Day 355 Mount Field NP Tuesday 17th January 2012



Mountain Rocket

Hi Folks,
As i type this it is 1130 with fairly steady thundery rain falling accompanied by thunder and lightning, still quite warm around 20 degrees.
Big walking day today. I was up at 650 thanks to a screaming  small child running around the park.
After breakfasting and preparing i was up on the mountain quite early and walking by 930. The weather was not over pleasant warmish with a stiff northerly breeze obliterating the sound of my voice on the video though some might say that is a good thing. The ascent up to the tarn shelf takes in a fair bit of the service track to the ski chalets and is quite steep. Once up on the shelf the view is quite spectacular down to the glacial valley. The track then wends it way around the small glacial lakes. I was the first car in the car park and thought i was going to have the walk to myself. However i filled the card up in the video camera and while i was standing deleting old movies two groups of people passed me. I felt over equipped compared to everyone else. There are dire warnings about carrying warm and weatherproof clothing due to sudden weather changes. I of course heed these while everyone else with no packs laden with water and Antarctic survival clothes glides past me. This loading caused me to leave my digital camera in the car and use the video which does take stills, exclusively. Consequently I have a lot of video much of it with the soundtrack being the wind.

Pencil Pines

I had lunch at a very pretty spot Lake Newdegate. The ants were a menace and i blame them for spilling the gypper from my tuna tin on my new hat. I washed it in the stream and strapped it on my back pack which was an immediate cue for the sun to come out.
The scenery and the plants on the shelf were quite outstanding and i am thinking of returning with my still camera. I would do a retrace walk from Twisted Tarn rather than the full circuit of today. The circuit is OK but you end up descending below the car park and climbing up again through some typical flora for the region. Where as the retrace would be back through the tarns and down hill to finish. I hope the pictures and video give a good idea of the beauty.
I would have to say that the walk is as good as the lakes around Cradle Mountain.
I swapped positions on the walk with a couple with 2 teenage girls. When they stopped i would pass them and vice versa. On the homeward leg i though i was well ahead, not that it is a race! However on the flat i spied them about 50 metres behind me. As we climbed up the hill i strode hard and soon left them behind. We were chatting after the walk and i told them i couldn't let them finish ahead of me. They said the girls almost staged a rebellion in the last section because they were tired. We had a good laugh and i spent some time chatting to them in the campground afterwards. Nice people from Smithton. Coincidentally  she also has had a BCC removed from her nose.  The campground still has a selection of people in it but nowhere near full.

Lake Seal

The teenagers next door swam in the river today and found a submerged laptop and phone no doubt dumped stolen goods. The laptop is from the same series as mine i.e. it looks exactly the same. I did a double take when i saw it  propped up in the sun next to the BBQ's. I think they have some dream that it might magically spring to life however i think electrolytic corrosion will have taken care of that. It did look in reasonable condition though (for something that has been submerged!).
I also can't believe someone drove their big Maui mobile home up to the top. Sure the road is wide enough if there is non one coming the other way!

night folks
Simon

Sorry about the wind noise...

View across to Mount Field east then over Lake Seal to the Rodway Hut and rope ski lift. Lastly to the tarn lakes.

Tarn lakes

Think I was on about the lakes being formed by glaciers

.

Glacial gouging and the valley cut by the glacier.

Skeleton trees

Lake Newdegate