Main Range over 4 days

[Drew]

Oh, I just saw a picture of Bluff Tarn. I think I'll have to work that into my route - looks gorgeous!

[north-north-west]

That's easy. It's on the classic cross country route from Jagungal to Mawsons.

[Drew]

Well, unfortunately we didn't make it to Bluff Tarn but we did have a nice walk. It was made a lot less nice however by the billions of ants and flies (both buzzing and biting varieties). I expected the flies and could put up with them but the ants were unlike anything I'd experienced. Almost every time we stood still they'd start swarming up our legs and biting. It was as if the entire Jagungal Wilderness was one big ant nest. Thankfully they disappeared in the evenings and we occasionally managed to find a few spots that were ant free. It was pretty hot walking too.

We did:
Day 1. Round Mountain Car Park to Grey Mare Hut. All fire trail but very pleasant walking.
Day 2. Grey Mare Hut to saddle next to Strawberry Hill. We went via Valentine Falls. A little scrubby to get to the base of the falls and then a steep, quite overgrown and very ant-ridden climb up to the top of the falls. My partner nearly lost her *&%$#! climbing up there under the hot sun, pushing through scrub, over and under branches and getting constantly attacked by ants! From Valentine Hut we set out for Mawsons but made a silly mistake. As the route along Valentine Creek near the hut looked easy going we started off that way, hoping to follow the creek most of the way to Mawsons. The scrub thickened up pretty quickly however. Rather than risking a mutiny (or at least a seriously grumpy partner - she doesn't like bush bashing at the best of times) I decided we should turn back. Should have gone over the hills instead. We headed north on the AAWT for a bit and then went off-track to Strawberry Hill. Nice camp in the saddle with a great view of Jagungal at sunset.
Day 3. Strawberry Hill to Farm Ridge Ruins campsite. Off-track to Jagungal, then down to the Grey Mare Fire Trail. We suffered a serious ant attack whilst stopping for a dip in the river. To avoid the ants I actually got dressed (and put socks and boots back on) while standing on rocks in the creek. Boring walking along the fire trail to O'Keefes. We stopped for some respite from the sun and flies before continuing along to shorten our last day.
Day 4. Short day out from Farm Ridge Ruins to Round Mountain. Nice swim in the Tumut River. The hot weather finally started to break as we were finishing, with some showers and thunder around.

My partner never wants to go near the place again. I can't wait to go back and explore a bit more off-track with a bit more time under my belt. I don't think I'll go back at Xmas/New Years again though.

[north-north-west]

Interesting.

I've spent many Christmas/New Year periods in that neck of the woods and, while the flies can be an issue, never had that much trouble with ants regardless of the weather. Maybe they just don't like you . . .

[peregrinator]

Ants seem to become more active towards the end of a sequence of warm days, possibly anticipating a cooler change and wet conditions. I say 'seem to' based solely on personal observations and no scientific data whatsoever. Then there's global warming to factor in, perhaps. Whatever, I noticed more ants than usual in two places in the Victorian alps recently; near Mounts Bogong and MacDonald. But perhaps that was just due to my sitting around with bare feet more often after walking on hot days.

Anyway, thanks Drew for the information on your route as I'm planning on walking in that area sometime soon.

[MeanderingFlyFisher]

We are just back as well see "Hikes in to Valentines and Gray Mare Huts" and the ants were a bit of a problem every time you stood still or sat your pack down but wouldn't consider it bad enough to stop me going there.
They generally disappeared towards dark and were missing early in the morning.
Pity about Mawsons as it is a lovely hut with a very nice outlook.
I'd say we just missed you at a couple of spots.

[Drew]

Maybe they just don't like you . . .

No doubt about that, they certainly didn't like us!

Ants seem to become more active towards the end of a sequence of warm days, possibly anticipating a cooler change and wet conditions. I say 'seem to' based solely on personal observations and no scientific data whatsoever. Then there's global warming to factor in, perhaps. Whatever, I noticed more ants than usual in two places in the Victorian alps recently; near Mounts Bogong and McDonald. But perhaps that was just due to my sitting around with bare feet more often after walking on hot days.

I've heard that theory before. However it was warm and dry for 4 days before the rain came, and the ants were just as bad on the first day as the last. Evil buggers...

Actually MeanderingFlyFIsher, now that I think about it I don't remember any ants during our short visit to Valentine Hut. We arrived late enough at Grey Mare that they weren't a problem in the evening but they drove me mad in the morning!