Cradle Mountain Lake St Clair National Park - Overland Track -

 

 

Today we started the walk by crossing the beautiful Kia Ora Creek and continuing along the trail before arriving at Du Cane Hut surrounded by forest and located below Falling Mountain. It was a wonderful location to rest and explore. Du Cane Hut is the oldest structure on the Overland Track. It was built in 1910 by Patrick Joseph ‘Paddy’ Hartnett and was one of his highland bases used during winter snaring sessions. Built almost entirely from hand-split King Billy Pine, Du Cane Hut was enlarged during the 1930s and was by then also being used for recreational purposes.

Departing Du Cane Hut, we were impressed with the variety of fungi along the Overland Track and the trails that lead to a few impressive waterfalls on the Mersey River.

Du Cane Hut

Up Close & Personal ... Images of the National Park

Views

Throughout the day we enjoyed a few detours to explore the Mersey River and discover the stunning waterfalls created by the surrounding landscape as the river winds and plummets its way through the National Park. While the walks to view the falls were steep and deep, they were all well worth the experience offering a time to simply immerse yourself within the National Park and enjoy what was on offer.

D'Alton Falls

River Play

Ferguson Falls

Hartnett Falls

Unfortunately, with only a couple of kilometres to go before arriving at Burt Nichols Hut, one of our group members slipped on a wet and muddy tree root landing on their knee and re-injuring a previous knee injury. With the support of the entire group our injured party member was able to complete the walk before receiving more medical treatment within the Hut. Our team of youth took care of all their needs ...

• Pitching their tent, before realising they'd sleep in the hut
• Cooking Dinner
• Supporting Medical Treatment
• Distributing Gear
• Creating a plan to complete the hike tomorrow