Australian Alps Walking Track - West Peak Mt McDonald to Square Top Mountain

Day: 07
Date: Tuesday, 23 April 2019
Start:  2km south of the West Peak of Mt McDonald
Finish:  Atop Square Top Mountain
Daily Kilometres:  15.0 AAWT plus 4.0km looking for water
Total AAWT Kilometres:  147.2
Weather:  Mild and mostly overcast with some rain.
Accommodation:  Tent
Nutrition:
  Breakfast:  Trail Mix
  Lunch:  Chocolate
  Dinner:  Rehydrated meal
Aches:  Both very tired, yet again
Highlight:  Walking the last hour along the flat top of Square Top Mountain through light snow gum forest and occasional breathtaking views of the sunset over the cloud-shrouded mountains to the north and west.
Lowlight:  Walking 2km downhill and off-track to "reliable" water sources that proved non-existent.  We managed to drain a few hundred muddy mils from a rainwater puddle, but that was it.
Pictures: Click here
Map and Position: Click here for Google Map
Journal:

The day didn't start well when we overslept, missing what would prove to be valuable daylight.  Having almost no water, we set off to climb the West Peak of Mt McDonald, and then Mt McDonald (1620m) itself en route to a firetrail down which were supposed to be some running streams.  Crossing the two mountains was, as usual, much slower than we expected.  The views were fantastic over the rolling forested mountain ranges to the north and west, and we were sometimes above the tree-line, but the climbs and descents were steep, the trail hard to follow and very technical in parts.  It took us four hours to cover the 8.5km to the firetrail, where we hid our packs and headed off downhill and away from the AAWT, keen to get a drink and restock at one of the two creeks that it supposedly crossed.  Alas, both were bone dry, and despite descending a bit further, we made do with a little puddle water before returning to our packs.

The situation was now a little concerning, since it was likely to be another 12km along the AAWT before we reached the next reliable water, and since we were so thirsty, we didn't feel like eating our dry trail mix.  We decided that we could make the 12km, though were also concerned about our slow rate of progress and whether we would need to travel after dark.  It turned out our concerns about travel time were well-founded, but we did find some rainwater puddles on some rocks and managed to collect another two litres of water.  We pressed on towards the next water source, but as we travelled across the high "lost world" plateau of Square Top Mountain with the sun setting, we decided to play safe and found a campsite there just before 6pm, some 6km, and one more mountain crossing, short of our destination.

Evening washes were done with a couple of tiny "wet ones" each and we used the water to rehydrate meals and enjoy very welcome hot chocolates.  We are still both thirsty, but have a little water left, and are confident we will make it to Chester Yards and water for a late breakfast tomorrow.  Our slow progress is also making us rethink our schedule, but we'll go for an earlier start tomorrow and hope to make up some time.  Despite all of this we are having a great time and savouring the wilderness and challenges it brings.