Getting the Weather Right

 Saturday 1 October

Jan had messaged me back in June re joining her and Joc to walk the Border Track from O'Reilly's to Binna Burra, a total of 21.4 km. I was visiting my son in Canada at the time, but we set a date for Saturday 17 September. Several days prior we had had several days of very heavy rain and the decision was made to delay the adventure by 2 weeks. 

Yesterday the forecast was for patches of light rain and, as we have been warned it is going to be a summer of rain thanks to El Nino, we decided not to postpone again. We arrived at O'Reilly's at 8.30 am. It was a 2 1/2 hour drive for Jan.

Coffee and cake enjoyed, we excitedly set off down the dry track. Jan's husband was meeting us at Binna Burra to transport us home. A meeting time of approximately 4 pm was made.

As we had our cuppa, we spotted both the Regent and female Satin Bowerbird [previously taken photos] sitting in the trees near our table.

Fifteen minutes into our walk a Mountain Parrot flew to a branch just in front of me, and unusually, didn't fly off as we approached. I suspect he may be regularly fed at the National Park Visitors Centre. It was a real treat though, to be so close for so long.

The trail soon narrowed as we entered the rainforest proper. Whip birds called as we stood in awe of the ancient Antarctic Beech trees, possibly up to 2000 years old. [Time was approx 10.25 am]

10.30 am - the drizzle has commenced and the trail is becoming messy. 

It was a mossy, mystical world we had now entered. The whole year has been wet, so the forest was lush green and vibrant. Vines twisted round tree trunks. The Staghorns, Crows Nests and Tree Ferns looked stunning. Rich mosses covered fallen giants in a soft carpet and Spanish mosses clung to uptight branches creating mysterious scenes. 

The wet forest litter created an autumn scene, but our trees are not deciduous.

Soon after the photo above was taken, it seemed that the heavens had opened completely. For a good hour, no photos were taken and we walked with heads bowed, watching every slippery step we took.

As the rain got heavier the leeches came out. Walking behind Jan, I was able to warn her of each arrival. A flick of a business card soon had them gone. Joc and I felt a little protected with our long trousers but in the latter half of the hike, I could see them crawling up my trouser legs. Given the conditions, I just had to ignore them. Well, that is until I felt something odd inside my mouth. Joc checked and found one attached to my front upper teeth. It was soon removed and we carried on!

At midday, there was a glimmer of hope as the sky lightened.

It wasn't to be. We had fellow hikers passing us, and all as sodden as we. Everyone felt cheated by the weather forecast.

We met hikers coming from Binna Burra and we learnt that we still hadn't reached halfway. My GPS had stopped working in the cold. Eerie gusts of wind often sent cascades of rain droplets into our faces to keep us 'cheerful', when it wasn't bucketing down with rain.

Endless tree fall and tree trunks blocked the path.

1.11pm - the halfway marker reached! At the pace we were making, our 4 pm deadline with Tony wasn't going to be made. Thankfully Joc's phone was able to message Tony that we were okay, just delayed.

Soon after reaching this milestone, we passed a Mum and Dad and their 8 year old son. He asked if they were nearly there. It was heartbreaking to have to tell him there was still a L O N G way to go.

Thankfully for us, this half of the track, although very wet until the final 3 kilometres, was a more even descending path and less boggy. We made good time and arrived at 4.30 pm. We were totally saturated for over half of the trek. My hands were so cold I couldn't undo my zip or buttons. Tony was very relieved to see us, but not as much as we were to see him, our change of clothes and a heated car.

We drove the hour back to my home, where Frank had brandy and hot soup waiting for us.

 [The soup pre-prepared by me!] 18 mm of rain had fallen here. I wonder how much up on the mountain?

It wasn't long before the tension of the day faded away and we were able to laugh about all the funny incidences that took place. At no time did I feel we were in any danger. It was just a matter of keeping on plodding and not thinking about how freezing cold we were. Come shower time, I discovered 4 leech spots on my abdomen, 2 on my neck and one on my hand. They aren't painful but they become very itchy.

Five kilometres done and 5 kilometres to go!

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