Gill Goes.... Trekking the Bibbulmun Track... Boarding House Shelter

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Day 30

Tom Road Shelter to Boarding House Shelter

24.2km in 5 hrs, 50 mins of walking plus 70 mins of breaks



Slept well but a noisy hut to start the day, consequently on the trail by 0700 (which is pretty early in winter when it's still dark until later). My mood lifts as the sunshine breaks through the tall trees, much milder temp this morning. Lots of green tunnels to walk through and the Donnelly River ever present even when obliterated by thick bush at times. Lots of bridges, lots of karri bark strips. Pass through One Tree Bridge campsite which is deserted. take advantage of the public loos and rubbish bin as well as a picnic table for an extended morning cuppa. It's a great stretch through to the swing bridge and then the next public camping spot- Greens Island. Not so pristine - lots of trash left around. I hate that- given that you have a car how hard is it to pack out your trash???!

A track milestone is reached today. Officially at the half way point- it feels a little emotional for some reason (probably tired). Nine k's or so later I reach the most sublime spot a bit off trail- a "raging" river and lots of granite rocks in partial sun. It's a perfect spot for an extended break (40 mins) and just sit in nature. I love the noise of the water.

Well and truly rested for an afternoon of significant hills- lots of them... small hills, medium hills and large hills - "steeply ascending" and "ascend steeply" are the BT guidebook's main terms in this few k's. They seem harder today- I think because it has warmed up a bit- feels positively balmy. There is a third public campsite at Chappel Bridge, then only a short distance before arriving at the stunning Boarding House Bridge. Get into camp jearly again (just after 2pm), it's deserted. Consider pitching my tent but it looks like rain (probably why it feels so balmy). The rest of the afternoon is like yesterday arvo- collecting wood for the fire and freshening up. It's nice and quiet.

Our night around the campfire is cut short when the rain arrives, it buckets down. We all sit inside playing a general knowledge quiz- one of the family group hikers has brought a supply of daily quiz questions from The West Australian. The family are avid quiz goers, they win a lot of quiz nights- we don't have a chance!

The rain continues to bucket down.

Glad I didn't camp.



Impressions of Boarding House- Nice, flat and open.Good tent sites.

Body assessment- Tender R achilles
Birds- many including the Golden Whistler, Red Wing Fairy Wren, Scarlet Eared Firetail, White Robin

Total people seen for the day - no one at all while walking, full hut again with 6 others

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Photos

Donnelly River
The DR is with me for most of the day

Suspension Bridge
Opened Oct 15

Fungi
Really like this one- I imagine the droplets taste like honey

Munda Biddi Crossover
At the 7.3km mark we cross the Munda Biddi, the cyclists equivalent of the Bibb

Milestone
7.5km into the day I reached the half way point of the linear trail (actually more than half way as there are lots of spur trails and trails into the campsites that all add up).

Lunch Spot
At 18.8km this was such a great lunch spot, pristine, relaxing

Contemplation of a Lunch That Was
8 crackers, cheese, cheese and more cheese

Boarding House Bridge
Constructed by the Army Reserve