September - October ‘97 Volume: 1 Issue: 2
In this issue...
MOC Trips
Hello again everybody,
Quite a while since the first issue of TrippyTracks …signalling a lack of activity perhaps - au contraire, it means the club has been too busy doing things, rather than writing about them! The club has grown to approximately one hundred and twenty five students… all in the matter of one and a half semesters! Way faster than the most optimistic of us would have believed. Thank you for that!
MOC is particularly excited by the next jaunt on the cards, we are off to Snowy River National Park… yes the very same one that was immortalised by Banjo Paterson in his "Ballad of the Man from Snowy River", heck a TV serial (among other things) was made based on it... it has to be good!
So what else have we been doing? A lot (as you would have out had you been there)!
The Great Horse Riding Adventure advertised in the last issue of TrippyTracks was an unparalleled success. Uncle Nev’s Trail Rides situated near Upper Plenty served as our introduction (for many of us) to the equine species. We took a nice circuitous route through "bushland"… yup we even scared a herd of kangaroos from their repose (which is how we know that we were in bush land!) Up hills, down hills and around hills, ponds for the horses to drink from, a log cabin midway where the humans were nourished. Five completely seat-sore hours later we headed back to urban civilisation and the much needed comfort of warm baths and back massages (i.e. for those that managed to wangle them!)
The Grampians was next on our agenda. Once again we struck it lucky... a day forecast as wet and cloudy, turned sunny and crisp, just for us. 4 Taragos allowed us to make as many stops as we liked along the way, McKenzie Falls, The Balconies (where we feasted on our packed lunches), Halls Gap, Lake Bellfield, all duly visited.
Most recently MOC went to Lake Mountain, on a cross-country skiing expedition, which as I could not go, I’m unable to talk about. Consumed with envy, I’ll let Vivienne and Rahul tell you all about it... in their own inimical styles, for I am assured that you will be as envious for having missed it.
The moral of the story... don’t miss the Mid Semester Snowy River National Park Camping Jaunt as well!
- Kavitha Jayakaran
L ovely the entire day turned out to be,
A djectives?..hmm...amazing? Embarrassing?...Just read on!....
K lutz-like trying to balance with 2 long poles on my feet,
E ntertaining I bet to all those watching!
M aking a clown of myself as I go screaming downhill,
O uch! Aargh! Bam! For all the bum falls I had ...yet...
U nbelievable too that I still went on!
N ot all was in agony and pain though,
T hrilling it was after getting the hang of it!
A nyway, what happened after 6 hours of skiing?
I ce-covered!...and that’s to put it mildly!
N evertheless, it was great company for a fantastic time!
Till the next trip!... Keep those muscles going!!......
- Vivienne Lim
Rahul "rapier-wit" Raj
The club takes no responsibility for the content and the deranged manner of the writer of this article. The writer was believed to have been under the influence of his wit, charm and good-looks. This article may contain items that may offend the sensibilities of some, kindly refrain if you fall under the above category.
We went, we froze our butts off, we came back with bruises but with a sense of achievement and pride hovering at 3 degrees centigrade.(But wait its all in the details Yes, the inaugural ski trip for the Monash Outdoor Club. One laden with images of olympic-esque athletes cutting through the snow with graceful motions, with the sun of the fading winter cheering them on, casting shadows on the powdery white crystallised H20, aka snow.(NOT!).
On the day of the Big White Event (no racial puns intended) we the members of the MOC departed uni, for most their first contact with snow (except for a tall Caucasian east European). Three Camrys and a Tarago were seen heading in a northern direction though the government has denied such reports. The first stopover was at Amityville, no sorry Marysville, lying at the foot of Lake Mountain, where we were to collect our equipment. Some members and the equipment made their way up before the vehicles returned for the others. Those already at the top were given impromptu cross-country skiing lessons by Viktor - the start of an ongoing familiarisation process between the skiers’ posteriors and the ground. The others arrived, tickets duly dispensed and we were on our way.
The first trail was to my memory a rather gentle one. The art of skiing requires a coordination of the limbs and hands whichever comes first. Some found that they had a knack for it... and others, well most others didn’t. But nevertheless there was an enthusiasm there which withstood the falls and tumbles that graciously came along for the ride. The weather was initially benign (as opposed to a malignant tumour - me not know what that means Duh!!).Then the hand of Loki struck [the Nordic God of Mischief (u know snow and Scandinavian gods) whatever.....]. The snow fall became heavier and pretty soon we had something close to a blizzard on our hands. Vision was restricted to about 20 metres as was mobility. Nevertheless the council of Nordic Gods overruled and the sun came back into our snow drenched lives. At this juncture we came upon a clearing. Yes it was the garden of Eden with a dash of snow and a cooler climate. The dream-like state of the place certainly captured my attention only to be broken by....SNOWFIGHT!!!!!. Certain members took the lull in the snowfall to engage in the age old, happy childhood, American pie, pre-Nixon, post-Macarthy, what-u-see-in-the-movies snowfight. I partook in this shortlived war of flying iced missiles with limited success. (Nearby the United Nation observers kept watch to make sure we were in line with the 1946 Geneva Convention).
We moved on and came across what would be the first of a series of downhill slopes. The first maiden attempts were made by ‘Sin Loy The Courageous’. She came down on a straight path narrowly missing an unsuspecting skier and soundly fell over looking like what many describe as a Hollywood stuntwoman doing her job. Bravo, for her attempt unleashed the spirit of repressed need for not being able to control one’s direction and braking that lay dormant in people's hearts. We moved on splitting into smaller groups and moving at our own pace. The group I was in, pioneered a new technique for skiing on a slope - sitting on one’s own skis. This minimised the distance of eventual fall when one reached the point of no return. As the afternoon pressed ahead, we moved on taking on new challenges discovering the cure for cancer and a few strains of malaria or something like that.(sounding like Homer Simpson?) The Wollybutt trail was for intermediate skiers and proved a bit of a challenge, punctuated by the screams of certain female members. The Muster trail which led back to where we started proved longer than the map indicated (I think I was tiring then).
Back at the carpark we found that we were more than we had started with, the addition being a lost Neanderthal tribe, a woolly mammoth and a variety of extinct animals that were only in my mind (yes delusional). They had to be turned away as we had not brought any membership forms. The temperature was now heading toward the negatives and we had to get going. At this point I realised that putting on chains on to wheels was harder than I figured owing to that growing numbness in my hands and ears, yes, ears. Anyway with grr-rr-r-reat effort the chains were put on tyres and we were back on our way. En route, we passed a vehicle in distress (in a ditch to be precise). Donning our Good Samaritan caps and smiles we graciously offered our services. For some undiscernible reason, they did not seem to buy our act and most graciously declined. We left without accomplishing our good deed for the day.
The speed of vehicles was kept to 30 km/h owing to the road conditions and pretty soon we reached Marysville where the equipment was returned. Further on with the consent of Her Royal Highness Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth (Yes the old bag) we had a stopover at MacDonalds where the malaysian students were entertained by Sudesh of Lorong Vegas (duh-dum-dish). The skiing adventure ended on a high note (for McDonalds at any rate who made record earnings off a bunch of starving Monash Outdoor Clubbers at the end of yet another expedition.
- Rahul Raj
" ...where the pine-clad ridges raise
Their torn and rugged battlements on high,
Where the air is clear as crystal, and the white stars fairly blaze
At midnight in the cold and frosty sky,
And where around the Overflow the reedbeds sweep and sway
To the breezes, and the rolling plains are wide,...
- Banjo Paterson "The Man From Snowy River"
The setting for this is Snowy River National Park, on the Border of NSW and Victoria, home to some of Victoria’s most breathtaking, rugged and remote forests (pine woodlands, warm temperate rainforest and rain shadow woodland), gorges and river scenery, a diversity of flora and fauna (platypuses and water dragons among the more exotic) as well as significant archaeological sites. The park covers over 98,000 hectares and is Victorias largest forest wilderness and one of its most isolated parks.
The Snowy River starts near Mount Kosciusko in the NSW and descends through the Snowy Mountains through Victoria to the Bass Strait, nearly 500 km from its source. Along its path the many moods of the Snowy are exhibited, at one stage a tranquil pool at another a raging rapid, and at yet another the perfect swimming spot and sandy beaches.
This smorgasbord of unspoilt bush and mountain scenery allow for short and extended walks (of which we plan to do plenty), horse-riding, fishing, swimming, rafting, abseiling and scenic driving.
The main attractions at Snowy River National Park include Snowy River, MacKillops Bridge (a couple of good walking trails start here, camp site and nice swimming areas) , Little River Gorge (Victoria’s deepest gorge), Little River, Raymond Falls (where the lyrebird and the kingfisher play), Big Tree, Deddick Trail, Tulloch Ard Gorge and the Mountain Ash forests.
Dates : Departure on October 1st (Wednesday ) and return on October 4th (Saturday)
Times will be intimated at the briefing session
Cost: $90 for members and $100 for non members (this includes transport and tents)
Students will be expected to bring their own food for the whole trip (eg. tinned food). We suggest that you form into small groups and organise food collectively. This will be discussed at greater length at the pre-jaunt briefing session. All activities undertaken will be borne individually.
Equipment To Be Brought
Activities Available and Costs (all costs are approximate)
Pre-Jaunt Briefing Session
On Friday 26th September 1997, from 11 am to 12 noon we will have a briefing session for all students going on the Snowy River National Park Camping Jaunt at the Level 2 Conference Room, Chislholm Towers (entrance opposite Student Union Desk). It is vital that you attend if you plan on going!
This time, places are very limited so please book in as early as possible. To facilitate this, we have a booth between A and B block from 11 am to 3 pm on Tuesday (23 Sept.) and Wednesday (24 Sept.) For more details, contact a committee member or email Monash Outdoor Club at moc@yoyo.cc.monash.edu.au