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Frenchmans cap advice pls

maxdacat

6-Jun-2011
1:38:42 PM

Planning a trip there this weekend. Has anybody done it recently or indeed at this time of year? I am planning on taking full goretex and a down jacket for the evenings but only have trainers for walking in so guess i'll be suffering with wet feet. Is the hut likely to be crowded?

ta


EJ

6-Jun-2011
2:01:41 PM

Given the current weather and forecast for the rest of the week, its more than likely there will be some snow and ice around at higher elevations. Wet sneakers from crossing the Lodden Plains then a bit of snow might make for an unpleasant walk. A decent pair of boots will definitely make things more comfortable!

As for the hut ... not sure, but it is a long weekend.


nmonteith

6-Jun-2011
3:15:50 PM

There was snow when we were there in January. I read a few epic stories of survival in the hut from people trapped in the place during winter blizzards. It sounded seriously nasty! Are you planning on rock climbing there? I really can't imagine how cold and windy it would be. Seriously unpleasant.


EJ

6-Jun-2011
4:19:42 PM

Forgot to mention that it would be worthwhile posting something on Thesarvo (www.thesarvo.com), other Taswegians might have some advice.

The Mt Read automatic weather station will give a general indication about the past and current conditions, Frenchmans is a little higher though, therefore a bit colder. Be aware that when the temperature drops below 0 degC, the rain gauge data is a bit dodgy.

citationx

6-Jun-2011
4:23:21 PM

On 6/06/2011 maxdacat wrote:
>Planning a trip there this weekend. Has anybody done it recently or indeed
>at this time of year? I am planning on taking full goretex and a down
>jacket for the evenings but only have trainers for walking in so guess
>i'll be suffering with wet feet. Is the hut likely to be crowded?
>
>ta

Are you talking about just walking there?
I'd look at the long range forecast and see how things are looking. if inclement weather is expected, i'd probably skip it, especially at this time of the year. I doubt the hut would be used. If normal conditions are to be expected (that is, that for one reason or another there HASN'T been sunshining there for the last two months) you can expect quite a long and deep mud wade over the sodden loddens (lodden plains). I have read 60s and 70s bushwalking reports about the acidic/destructive effect of the button grass plain mud on various types of sneakers, esp dunlop volleys. boots and gaiters would probably help.
good luck!


JamesMc

6-Jun-2011
7:24:57 PM

Take a kayak for the mud.

JamesMc


Doug

6-Jun-2011
10:11:34 PM

On 6/06/2011 EJ wrote:
>Forgot to mention that it would be worthwhile posting something on Thesarvo
>(www.thesarvo.com), other Taswegians might have some advice.
>
My advice is to think seriously about what you're going in for. There is a good chance you won't even be able to see the peak let alone climb it, and if you were hoping to do a route you almost certainly won't be able to get up anything if the forecast is at all marginal.
Rob Stazewski went into Frenchman's one winter, got partway up a route and pulled the plug after almost dying of hypothermia. The big thing that most people don't realise is that, although they know Tassie can be cold in winter, it's the humidity that gets you. At first I was sceptical of the cold people talked about in the Apple Isle after moving from the west coast of Canada over thirty years ago but I soon realised that, although it gets colder on the Great Dividing Range, when the conditions get bad in the mountains in Tasmania the dampness is really hard to deal with.

maxdacat

7-Jun-2011
12:07:57 PM

definitely not thinking of climbing - just out for a walk and hopefully "bag" the summit. cheers for the advice.

citationx

7-Jun-2011
1:15:22 PM

On 7/06/2011 maxdacat wrote:
>definitely not thinking of climbing - just out for a walk and hopefully
>"bag" the summit. cheers for the advice.

It's easy for more than a metre of snow to dumped in that area overnight (have experienced it!). If you do go, you should be well prepared. I don't know what's happening in tasmania, but i know that there's a deep cold front in vic/nsw over the next few days putting some snow on the peaks. Given there's only 100km of land between frenchmans and antarctica, keep it in mind!
Put up some photos if you do get out there! :-D

maxdacat

7-Jun-2011
2:55:28 PM

good to know....i left most of my ski mountaineering kit in europe so will have to get by....camera is ready.


regdog55

7-Jun-2011
4:14:57 PM

mud! Mud mud mud! Sodden lodden plains unspeakably muddy! Not to mention Philps lead. You are surely not thinking of doing the walk in trainers? I have had the endless pleasure of walking into Lake Vera hut twice, once in January (went up to my chest in mud, but I'm a runt) and once in May - 2 years ago, and only went in waist deep once, and that time we made the top of the cap the next day. Walking boots and gaiters and the full rig. And thermals. Just did overland track last month and much of the track was icy. But still there was mud.


climbingfool

7-Jun-2011
6:52:23 PM

if you re-consider the timing and do it in the summer, once you get to the loddens, remove all footwear until you get to the bridge after the loddens. doesnt matter what you wear on your feet, they will get wet, muddy and chances are sucked off yer feet many times. we bagged our shoes and went barefoot and had nice warm socks and shoes at the hut. no cuts, punctures, stubbed toes etc. its all mud with a few sections of sand.

we saw a french lad who only wore scuba booties and got to the summit and back to the upper hut from the highway in one day.

we also saw a few parties actually attempting to get through the loddens without getting their feet wet. when we passed them they were trying to dig out a boot removed by muddy suction. they arrived at the lower hut 7 hrs after us in the dark and very wet, frustrated, hungry and muddy.

maxdacat

8-Jun-2011
11:42:44 AM

can't do much about the timing but thanks for the tips. hopefully all the mud will be frozen anyway!

citationx

8-Jun-2011
12:08:44 PM

On 8/06/2011 maxdacat wrote:
>can't do much about the timing but thanks for the tips. hopefully all
>the mud will be frozen anyway!

what you're trying to say, in my mind, is "shut the fsck up about doing it another time, i'm going anyway!"

One Day Hero

8-Jun-2011
9:42:10 PM

That's a funny interpretation! In my mind, Max is saying "God you guys are a bunch of fairweather fags, a bit of half-frozen mud never hurt anyone!"

Hey, has anyone tried some sort of snowshoe/mudskimmer concept.........I'm sure you could float over that stuff with the right technology

citationx

9-Jun-2011
1:40:46 PM

from the smh:
"Heavy snowfalls have also occurred in Victoria and Tasmania, as much as 40 centimetres worth at both Mount Baw Baw and Liawenee."


regdog55

15-Jun-2011
12:15:28 PM

So how did it go? Did you make it up the cap? How was the weather? How was da mud?


Sabu

15-Jun-2011
12:29:20 PM

Pics or it didn't happen!

citationx

15-Jun-2011
1:06:32 PM

On 15/06/2011 Sabu wrote:
>Pics or it didn't happen!

the camera is probably slowly sinking into the sodden loddens.... possibly with max still attached!

maxdacat

16-Jun-2011
11:20:03 AM

Just got back after a few days ash delay. Overall it was a great trip and we got as far as Barons Pass on the Saturday but turned back to Vera due to bad weather and crap visibility. Sunday and Monday were much better, blue skies and no wind and great views from the road of a very snowy Frenchmans Cap. I managed with light boots and no gaiters ok....had dry feet for most of the walk in. My mate had the soles of both shoes sucked of by the mud!

From the logs we could see people had been in the week before but we didn't see anybody out there and had 2 great nights at a rather excellent hut at Lake Vera.

Monday would have been a good day to go for it but given the amount of snow on top crampons might be a good idea. Will post some pics later.

Spent an extra night up in a hut on Mt Wellington and would love to come back for some climbing, as the rock looks brilliant, very reminiscant of Tremadog in Wales.

There are 24 messages in this topic.