Bushwalk Australia

Just curious if anyone has done the Grampians peaks trail end to end using the parks mandated itinerary?
I was planning an end to end off track traverse when they started construction and followed the fiasco that the project turned into.
I am also guilty of being quite critical of the infrastructure and the way it has been regulated, however I also have not done it.
I would love to hear from someone who has done it end to end for their own recreation and not a paid review.
How are the different legs as the distances are quite short for an on track walk.
Thanks

Hi,

I've not 'done it' but have walked some sections.

There is a fair amount of up and down, elevation change of 6.3 km up and 6.4 km down.

Parks have probably arranged the stops so that most people will be able to do the walk and enjoy it rather than be physically challenged. This is similar to other walks such as the Overland Track, Bibbulmun etc. Some 'double hut' to walk twice the 'normal distance' from one official overnight site, through the next official overnight site and on to the next overnight site. Your choice.

I use this for the elevation information : https://hiking.waymarkedtrails.org/#rou ... 53/142.985

There is a GPT facebook group that is starting to get populated with reports and comments etc. This could be a good option.

Warin wrote:Hi,

I've not 'done it' but have walked some sections.

There is a fair amount of up and down, elevation change of 6.3 km up and 6.4 km down.

Parks have probably arranged the stops so that most people will be able to do the walk and enjoy it rather than be physically challenged. This is similar to other walks such as the Overland Track, Bibbulmun etc. Some 'double hut' to walk twice the 'normal distance' from one official overnight site, through the next official overnight site and on to the next overnight site. Your choice.

I use this for the elevation information : https://hiking.waymarkedtrails.org/#rou ... 53/142.985

Thanks, I understand parks trying to make suitable for anyone to achieve but sometimes that sort of design makes it less fun for other more experienced participants and since you are not allowed to double hut etc I was curious how people found the shorter legs and whether they were still good or just silly for anyone with any fitness. Kind of like parks time recommendations for day walks can be good to just plain stupid.

Joynz wrote:https://ultralighthiker.com.au/blogs/all/7-things-to-know-about-hiking-the-grampians-peaks-trail

This was a promotional/paid trip.

Joynz wrote:https://ultralighthiker.com.au/blogs/all/7-things-to-know-about-hiking-the-grampians-peaks-trail

Thanks for the link. Even though it was a commercial review the author has walke the te auroa trail and seemed to imply that the short days were not a problem so that’s good to hear.

A few weeks ago I got to stay at Halls Gap. Walked a loop to the pinnacle and back to the botanic gardens. Very nice and I'll highly recommend. Passed some mature walkers who were out for 8 days so likely the traverse you are asking about. Also walked Boronia and back, good day walk.

An interesting thing, up high where the landscape was boulder and rock there was water flowing, it must be spring fed

I can't comment on the end to end experience as I haven't walked it all but I would say the distances probably fall in the awkward range for a regular walker. They are too short for a full days walking but not short enough that you would want to do another full leg. Of course, it's very subjective.

The legs are also quite uneven. For example, Wedug to Halls Gap is very easy walking. The day prior is much more taxing. No way is Bugiga over Rosea a full day but Boundary Gap and the plateau is a work out.

Also, just following Grampians tracks is a bit of a learnt skill. The more you do it, the easier and quicker it gets.

I did it in April this year end to end. I'd agree with most of the Ultralight hiker review but I'd say the difficulty comes more from the terrain than distance. I started my day at about 7am and was at most campsites by lunchtime. I'd say I'm faster than average but not mega fast. I didn't find that much difficulty in scrambling, it was more walking on rock slabs for extended periods that were on a diagonal slope which were hard on the ankles and my feet, which were sliding around in my shoes.

I did get lost a few times but nothing major, there can be big gaps between markers.

The campsites seem to have been selected for their views rather than for adequate shelter from the wind – the tent pads can be in quite exposed areas. Next time I'd definitely forego the view for shelter.

Bookings for Halls Gap campsites are done outside the system for the rest of the trail. I failed to book in advance so ended up in a hotel.

It was a pretty good walk through diverse landscape and there was bog roll at almost all of the loos and plenty of water. I don't think I'd do it again though – I'd prefer to walk for a bit longer before getting to camp and it's very expensive.

Chekkers - Having walked the trail, do you think two single tents could fit on one platform?

If you look at each campground description it gives the dimensions of the platforms. There are differences. Some sites have big and small platforms, some have wood and granite sand platforms and I'm pretty sure bugiga still has the original round platforms. The chain points on the wood platforms aren't flat even when retracted so they take a bit of usable space away.

I would say most likely yes but it depends on the tents of course.

CraigVIC wrote:If you look at each campground description it gives the dimensions of the platforms. There are differences. Some sites have big and small platforms, some have wood and granite sand platforms and I'm pretty sure bugiga still has the original round platforms. The chain points on the wood platforms aren't flat even when retracted so they take a bit of usable space away.

I would say most likely yes but it depends on the tents of course.

The platforms are 3m square. So I thought two single tents could sit close together, even if it’s cramped.

joynz wrote:The platforms are 3m square. So I thought two single tents could sit close together, even if it’s cramped.

I think it's very unlikely you could find 2 tents less than 1.5m width.

I think with the Nemo Hornet 1 you could squeeze two tents in - I think these are around 120cm or 130cm wide.

For a $500 saving it's worth trying. Even if you only have one tent to hand you should be able figure it out by marking out a square or laying out a 3m tarp. All the sites I've seen still have a clearing around them from construction so you could pull the vestibule off the edge and just use garbage bags for your gear.

Having said that when I did the north with a mate we just got two pads as it's definitely less fuss.