Can it be done without food drops?

A forum for discussing the Australian Alps Walking Track. This is a 655 km long track from Walhalla (Vic) to Tharwa (ACT)

Can it be done without food drops?

Postby _Harry_ » Wed 01 Feb, 2017 3:39 pm

Can it be done without food drops? (Im assuming food drops are dropping food along your hike before u start)
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Re: Can it be done without food drops?

Postby Mark F » Wed 01 Feb, 2017 6:35 pm

How strong is your back? Assuming 600-700 grams of food per day and an average transit time of 35 days (this is quite fast considering the weight carried) then you need to start 21 to 24 kg of food. Add on a minimum of 5kg of gear + at least 2kg extra for a pack capable of carrying 30kg and I expect your 35 day transit is in doubt. Maybe you are Hercules. 600-700 grams of food is a minimum which will lead to considerable weight loss under the 35 day transit time. A more common transit time is 40 to 50 days.

It is possible to break the trip up into 3 sections of between 10 and 14 days per section which drops the initial weight at the start of each section to 6 to 10kg of food which is physically possible but requires you to shop at Thredbo and Hotham/Falls Creek both of which have very limited facilities, or leave the AAWT and hitch into nearby towns (Jindabyne and Bright/Myrtleford). If you organise accommodation at Thredbo/Hotham you should be able to post a parcel of food, but not fuel, to your accommodation provider.
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Re: Can it be done without food drops?

Postby _Harry_ » Thu 02 Feb, 2017 12:34 pm

haha cheers appreachiate it
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Re: Can it be done without food drops?

Postby madmacca » Tue 14 Feb, 2017 4:20 pm

_Harry_ wrote:Can it be done without food drops? (Im assuming food drops are dropping food along your hike before u start)


Food can be obtained at Thredbo and Mt Hotham (Mt Hotham is a bit more limited). Also, both stores are also Licenced Post Agencies, so you can post specialty items to yourself for pickup there - although as MarkF noted, you can't post stove fuel. Falls Creek has a wider selection than Mt Hotham, but is somewhat off the track, so not much of an advantage.

This gives a distance of about 220 km for each of Wahalla-Hotham, Hotham-Thredbo, and Thredbo-Tharwa. If you are managing 20 km/day, this means about carrying about 10-11 days of food. For those kind of distances on an extended basis, I'd go with a planning figure of 700-800 grams per day. MarkF's figure would be appropriate for shorter days, or a shorter trip. This means 8-9 kg of food starting out each leg although your pack weight will drop after 2-3 days in. :)

This is doable, but it requires:
* fitness and discipline to keep the daily distances up. This means only limited side trips, and no rest days (although I guess you could take a rest day in each of the resorts).
* good nutritional knowledge to get in a balanced diet with sufficient calories, within those weight limits.
* careful gear selection to keep your overall pack weight reasonable while carrying that much food.

This is doable (I have done the AAWT on this basis), but honestly, I would recommend a 3 drop strategy (Kiandra, Benambra/Corryong Rd, Rumpff Saddle?) as a more enjoyable means of doing the AAWT - a lighter pack and more time for side trips.

The right choice of resupply container would allow you to carry out your own container to Thredbo & Hotham, rather than the hassle of driving back to pick up your containers.
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Re: Can it be done without food drops?

Postby als » Sat 18 Feb, 2017 7:35 am

no probably not harry
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