Katherine and I met Nick and Stuart Ferres at the campsite and we began to hike at 11.20 am, on Saturday 18th December. We had decided to go anticlockwise around the track so as to begin with the steep climb rather than end with it. ‘Steep’ was the understatement of the day.

It was about 1 km along Keg Spur which had a very steep gradient and was tough going. It was quite a warm and very sunny day and we were very relieved to reach the top. Of course Stuart could have nearly run the whole way as he only had on a day pack whereas the rest of us were carrying full packs. Once we reached High Camp it was a great view all around Lake Eildon and Fraser National Park. This was also where Stuart came out with his extremely intelligent comment of “the sky is in the middle of the sky”!?!?!

We then began the long descent towards Lake Eildon, and it was much easier hiking along the water’s edge track. We stopped for lunch at School Point where Katherine and I had delicious Vegemite and ham bread rolls which had been nicely squashed in our packs. Stuart went for a swim, we all wet the top halves of ourselves and then continued on our way around the inlet. We hiked along the Lake’s edge stopping every so often for some refreshing water down our backs . We also had to stop for Nick and Stuart to do their bit and remove a tree from the track. This tended to become a habit for them. We walked along to Cook Point which was a bit further than the sign had said.

When we finally got back to Devil Cove where we were camping, we were very hot, so on went the bathers and we were all in Lake Eildon for a swim. It was very refreshing and enjoyed by all. We set up the tents. cooked and ate dinner and then went to bed after a hot day hiking.

On Sunday we left Lake Eildon at about 11.30 and stopped at Alexandra for a drink and some lunch. When we were leaving we decided that the people in Alexandra were giving us those strange looks because we all had on the same t-shirts. You guessed it – Old Scotch Crewwear. I would like to thank Nick and Stuart for coming along to help us on our squire hike.

Lisa Chatty

December 18-19, 1993