Alpine National Park – Mt Feathertop

This week I headed up to Mt Hotham in the heart of the Alpine National Park. I couldn’t have timed the trek from Hotham Village to Mt Feathertop better as the weather on Saturday was perfect. Almost clear blue skies, sunny and not a breathe of wind on the Razorback ridge.

I have never done any snow treks apart from the Fox Glacier Hike in New Zealand. This track was covered in snow and there was barely any tree cover as you walk across the Razorback ridge which is a set of mountains along the way to Mt Feathertop.

The trek took 11 hours and covered a distance of 28km. You begin the trek from Hotham Village and walk along the road down to Diamantina hut. From the Diamantina hut you walk along Razorback Walking Track down to Twin Knobs then to The Cross. From The Cross you can see Federation Hut and this is where you start your ascent to Mt Feathertop Summit. Then you return the same way you came.

I brought my friend Varun along on this trip on his maiden hike. We left Mt Hotham village centre at 6.30am and made my way down to Diamantina hut. When we got there, we put on some gaiters and tried using the snow shoes. Unfortunately the snow shoes were missing a buckle so the snow shoes became useless even though the majority of the track was covered in snow.

We began the ascent to the top of Razorback Ridge with quite a bit of weight on my shoulders. Some parts of the track had snow that was knee-deep so I had to plow through that without any snow shoes. I’ve never walked in snow before but after a while my legs began to cramp up. Possibly due to the coldness or the lack of oxygen in my legs due to the gaiters and higher altitude.

We had several breaks on the Razorback Ridge to catch up on some needed rest. The closer we got to Mt Feathertop the more snow we encountered. Both my legs were beginning to cramp severely especially on the upper thighs. I asked Varun to lead and make some tracks for me so that I don’t fall into the snow and cramp even further. Basically I would follow in the footsteps of Varun if the snow was deep. From the top of Razorback ridge all the way to Mt Feathertop its stunning 360 degree views of the surrounding mountains. A clear and sunny day just made the views even more spectacular with the snow capped peaks and snow covered trees.

Just before we reach Twin Knobs we walk through some rugged bushland with snow melting everywhere. The track is quite muddy once the snow melts, so ensure you have some sturdy and waterproof boots. Another rest was needed at this point so we sat under a tree for some shade and finished off our beloved Tim Tams, the best source of energy one can have (nice sugar rush). The walk along to The Cross is on the side of the mountain with plenty of snow cover. It is very easy to slip and slide down the side of the mountain so one needs to be careful of where you place your footing.

We arrived at the bottom of Mt Feathertop summit at about 11.30am and we only had 30mins to reach the summit before heading back to the chalet. So we quickly dropped our gear at the bottom and quickly scrambled up the summit. It was quite slippery up on the summit climb with frozen ice and with no snow shoes it made it a bit more difficult. We climbed on rocks and soft snow just to make it to the top. Once we were at the top, we knew that our hard mornings walk had paid off and we had conquered Mt Feathertop, the second highest mountain in Victoria. After taking some panoramas and various shots of the surrounding mountains it was time for the hard slog back to home and comfort.

The walk back was just as hard and since the entire day was quite sunny, a lot of snow had melted so the walk along the sides of the mountains and razorback ridge were quite slippery and extremely muddy. I ran out of water with about an hour to walk, I was tempted to eat the ice just to get some liquid but I managed not to. I couldn’t wait to get back to the Chalet because dinner was awaiting us. I was dying for some orange juice and of course the main meal of spaghetti Bolognese. A well deserved meal after a hard days walk. We arrived back at the Chalet at 5.30pm as it was beginning to get dark. The Bolognese was delicious complemented by a few glasses of juice. A perfect combination.

Sore legs and thighs, aching neck and shoulders, hunger satisfied after the great meal, the next best thing to do was to have an early night for a full day’s skiing the next day!

More photos can be found here.