The Port Davey Monitor shouldn’t be hiked as typically as its close by neighbour The South Coast Monitor.
Most individuals begin at Scotts Peak Dam and hike to Melaleuca Airstrip. From there you’ll be able to fly again to Hobart. In case you have the time, a greater choice is to proceed on the South Coast Monitor to make a steady 9-13 day hike about 160km in size. To facilitate a neater hike you’ll be able to organise a meals and gas drop midway at Melaleuca.
Port Davey Monitor Transport
Listed here are your decisions for transport to and from the Port Davey Monitor.
Scotts Peak Dam Transport
Attending to the Scotts Peak Dam to entry the mountaineering trails such because the Port Davey Monitor and Western Arthurs is tough. There are a number of choices:
- Hitchhiking – Not straightforward however that’s how I acquired there
- Driving – personal transport or hire a automobile, there’s a massive carpark on the trailhead
- Public Transport – attempt Tasmania Wilderness Expertise
Meals and Gas Drop at Melaleuca Airstrip
Organise to begin or end at Melaleuca Airstrip. and fly with Par Avion.
If selecting to hike the Port Davey Monitor and South Coast Monitor you’ll be able to organise for a meals drop to be delivered to the airstrip at Melaleuca by Par Avion.
They fly there recurrently with meals drops and likewise promote gas for every type of stoves. I organised a litre of gas to be picked up. After I hiked the path I flew in 11kg of meals which included 2 litres of wine and 1kg of fruit cake together with different treats to maintain my mountaineering group motivated.
2025 Edit – The freight/meals worth is $7 per Kg – ($15 for a 230g gasoline canister, $8.50 per litre of Shellite or Methylated Spirits)
The meals and gas are saved in a rodent-proof field close to the airstrip and hut. Our cardboard field was undamaged once we arrived. After unpacking our meals field a pilot arrived and kindly packed our field out for us, together with our garbage. That was not anticipated however drastically appreciated.
Port Davey Monitor Gear Information
A Full Information to Light-weight Gear for the Port Davey Monitor.
Attempt to pack light-weight if attainable. Listed here are some critiques of the most effective light-weight and ultralight mountaineering gear.
Mountain climbing the Port Davey Monitor
Here’s a full day by day journal of my time spent mountaineering the Port Davey Monitor. It gives you a little bit of an perception into what it’s like mountaineering the Port Davey Monitor in Tasmania.
Port Davey Monitor Day 1
The hike began with gentle rain and drizzle which was solely heavy sufficient to harass slightly than dampen something. Inside a few hours, it ceased and the Western Arthur Vary got here into view. Most individuals stopped on the campsite at Junction Creek however because it was early so we forded the creek and stored transferring. In heavy rain this is usually a very sketchy crossing so maintain that in thoughts when fording this creek in heavy rain.
We continued by means of the glacial sculpted valleys of the Crossing Valley with the White Valley Mountains on the precise and the Western Arthur Ranges on the left to our first campsite of the journey at Crossing River. At crossing the river, we had a most fascinating assembly with a German couple heading within the different course.
They suggested that they’d been mountaineering for about 28 days from Lune River with numerous facet journeys. The man began with a pack weight of 40kg and the women began with a pack weight of 30kg, largely cookies. They had been in nice spirits and really constructive of their angle, even when they appeared like they wanted an excellent feed and per week in underneath a sizzling bathe.
19km in 6.5 hours together with all relaxation stops, lunch breaks, picture and/or video stops, siestas and many others
Port Davey Monitor Day 2
From Crossing River camp there had been some current fireplace injury that had made apparent adjustments to the panorama. It meant that there was straightforward strolling for us as most if not all the bushes and shrubs had been decimated by the hearth.
The outcomes meant uninhibited views of the encompassing White Monolith Vary and its mountains resembling Sculpted Mountain, Wombat Peak, Scrubby Peak and Stonehenge Peak. By lunchtime we reached one other campsite, Watershed Creek, we had been considerably shocked to discover a German bloke, Sven. He was late in leaving camp, looks as if he was taking his time. We took our time over lunch earlier than heading off to the world generally known as the Misplaced World Plateau.
The observe was in nice situation with straightforward strolling so we determined that we’d try to make it to Spring Creek for our in a single day camp. As we acquired nearer the world scarred by the hearth completed and the observe took on a extra muddy facet. We handed Sven who camped at a small campsite close to a flowing creek simply off the Misplaced World Plateau. It was getting late once we reached Spring Creek and we adopted the plain footpaths by means of the storm-damaged space till the footpaths disappeared.
We backtracked and adopted the following most blatant observe, they too disappeared. Then a 3rd time we noticed the error in our methods and located the observe. The river crossing was broken by a fallen tree. We made it throughout to search out that the marked campsite had been destroyed by bushes felled from the storm. Again throughout the river once more to the lower than beneficial camp. With constructive attitudes, we laughed the break day as an extended tiring day which made our minor however irritating errors multiply.
26km 10.5 hours together with all relaxation stops, lunch breaks, picture and/or video stops, siestas and time getting into circles!! and many others
Port Davey Monitor Day 3
As soon as once more there was nice climate once we left Crossed Spring Creek once more for the third time as we set our sights on tenting at Bathurst Harbour by the tip of the day. The strolling was nice and we briefly set our websites on climbing Mt Rugby, one of many highest mountains within the space which promised nice views of the environment. As we approached we determined that it could be extra prudent to provide it a miss for now and proceed to Farrell Level on the North Facet of Bathurst Harbour. The observe up Mt Rugby appeared non-existent, at the very least we couldn’t simply discover it.
We had been there in excellent climate. It was even heat sufficient for me to go for a swim and I hate chilly water. Bathurst Harbour is large. There’s a slim channel that must be crossed by row boat. Nationwide Parks present the boats for hikers. The winds and tidal circulation could make issues fascinating for some teams. We arrived at tides that gave the impression to be working out by means of the Bathurst Narrows at about 2 knots. we waited till late afternoon when the tide slowed to cross the 300-meter crossing. There are provided row boats on both facet of the slim channel which required us to make 3 journeys to make sure there was a ship on both facet. The campsite on Joan Level was gorgeous and the afternoon dinner spent watching the setting solar on one of many remotest harbours in Australia was magical.
13km in 8 hours together with all relaxation stops, lunch breaks, picture and/or video stops, swims, boat journeys and many others
Port Davey Monitor Day 4
Once we set off this morning the climate was grand. Low fog drifted outwards from the harbour onto the encompassing valleys and low-lying nation. After one other temporary geographical error, we arrived close to what gave the impression to be a observe which indicated that it went to Mt Beattie. We checked with the map and determined to provide it a crack. And I’m so glad we did.
The views from the climb and summit of Mt Beattie had been gorgeous. Bathurst Harbour, Mt Rugby, the narrows and Port Davey had been seen as was our final vacation spot for the day, Melaleuca. We lingered on the prime for fairly some time taking within the vista. We determined to take a shortcut right down to the remaining sections of the Port Davey observe. It was shorter each in time and distance.
It was a extremely popular day and we ran out of water whereas on the prime of Mt Beattie. Fortunately the brief reduce took us to a small creek to quench the thirst. We sighted Sven once more who was busy making a cup of espresso for the afternoon. He invited us to partake within the ritual. It offered the power to make it to our vacation spot.
Melaleuca
Melaleuca, our campsite for the night time has a free hut to remain in. Valerie, Sven and I had been the one ones staying within the hut. There have been posters within the hut of Lake Pedder earlier than the dam was constructed. The outdated map confirmed the unique Port Davey Monitor which crossed the now flooded dam space en path to the small city of Maydeena. Will need to have been fairly a trek again within the 60s and earlier. Pleasant and useful volunteer rangers greeted us on the hut. Our meals package deal had arrived so we opened the field of wine and fruitcake after dinner. Solely a small quantity of wine and I used to be considerably tipsy, my tolerance when mountaineering was non-existent. Suffice it to say I slept properly.
17km in 7.5 hours together with all relaxation stops, lunch breaks, picture and/or video stops, and many others
The Port Davey Monitor is commonly missed as one of many boring tracks of the South West. I loved the entire thing from Scotts Peak Dam to Melaleuca. There’s range and the area round Bathurst Harbour is gorgeous. The good climate on the journey added to the pleasure. Extremely really useful. Click on on the hyperlink for Half II of the journey to the South Coast Monitor.
Whole of 75km in 4 days together with all facet journeys and many others
Have You Hiked the Port Davey Monitor or although of mixing this hike with the South Coast Monitor? Acquired a query about mountaineering? Go away me a message within the feedback part beneath.
Subsequent : Mountain climbing the South Coast Monitor
Extra nice stuff about mountaineering in Tasmania:
Greatest Locations to Purchase Out of doors Gear in Australia:
Snowys.com.au | Macpac | WildEarth
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The writer, Brad McCartney from BikeHikeSafari is a small unbiased adventurer and outside gear tester who owns and runs BikeHikeSafari.com.
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The writer, Brad McCartney is a really skilled triple crown thru-hiker, adventurer, and bike tourer having spent 1000s of nights sleeping in a tent and sleeping bag (Learn extra). He was a supervisor of an outside retail retailer and could be very skilled in what’s essential when utilizing and testing gear for critiques like this.
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