“I’ve never seen snowshoers out this far before.” We were at Kosciuszko NP’s Mawson Hut, and we’d just made, or were in the process of making, a new friend—a backcountry skier. It was Day Four of our trip, for both her and us, and she appeared if not amazed, then more than slightly confused.
“Really?” was all I could manage in response.
“Snowshoers normally stick to the easier trails, closer to town. It’s normally only skiers out here in the backcountry.”
There wasn’t a whiff of a gatekeeping, you-shouldn’t-be-here-this-is-for-skiers-ONLY mentality. We all got on well, and in fact, later that day, we’d meet again, and would share stories, snacks, cups of tea, and firewood-gathering duties at the cosy, welcoming delight that is Valentine Hut. No, she admired us for what we were attempting: something different.
For Martine and I, ‘different’ is what we do well; our norm, in terms of adventures, is often a unique blend of a thinking-outside-the-box mentality and a laid-back approach. Which, come to think of it, was this trip to a T: a planned seven-day, hut-crawling, snowshoeing circuit from Guthega Power Station. Unusual though, theoretically at least, semi-relaxed. But here are the clinchers: We hadn’t camped in the snow before or, for that matter, even used snowshoes.
Surprisingly, it wasn’t until that comment on Day Four——that doubt began to simmer away. Were
