27 August 2017, Overland Track (Bert Nichols Hut to Narcissus Bay), Tasmania
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When we woke up on our last day on the track it was to a world covered in snow.
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So I got up early and took some photos before breakfast on the verandah.
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Back inside the hut, breakfast is about to happen and Don is pouring some milk into his tea or coffee. You can see the snow outside.
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I’m slower than everyone else, partly because I’m the oldest and have the heaviest pack, so I take off first. There are no footsteps in the snow ahead.
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And it’s a white wonderland we’re walking through.
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The previous afternoon we could see the clouds building up ahead. If we’d had to walk through the Du Cane Pass in heavy snow that would have been tricky because it would have been uneven underfoot and the path indistinct.
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Fortunately, in this case, the terrain was flat and the path easy to follow.
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That’s not to stay your feet stayed dry. There was frequently water to walk through.
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They haven’t caught up to me yet. The path is still clear.
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Forest in the snow.
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More water to wade through and snow-covered branches coming in from the side.
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An ancient stretch of boardwalk here. The modern variety is more regular.
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We had a ferry to catch at 1pm so we couldn’t afford to waste too much time.
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A stream crossing the path that you have to walk over. Most of the others had gone past by here.
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Snow hanging on top of branches beside the track.
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In some places, the snow on the branches beside the track was like a maze.
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Most of us stopped for a break at a junction. Bert, Mitch and Susan in front at the left. The signpost points to a track at the right to Pine Valley, the Parthenon and the Acropolis.
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A peeling yellow gum in the snow.
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Almost out of it now…
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We’re almost at Narcissus Bay now, where we catch the ferry.
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So that’s it, the last image of the journey.
There are still two posts to come though of monochrome conversions of images from the Overland Track.
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Wow. All that snow and then the pick with the group and COLOR!! 🙂 Wonderful pix. How did you keep your feet dry?
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Thank you Robert. I didn’t even try to keep my feet dry. The tree roots on the side of the path are more dangerous than the mud and water.
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How absolutely wonderful to have that much snow to make things into a wonderland but not enough to make it dangerous walking. AND no wind to blow it off the branches!!!! It was your lucky day especially being the last day and hopefully no wet boots to have to put on the next day. Beautiful images.
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It was very special. Though it can snow any time of year there’s also no guarantee of snow in winter so I was lucky to encounter the conditions I did. No avoiding the wet boots though I did have a pair of sandshoes to change into at the end (also for inside the huts).
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Yes I hit snow in November but not as thick as what you experienced and only for one day so it didn’t last.
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