Overland Track: Pests

[whynotwalk]

I'm doing some interpretation work for Parks & Wildlife in relation to the Overland Track. There will eventually be new interpretive panels at each major site to replace the old, sad panels that people currently hang their Goretices* on. Without giving the whole game away, I'm wanting to include a series of light-hearted bits in each hut that's a sort of "Rogues Gallery" of pests encountered along the Track (excluding humans!) So the two-part query for this forum:

1) What are some of your "favourite", commonly encountered "pests" on the Overland? So far I am considering leeches, mosquitos, march flies, bush flies, rogue possums, blisters and mud. Anyone got any others? (Let's exclude snakes, btw - they'll be covered elsewhere.)
2) Near which of the major huts are you most likely to encounter these "pests"? (eg leeches and Pelion go together well)

I have my own ideas, but would value the experience of others,

cheers

Peter

* I believe that should be the plural of Goretex!

[tasadam]

Hi Peter.

You could start by having a read of this thread.
Mice are the biggest pest around huts. And as you have, possums around tents.

No doubt this topic will generate further reply.

Excluding humans, you say. Pity, that means we can't include things like this... or this.

Jack jumpers, European wasps, March flies to go with your bush flies (they bite, but they're slow enough to swat - killed plenty of em in my time), the potential for disease spread by flies landing on food & food prep areas is always a good one, don't forget the infamous Possum Pete at Ducane who, rumour has, will put your pack on and waltz off with it even if you're looking.... (that possum gets bigger in every story)

[whynotwalk]

Thanks Adam - a good place to start. I will add jack-jumpers - and already had march flies. I may leave feral rodents out of it. I'm hopeful they'll be victims of an on-going eradication plan. (I understand Parks rid Echo Pt. hut of rats a few years back, although it doesn't take a lot to reintroduce them).

don't forget the infamous Possum Pete at Ducane

Yep, hard to forget! I have my own story from a few years back. "Pete" visited my tent at Du Cane during the night seemingly every-hour-on-the-hour. He only came in the vestibule, but eventually unzipped my pack, removed a few zip-lock bags and scarpered. In the morning I found the book I'd been reading, "King of the Wilderness" (Christobel Mattingly's lovely biography of Deny King) removed from its bag, with possum "fang" marks all over it. A semi-literate possum that devours books??

cheers

Peter

[norts]

There are the currawongs on Cradle Circque ( at the junction of Barn Bluff track and O/land) who have learnt to undo zipps. I havent had the misfortune but have seen packs there that had been unzipped, they were having a feast.

Roger

[tasadam]

Yeah, fancy forgetting about Currawongs. At Dove Lake carpark, they'll take the food out of your hands if you don't eat it quick enough <translate> = instantly.

[Son of a Beach]

Possums are the only ones I've had a real problem with personally, but I'd agree with all the others mentioned so far too. BTW, the possums were worst (for me) at the Windy Ridge Hut, but of course that may all change with the new hut. There was one kamikaze possum who used to wait on the shelf outside the door for people to open it, then charge in as soon as he got his chance. Then there was a team that used to roll blunt square/irregular objects down the roof seemingly to make the most irritating noise they could come up with during the night.

BTW, if you plan to use this forum as research for something that is going to be published, some sort of recognition of the forums 'invaluable assistance' wouldn't go astray.

[walkinTas]

I'm pleased you left snakes out, since they don't deserve to be depicted as pests.

This little story is on-topic.

[tas-man]

Yeah, fancy forgetting about Currawongs. At Dove Lake carpark, they'll take the food out of your hands if you don't eat it quick enough <translate> = instantly.

Here is the evidence - I photographed these two Currawongs perched on a car roof in the Dove Lake carpark, watching and waiting for their next "kill" when an unsuspecting tourist left any foodstuffs unguarded

[tas-man]

<SNIP> I'm wanting to include a series of light-hearted bits in each hut that's a sort of "Rogues Gallery" of pests encountered along the Track <SNIP>
I have my own ideas, but would value the experience of others,

cheers
Peter

I can recall two possum incidents on the Overland Track. The first was when spending Christmas Eve 1970 in Ducane Hut and being "terrorised" by Black Pete the resident possum who growled and snarled at us trying to extract food scraps from us. He was able to climb around freely inside the hut and up the posts that supported the bunks, so there was no safe place to leave anything that hinted of food. We had to hang our packs from the rafters! The other incident was two days before at Kia Ora Hut when one of my mates was teasing the resident possum (no name?) walking around inside the hut. He was sitting on his bunk about to put his socks on and as the possum came past him he shooed it away with his foot. As quick as lightning the possum pounced on his big toe and sunk its teeth into it. Fortunately the toenail protected the top, but a nasty cut on the underside of his toe had to be bandaged and made the rest of the weeks walking to Cradle not as comfortable as it might have been.

A leech story can be told about the old "New Pelion Hut" on the same trip. Arriving at the door, those inside demanded that new comers "de-leech" themselves before entering, and once inside contribute some of their salt to the "salt barrier" that ran across the threshold of the doorway. That night I dreamed about an army of leeches writhing on the door step gesturing wildly in anger at being denied entry to their feasting ground.

[eggs]

I would have to agree on the Currawongs. But this was many years ago at the Lake St Clair end. It was before the visitor centre and we were cooking up some breakfast in the open sided hut there. i had a piece of bacon in my mouth when one of them flew in through one window, snatched it out of my mouth and then took off through the other window.

I suspect it may have been a practised routine ?

Brian

[sarge]

rriving at the door, those inside demanded that new comers "de-leech" themselves before entering, and once inside contribute some of their salt to the "salt barrier" that ran across the threshold of the doorway.

Love the leech stories - I am personally am not terribly bothered by them but was with walking with two ladies absolutely terrified of leeches. At waterfall valley cooking dinner one lady turned to say something to the other and (unbeknownst to her) had a leech attached to chin just under her lip. The other one panicked and slapped her in the mouth to try to brush the leech off.

I think a slap in the face is worse than a leech bite myself but she later thanked her for it - strange priorities!!!!!

[Pedro]

I've just noticed this thread and have a couple of Currawong stories to add. Years ago we left packs at the lake Will turn off and returned to find the contents of the pack tops spread all over the countryside.

Sadly, I forgot this lesson and last April we left our packs at the Lake Rodway turnoff on the Cirque. We returned a few hours later to find that they had been thoroughly examined by the locals:

No real damage as we don't carry food in the accessible bits of the pack, but wait until the birds learn how to open the other clips!

[flyfisher]

We sometimes get pests on the forum too..... we call them spammers.
ff

[tasadam]

We sometimes get pests on the forum too..... we call them spammers.
ff

But they don't last long...
viewtopic.php?p=24984#p24984

[SurferShane]

I just got back and the only real fauna “pest” I encountered was the Currawongs at the lookout platform at Pelion Pass. While climbing Pelion East they went through the top of my backpack and stole my extra tea bags. How the hell can a man live without his daily cup of tea? If you don’t understand the significance of this loss you need to read Sir Ranulph Fiennes “Mad, Bad and Dangerous to know”, where on a polar expedition a serious choice had to be made between using the one remaining flask for an life sustaining energy drink or the daily cup of tea.

On the NON –NATIVE front, I met at least one “human pest”; a certain individual who took it upon himself to abuse me for eating what he thought was the “emergency food” in Pelion Hut. I had been advised that this food was left by a school group who returned via the Arn River Track. The general rule is not to leave food in the huts due the fact it will attract rodents or native animals. Whether or not this individual thought he was doing the right thing, after the loss of my tea bags I considered his remarks serious enough that I moved to Old Pelion to relax before I had some sort of manic episode and fed him to the devils. I note this was the only real rest day I had scheduled for the trek.

Still, there is a real issue of whether the commercialization of the Overland Track is encouraging human pests. This is also evident in the number of individuals who do the walk relying on huts and taking insufficient equipment when four seasons gear should have been carried. Likewise, I witnessed a disproportionate number of individuals using summer sleeping bags in September and relying on the hut heaters for warmth. Maybe I am a bit “old school”, but I can see the walk turning into a series of smelly backpackers hostels that anyone seeking peace and solitude is better to avoid?

The real pity is that due the above conflict I forgot to report to the Rangers that I spotted a black feral cat on the track about a kilometer and a half north of Pelion Pass.

[tastrax]

The real pity is that due the above conflict I forgot to report to the Rangers that I spotted a black feral cat on the track about a kilometer and a half north of Pelion Pass.

...just drop them an email at [email protected]

[SurferShane]

@ Phil - thanks, sent them a report.

[SurferShane]

Hey – I also forgot to mention this possum at Windy Ridge Hut that jumped out of a tree and nearly landed on my head. Maybe the fellow was trying to play on the “drop bear” myth so unsuspecting walkers would get the fright of their life and drop any food they might have been carrying to run to the safety of the fortified Hilton Hotel like hut?

[corvus]

The real pity is that due the above conflict I forgot to report to the Rangers that I spotted a black feral cat on the track about a kilometer and a half north of Pelion Pass.

...just drop them an email at [email protected]

Heard from someone in the know that despite parks being informed of the evidence of Feral cats in the Pelion region that cage traps for humane disposal (which were used at Lillico beach) were not allowed to be taken into the area,can anyone confirm this.
c

[SurferShane]

The real pity is that due the above conflict I forgot to report to the Rangers that I spotted a black feral cat on the track about a kilometer and a half north of Pelion Pass.

Heard from someone in the know that despite parks being informed of the evidence of Feral cats in the Pelion region that cage traps for humane disposal (which were used at Lillico beach) were not allowed to be taken into the area

Might explain why I did not get a prompt response (no response!) asking me to identify the exact location/coordinates. The Rangers are probably all running around rescuing under-equipped walkers or out searching for those elusive *&%$#! foxes?

[frank_in_oz]

Hey – I also forgot to mention this possum at Windy Ridge Hut that jumped out of a tree and nearly landed on my head. Maybe the fellow was trying to play on the “drop bear” myth so unsuspecting walkers would get the fright of their life and drop any food they might have been carrying to run to the safety of the fortified Hilton Hotel like hut?

The possums have found a way into the Bert Nicolls Hut via the flywire in the drying room. Escorted a well fed one out on Wed night. It headed out the same way it came, via the "window".

I understand these screens will be replaced soon....