And so we had arrived at the day that always sorts me out!! The day that begins and ends above 1800 metres, but plunges to the Big River, incised some 800 metres in the valley separating Mt Bogong and the Bogong High Plains. This would be a day that would have two things: down and up! It is some of the steepest tracked walking in the region, in sections (of what I've walked) in Victoria. The night had been a cold one in our beautiful grassy spot. Sadly grassy, as I have mentioned previously means cold, if a tree won't be there you can guarantee cold air will! So we awoke to the frying pan no longer full of water, but full of ice. Pack up was therefore a little slow as we waited for the sun to finally reach our gully. It did, and with it warmth and motivation for the big day.

We set off and after a short flat the downhill began in ernest. It would not give up till the Big was reached. Downhill, it must be noted, is not my forte, in the same way that uphill is not Sal's. We therefore make an amusing bushwalking pair, it is rare that one is not hurting! And so it was that Sal skipped ahead down the slope, while I followed more gingerly behind. After a much stepping over fallen burnt snowgums we reached the beautiful, crystal clear Big River. It was the obvious spot for lunch, and so we devoured as much as we could stomach, energy for the relentless afternoon ahead.

Lunch was completed and packs repacked, but boots remained off. For Sal the bootlaces were tied and her boots strung around her neck. For me, this would have placed my boots a little too close to my nose, so into my pack they went. Wet boots would be bad news for the climb and we were yet to wade the river.

There is a chain in place, but the combination of polarised sunnys and trekking poles made the task of wading easy enough. That done we both dunked our heads as the midday heat was rising. Packs were re-adjusted and away we climbed. The walk to Ropers would take us 3 and some, long sweaty hours. For those of you that have traversed this route you will remember the false hope of the knoll near the top! However, the views, as always, were breathtaking and the added insentive of what, in my view, is the finest walk-in campsite in the high country spurred us on. The other bonus awaiting our arrival at the beautiful campsite was Mum. She'd walked in by herself and is to walk the next couple of days with us. It was certainly an incredible sight to finally set eyes on her as we arrived at camp

Throughout the climb Sal had come to the decision that she would not accompany me beyond Mt Hotham on the 2nd of January. The reasons were many, but in the main she felt that things were slower with her along and she, as indeed I am, was very aware of the tightness of my schedule. We both feel mixed about this. On the one hand I feel blessed that Sal could have and wanted to join me at all. I also feel very proud of what she achieved. Make no mistake, as many can attest, Bogong provides some very challenging walking. On the other hand I will, of course, be sad when she leaves.

The picture that accompanies this blog was one of many I took today that I could have used. This one is of the water source for Ropers Hut, only 50m down the hill from the breathtaking campsite, complete with gnarled and twisted (what my Grandfather calls 'beautifully grotesque') snowgums, wallaby clipped grass and a lovingly rebuilt hut. Truly a magical spot, if you have not visited put it on your list, it is worth the effort. Thankfully the approach from Falls Creek is very mellow indeed!!