Wednesday, June 20, 2012

Wet Mount Dale trek

 I'm not sure whether it was a rush, but there was this sudden urge to do bush walks more in the winter. When Syafiq texted me saying he has transport for the week, the thought of Mount Dale came into mind. Mt Dale is the 2nd highest peak around Perth and by doing this walk I would be completing my aim to conquer the peaks around Perth; eventhough its not that high relatively. I had a long look at the WalkGPS website and put my mind to it, it is somewhere we just had to go to!
According to the notes, 70% of the walk is off track and little that we know how off track it can really be! It was perhaps the toughest trail we had so far; i reckon because the trail was almost non existent as compared to the tracks we have followed in our earlier hikes.The weather forecast was not promising and again, it became a big factor for us!
 Syafiq picked me up at Cannington train station ( well.. i walked a bit to a nearby Superstore) and little did I know we had 2 new members. Both were Syafiq's friends and relatively new to bushwalking. Haha Of all my trips, they just had to start off by following a potentially difficult trek! haha The route to Mount Dale parking area was on ungraveled road; making only SUVs to be appropriate for the 16km to the starting point!
The aim of our walk was to reach Beraking Brook which is about 6km away. Of course again, the rain greeted us on its heaviest when we were about to start the walk.It was really really heavy! Basah kuyup tu.. hahaha

 Despite the GPS coordinates that we had, we tried as much as possible to look for possible tracks as from our previous treks, there is a clear track somewhere. It did not happen on this one, We diverted and diverted.. and honestly the map that showed up on Syafiq's GPS showed a spider web configuration! Of course the weather was permitting with the thick fog and as wet as you can be in the bush! Dahlah sejuk! hahahaa It was certainly different being in the bush while raining. When the cloud cleared up with the sudden sun ray coming true, the landscape changed and it was just breath taking to be up there. However, it was temporary and the aura changed dramatically.


 We managed to reach a nearby point; and that was only when we decided maybe we should just go into vector line trek. Which means that nothing can stop your way! Macam steam roll!! We cant use parangs like we do in Malaysia to cler the track because of the regulations of Aussie forest.I really tested my gear today for waterproof and durability! Haha kalau pakai kain cokia confirm dah lama koyak but somehow the rainjacket maintained its integrity despite my violent nature going through the thick sharp bushes. I'm sure the new trekkers had few bumps, scratches here and there but I guess thats their introduction to bushwalking the hard way in WA!



 We reached the Rocks at noon and if we were to follow the map and coordinates, the ETA to the brooks would be 3pm and the walk back to the starting point would be in the dark. Of course, we were not prepared to hike in the dark therefore it was decided for us to turn back due to safety issues. It would not be nice if the 4 of us to appear in the Perth news for Search and Rescue effort! hahahaha



 We reached the starting point quite swiftly.. due to the "vector" nature of the hike back and meeting up with the Mount Dale track. At the parking point, when the clouds were clear.. Subhanallah, the beauty of Allah's creation was obvious and we did enjoy the sight which was visible to us. After a quick lunch, we were back on the SUV on our way back home. I did enjoy the trek, it was a definite first on one of the difficult ones and I would like very much to take the challenge again..but of course, on a day where the weather was better!

4 comments:

nadhirah baharin said...

alhamdulillah, nasib baiklah tak masuk berita oz kan. tajuk muka depan "4 trekkers degil yg sesat 2 minggu". haha. btw, at the end of the writing, make sure ajak kitorang ye! ;D dah ada basic semua dah, boleh dah redah insyaallah. hehe. saadah would be very excited to go there again and reach the beraking brook. :)

nadhirah baharin said...

alhamdulillah, nasib baiklah tak masuk berita oz kan. tajuk muka depan "4 trekkers degil yg sesat 2 minggu". haha. btw, at the end of the writing, make sure ajak kitorang ye! ;D dah ada basic semua dah, boleh dah redah insyaallah. hehe. saadah would be very excited to go there again and reach the beraking brook. :)

nadhirah baharin said...

alhamdulillah, nasib baiklah tak masuk berita oz kan. tajuk muka depan "4 trekkers degil yg sesat 2 minggu". haha. btw, at the end of the writing, make sure ajak kitorang ye! ;D dah ada basic semua dah, boleh dah redah insyaallah. hehe. saadah would be very excited to go there again and reach the beraking brook. :)

mafeitz said...

Happy sampai 3 kali post nampak! Haha Nanti ada trek menarik, bule la join. Yang prnting, kena teruskan explore outdoor Perth selagi kat sini.