Day 100 - puds
Anne hut —-> Boyle Outdoor Education Centre 30km
I had a good chunk of ground to cover today. I was walking out to Boyle where hopefully, Josh would be waiting at the education centre with a full resupply for the next section. The education centre reception shut at 3pm on Sundays so I was on the clock to get there before it shut, for no other reason other than I wanted to buy chocolate.
I was out of the hut by 7.30am and back following the river up through the valley floor. Travel was speedy-ish. The gentle incline was manageable but the long grass and boggy sections slowed me down.
I was also hopping over large sections, the droves of Canadian geese in the valley meant there was geese poo lining the trail.
Sandflies were also everywhere. Stopping even for a drink they swarmed me.
The trail mainly followed the valley floor but every now and then, for no apparent reason, it would have me climb up into the forest, then scuttle back into the valley again a mere five minutes later. Or in TA language - a pud*. Maybe the river used to be higher?! It was slowing me down and utterly annoying, so I started ignoring the trail markers when they veered off and just headed up the valley.
I passed Boyle Flat hut sitting idyllically on a clearing amongst the trees.
As the river widened, the trail climbed up into the forest for the final time. I sat down for lunch looking down over the river, slathering myself in insect repellent to keep the sandflies at bay.
I crossed over the river and raced through the final few km to arrive at Boyle just after 2:30pm.
Josh was in the car park, ready and waiting with a giant hug. He and an employee of the education centre were looking around in the gravel for a tooth that some guy had dropped a few minutes earlier. They did not find it.
Josh had arrived a few hours earlier after hitching with a guy who by all accounts should not have had a driving license. His foot permanently on the gas pedal (“the clutch was dodgy”) and the car full of weed paraphernalia, he was grateful to get to Boyle in one piece. So much so that when he got dropped off and another hiker hitched a lift with him, Josh felt incredibly guilty for letting the hiker get in.
After the afternoon’s trail admin was done, we relaxed in the sun, ate chocolate and caught up on the last few days. Josh’s foot was feeling much better so he was keen to get back on trail. Yay!
*pud - pointless up and down
