Winter White Wonderland on the Overland?

[Dutchy]

Hi all,
I was thinking it is getting time again to plan a trip to Tassie. And since I've always wanted to do a winter trip on the Overland I was wondering if you people out there that might have done that before have any tips? Although I'm already quite well equipped gear wise, any tips on that are still welcome too! Group size? What's best? Time of year (most snow or best conditions) and so on!
I'll post a topic looking for fellow walkers in the other forum bit too!
Cheers,
Dutchy!

[mikethepike]

Hi Duchy
No replies yet! Maybe everyone's thinking of summer and beaches at the moment and not about winter in the Park. I intend to walk the Overland Track in the second week of August this year, which will be 40 years to the week a group of 5 of us did it S to N. Its seems a best bet time to go in case winter snow is late while too much later there's likely to be a higher possibility of rain (and you'll soon be in spring). !970 was a very heavy snow year with every step of the walk on/in snow. Kitchen Hut just had the ridge capping of its roof sticking out if the snow and the only shallow snow was on Pelian Plains and Frog Flats where we reckoned it was so exposed to the wind that the snow never gets a chance to settle. In those conditions, just doing the Overland Track is enough effort (was for us anyway) without climbing peaks along the way though we had a diversion to Pine Valley and an unsuccessful go at climbing the Acropolis. The following year two of us again went in week 2 of August to walk around and climbed Cradle and again we were lucky with the snow cover. We never thought to check the snow report when we left home and it was only after we got to Waldheim (after a truly hilarious day spent hitchhiking from Sheffield) that we learnt that if we have come a week earlier, there was no snow except on the summit ridges!
Apart from on the higher ground, I don't think the Park is particulary cold - just miserable if your sleeping bag's inadequate and damp and now that some of the huts can be heated, that would certainly alter the tone of the night component of the trip. If it's a poor snow year, the walk is likely to be little more than a colder damper version of the summer trip and with much shorter days and fewer people so I'm hoping for heavy falls.

Thw biggest difficuly of the walks by far was unintentionally walking off the track and falling, often nearly hip deep, into bushes and that was especially so in sections including out to Pine Valley and Waldhein to Scott Kilvert Hut (at Lake Rodwey) and which trip took 8 hours. It's not too bad in a group of 5 with the lead swaping at each plunge but hard with just two of you. Another bad couple of hours for me was while heading south past Mt Benson in the early morning as the only party member with frozen bindings which saw me sinking knee deep through braking crust at every step (until that glorious moment came when I could finally pee on the bindings and thaw them out!) while my 'friends' disappeared out of sight up the front with their snowshoes barely leaving a scuff mark on the surface for me to follow. Skis would be good in those conditions but in the forest and if the snow runs out and you have to carry them, snowshoes are a better option I think
.
The Park's huts are no longer empty in winter (which is why I am surprised no-one has replied so far) and of the two people I know of who have walked it in recent years, both wore nothing on their boots. 'Why would you need snowshoes?" they asked. Maybe there's not as much snow as in the past. I read an account recently where, although walking the Overland Track in winter was fairly straight forward because of poor snow cover, getting out to climb the various peaks was a fair challenge because deeper snow higher up (snowhsoes may have helped!), icy sections and short days combined to make it a difficult prospect. We snow caved one night on Cradle Cirque on the second trip and it was a bit of a damp exercise but in fact you seem to get damp walking in Tassie in winter - a combination I think of of damp air, wettish snow, wet snow laden bushes and perspiration.

Should you take a tent? Highly probably you'll not need it but it might be e life saver if you do though an emergency snow shelter or survival bag could suffice. We took one tent for emergency (and almost thought the 5 of us would be sleeping in it one night when we couldn't find one of the huts in fading light) and I think the answer is yes.

Can I share a couple of secrets? Take Dram Buie along as the official pre-dinner 'reviver' (and take enough to last the whole trip as running out halfway though is sheer murder!) and take a packet of iced vovos to be opened only on the track at a time judged to be (hopefully) the lowest point of the walk in terms of party morale/weariness/cold/possible rebellion - it works like magic in reversing all these effects even if you're the sole party member!

So enjoy the walk!
Mike

[mikethepike]

Hi again Dutchy
Sorry about leaving out the 't' in earlier post
Mike

[Ent]

Great previous post. Snow shoes are an excellent idea for a winter trip even though you might find you carry them more often than not. It is impossible sitting in a warm office in summer to fully understand how walking times blow out in wet soft Tassie snow. My dreams of floating across the top of snow became a falling through snow reality. In a group cycling point person makes life so much easier but by yourself or in a a small group to two or three expect to be exhausted very quickly unless very fit.

As for shelter, seriously anyone should take shelter that they know how to use when heading off in Tassie's alpine areas in winter. For me it is a 4 season tent, for others a bivvy bag and others more experienced in lightweight stuff tarps, etc. Snow in Tassie is often wet and wet clothes and sleeping bag is at best a recipe for a very uncomfortable night. Decent Gore-tex type coat and pants if the coat style is short is excellent idea as well. Oh yes, it probably will more likely rain than snow but that is part of the full package.

Cheers Brett