Author: Angela

After reading about and seeing pictures from the Grampians I included Halls Gap to my travel itinerary. The mountains in the Grampians are not very high, below 1000 m, but they are spectacular. There is a lot of exposed rock (my favourite) and rock hoping or easy climbing is often required to reach the peaks. The highest mountain , Mt William, was actually the least spectacular in the area because there was a paved road all the way to the top which was littered by masts and a humming transformer. But the views and the sunrise from the top still made it worth while to go there. Sunrise on Mt William.

View from Mt Difficult.

Made it!

My favourite though is Mt Stapylton, a not very famous peak in the northern part of the park. It was not very high in comparison but the rocky peak and the climbing required to get there was just the best.

Taking it easy on Mt Stapylton.

During my stay in the Grampians the weather was just perfect for hiking. It was around 22 degrees and sunshine. Can it be better?

One of the highlights on this trip was the Overland Track, a 6 day hike on Tasmania. I have dreamt about hiking here for a long time and when I realised it was still hiking season I did not hesitate. The Overland Track is supposed to be one of the best in the world. Of course I had to see if this was true…
23 March I started the track with a tour company called Wilderness Expeditions. We were 6 tourists and 2 guides. Since I am travelling alone and not carrying any hiking gear I had to join a tour that would provide everything I needed. We carried all gear ourselves except food which the guides, poor guys, did. The gear was exceptional, Hilleberg tents and Marmot and North Face clothing.
Before we started I thought it was going to be harder. I am not used to carrying a lot, I usually go for one day or two day hikes were it is possible to buy a meal by the end of the day. My backpack weighed about 12 kg and honestly it was no problem at all. We hiked 3-5 hours a day and it felt like a luxury hike especially since the guides insisted on doing all the cooking… The first few days it was difficult to just hang around watching someone cook your food but it was surprisingly easy to get used to. 🙂
Tasmania is not known for its good weather and I believe we were very lucky. We only had rain one day and some showers for two days but the rest of the time was fine. Temperatures were ranging from 5 degrees at night to about 20 when the sun came out. In the evening my hands and feet got a little cold but otherwise the gear kept me warm and cozy.
The scenery varied from great views of the vast country to lakes and rain forest. It was absolutely beautiful at all times and I was walking with a smile on my face for 6 days.
Of course can not any picture make the place justice and it is terribly difficult to choose a few pictures that would describe the whole track.

At Marions lookout. Cradle Mountain in the background.

One of the many lakes we passed.

Sunset at New Pelion Hut.

The view was painfully beautiful at Cape Borda lookout on Kangaroo Island. The dramatic cliffs and the waves against the rocks in contrast with the soft afternoon sunlight. We saw dolphins playing in the waters further out to sea and the sea lions swimming closer to the rocks just below us.

Kangaroos! And wallabies, lizards, scorpions, possums, koalas, sea lions and more. So far Kangaroo Island is the place in Australia I have seen most animals and that’s without even looking very hard. Unfortunately they always turn their back to me when I want to take a photo… Kangaroos, wallabies and lizards were often seen from the car, unfortunately more often flat on the road than alive on the side of it (and no, Stu, I did not take any pictures).