Little more than two months after coming home, unpacking everything and getting back into the swing of life - our feet started getting itchy again. Now don't get me wrong, it is great being home, and we are right back into the swing of school, work and renovations (yes - we find plenty of ways to keep busy). But we had one major challenge we wanted to complete.
On our 12 month journey around Australia, we saw many Australian icons, swam under some fabulous waterfalls, and climbed some picturesque mountains. There was one mountain that we didn't conquer on our trip, and it was nagging us.
It was time to head to the High Country and the Australian mainland's highest peak - Mount Kosciuszko. (Australia's highest peak is actually Mawson Peak, part of active volcano Big Ben on Heard Island way south west of the continent)
We picked up the kids from school on Friday afternoon. We were excited indeed to be back on the road, with ever faithful Rocky hauling Matilda to our campsite by the Thredbo River. We unfortunately timed our run with a long weekend in the ACT, meaning the Ngarigo Campground was almost full - but we squeezed into the last site and soon were setting up camp.
As the sun sank below the mountains, the sky changed colours, putting on a glorious display. The absence of clouds though was ominous... it was going to be a cool night. We quickly retreated to the comforts of warm beds with extra blankets.
Ice on the windscreen the following morning confirmed it had been a cold night. But once the sun came over the hill, things quickly warmed up and before long we had eaten breakfast and made our way to Thredbo.
There are two ways to walk to the summit of Mount Kosciuszko. The first is a 9km one way walk from Charlottes Pass, on the old road. The other is a 7km walk from the top of the main Thredbo chairlift. We chose the novelty of the chairlift ride - although it wasn't cheap at $68 for a family 'day pass'.
The chairlift took us a good distance up the hill (worth every cent), and from there we started the cross country walk to Mount Kosciuszko. Once we got going, the walk was easy going, however the wind was decidedly on the cool side.
It took us 2.5 hours to make it to the summit. Armed with plenty of food and water, we literally ate and drank our way to the top - as all good Hobbits should. The boys loved their new Camelbak water backpacks, and we all carried extra clothing, as well as the usual medial supplies, first aid kit, PLB beacon and food, food and more food.
The little legs were getting tired by the time we made it, and we soon nestled in a nook out of the wind to enjoy lunch - and a hot cuppa for me.
Whilst I enjoyed the only hot cup of coffee on the top of Australia, some other fellow nearby cracked a beer. I don't know of any other continent that has its highest mountain so accessible. In fact it is so accessible, you used to be able to drive your car to the top, until the road was closed to vehicles in 1977. It also has good phone signal, meaning you can take your selfie at the top and upload it instantly to facebook!
The boys hit a new gear on the way back down the mountain, and after a quick pit stop at Rawson's Pass - the highest toilets in Australia, they powered back towards the chairlift. It was all Mum and I could do to keep up with them.
The trip back to the chairlift only took us an hour and a half. We had promised a hot chocolate at the Eagles Nest café at the top of the chairlift. It was the only disappointment of the weekend, with my coffee best described as overpriced mud.
We had the camp-oven packed, however being so late into camp the previous evening, we had missed out on a campsite with a fire pit. Plan B was the little Webber Baby Q - and in no time at all, our roast dinner was smelling delicious.
All in all our run to Kosciuszko (renamed by the Little Helper Ozi-Oszko) was a thoroughly enjoyable weekend. The high country at this time of year is glorious - but you need to be prepared for the worst. Conditions can change in a moment - and we saw plenty of people attempting the walk hopelessly ill-equipped.
The best part was getting back together as a family and spending the weekend reconnecting, As we get more settled back at home, I fear weekends like this will become even more precious.
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