Ian Skippen takes on Tassie’s Overland Track – Part Two

Day two would be a 12km six-hour walk in the park. Barn Bluff Hut to Pine Forest Moor hut — mostly over plains and boardwalks. A porridge breakfast with toast and coffee, a production line of lunch boxes – salads, tuna, fresh bread, cheese and more scroggin for the trail.

“Get some Ribena into you and make sure there’s plenty of water in your bottles and bladders,” was the order. Our guides were making sure we kept hydrated and nourished. We set off in good spirits with the group chemistry bubbling. Renate the schoolteacher from Brisbane with a welded on smile was competing with Dan the cameraman for the most number of shots, I think.

Pip, our Brisbane midwife, wasn’t far behind and Michelle from country Western Australia was killing it having done Larapinta in central Australia and a camel trek. I had my wet-weather gear on including the duds, but it seemed like they were dragging everything underneath down. Shock horror, how do you deal with thermal sag? I spent the day trying to tighten and hitch up everything, while struggling to operate a smartphone camera with gloves on. My able dresser and motivator was the trail veteran from Small Journeys, Rach. I took it as a complement when she helped me ‘get knotted’. I swore day three I’d ditch the wet weather duds into my pack. They could accompany my port now in its own bladder as the bottle was no longer required. Not that we gave it much of a nudge, but like my trail mix, it was a winner.

An easier day today, wombat bowels still active across the button grass plains to Pine Forest Moor Hut, with a batch of fresh scones after the usual drying room and shower scramble. It was a tad wet again, but the last part of the walk through what really was an enchanting rainforest was the stuff movies are made of. Our huts for the night were warm and comfortable. Plenty of space, plenty of nibblies to help yourself to, books, games and a guitar.

Ben the Ostelin man strummed a bit and Camerman Dan and I had a bit of a freestyle warble before dinner – lamb Ragout tonight and a crème caramel dessert. Port was required after dinner — again — and stories of the day. We did well as a team, although Karen our health professional from Woy Woy had a couple of tumbles in the wet. She was quick to her feet with a smile as we helped her up by the pack. She reckoned she now knew what it was like to turn turtle.

For Day three, I decided to ditch the rain pants after the saggy thermal action the day before. The weather though cool looked okay (yeah right). A 10k day, about five hours as we trudged along skirting the base of Mt Pelion West. Melting snow and rain had turned the track into a creek. We followed what is the Innes track. In the late-1800s it was going to be a railway to bring tin from Mt. Bishop, but the world depression of the time stopped it in its tracks. Anna and Pat our guides had told us not to try and dodge the water. You just plough through otherwise it slows the walk and trying to find a new path can be damaging both to the walkers and the flora.

Water in the boots is the order of the day. There’s no such animal as a totally waterproof boot. Goretex schmortex. The Pelion plains are beautiful as are the views of Mt. Oakleigh with snow and cloud covering. I soon found that ditching the rain pants was a rookie error. Where does the water from a rain jacket and pack end up? Yep, in your lightweight duds and thermals. I also learned why you wear gaiters under. Coming up through rainforest with our guide Anna and our intrepid Ostelin Ambassador Jane, while spotting a pink robin, the elastic on my gaiter grabbed a twig and halted the Skippen progress instantly.

Thank God for the hiking poles to break a face plant and an up close and personal with an Ambassador’s rear. A tightened gaiter and a bent pole the only damage; a lot of laughs and song starts on the way. It seems my years in radio have given me a song repertoire of first lines and maybe a chorus and then the “da da das” step in. Pip, one of our trekkers christened me Pandora. I’m sure the music service would be unimpressed. By the time we got to Pelion hut my nether regions were being iced up by the wet gear. Also it wasn’t easy negotiating latex gloves over the top of ordinary gloves, which still managed to get soaked.

Pelion Hut was a welcome sight. Down to the thermals with our team in the drying room, I was a shroud of steam. Ambassador and Mother Hen Jane ordered me in first for the hot shower. She graciously pushed my button. Then it was out with the lunch boxes. Well some. Mine had gone missing. A roomie had packed two lunch boxes into their pack, in separate compartments. The missing lunch box and subsequent reveal brought many discreet giggles and smiles – and hunger pains. I did manage a few apricots and nuts to hold the heart before dinner. Amazing how the last of the single malt and port held up for our last night on the track. We had a beautiful snowfall, a bit of a sing song from the huts Little Aussie Song Book and a great Penne Pasta dinner and compote dessert. I managed to show guide Anna my incredible garlic chopping skills. I knew I was invited for a reason.

Read more: Ian Skippen takes on Tassie’s Overland Track – Part One

Look out for Part Three (the final part) of Ian’s adventure next week!

Have you visited Tasmania? Would you ever walk the Overland Track?