Ian Kininmonth (Tick Magnet)
Completed: 15 November, 2020
Tick Magnet
- Start date: 17 September, 2020
- Age When Completed: 55
- Direction Walked: Southbound
Track Towns and Supplies
- Did you have any issues finding food/supplies? Yes
- We dehydrated 38 delicious meals for two along with quite a bit of fruit leather and tomatoes. We also made our own high carb muesli bars and ground a stack of coffee, then packaged these up (vacuum packed) and had them mailed to the visitor centres in the track towns (which are normally open every day). Most of the meals were eaten with a high carb base of either maize meal, couscous or pasta. For breakfast we usually had porridge or muesli. Lunches were either salami, cheese, dehyd tomatoes and crackers or flavoured couscous and tuna/beans.
Your Story or Advice for Others
General CommentsHiking the Bibbulmun was a last minute decision. We had got back to Perth after riding the Munda Biddi E2E in August and enjoyed being immersed in nature so much that we decided to give the Bibbulmun a go. Just under the month later we started our walk. We're so glad we did.
Your Best Equipment
Big Agnes Copper Spur 2 person tent. We used it almost every night. About half the time outside the huts and about half the time, when there was space, in the huts, often just the inner to keep the mosquitoes at bay. Osprey Aether and Arial packs (60L, 65L). These had heaps of room and pockets to store gear, and the hip belt and back ventilation were awesome. Kobo e-reader. This synced to our local library account via overdrive so gave us an endless supply of books. The e-reader easily went a week between track towns without being charged.
Your Worst Equipment
None. Except for one pack cover that wasn’t actually waterproof.
Advice for Others
Don’t overthink the planning. Just do it! Oh, and stretching at the end of each day is really useful.
Trip Details
How you completed the Bibbulmun Track:- All at once
- Who did you complete the Track with? Other - Helen Studham
- Was undertaking your hike the PRIMARY/MAIN purpose of your TRAVEL from where you currently live? No
Your Experience
Each section had its own uniqueness and it’s hard to pick a favourite. We loved swimming in the sections along the Donnelly River though and in particular at Tom Road hut. We also loved the dramatic change in the landscape going from the Karri/Tingle forest near Walpole to the rugged coastal scenery through to Peaceful Bay. The track from before Yourdamung to just south of Collie was an orchid goldmine. We spotted and photographed about 15 new species in this section alone.
Highlight of your trip
Spotting and photographing about 60 species of orchids. The calls of the Red Tailed cockatoos and the flash of their tails. Swimming in the freshwater rivers, lakes and in the ocean along the way. The people we met. The diversity of the landscape. The birdsong in the morning and the sounds of the Mopoke at night. Seeing over 50 snakes and goannas, plus numerous other animals.