North West Spur, Mt Feathertop - October 1999

Well its been awhile but I've broken out the scanner again, I haven't got many photos from this trip which is probably just as well as the ones that I do have don't scrub up that good. This was a quick two day walk that I did after finishing night shift one week, after work I drove for 5 hours up to Harrietville where I parked the troopy at my cousins house and then set off to climb the second highest mountain in Victoria.

There was still some lingering snow on the summit.

Day 1                20 kilometres                   MUMC Hut

Starting the walk at the Trout Farm just before Harrietville my first objective was to avoid upsetting the owner of the farm, over the years the problems with the Trout Farm and its owner had reached almost mythical proportions in bushwalking circles and I wasn't keen to provoke any aggression. Picking my way along the fence line beside Stoney Creek dodging the blackberries I was soon past the Trout Farm and onto the good North West Spur Track, but not for long however. To make this walk into a circuit I decided to head up the un tracked lower section of Bungalow Spur where I would eventually meet the official Bungalow Spur Track at Wombat Gap. The lower section of Bungalow Spur was reasonably steep and scrubby although I was generally through the worst of the bands of scrub fairly quickly, my most vivid memory of this section was almost standing on a big Tiger Snake as I jumped over a large fallen tree, that woke me up a bit. With sweat pouring off me I reached the official Bungalow Spur walking track at Wombat Gap around mid afternoon, I now had an easier walk all the way up to Federation Hut. The walking was easier but still involves a fairly long climb and by the time I got to Federation Hut I was starting to cramp in my Quads, not a very enjoyable experience that I seem to suffer every now and again.

I'm not sure whether I'm smiling because I'm happy or grimacing because of the pain from the cramps.

The summit of Mt Feathertop, Victoria's second highest mountain.

That's the Ovens River Valley behind me.

After having a break in the late afternoon sun and getting a bit of fluid into me I set off to climb to the summit of Mt Feathertop. The mountain still had some lingering snow which gave it a bit of an alpine feel on this warm day, and with the extensive dry stone steps making my life bit easier I was soon on the summit where once again I rested for awhile and tried to settle down my cramps. The late afternoon light was now painting the Bogong High Plains in a golden light and it was a magic spot to sit in the light breeze and take it all in. With some reluctance I had to leave my lofty vantage point and make my way down to MUMC Hut, this meant retracing some of the way down towards Federation Hut before turning onto the North West Spur track. The North West Spur Track contours the almost vertical northern slopes of Mt Feathertop, on its way I passed the small spring where I refilled my water bottles for the rest of the walk, this small spring is the most reliable on the mountain in my experience. Battling increasing cramps I arrived at the igloo shaped MUMC Hut just on dark, managing to climb into the loft after dinner and fall asleep in about 1 nano second, going to sleep quickly was one of the side benefits of my 30 hour day!

Sunset from MUMC Hut.

Day 2               8 kilometres

Probably due to my age at the time I woke up feeling petty good after yesterdays efforts. I was on a little bit of a mission today as I wanted to get back to my cousin's place and take her to the Harrietville Pub for lunch. The North West Spur Track from MUMC Hut starts off fairly easy before turning pretty feral for a kilometre or two as it plunges very steeply back down to Stoney Creek, the descent is even marked with a steep descent sign! Once I'd completed the slippery descent I found myself  back at the creek where the track then undulates a bit before meeting up my outward route near the infamous Trout Farm, where I once again picked my way along the fence line in the scrub. After stopping for a wash in the Ovens River I was soon walking in the gate of my cousins property where I chucked my gear into the troopy and we headed to the pub, I only seem to talk to my cousin about once every ten years, so it was good to sit back on the verandah of the Harrietville Hotel and have a meal and a couple of beers whilst we caught up.

About to drop down the steep section on the North West Spur Track.

The Dirt.

I walked around 28 kilometres over two days on this walk. I climbed around 1500 metres on day1, with around 4 kilometres off track up the lower reaches of Bungalow Spur. Once leaving the river flats there isn't a lot of water to be found, there is a spring at the old hut site on Bungalow Spur, one down from Federation Hut, and another on the North West Spur Track, over the years I've found the North West Spur one the most reliable. There is also a tank at Federation Hut although its frequently empty in the drier months. I used the notes from the Tyrone Thomas book 120 Walks in Victoria edition # 6 from 1995, however its long since out of print. Finally this walk was a long time ago and since then at least one big fire has been through the area, Federation Hut has been destroyed and then rebuilt. I'm not sure what the regrowth is like on the bottom of Bungalow Spur but I'm betting its not pleasant.