Looking over Charlotte Pass
The view from Mount Stillwell across the summer heath in Kosciuszko National Park.
The world has gone mad.
This last year has been a turbulent one: wars, acts of terror and insanity, massacres and tragedies – at home and overseas. The floods and droughts that accompany climactic extremes seem more common; the forced displacement of people is at its highest since the second world war; and the unprecedented ebola outbreak has claimed over 7000 lives.
Just this week, another passenger airplane has gone down…
Personally, I have been lucky. Although my family has experienced the ups and downs of unexpected marriages and splits, for the most part we have escaped the worst vagaries of misfortune. I have enjoyed a wonderful year, travelling and exploring on three continents with my husband, friends and family.
But, no man – nor any woman – is an island, and the news all around has indeed been distressing and depressing.
We all need an escape – a respite from the stress that the uncertainties in this modern world can induce. For me, that escape is in nature.
That is one of the reasons why I like to get away to the Australian Alps.
There is a stillness in the mountains. It helps me breathe. Centre. Refocus on all that is good…
So, the first and last days of 2014 found me – as is usual over the New Year’s break – in Kosciuszko National Park, walking through the snowless summer ski fields of Australia’s high country.
Early in January, my husband and I drove to Charlotte Pass to look over the Main Range, and to take a short walk up Mount Stillwell.
Out of Season
The trail climbs up Mount Stillwell from the Charlotte Pass Lookout carpark, to the top of a forlorn chairlift. It was overcast, with intermittent rains, so we had the track almost to ourselves.
Alpine Shrubs
Delicate sights and smells are all around.
Rocky Path
It’s a charming – but moderately steep – climb up to the first lookout.
National Park Ranger
My husband and I usually walk on our own, but every so often it is nice to have a NP Ranger along as an interpretive guide. As a local who’d lived in the area and worked with the National Parks many years, he was able to recount the varied interconnected changes wrought by recent differences in weather patterns. Australia’s alpine areas are particularly vulnerable to alterations in the length and timing of seasonal temperatures.
Roots on the Rocks
As we climb out of the sub-alpine region into the alpine zone, vegetation is lower to the ground and hardier.
Alpine Meadows
Delicate-looking but tough and resilient shrubs cover the hillside.
Silver Snow Daisies
The colours of the heath are soft: the dusty blue-gray of the silver snow daisy leaves, red sheep sorrel flowers, and purple eyebright punctuate the hill.
Tiny Ground Cover
Shrubs in Flower
Back down at the Charlotte Pass Lodge (1760m), we are again surrounded by sub-alpine shrubs and trees. The flowering season is brief – with late December through January usually the best time to catch the endemic blooms.
Snow Gum
As the rain starts, the colours on the trunks of the snow gums (eucalyptus pauciflora) deepen.
Silver Snow Daisies on the Rocks
Nature.
Fresh. Restorative.
Promising hope for the year ahead.
Here’s wishing you and yours a good one!
Until next time…
Pictures: 01-03January2014
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