When I awoke, first thing I noticed was the humidity. The hut was surrounded in a mist, and with the prospect of a climb up through rainforest, I wasn’t looking forward to this first section. This was a tough one for me today.
I stopped countless times, exhausted, soaking with sweat. The forest was dark, and I couldn’t even muster a photo until I finally reached the cool breeze that awaited me at Pelion Gap.
This is the junction for the path to the summit of Mount Ossa, Tasmania’s highest mountain, at 1617 metres. Had I been inclined, which I was not, I would have been disappointed because the rain was starting and clouds closing in.
I took some photo’s and set off downhill, across Pine Stone Valley, to Kia Ora Hut.
At Kia Ora, it seemed I would have company. Four bushwalkers had sprawled their gear everywhere, it was obvious they had had an eventful night. Turns out they had climbed Mount Massif the day before, but on descent, the weather turned nasty, they missed a turn and eventually had to bivvy the night in very tight scrub, and sit it out.
After an hour of my arrival, they had packed up and were off to the next hut, as they wanted to get to Pine Valley. Once again, I had the place to myself. So, settled in for the afternoon, did my water boiling chores, dinner, read and finished a book on my Kindle, then started another.
Tonight was a late one; I must have been asleep by 9 pm, once the wildlife had stopped running across the veranda.