North West Spur - Feathertop

[gmac]

Recently had the opportunity to finally walk the North West Spur to the MUMC hut camp the night and return via Bungalow Spur to Harrietville.

There was 3 of us on the walk and after completing a short car shuffle we were ready to commence the walk. The well maked track initially follows the creek and with a series of ups and downs when you then find yourself ready to head into a gully for a couple of creek crossing (across good bridges). This is where the real walk commences and you tackle "The Wall".
From this point you just keep walking up hill until you get to the MUMC hut. As we had all day we just took our time to cover the distance arriving at the hut around 3.30pm. I had only viewed the hut from a distance so it was good to be able to spend the time at the site to look around and experience a night there.

MUMC Hut

In typical high country fashion the cloud started to roll in early so it made for a cool night as there is no heater/stove in the hut but there is a good set of tables water on tap over the sink and plenty of room.

A cloud covered Mt Feathertop

The morning was cool but quite clear and provided some good views of the valley as we organized ourselves for the return via Bungalow Spur. First there was a climb up from the hut until we intersected the Feathertop track and then it was all downhill. Thought I should include a pic as the sun started to break over the ridgeline

View back to the MUMC Hut

Morning Sun

Again we had plenty of time as we made our way down passed Federation Hut taking the time to sit back on the grass and enjoy morning tea at the site of the old Federation Hut.

By the time we reached the bottom it was off to the local shop for a relaxing coffee before the drive back to Mooroopna.

While not big distances the walk is a solid climb via a track that is probably not as popular as Bungalow or Razorback and it certainly provides some good views if the cloud stays away. It really is a good circuit to tackle.

[Kinsayder]

Thanks for the report and pictures Gmac. I read up on it over a year ago, thinking it sounded like a bit of a challenge(having already done the Razorback and the Bungalow over the years), so I headed off in April of last year. Part way in I was happy bobbing along and along came that sign "The Wall." You could feel it after that. It's a great hut though (and obviously Feathertop is an absolute treat), very nice to have that sink and taps (although it takes a bit of pumping) but a shame there's no stove/fireplace. I was up that way in December and heard that the whole hut had taken on a "fishy stench." I take it that has been dispersed. Thanks again.

[icefest]

I went up the north-west spur this weekend with a friend.
The entire section before the wall has a huge amount of collapsed trees onto the path. We cleared most of the little branches <10cm but there are still some parts that require extensive rerouting.
The section before the spring after MUMC hut is hard to follow in the snow, and will be until the snow melts.

[Kinsayder]

Were the trees across the early part of the downward section not long before the Wall, Icefest? I had to push through a fair bit of scrub to get around a huge tree that had fallen there. Going over wouldn't have been too hard but I was worried about it rolling and have long pledged to never be a recipient of the Darwin Award. I hope you enjoyed your trip!

[icefest]

Yes, Almost all were before the before the wall. There wasn't just one big one though. Be prepared for it to take half an hour longer. The trip was good, but be careful on the peak, the cornice has formed.