Leave Approved

There are a myriad trekking shops here. We were directed to Eco Trekking Outdoor by Elsie, and the owners Ram and Mr Pandey promised us good prices. We spent an afternoon in their shop trying on waterproof pants and jackets and looking at down jackets and sleeping bags. You can buy almost anything here, but as they are all imitations they are unlikely to last for longer than a season. I would probably buy the essential and frequently used items like hiking boots, thermals, trekking pants and fleeces at home.

Today we bought some items that we may never use on our trek, but which would be highly desirable to have should it snow or rain heavily. We did bargain a little bit, and overall I was happy with the prices that Ram quoted us. We bought:

“Gortex” (imitation) waterproof pants 1500Rs each (AUD 30)

Fake North Face rain jackets 1000Rs each (AUD 20)

Trekking poles, adjustable,  with “anti shock” - 1300Rs for a pair (AUD 28)

“North face” down jacket - 2200Rs (AUD 40)

Negotiations were amiable, and took place over a cup of chai.Our total bill came to about AUD180 for 2 rain jackets, 2 waterproof pants, 3 trekking poles and a down jacket. Ram says he will buy the items back from us for a lower price when we return, and send them to a shop that hires them out.

We didn’t see a lot of socks or thermals here, but you could certainly get most of your gear like windstoppers, fleeces etc (Sizes tend to be rather large) though the quality of them is not guaranteed. Down sleeping bags go for around AUD65.

Rock cairn near the summit of Mt Difficult

We are two very sore hikers after our trip to the Grampians on the weekend. All up it was a very successful trip although I am ill today with a tummy bug – possibly from a warm salami sandwich.

Here are the trip details

Gear
2 daypacks – V’s tended to be a little heavy, but mine was excellent, just the right size and I didn’t even notice it was there half the time.
Excellent pockets in both, very handy.
2 windproof soft shells (useful at the summits as it got very breezy and cold especially with perspiration)
Columbia hiking boots, from China (CJ) – excellent for the rocky terrain although I seemed to get blisters from the left foot only. ?? reason?
Keen hiking shoes (V) – well cushioned although we noted a hole already – after a few days of use!
Kathmandu merino lite hiker women’s – (CJ) – didn’t get sweaty, smelly or too warm – excellent socks – although I would probably use a sock liner next time to prevent blisters (and air my feet out at lunchtime as recommended by all the books)
Columbia hiking shirt, with collar – did a good job in wicking away sweat as promised, with no smell even after a good 6 hour hike in the sun
Columbia hiking pants – very light and breezy, easy to hike in in the warm weather
Camelbak 1.5L bladder – very useful though needed a refill after a couple of hours
Paddy Pallin underwear - as promised, did not smell even after a full sweaty day’s hiking!

Treks:
Day 1 – Mt Abrupt hike (476m) followed by lunch then Mt Sturgeon hike (343m)- both took about 3 hours round trip and were reasonably steep but not technically difficult. However, the 6 hrs of hiking took its toll - I passed out before 9pm that night!!

CJ on the Mt Abrupt trail

Day 2 – Mt Difficult hike (400+m) - Yes not a very steep ascent overall, but it was the most technically difficult hike I’d ever done! All up we spent seven hours on the mountain, and basic rock climbing skills were needed in some parts. Scrambling up an almost vertical cleft in the rock which was almost head height for me was memorable! There was lots of time spent picking your way around giant boulders and hopping from one to the other along a ridge that seemed to go on forever. The signposting is not great either - We almost continued on to another destination some 12 km away after we had reached the summit!

Serious rockclimbing skills needed!

We stayed at a great little backpackers called Tim’s place - www.timsplace.com.au. Its a steal at $75 for a self contained studio unit - very comfortable and we cooked our own dinner which saves a loooot of hassle - though the bathroom was outside (just around the corner) but it was our own private bathroom. Dorm beds are much cheaper.

We celebrated our three year wedding anniversary yesterday. Actually we have been together for more than eleven years. So when V proposed it wasn’t really a surprise at all, and I knew he was going to propose on the trip anyway (he told me so!) If we plan it right, we may even be able to return to the scene of the crime (so to speak) on the fourth anniversary of our engagement.

We have bought most of our gear now. We made another shopping trip yesterday. We both got our new day packs, both from Mountain Designs. V’s is an Escape 30, and mine is a Women’s Slipstream 30, although his looks significantly larger than mine!

Mine is pretty spesh as being a “women’s” daypack the shoulder straps are set closer together which suits me as I have really puny shoulders and my previous daypack was too big in this regard. My new pack also has one of those ventilating frames which set the pack away from direct contact with your back. Hopefully this does result in a less sweaty back while hiking!

Both the packs were quite well discounted, V’s from $150 to $100 and mine from $130 to $100. Mine wasn’t “officially” discounted but we were offered a cheaper price. Either they wanted to get rid of the pack, or the salesperson wanted to get rid of us quickly as we looked like we were dithering about the decision!

V also bought a wind proof soft shell, and I bought another skirt, the same design but in a different colour, and discounted even more because of a few loose threads which will be easily fixed!

Our gear will be put to the test this weekend when we head to the Grampians for 2 days of hiking. Look out for an update on Monday!

We had a wonderful weekend. We took half a day off on Friday as it was terribly hot, and went to the beach at Portsea. Saturday night was spent with good friends. Yesterday we hit the end-of-year stocktake sales for the first time this season – buying some last minute items that were still on our To Get list. CJ bought a long zipoff skirt which will be useful in a hot climate, and we bought a waterproof duffle bag which is essential for the porters to carry our gear on our treks. We looked at daypacks and headlamps but haven’t bought yet. Last but not least we bought quick drying, odour resistant underwear. Probably the most expensive undergarments we have ever bought, at $25 a pop! The marketing hype claims one can travel with only one pair of undies, we are loathe to test this out though!

All in all we saved close to $100 – yay for sales!