There were numerous occasions on this trip when I had to
pinch myself and confirm that it was indeed good old Australia that was putting
on beautiful windblown powder in nicely spaced trees. Throw in the kind
assistance of a high pressure system offering up perfect blue skies and gentle
winds and this was about as good as it gets.
The original intention was to ski over the rolling grounds
to Schlink or Whites River on Saturday, then ski back to the main range on
Sunday for a nice night up high. Once we started skiing the trees around White’s
River the plan quickly changed to getting in as many runs as possible (not to
mention it was very cold and the lure of the hut was bordering on irresistible).
On Saturday night the hut was crowded, with around 20 people
competing for two benches and a few measly logs generally regarded as dangerous
for the purpose of seating. We made the most of it though, with more card game
heroics and tales of adventure. It was to the tent (~tarp) for the night
though, with the early morning cold quickly putting an end to any feeling I previously had in my toes. Sunday night I quickly secured some space on the hut
floor, bush rats be damned.
The tour in across the rolling grounds was beautiful, as was
the tour out on the Disappointment Spur trail. On the animal front the only
sighting was a sneaky looking fox who has evidently set up home just west of
Gungartin for the winter. He/she looked more surprised than I did. It will be
interesting to come back to this area later in the season or in a year with
less snow, but right now its firmly stored away as a beautiful destination for
some nice tree skiing all in sight of a hut with a warm fire.
