These pages provide youth group leaders with the necessary tools to plan, lead and complete a successful expedition on the Bibbulmun Track. It doesnt do much to help the toe nail situation though! Information for bushwalkers from bushwalkers, by Empacitator Wed 22 Jan, 2014 12:20 am, by Empacitator Fri 24 Jan, 2014 10:58 am, by InspirationOutdoors Mon 27 Jan, 2014 1:33 pm, Return to South Australia, Western Australia & Northern Territory, Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 0 guests. was to work out what to take with me. Im quite an experienced hiker, and find your blog post very usefull. The Bibbulmun Track, south Western Australia. How many days of food could I carry at a time? The Bibbulmun Track passes through some remote areas of Western Australia, so once youre on the Track you need to know how to stay on it. The Track is popular with locals, interstate and overseas visitors alike. . The karri tree is one of the tallest species in the world, reaching heights of ninety metres, and some of the tallest karri trees in the area were used as fire lookouts from the 1930s to the 1960s. This occurs on the first stretch (on a north to south hike) between Kalamunda and Dwellingup and involves walking for at least 10 days with no opportunities to resupply. The Bibb connects the outskirts of Perth on the west coast with the town of Albany on the south coast. Ive never had a single blister since I started wearing Injinji toe socks as a liner, underneath thicker wool socks (in my case, Darn Toughs). You should always use this calculator in conjunction with the Bibbulmun Track maps and guidebooks as whilst the distances are a good guide, they are rounded to the nearest 100 metres. Visitors can go four-wheel driving or mountain biking or fish for trout and marron. Maps, other guides and information on diversions can be found on the Bibbulmun Track Foundation website. The only bad time to walk the Bibbulmun is summer. Keep up to date on our projects, our supporters, opportunities for involvement and more. If you are doing more than a day walk on the Track, you will need to take a lot of equipment: sleeping gear, cooking equipment and food, a change of clothing, basic toiletries, a first aid kit and maybe a tent. However, we went there last weekend to hike on the Bibbulmun Track a 963km walking trail that stretches from Kalamunda in the eastern suburbs of Perth to Albany on the south coast of Western Australia. The towns on the Bibbulmun Track are pretty spread out, with the greatest distance between two towns being 202 kilometres. Deciding what equipment you need for a Bibbulmun Track walk doesn't have to be a daunting process. I have done many day walks, 2 overnight walks and one 4 day/3 night walk on the Bibb. Your email address will not be published. The Bibbulmun Track is a long-distance walk trail in Western Australia.. Location/temp range/specific trip description: Seems roughly 0 to 30 degrees C (32-86 degrees F), I'm not very sure though. Due to its size, the Track is divided into nine sections. If youre inspired to try, heres (some of) the info youll need to make it happen. Again, thank you and happy hiking! But its still an awesome pack with a really strong hip strap. The Bibbulmun Track is one of the world's great long distance walk trails, stretching 1000 kilometres from Kalamunda in the Perth hills, to the historic town of Albany on the south coast. The first thing I needed to decide about was when to start the journey. Ive only done Bibbulmun day hikes as of yet. There are also taxi services and tour operators who can help you to co-ordinate your walk, and some B&Bs near the Track offer drop-off and pick-up services. It was originally envisaged by keen bushwalker Geoff Schafer, in 1972. We have been planning in earnest for a few weeks now and we have been using a huge excel spreadsheet to help us battle the logistics one step at a time. Since I started using this I havent had a blister. Travel from Perth Airport to Fremantle for $4.50, Take a walk on the wild side walking the Bibbulmun Track, What to take on a multi-day Bibbulmun Track hike, Follow Local Travel Tips on WordPress.com. The Group page. So many! The most important item on any hike is a pair of comfortable, well worn-in boots. For example, I discovered from the registers that the Track markers on the Monadnocks (a series of exposed rocky hills) were piles of rocks instead of the usual waugals. It may be several weeks before you arrive there on foot, so make sure your food parcel is water- and vermin-proof by packing the food in plastic bags, inside plastic boxes, inside another large plastic bag. Your email address will not be published. Proud of your achievement. I took water purification tablets on my first hike, but the treated water tasted so foul I couldnt drink it! Best time to hike the Bibbulmun track is between April and October. It was the perfect opportunity for me to wind down from the more rugged and draining hikes of the previous few months. Overview Stretching just over 1000 kilometres from Kalamunda in the Perth Hills to Albany, the Bibbulmun Track is Western Australia's longest walking trail, falling just behind South Australia's Heysen Trail as the longest walking-oriented trail in the country (the impressively long 5330 km Bicentennial National Trail is not designed with walkers in mind). How much food you need to take will depend on your metabolism, how long you are walking for, and which section of the track you are doing. Required fields are marked *. May 4th 2016 It is the night before (it actually isn't but I am now writing this all in retrospect) and I am so very excited. If youre an experienced hiker you probably wont find much here for you, but hey you dont know what you dont know! A practice walk of three or more days should give a good indication of how much food you need, otherwise allow about one kilogram of food per day. At the end of the month, we'll be able to track which format and duration were most effective for us. One of my favourite places to escape to is a little town called Pemberton, 335 kilometres south of Perth. Im trying to cut down on as much weight as possible. I charge both from a portable battery pack, which usually lasts me between towns. Then bury it. Unless you can talk friends into bringing supplies to you, which could be difficult to coordinate, youll need to do a food drop before you go. She made a road trip the week before she left and dropped off her own supplies. These pages are bursting with information to help you have a safe and pleasant journey. I want to buy food as I go like you suggested, support the communities along the way, always choose that option. You can get some pretty light self-inflating mats so Id explore that option if you plan on hiking regularly. Track so, if you walk in the spring when water is plentiful and temperatures are not too high, you could get away with carrying about two litres of water. As a rough guide, there should be five waugals per kilometre in forest areas, and two per kilometre in more open areas. The only place you might need to plan ahead is the Kalamunda to Dwellingup section, where the only resupply point is the North Bannister Road House. Despite and abnormally rainy experience, it was quite the relaxing hike. Do you keep your phone on you? Use Google Sheets to create and edit online spreadsheets. Charting my travels around the world, one adventure at a time. Bushwalk Australia and contributors 2007-2013. Plus purchasing a small amount of meals from the supermarket did still switch up my diet. Hi! I just googled the Via Dinarica and it looks amazing! My kneecaps tend to rub against their track if I allow my IT band to get too tight, so I make a point of stretching it and rolling it out whenever I get the chance. You get to experience the famous (or infamous!) We are flying to Perth from London on Qantas new direct flights. Suggest you make a post on one of the Bib track sites on facebook as lots of experts there. Like anything, this can vary enormously in price and quality. It may be a restricted road or a closed quarantined road within a Disease Risk Area where vehicles are not permitted. Here are the main points we are currently looking at: If left to my own devices I would happily stick with the full contingent of hiking kit I currently own - including a sleeping bag dating back well over 15 years and a hiking pack purchased for my Bronze D of E. In my mind, if its not broken, why replace it? The towns Tourist/Information centers and some petrol stations have stored supplies for her. 1000km. Somewhere in the world: Answering these questions helped me map out how manybreakfast, lunches, dinners & snacks I would need across the hike, & where they would potentially come from along the way. As a traveller from eastern side of Australia doing this hike in pieces wasn't an option. Ive decided to walk the Bibbulmun Track! Weve bought a Sawyer Squeeze Filter - apparently it gets rid of 99.9% of bacteria and only weighs 85 grams (I did say weight was now the only thing I think about!). But how basic are these village stores? What about tracking navigation? Karri trees grow in the high rainfall areas of south west Australia. Thanks for the reply. WA Parks Foundation Chair the Hon Kerry Sanderson AC CVO with Board Director Eva Skira AM hiking on the Bibbulmun Track. An Australian owned one-stop-shop for outdoor and adventure equipment! Im all about lists & planning for a hike. Youll need more if you walk when the water supply is less reliable. Testing out the Sawyer Filter in a murky Peak District stream. Well be sending a second pair of each ahead to one of the Track towns in case they are so worn we need to replace them (gulp!). As you become more experienced you will get better at knowing what gear works for you. My basic gear, not including food and water, weighed about 13 kilograms (see the list at the end of this blog). I tried to allow at least one rest day in each town to stock up on supplies, do my washing, shower, eat and, most importantly, rest. Sending packages to yourself does make a bit of guess work. The Bibbulmun Track is a 623mi/1,002km trail that runs near the Southwest coast of Australia from Kalamunda (near Perth) to Albany. Able to buy peanut butter, tortilla flatbread and instant pasta meals like those kind of things? Of course this is all a bit subjective but if there is a lot of unstable rocky ground or long, steep walks uphill then I might be in trouble, Thanks for your quick reply, Andrew. Sugars and fats might be your enemy in the real world, but theyre your friend on the trail. I took water purification tablets on my first hike, but the treated water tasted so foul I couldnt drink it! Nick. Although well be walking in Australias winter and rain is a distinct possibility, weve opted for lightweight trail shoes which will offer the tread we need without the weight and (hopefully) the blisters and pressure points on the feet. The next most important consideration for a long distance hike is your pack. On an excel spreadsheet I mapped out my entire walk highlighting where I was planning to stay each night, how many days I would be on the track, how many nights I would be in each town to provide an overall understanding of where I would be for each day and for each meal. Photos featured on this site are courtesy of Tourism WA, Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions, Doug Coughran, Colin Ingram, Peter Nicholas, L-A Shibish and Nature Play WA. He was also a pretty good breeder himself, fathering nine children! Whether you want to walk for a couple of hours or a couple of months, the Bibbulmun Track provides the means to get away from it all and to experience the peace and beauty of south-west Australia. Hi Emma, Hi Anna, If youre of average fitness, you could expect to finish the Bibbulmun in somewhere between 40 and 65 days, depending on your pace and how many rest days you take in towns. Unfortunately, Ive been nursing a small injury in my hip so our grand plans for training has gone out of the window, but we are now walking to and from work whenever possible, as well as planning longer walks in the Peaks and near London as well as the Lakes in the coming weeks to build up our strength and endurance. The Track was radically realigned (retaining less than 10% of the old route) and extended to Albany. Leave No Trace builds awareness, appreciation and respect for our natural and cultural heritage. You need to be a special type of person to live in them and I admire people who thrive in these conditions I know I couldnt. Im just getting the blog off the ground so its good to hear somebody is finding it useful. In May this year, Tim and I will be flying to Western Australia to take on our biggest challenge yet; well be hiking the Bibbulmun track, 1,000 km through the remote Australian wilderness. Traditional camping equipment is rarely suitable for hikers, so youll need to buy equipment thats designed for hiking. More information can be found in an accommodation and services guide for walkers published by the Friends of the Bibbulmun Track. It is managed by government agencies, and has a foundation. That said, its totally doable to do a thru-hike solely on town-bought supplies if you dont mind paying a little extra and youre not a fussy eater. If youre more tech-savvy than me, a GPS could also be invaluable, though youll need to take a solar charger too as there are no power points between towns. Collie was a bigger town with a large supermarket. This creates a logistical nightmare. Over 1000km, the walk traverses red ironstone gravel in the Darling Range, elevated granite domes with vast views, coastal cliffs of jagged limestone, peaty swamp plains, gorges with cascading . Donnelly River Village Northcliffe: Pack everything dehydrating my own food & post to DRV accomodation to reach Pemberton. It won't be gourmet dining, but it will do the job. Your email address will not be published. Well be weighing out all our food and making decisions on menus based on the weight/calorie ratio ( and cost will have a small impact on decision-making), to ensure were carrying the most calorie efficient food. It will come in very useful when I finally get to do my own E2E. There are many businesses and organisations along the entire length of the Track that offer goods and services to help you get the most out of your walk, whether it be for a few hours or an epic end-to-end journey. It allowed me to work out how many meals to dehydrate, pack and post, or alternatively buy in town.. Anyone with an average level of fitness should be able to complete an end-to-end, so long as they actively manage their body and dont injure themselves. Each hut can accommodate between eight and 15 people (depending on the design) sleeping on wooden boards. On my first attempt at hiking the Bibbulmun Track end to end, I was thwarted by very nasty blisters, caused by my boots being slightly too loose and rubbing on my heels. Read More. a long weekend) its best to take a tent with you. Leave No Trace is all about promoting and inspiring responsible outdoor travel and recreation through education, research and partnerships. Everybodys body is different, so do some training hikes to work out any physical issues you might have, and how to manage them.