Gary Dowse (Gareth)

Track Towns and Supplies

• How many days did you stay in Track Towns? 2
• Did you have any issues finding food/supplies? Yes
• 1. Generally, all the track towns (including Peaceful Bay) now carry stocks of packet freeze-dried food (all Back Country brand, but variable range) and Jetboil-style gas canisters (100 g and/or 230 g size) at the Visitor Centres and/or general/hardware stores. However, note that Pemberton and Donnelly River village were two places that didn't seem to have "eat-in-the-packet" type light freeze-dried food. If you want to rely on these things, phone ahead to check availability and opening hours/days before you start your walk, and you will need to time your arrival/departure in towns to correspond with when places are open. 2. The question "how many days did you stay in Track Towns" is ambiguous. I had 2 "complete rest days" in track towns, but including these, altogether slept 12 nights in track towns while passing through (including Peaceful Bay), if that is what the question means.

Particular Track Towns that you would return to:

• Dwellingup
• Donnelly River Village
• Pemberton
• Walpole
• Denmark
• Albany

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Your Story or Advice for Others

General Comments
It is an arduous endeavour. Some days you will feel strong and fit, and other days you won't feel so good, and you will wonder why you are doing this. Be prepared, carry the right gear, do some practise walks before you start, especially if you have little experience. Engage with people you meet along the way - they are a diverse mob with interesting stories and backgrounds.

Your Best Equipment
ME - given I did all the walking and carried all the equipment! Otherwise, it is impossible to identify the 'best' equipment given that it is all so necessary - backpack (Deuter), sleeping gear (Sea-to-Summit), tent (Big Agnes Fly Creek UL1), walking poles, stove (Jetboil), Garmin in-Reach (satellite messaging etc.), boots (24 year-old leather Zamberlans), gaiters (40 yo Wilderness Equipment, etc). The outstanding asset was really the Bibbulmun Track app produced by Find the Fun - simply all you need for information and navigation, as long as you can maintain power to your phone by judiciously keeping it in aeroplane mode.

Your Worst Equipment
I carried binoculars which I used only a couple of times and a second 10000mAh power-bank and ear buds that I never used, so I could have done without these 600 g.

Advice for Others
Do think forensically about what you need and try to minimise the weight you are carrying, both in terms of choosing items as light as possible, and keeping them to only what is really necessary.

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Trip Details

How you completed the Bibbulmun Track:

• All at once

• How many days did it take you to complete the Track? 45
• Who did you complete the Track with? Solo (primarily)
• Was undertaking your hike the PRIMARY/MAIN purpose of your TRAVEL from where you currently live? Yes
• What first prompted you to walk the Bibbulmun Track? Local knowledge
  

What did you use to navigate the Track?

• App (please specify)
• - Bibbulmun Track App (Find the Fun)

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Your Experience

• Availability of information: Great - 1. Primarily for navigation, but also for information about track sectors, distances, elevations, huts, towns, accommodation/food and so on, all you need these days is the Bibbulmun Track app produced by Find the Fun. Keep your phone in aeroplane mode to save power (I could get 3 days or so before needing to re-charge from a powerbank) and the GPS function shows you instantly where you are in relation to the track, and how far you have to go to the next hut, town or other feature. When you are unsure if you are on the track it provides immediate reassurance, and if you have lost the track, it helps you navigate back to it. 2. The BTF website is also very helpful when you are preparing and to get updates as you move to a new sector on diversions, groups and so on, although the diversion information is not always up-to-date.
• Amount of Wildlife Encountered: Great - An emu dad with 10 chicks; 10 mature Tiger snakes and 1 juvenile dugite in a single day between West Cape Howe and Muttonbird Huts!; the ubiquity of red-tailed black cockatoos through the northern two-thirds of the track.

Favourite Section
The magnificent Tingle and Karri forest (including Frankland and Giants huts) between the two highway crossings east of Walpole; and also the overall section between Northcliffe and Walpole, for its diversity.

Highlight of your trip
Karri and Tingle forests; and the diversity and abundance of wildflowers, particularly through the Pingerup plains and the southern coastal sections.

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