The 2024 edition of the Mountain Journal magazine (available here), had a focus on human powered crossings of the Australian Alps. Of course many of these focused on the Australian Alps Walking Track (AAWT). Since then, more people have been sending stories about their journey along the AAWT. It has been wonderful to hear about their experience along the trail: the challenges, the special times, the hardships and lessons learnt.

This is from Tanya Deer and is her tale of walking the AAWT with her husband in January 2023. There are some lovely reflections and a good reminder that the AAWT is a trip that is well outside regular walking: its multiday nature allows you to go deep as you travel through an ever changing landscape: ‘I am full of gratitude for the experience, for those I love, for my body and for the environment I am in’.

THE AAWT

It all started with Covid. We couldn’t travel overseas so we decided to go bushwalking, and not to be daunted by a challenge, we set out from Thredbo to hike Mt Kosciuszko to Eden with just maps, a compass and heavy packs. During the planning a good friend mentioned a walk that headed into Victoria from the track we’d be on. She said there were sections with no water and a lot of planning was needed for this adventure. The limited details came with other grim warnings. But those mysterious descriptions were like a taunt and maybe that’s how we discovered the AAWT.

Three years later, after much planning, reading, dehydrating and driving, we arrived in Walhalla, just after Christmas Day ready to walk this imposing and challenging hike. Oh, how I loved almost every minute of it. It was hard, beautiful, hot, scary, mountainous and stunning. At times we were just a speck with mountains filling the horizon in all directions with no sign of human intervention. Other times we were on relentless fire trails climbing vertically up steep grades with no shade from the unrelenting heat. We wallowed in creeks fully clothed; we passed through rainforests, fire scarred alpine forest, plantation forests and logged forests. We heard birds, saw snakes, feral horses and deer, and bounding ‘roos. We passed our first hikers at the halfway mark but on the whole saw very few people. The walk became a way of life for 28 days, each day similar while the scenery around us changed. The simplicity of just walking each day was a kind of meditation. Everything we needed to sustain us for up to 7 days was on our backs and knowing this was both powerful and liberating for me.

While on the AAWT I learnt that as a female in my 60’s I was strong both physically and mentally. I had times when my knees hurt and hiking downhill was painful, but I never thought of giving up. I learnt that things always end up working out, sometimes even better than you’d imagine. I learnt that being in nature creates a complete resonance with me. My heart is full and content when I am surrounded by giants of trees and mountains, when I bathe in a cold alpine stream, when the birds soar high in the sky, when the stars light up the sky with their brilliance and abundance, when the sun warms your soul, and the breeze cools your face with it’s gentle touch. I learnt that I need these things in my life to feel whole and contented.  My heart is happy. I am full of gratitude for the experience, for those I love, for my body and for the environment I am in.

The experience of hiking the AAWT is incredible and astonishingly beautiful. It can also be harsh and both physically and mentally challenging. If you want a tough and inspiring hike, then this is for you. Prepare yourself by being fit, being realistic in your expectations, be confident in navigating and be prepared to carefully research the hike. Be cautious and vigilant when hiking but also enjoy the wonder of our high country and revel in its amazing beauty and quiet solitude.

Please send your story.

I welcome other stories about what happened on your crossing of the AAWT. Please check here for details.