2/07/1988 – 6/07/1988 Guthega Power Station– Whites River – Geehi River – Valentine Hut
Kosciuszko National Park, NSW
Ngarigo country
Distance: 39km Total Ascent: 1720m Total Descent: 1720m
Participants: Stephen Davies (Photos), Sue Davies (Report)
Day 1: Saturday 2/07/1988 Guthega Power Station – Whites River Hut
This route was reconstructed from memory using Google Earth Pro and GPS Visualizer.
Max elevation: 1798 m
Total climbing: 686 m
Total descent: -218 m
Average speed: nan km/h
Moved on from the “bridge motel” (our car parked under the bridge just out of Berridale) before 9:00am. Stopped in Jindabyne for some last minute supplies. We packed up and had a break viewing Lake Jindabyne. Crammed an enormous amount into the packs, unable to be lifted by a single person! Headed of from Guthega Power Station at 12:00pm. A large group of Outward Bounders returning, Phew! An enormous slog up the road. Why couldn’t we drive? Legs screaming! Stopped for lunch after about an hour. Put our skis on not too far from Whites River Hut. Very pooped so stayed near the hut in a very nice campsite by a creek.
Day 2: Sunday 3/07/1988 Whites River Hut – Geehi River
This route was reconstructed from memory using Google Earth Pro and GPS Visualizer.
Max elevation: 1808 m
Total climbing: 281 m
Total descent: -497 m
Average speed: nan km/h
A gorgeous morning. Took photos of animal tracks and the creek. Packed up, an arduous task with so much food! Set off about 11:00am. Up the hill to Schlink Pass and a nice cruisy run along the road. Gorgeous weather. Skied along Duck Creek in patchy snow as we were getting tired! Endured some walking to Valentine. Across the Valentine River!! Painfully cold! Up to the ridge and then walked down the steep hill the other side, bashing our way through the bush and ending up not getting to Grey Mare Hut. Camped by the Geehi River as we were not able to find a way to get across without getting our feet wet. Camped on grass/snow.
Campsite above Whites River – Valentine Hut trip 2/6/1988
Day 3: Monday 4/07/1988 Geehi River – Valentine Hut
This route was reconstructed from memory using Google Earth Pro and GPS Visualizer.
Max elevation: 1760 m
Total climbing: 218 m
Total descent: -116 m
Average speed: nan km/h
Another half day to get to Grey Mare and a full two days probably to get back gave us a change of mind. So back up that steep hill!! Bushbashing and carrying skis. It was hard but we did it. Not quite to where we had imagined the top and then not a nice slope to ski down but thick bush. By then we realised our illustrious leader had taken a wrong turn! After strangling him we battled up the same steep hill getting skis caught on every bush. At the top had lunch and heard John Meehan and company, probably heading for Grey Mare. By the time we got to the top we could see their tracks but they were gone. Then down to cross that bloody cold Valentine Creek again. Not so bad this time. A bit lower.
Valentine Hut – Valentine Hut trip 2/6/1988
Saw the weather changing and decided to stay at Valentine Hut for the night. Went out for ski in the afternoon but not worth the effort. Had a nice quiet night. Lentils and rice. Mice fighting, squeaking and playing until midnight.
Day 4: Tuesday 5/07/1988 Valentine Hut
Decided to stay. At first the weather just seemed windy but it soon started to rain, so staying was a good decision. Progressively got worse as the day went on. Stoked up Fatso (the potbelly stove) and settled in for a day of reading Woman’s Weekly and a hand therapy journal. Ian and boy scouts arrived after lunch – very wet. Solitude broken but nice to talk to some new company. Played cards and talked. Barley and vegetables for tea. Played modified 500 by candlelight.
Valentine Hut trip 2/6/1988
Day 5: Wednesday 6/07/1988 Valentine Hut
Woke to more wind and rain, no point moving on. Boys got up even later. Cooked breakfast too, about two hours. Just as we were saying goodbye to the boys, who were heading off to Mawsons Hut, two more lads (Tim and Brad) arrived. More solitary fellows but we shared our damper with them. Was it ever good, dough sausages filled with honey. Went for a walk in the rain to watch the raging torrent of a river. (last diary entry)
Valentine Creek in flood – Valentine Hut trip 2/6/1988
Day 6: Thursday 7/07/1988 Valentine Hut – Guthega Power Station
This route was reconstructed from memory using Google Earth Pro and GPS Visualizer.
Max elevation: 1808 m
Total climbing: 526 m
Total descent: -884 m
Average speed: nan km/h
Clickable icons on a world map which open the related trip report
A detailed, searchable trip list with links to reports, photo galleries and other content
