A Dangerous Business

Date: 3rd September 2023

Start: West Branch Walker’s Camp

End: Consuelo Camping Zone

Distance Walked: 17.3 km

Current Song Stuck in Head: Past, Present, Future by Kings Kaleidoscope

Need for shower: Extreme

Apart from walking through the gorge on day 1, today has been the highlight of my trip so far. There was some nice variety in the scenery, the climbing really wasn’t that bad, and there was plenty of wildlife to see as well.

Considering the extra distance I had to cover and the longer estimated time it’d take to do it, I was really hoping to get going relatively early. But, as is often the case on cold mornings, I could not muster the willpower to do so. As such, I only got going at 8:20, about an hour after when I wanted to leave. With that said, it was nice to get a good night’s sleep; I spent most of the first night tossing and turning in a vain attempt to get comfortable. Crossing the bridge, I began heading north on a very sandy track that reminded me of the early stages of the trail through the gorge. Fortunately for any younglings, it wasn’t enough to get me to turn to the dark side.

The track then emerges into more of that wonderful Aussie bush that I spent all day tramping through yesterday. As beautiful as it is – and yes, I reckon it has a charm to it – I was getting pretty sick of it and of how exposed it left me.

Early on the track was fairly flat, but my map suggested that there would be some pretty gnarly climbing coming my way later on. I believed it for the most part, as although it didn’t look anywhere near as steep as Battleship Spur (which has since become the benchmark I will use to measure any future ascents against), I still had to climb from 850 m to close to 1200 m.

There was a short bit of steep climbing… but then it flattened out… and then it stayed flat. Look, I was a bit confused, but I’ll take a flat track over anything else any day of the week! This climb had also deposited me into an area known as the Mahogany Forest. Not the most accurate description in the world considering it was a forest full of gum trees not mahogany, but these weren’t your average gum.

This patch of forest never saw the loggers’ saw, leading to these towering stringybarks, the next closest example of which is on the QLD/NSW border. My wish for a more diverse landscape was fulfilled, reminding me of the forests I had walked through on my previous multi-dayers. The forest also brought with it a tonne of wildlife. Mostly birds, flying and singing from the trees above me, but also feral pigs. Yeah, not exactly the kind of animals I want to see in this part of the world. On farms, absolutely, but not in a national park. There was a sign back in Carnarvon Gorge that mentioned their presence, how destructive they can be and what the rangers are doing about it. The damage they cause is just as evident put here too. I’ve walked past numerous sections of dug up soil where they’ve come in trying to look for food. It’s a stark reminder that conservation is more than just gazetting an area as ‘protected land’, building a bunch of hiking trails and saying “job done.” It takes a tonne of effort from rangers to maintain the facilities that we get to enjoy and take care of pests like feral pigs, and from us, ensuring we leave these places the same that we left them so that future visitors can also enjoy spending time out here.

On a more positive note, emus!

As far as I know, this is the closest I’ve ever gotten to seeing an emu in the wild. I saw them in passing when I travelled on the Spirit of the Outback (train from Longreach to Brisbane) around this time last year, but that was only in passing. It’s been hard at times on this trip to focus on what’s around me. Most of the time all I can think about is how sore my feet/shoulders are or worrying about any snakes lurking in the tall grass either side of me. The only time I look up to see animals is when I’ve startled them into bolting away. Exhibit A: this goanna. Just chilling in the grass, then I come along and he leaps onto the nearest tree.

And then a whole lotta nothing. Don’t get me wrong, I am glad I came out here, but it’s definitely not as picturesque as some of the other times I’ve done. Guess that’s just my personal preference. I like mountains and forests, not as big on grassy bushland.

4.5 hours into an estimated 6 hour hike, I arrived at Consuelo. Yes, I am also a bit perplexed at that time. My best guess is either I’m travelling faster now that I’ve eaten half of my food or I’ve gotten fitter over the past couple days, or a mixture of the two. I had fully prepared myself for a longer day than yesterday, that I’d be spending potentially multiple hours on the climb up to the tableland. I guess I was right, I did spend more time on trail today… a whole 15 minutes longer than yesterday.

So once again, I have an entire afternoon to kill at camp. I was tempted to keep going to Cabbage Tree, but mentally I wasn’t up for it. I had committed to going to Consuelo when I left West Branch, so that is where I would go. Speaking of Cabbage Tree, I began making some plans at camp last night, and after today’s performance I think I can accomplish them. In short, I will skip Cabbage Tree and head straight for the end. Here’s the thing: from here to Cabbage Tree is only 13.8 km and it’s basically flat the entire way. I’ll be able to zip through that section in no time. The section after that back to the visitor’s centre is almost all downhill, save for one small climb around the mid-way point. Combining both will be 29.1 km, so it will be a long day. However, I managed 25 km on the first day with a full bag and no previous walking. I’ve now done 3 days worth of hiking and my bag is noticeably lighter, and I won’t be doing any major climbing. I reckon it’s very doable, and it saves me having to spend most of tomorrow just chilling at camp. I will have to leave early though, so here’s hoping I can actually brave the cold for once and get moving at a decent time.

This hike has really messed with my normal daily rhythm, particularly around meal times. To save myself the hassle of trying to cook under torchlight, I’ve been eating dinner around 5:30, when I’d usually eat around 6:30-7:00. Tonight’s meal came with an unexpected guest.

Now, throughout this trip I’ve been joined at camp by another hiker. He mostly keeps to himself so I haven’t talked with him all that much. So you can imagine my surprise when as soon as I turn in for the night I hear footsteps approaching the campsite and 4 more hikers arrive. From what I overheard, they’ve come all the way from Gadd’s, hence their late arrival. I didn’t catch their names, but based on their pace I’m presuming they’re also going to the end of the trail tomorrow, too. Either way, hearing the sounds of fellow hikers at camp is strangely comforting, even when you don’t know them.