Duo walking Tharwa to Hotham - Oct-Nov 2022 - Advice?

A forum for discussing the Australian Alps Walking Track. This is a 655 km long track from Walhalla (Vic) to Tharwa (ACT)

Duo walking Tharwa to Hotham - Oct-Nov 2022 - Advice?

Postby VKCtoAAWT » Thu 02 Dec, 2021 12:04 pm

G'day,

Already a couple of months into my planning and would like to get some input from those who have actually walked the track (I don't know anyone personally who has been near it).

Myself and a good friend will be walking 2/3 of AAWT southbound from Tharwa to Hotham from Mid OCT 2022 to raise money for an Emergency Services charity.

We are both rather experienced bushwalkers (both grew up in the Blue Mountains, hiked peaks and tracks in Australia, Japan, NZ and Europe, myself Army trained and with good risk management and nav skills through my line of work), and I have spent a considerable amount of time hiking in the Victorian alps, especially around Falls and Hotham. However, our longest thru hike is about 9 days and am looking to get some advice on certain aspects of logistics and what to realistically expect out on the track regarding terrain and adverse weather whilst I await for my copy of the Chapman bible to arrive.

Please bear with me as some of these questions might sound naive or like I haven't done my research (trust me I haven't stopped reading up on the track for the past 3 months), but I would really like to hear about walkers first hand experiences.

For two fit (but not superathletic) 30 year olds, is 30 days Tharwa > Hotham southbound too little or too long to expect?

Generally speaking for that section of the track, what is the climate doing between mid OCT > mid NOV? well aware of how unpredictable things have been in recent years.

If walking southbound and deciding to take on the Cobberas what is the best point to deviate from the AAWT and link back up with it afterwards? How long will this side trip reasonably add to the walk?

My work is likely able to hook me up with a fair bit of equipment like GPS, sat phone etc. is this overkill?

Recommended supply drop points for this section of the track?

Popping into Thredbo for a rest day, does it kill the magic and the challenge or the trip or will it be a big morale boost?

Any other advice, tips, insights and anecdotes would be hugely appreciated. I am really looking forward to this next year and giving the track the full respect of a years worth of planning and prep it no doubt deserves.

Regards,
VKCtoAAWT
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Re: Duo walking Tharwa to Hotham - Oct-Nov 2022 - Advice?

Postby Lophophaps » Thu 02 Dec, 2021 4:04 pm

Welcome to the forum.

It probably helps to break the journey down into smaller sections
Tharwa to Thredbo about 10 days, mainly flat.
Thredbo to Hotham about 15 days plus side trips.
I'd allow one night at Thredbo and another at Glen Willis Retreat
http://www.glenwills.com/
This is certainly part of the trip. I did two days in one long day and got to Glen Willis Retreat a day early, two days of bliss, washing and sleeping.

The weather for October-November could be anything. A few years ago in mid-October I was stuck in a hut for three nights - snow, a blizzard and raging creeks. At Schlink Pass I could not go over the Main Range - too much snow.

After Tin Mine Huts it's a nice climb to Pilot, from where you can go down the somewhat scrubby south side or take the west slope back to the road. Cobberas is probably best accessed from Cowombat Flat; someone else can give details. The time depends on your fitness, scrub and weather, all unknowns. Allow a day or so. You may have to carry water.

A GPS is useful on some untracked sections. A PLB is regarded by many as essential. A sat phone ... do not know.

Food drops should be at about 5-10 day intervals. This may be a starting point.
Kiandra
Thredbo, held at your accommodation
Glen Willis Retreat
A number of Victorian roads are closed until the Thursday before Cup Day, so you may need to put in some of these before winter. You should be able to mail food drops to Thredbo and Glen Willis. Fuel cannot legally be posted.

In the Jagungal region it's possible to take many ways to get to Schlink Pass. Most are off tracks. If you get to Cesjacks you can climb Jagungal as a day trip. Going south to Tin Hut, keep in the frost hollows above the Doubtful. This is much nicer than a road bash to Mackays, Grey Mare and Schlink Hilton, or the scrub on the ridge. There's less climbing too.

Camp at Cotter Gap and get across the catchment in a day. I reached Oldfields Hut for lunch, and dinner.

I had a very long, hot tiring day getting to Johnnys Top. I suggest camping at Buenba Hut site or Corner Creek.

Morass Creek is nasty, slime.

It's a long, hard day from Mount Wills Hut to the top of T Spur, with no water after the first two hours, small soaks at the bottom of Long Spur.

Big River should be okay at T Spur. Another option is to go over Bogong and down Quartz Ridge. The original Alpine Walking Track had this as a formal variation, so diverting a bit here or in Kosciuszko is okay and if the weather permits, much better.
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Re: Duo walking Tharwa to Hotham - Oct-Nov 2022 - Advice?

Postby paidal_chalne_vala » Thu 16 Dec, 2021 9:21 pm

Crossing Big River in October / Nov. during the snow melt period at the bottom of the T spur could be iffy . The crossing of Big River at the bottom of Timm's Spur is always easier and not as deep.If the 2022 XC ski season is a good one then depositing snow shoes, snow pegs for a tent, snow shovel &/or even stashing BC XC ski gear for the Main Range could be a good idea!. You can stash them somewhere once you come down to Dead Horse Gap if you are going North to South.
If you are coming from Vic. to NSW then you may also encounter deep snow on Mt. Bogong , Mt. Loch and the BHP in spring. For example I XC skied at Baw Baw on 16/11/21. The night before I camped at O Shea's mill on the AAWT. Two AAWT walkers rocked up after dark having started their trek from Walhalla.They camped there too.
They had no ski gear and no snow shoes. The snow was over 30 cms deep up on the Baw Baw plateau and was really good to ski on. Full deep fresh dry complete consolidated snow cover for proper turns and techniques.
They would have had some trouble without snow pegs, snow skis, snow shoes , snow baskets on their walking stocks/poles etc..
I walked the AAWT over the BHP this year from Pole 267 to Roper's hut in early Nov.. There were sections that were really wet because of the wet spring and the snow melt.
Getting things to dry out after 4 days of walking was a relief.
Spring is an unknown quantity in terms of weather on the AAWT. At least you won't struggle to find water and the weather will not be too hot nor will the insects vex you too much.
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