My 4-Peaks Experience by Liliia Gluschenko

Saturday, 20 February 2010

Click here for 4 peaks photos [PDF 1.4MB]

The annual 4 Peaks event took place in Bright over the Melbourne Cup long weekend. For a first timer like myself who was encouraged ‘to come along for a leisurely stroll’ I wasn’t sure what to expect - history has taught me never to take what a woman tells me totally for granted.  After having survived in one piece I have scribbled down for posterity a few quick notes of my experience over the 4 days.

The overall 4 day event was very well organised and this is mainly due to the dedication of Reg Splatt and his team who worked tirelessly to make things run smoothly. Registration for the whole 4 day event only cost $10 (which included drinks and snacks after each event) and was well worth it.  Each day’s event kicked off early in the morning and was usually over before midday which gave everybody the rest of the each day to relax and enjoy the long weekend.

For what was to be a forerunner for the rest of the weekend we had very hot sunny weather for first event - a walk up Mystic Hill – on Saturday morning.  The overall trek for this event is not too long (11.1Km) and has a total climb of only 569 metres (from 346 to 915m).

I think this trek was designed just to get the ‘heart started’ for the rest of the weekend as after a few minutes from the start there was a fairly steep climb up towards the peak. This certainly took the wind out of me for a while on the way up - if you are not used to it you may need to take a few stops along the way - but once one got to the brow of the hill things started to get a lot smoother.

At the top there is a flat area which is used as a launching pad by paragliding enthusiasts and has a great view over the valley below. This is a great place to take a few pictures and relax for a few minutes if you not in a hurry, so make sure to bring your camera along if you go there in the future.
It is a nice trek as you make your way back down through the forest - there is only one remaining small hill to climb on the way down.  

Saturday night provided the opportunity for an early nights’ sleep after the first day’s warm-up – that’s if the fireworks didn’t waken you up!

Day 2, Sunday and the second event –a climb up Mount Feathertop - started early at 7.30am.  The trail has a total climb of 1417 metres (505 to 1922metres) and takes you via Federation Hut which is situated on open ground just before the final short trek to the peak. The majority of the trail up to Federation Hut had a nice steady gradient (save for a little steep section leading up to Federation Hut itself) and, for me, was easier on the legs than Mystic Hill the previous day.

The final short trek from Federation Hut gives a good glimpse of the rocky peak of Mount Feathertop and once you reach it there are beautiful panoramic views in all directions across the valley. Congratulations by the way to the one of the participants who proposed to his girlfriend on the peak during the event – a good choice of venue (and woman we hope!).

By the time we arrived back down to the base camp most people were sitting in the river in their shorts  so it was a case of “if you cant beat them join them”.

That evening Reg had organised the annual 4 peaks participant’s dinner at a restaurant in Bright which was a good way to wind down at the end of the day - If you were lucky you may even have gotten your hands on one of the many free gift voucher/prizes that he presented.

Day 3, Monday and a climb up Mt Hotham – started early again at 7.30 am.  This was a 15.3Km trek and has a total climb of 1,225 metres. The trek itself had a mild gradient for the first 5-6Km’s or so before the first of two fairly steep sections each of which take it out of you if you are not in shape -an enthusiastic Austrian self nicknamed “the wolf” (he said hunts down his prey) went screeching past us on the way up.  At the end of the second steep section you emerge from the forest into open ground which leads up to the peak of Hotham itself. Again there are great views at the top.

Helen organised a great barbeque (the trout and cake were fantastic!) on Monday evening for all Bayside Kangaroo members. Everybody chipped in by bringing a little food/drink along and we finished the night by drawing our Melbourne Cup hopefuls - some with more hope than others.

Day 4 – Tuesday and a climb up Mount Buffalo -. This was a 10.46Km trek and has a total climb of 1,040 metres. There is a medium gradient along the trek with great views once you get above the tree line. We got a nice light rain shower near the top (the first of the weekend) on the final run into the finish. After a good hot sausage and onion sandwich (you can’t beat it) we picked up our certificates and took some photo’s with amazing views from the Mt Buffalo lookout.

We then started out journey back to Melbourne - on the way home some good places to drop into if you are feeling a bit peckish are the Bright Berry Farm near Mt Buffalo where they have great berries and ice cream as well as the Milawa Cheese Factory in Milawa.

Overall this was a really enjoyable event and well worth a second shot next year. As we jumped into the car for the final leg of the journey home we couldn’t but switch on the radio to hear the running of the Melbourne Cup and yes ………..wait for it……. our nag lost - however you can’t win them all.