We awoke to the sun just hitting the tent and when we went outside the temperature was bearable! The tent pack up went easy and our hands were not too cold. As we had hiked an additional 3kms yesterday we had an easy 12kms to do today. So we were in no rush to get started and just sat back and enjoyed the sun and relative warmth with a lovely cup of tea and breakfast.
As we were sitting the traffic coming the other way started. By mid morning we were on our way and I think we had passed about 20 people. Seriously metropolitan!
The walk started with a few uphill sections which got the heart going, crossed a river and then we walked the last of the plains into the next range which has been quite impressive from a distance. We had some fantastic rock formations on parts and some not so pretty sections but on those sections it was good to stretch the legs out and eat up some kms.
We arrived at Hugh gorge which was supposed to be our campsite for the night but it was nothing fantastic and everyone the other way had been saying how busy it was. This I think is because it has water and a toilet and the other camps on either side along the trail do not. The next camp was only 3kms away up the gorge and by all accounts was beautiful. In order to get there we had to complete the Hugh Gorge swim/ bag throw which everyone had been talking about. So after a little discussion we decided to fill up on water for two days and continue on to beat the crowd and also to do the swim in the afternoon when the sun was out as the water was going to be freezing.
The walk from the camp site took us straight up Hugh gorge and we should have known from our past experience of gorges that it was going to be challenging. Lots of boulder hopping and scurrying up rocks which was especially challenging as we had two days worth of water on us. But it was some of the most beautiful scenery so we loved every minute.
We were going for over 2 hours and both hot and sweaty and starting to tire when we came across the Hugh Gorge swim across. Effectively there is a pool of water that goes up to about thigh height until you hit a big boulder and then you have to swim around the boulder for about 2 metres. Obviously you don’t want to get your pack wet so there is a stick on this side of the boulder that you use to hoist the pack up. From our end it is pretty impossible for one person to do.
As we were getting our clothes off for the swim where one of us was going to swim over, climb onto the rock and then grab the bags the other person hoisted up a group of 3 arrived from the other way. So they grabbed our bags, we grabbed theirs and then we all took turns swimming across. Made it a little easier for everyone.
The water was icy cold and unfortunately for us the gorge was blocking the suns rays so we hightailed it out to the campsite which was only a few hundred metres along the track to get out of our wet clothes and get warm. Once we accomplished this we both sat down thoroughly exhausted but pleased we pushed on to this camp as it was so tranquil and the outlook so beautiful with huge red cliff walls encasing us along a dry sandy river bed filled with gums.
It was another early night for us but the weather seems to have eased off a little and hopefully temps stay in the positive from now on. It was another cracking day on the Larapinta trail, I can’t believe we have been out here for eleven days already! S