Ghost gum swept hill sides.  As we near the the Jamieson-Licola Road we can hear a car coming up the track.

We meet Bernie, Warwick and Dave who have been hiking together for 30 years and are coming back to do the final stages of the AAWT from Rumpff Saddle to Walhalla.  They had done the balance a couple years ago but fell short of Walhalla on their end to end attempt so have come back to finish the job.

They have been hiking through this area for years mind you and had done these sections previously.  When we spoke of our ordeal from yesterday, of black river and the 7hrs of bush bashing, Bernie's comment was that it was the hardest section of track he had done in his 30 years on the trails.

In hind sight this made both Tim & I feel good.  It reassured us that as a Team we could take on the AAWT end to end, and enjoy it.  As we left & the guys drove off, Bernie stopped and yelled out that he had a pecan danish .... with 20 kilos on my back I still broke the Olympic 100m dash record getting that danish out of his hands before he finished his sentence.  Ahhh, fresh food.

The next 5 hours are walked along the gravel road.  We had 2 or 3 vehicles go past us in the opposite direction.... oh how we were hoping someone would be coming our way.  We walked past a hunter that had about 6 hounds in the back of his truck, and a nice buck on his roof.  He was waiting for his last dog to come home.  He was parked there as his dog was trained to return to the stop he left the car.  We then had 3 dirt bikes pass us.  How our hearts raced when we heard then, hoping they were cars but as they came around the corners we were disappointed.  There were 2 topics that had Tim & I walking at about 5km per hour (up from about 3km previously), TGIF restaurant and our wives and kids.  About 1 hour into this combined conversation we got the map out and Tim noticed we had knocked off some major kilometers.

Finally at 2pm, 3 four wheel drives drove past.  The first 2 went on past but the last vehicle stopped.  New Zealand John drove us down to Jamieson and let us off at the Brewery bridge.  If was nice to get out of the direct sun and the look of the Thompson River was too good to pass up.

Shortly after having a pie from the local milk bar, Kaziah came past and gave us stinky fellas a ride home..... she was lucky she didn't smell us before the river dip!

Hiking Hygiene

So lets make a quick list of everything you use at home to keep yourself squeaky clean and looking/smelling good and hygienic.

  

Some of us do not require a brush or comb by default!

• Shampoo/conditioners
• Face wash
• Moisturiser
• Toothpaste
• Floss
• Mouthwash
• Shaver
• Shaving cream
• Body wash/soap
• Antiperspirant/deodorant 
• Hand wash/sanitizer 
• Toenail clippers
• Hand Nail clippers
• Emery board 
• Nose hair trimmer/ tweezers
• Flannel for washing
• Toilet paper 
• Q tips/ ear buds
• Brush/ combs
• Hair dryers/ curler
• Cologne/ perfume

So lets get real about what that would weigh.  Even if you used your shampoo as a body wash, face wash, moisturiser, shaving cream, hand wash/sanitizer you are still carrying some real weight!

When Tim & I head out for our 40 days in the Australian Alps we want to be carrying around 42kilos combined so we need to be really mindful of how much pack weight we are willing to allocate to hygiene.

We are hoping to have a river bath every couple of days when the opportunity presents itself but to be honest we are going to smell.  We will have one change of clothes for each weather type ( hot or cold) so even if we are smelling like fresh mountain water from the river, our clothes are going to be putrid.  After the first week Tim & I won't probably be able to smell ourselves anymore, the only way we will really know how bad we smell is by the speed in which all manner of living creature tried to flee our presents in the bush.

Lets cross off the easy to eliminate from the above list....remembering I have no hair & Tim will be getting a good trim before leaving.  Lets remove shampoo/conditioner, face wash, moisturiser, mouthwash, shaver and shaving cream, toe and hand nail clippers, emery board, nose hair trimmers, Q tips, brush/comb, hair dryer or curler and cologne.  Those were easy, no real sacrifices made..... but now we start having to think a little deeper.

Flannel is light weight and can be stuffed into almost any air gap in the pack but surely using my hand to scrub up in the river will do, Okay lets drop the flannel.

Floss is small, light weight and crucial to keeping my dentist happy..... but based on the idea that we will have 1 rest day on day 11 our wives and kids, we will let them bring the hygienic extras and forgo good dental hygiene on the trail.

Antiperspirant/deodorant is not small but it is light, it may make that first 20 minutes of every morning bearable..... but of course the lovely fragrance emitted by these products will disappear 20 minutes down the trail so it really isn't going to effect our overall sanity...... its out!

Lets move onto the keepers then.  Toothpaste & toothbrush and body wash/soap, have both made the final 4 with very little surprises there but lets talk about the hand sanitizer.... necessary?  A small bottle is going to be one of my luxury inclusions in my pack.  I have read a number of article from various sources who have been through these areas and some have found the water made them sick, some found that if they drank the water after washing their hands the water was fine.... expecting the individuals got sick from the germs on their hands not the water source.  Its a easy insurance policy I think.  Nothing will be more shattering then getting into the trip and having to pull out and go home due to illness.

So item number 4 on my list of hygiene must brings...... of course toilet paper.  I am not as hard core as the guys in the below video clip!  I do however believe I will use some of their tips to reduce the amount of paper I will bring.

I will not be scrapping my ass with a rock, or bark, or a fern.  We are roughing it but some things I am happy to add pack weight for.  A small travel pack of inter-folding toilet paper will not break my back.  That being said I am converted to the outdoor baday, great idea and highly hygienic.

I'll be interested in everyones comments of further hygiene tips while on the trail, so please make comments in the field provided below.

Day 3 - BASHED & LOST

We start the day retracing our steps from the error we made the night before, (see article Day 2 - Hills, Views and an Alpine Tiger Snake)  After crossing Black River we started our 2.8km bush bash northward  to a point in dense brush where we are meant to find a cairn which will indicate for us to change to a northeast direction for another 2.8km of bush bashing across a saddle and then up Mt Shillinglaw, Chapman's book says to expect 3-5 hours of bush bashing.

After 3 hours we were frustrated but happy to see a burnt out marker on a tree as well as a couple other signs that other groups had seen this mess we were in as well.  Above the words What Trak were some other descriptive words which I won't relay.

We knew the cairn we were looking for as a direction changer was at the summit of the ridge we were following and my Suunto watch came in handy with constant elevation checks but after another 2 hours we could tell we still had a some elevation to climb and we were desperate to see any new signs of track confirmation.  None came.

We had a bearings some what as we could see Mt Shillinglaw from time to time when the scrub cleared and could also see a logging trail which we believed met up with the Jamieson-licola Rd we expected to be at by now!

Things were not working right for about an hour now, Tim & I took off our packs and got out all the assets we brought with us.  Map, compass, GPS and a couple of prayers!  We had something to eat and drink and assessed that we had now indeed passed our turn off and return in the direction we came from.  Within 10 metres of turning around Tim notices a white drink bottle on the ground, it was mine from when we had walked through there 10 minutes ago!  The forest was not only interrupting our progress it was stealing from me too........

It had been about 20 minutes of bashing when when Tim almost said "lets have another look at the maps" when I yelled out those marvellous words which would dominate our afternoon for the next 2 hours.  PINK PAINT!

Look closely, wasn't easy to spot on the day either

Thank you to whoever had done the trail and marked the scrub with pink paint.  We were like fat kids in the candy shop!  There was laughter and dancing, I think Tim & I almost hugged at one point!  We had the trail....... but 10 metres later....... where did it go.  Tim & I would split up and walk about 15 metres and one of us would yell out "Pink Paint" the other would then bush bash back to the trail and start the process again.  The below images shows how dense the scrub is, top photo of my back from about 3 metres in front of Tim.  I took a small step, 300mm step and this is the result in the picture below, gone!

4:30pm we had made it out of the scrub having left at about 9am from Black river camping ground to McMillan track a massive distance of....... 5km!  This is 1 of 3 sections with this difficulty on the whole Australian Alps Walking Track.  We were happy to see the McMillan marks but we were down to about 500ml of water each and were about 8km from a reliable water source ( as shown on the map) we decided to make it a long day and get to Rumpff saddle as quick as we could, picking up water on the Barkly Jeep Track so we could avoid headaches from dehydration.

When we saw the water some 3 km's down the road, it made it worth the effort.  Fresh, cold, mountain fresh flowing water.  Although we had been filtering the water over the past couple days we didn't even bother with this spot.  The whole time we were filling up and downing some fresh stuff right off the rocks I was thinking of my father.  Along the Appalachian Trail Dad & his brothers used to swoon over the natural water springs pouring out of the mountain face.  Its Dad's favourite brew, ice cold mountain water.  This photo is for you Dad.....soak in that image!

Well 8pm we set up camp after skipping like school girls from the water source to Rumpff saddle.  Tents, then food.  We had rehydrated pasta and veggies and Tim had brought some bags of Tuna to add to the mix...... wow... what a feed.  The perfect meal to reward our days work.  We washed up and hit the tents about 9:30pm.  A belly full of food, well hydrated and the knowledge of knowing we just tackled one of the more difficult sections of the AAWT and conquered.  We slept well.




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