Johnson's Hut and Mount Bogong

Winter Groupies may be interested in two non-W.G. ski trips that I participated in this winter.

Johnson's Hut, Friday 29th August to Monday 1st September

This was organised by Dr. Frank Lawrence and Allan Poulson from Hobart, who invited Tom Langenheim and me along. Johnson's is a delightful private hut on the eastern edge of the Bogong High Plains about a kilometre south east of Mt. Nelse in a sheltered spot. It is very comfortable with four people, but can take up to eight at a pinch. All mod cons are available: wood stove, gas cooking and lighting, crockery, mattresses and blankets, etc., so only a light pack has to be carried out from Falls Creek.

We had mixed weather, calm and sunny on the way out, a front approaching on the Saturday (Hoppet day), with high cloud and a strengthening northerly, gales and rain all Sunday and clearing but still windy on the Monday. Tom and I trekked north on the Saturday to Timm's Lookout, where there were some spectacular cornices (for Australia, that is). We got back just before the front hit. Frank and Allan spent the morning helping the Hoppet course officials not far from Johnson's.

Two young snow boarders were camped outside the hut, which has a public section for emergency shelter. They had their eyes on boarding the steep eastern face of Mt. Nelse and had walked in in hiking boots. Not having snow shoes or skis, they would have had an interesting time getting back to Falls if there had been a sudden large dump of fresh snow.

Mount Bogong, 9th - 11th October

This trip had only Tom Langenheim and myself. Being self-funded retirees, we had the luxury of being able to wait for a good high pressure mid-week, when things would be quiet. From recent web cam pictures at Mt. Hotham and near Mt. Beauty we expected a reasonable amount of snow to be left in the south-facing gullies on Bogong, but in the event only Cairn Gully was ski-able.

Tom's four wheel drive got us up Granite Flat Spur to within about ninety minutes walk of the tree line at the newly re-built Michell Hut, which is classified as an emergency shelter. Rather than haul full packs up any higher, we declared an instant emergency, so that we could stay in the hut which was empty anyway. The summit of Bogong is less than an hour further without packs, so the hut is a very convenient base.

We had a very pleasant walk out to Bogong's west peak. Tom had a number of runs Telemarking the full length of Cairn Gully and spent much time inculcating me in the mysteries of this elusive turn. Part of the learning ritual is to shorten one's stocks to about two feet long, so that one is forced into an exaggerated Telemark crouch. There is also a ritual of "pressing with the small toe of the trailing foot as this ski is swept close to the leading one". Despite Tom's best efforts, I couldn't manage controlled Telemarks on the steeper slopes. Perhaps next year will yield success? To enter my eighth decade as a competent Telemarker would be very satisfying.

Charles Day