Ironbound - East to West or West to East

[Jaxter]

I'm doing the South Coast track over Christmas with some friends (first time for me) and we're walking Cockle Creek to Melaleuca. I was just wondering what your opinions/experience are in going over the Ironbound Range from the east vs the west. It looks on the map to be a steeper rise on the east side, but I've heard its all roots and mud and so going up might be easier than going down.

Also, has there been any track improvement in the last few years (I'm aware of the duckboarding at the Cockle Creek end)?

Thanks

[dplanet]

Just do it. I could. Of course, you can.

[loftythelion]

Having done the SC Track and spoken to others who have. It's not the Ironbound you need to worry about. It's the South Cape Ranges which is the bit you need to worry about. The track over the Ironbounds is terrific. The SCR are I'm sure like the WW1 trenches were with the added difficulty of going up and down!
Having said that, to answer your question the track going up from W-E is better than the up track from E-W. We did the walk last Feb. Enjoy your hike. Mrs Lofty says it was the best thing she has EVER done!

[tasadam]

My wife has recently completed Cockle Creek to Melaleuca (end Oct / early Nov). She found the Ironbounds relatively easy. She puts it about on par with Mt Roland, but with some mud at the base.
She thought it easier doing it east to west, but has not done the other way and at the time was daunted at the thought of doing it west to east. Having talked with people and read comments from others, she would be tempted to give it a go. Her concerns were carrying a heavy pack and doing steep mountains and Red Point Hills early in the walk.

Having heard her description I am sure she would be capable without too much difficulty.

There are some trees fallen but you can find the track easy enough. The 2nd day took longer than expected partly due to some members of the party being inexperienced with muddy conditions. On the subject of mud, there are a couple of sections that look difficult to get through but aren't that bad - you won't find it that difficult if you have experienced mud before. Bear in mind the conditions were pretty dry compared to what they can be like down there, she describes some sections as having the potential to get really unpleasant with a decent downpour.

A good track from Freney Lagoon to Melaleuca, mostly on boards.

Have a great time and enjoy your walk.

[wello]

We did the South coast Track from East to West around new years in 06/07. It's fair to say that the vast majority of people do it the other way, flying into melaleuca and walking west to east. climbing the Ironbound range from the East is very muddy, and would be quite slippery and dangerous going down I think. There are a few small creeks to give you some water for the climb, which was important for us as we did it in warm conditions. there would also be reasonable shelter provided by the trees in bad weather. conversely, on the western side there is no water and no shelter. the track is rock or gravel, and in fairly good condition. It is still steep, with high steps in places. The good thing about climbing from the west is that you can get a sense of how far you have climbed and how far to go. On the East, you can't see anything except the trees until you're virually on top.

Agree with some previous comments too. The South Cape Range is just as bad as the Ironbounds, and is a pretty tough day. I'd definitely rate the Ironbounds as a fair bit harder than Mt Roland though!

[tas-man]

<SNIP> On the subject of mud, there are a couple of sections that look difficult to get through but aren't that bad - you won't find it that difficult if you have experienced mud before. Bear in mind the conditions were pretty dry compared to what they can be like down there, she describes some sections as having the potential to get really unpleasant with a decent downpour. <SNIP>

I have been intending to give a bit of a report on my Easter walk along the South Coast Track, but will butt in here with some comments on the Ironbounds to South Cape Range section. We had mainly good weather for our first four days with a brilliant high camp on the New Harbour Range. We experienced a spectacular thunder and lightning show followed by rain camped at Louise River. The next day's climb of the Ironbounds was in reasonable but overcast conditions until we reached the top, then the weather rapidly deteriorated into cold blustery rain and sleet. The trip down the mountain was not as muddy as my two partners had remembered it from 9 years ago, but the ups and downs and many creek crossings at the end seemed to go on forever until we reached Little Deadmans Bay campsite on dusk. The rain continued all night and packing up in the rain next morning was not one of the trip highlights, however the best was yet to come! We walked for half an hour and were stopped at the creek, just before Deadman's Bay, running well over its banks. We watched it for a while and it was still rising, so cleared the track a bit and put up wet tents in the rain for our "rest day" to wait for the water level to drop. Next morning the creek had dropped significantly and we crossed only knee deep where the day before it would have been 2 metres deep. Continued on that day in the rain squalls along Prion Beach to camp at Suprise Bay that night. The climb up the South Cape Range next morning was no worse than the lower parts of the eastern side of the Ironbounds, but once we reached the plateau the track was very muddy and churned up. The ups and downs over tree roots, in and out of mud, continued it seemed for hours until we finally seemed to be moving over the range. It was very slow going in the rain and we gave up on our attempt to get to South Cape Rivulet and made camp in daylight on the top of the next ridge east of the range proper, in a small area of open eucalypt forest, where Chapman had noted a campsite. The rain stopped for that night and the stars came out - lovely red sunrise, then more rain to pack up in again! So in summary I confirm that the South Cape Range does have the "potential to get really unpleasant with a decent downpour."

[DonQx]

Have done the SCT quite a few times.

Prefer going East to West, ie. walk in, fly out. Someone once said that's the "spiritually correct" way to go, whatever that means .

A drawback is hitting the South Cape Range early and with packs at their heaviest. One way to make it easier is to split SCR into 2 days, that's what we'll do next time.

Have often heard the argument that walking E->W is no good coz you walk into the weather, but haven't found that to be much of an issue, even on bad weather trips.

Nice thing about going E->W is the grand views ahead when going down the Ironbounds.

Next time we go, Xmas 08 maybe, we'll probably allow 11-12 days coz there should be several keen pic snappers on the trip.

Some pretty nice pics of our last trip at http://ahack.org/.

Cheers, a.

[tasadam]

I don't remember whether I read it somewhere, or whether a ranger told me, but I can vaguely recall something about Parks having a preference of direction to walk the track due to root rot and minimising the risk of spreading by walking one direction only.

I can't find it now, but did find this on the walking notes on the Parks site

http://www.parks.tas.gov.au/recreation/ ... coast.html

Phytophthora root rot
Phytophthora cinnamomi is a fungus that kills many of our native plants. It is known to exist at Scotts Peak, Melaleuca and other locations on the two tracks. Mud and soil, which is carried on vehicles, boots, gaiters and toilet trowels, helps to spread the disease.To prevent in fecting new areas boots and all gear that comes in contact with the soil should be cleaned of any mud or dirt prior to your walk. You should also wash your boots at each significant stream crossing. If you come across a washdown station please follow the directions.

Also topical is this -

Access to the start of the track
Because plane flights are weather dependent, most people walk west to east (Melaleuca to Cockle Creek). Plane companies operate flights to Melaleuca by light plane, to/from Cambridge Airport near Hobart Airport.

[norts]

My reasoning for walking West to East was that if the weather was foul I would rather be waiting at home for good weather rather than waiting at Melaleuca with minimal food.

Roger