Tuesday January 6

Exploring PB West...

Left with daypack and emergency gear to explore trail to PB Ascent.  Estimated return 12 noon.

Ascended through deep forest, limestone spurs, the 'Ewok Forest' then high level rainforest. Tough going!  Average 1:1 rise.  Went for 2 hours in an attempt to rise above the treeline, but did not manage it.  I estimate I reached somewhere around 300m.  Stopped at a broken rock at 10:15, rested 15 mins, then returned to camp.

No water, no campsites, bar rough 1-man tent perches.  This stage must be done in one pass.  Trail is mainly N swinging E.  Compass essential again, the trail is not well marked at all and it is very easy to follow a blind path.  DON'T HURRY - you will over-shoot the trail marker and end up in trouble.  I would say in poor weather or bad visibility it would be incredibly easy to get lost.

It took about 2 hours coming back, the same as going out.  I think it would have been much faster coming back, but I got lost about half an hour to an hour on a particularly poorly marked section (with a false trail also, no less).  More sweating and swearing, doubling back, checking the markers, trying it again, getting lost, going back, doing it again.  When I finally found the right path, I re-marked the trail clearly, and built an enormous barrier over the entrance to the false trail.  It was small consolation to read in the PB camp log later that all parties traversing PB (even experienced ones) had had exactly the same trouble, in exactly the same place as me.

Still catching up with the schedule - I decided to abandon a full day here at PB in favour of shorter distances per day until the end. Weather still unstable - looks like it might turn nasty at any time.

Power-walked the lagoon, took 2 hours this time (1 hour faster), caught up with the PB guys at Prion Crossing.  They seemed a bit stand-offish, so I didn't hassle them for info about PB.  They were camping at Prion Crossing, and I wanted to get to one of the better campsites as Prion has awful water (brackish and foul).  Left about 4PM.

Prion Crossing -> Osmiridium

Wasted 3/4 hour trying the alternate Prion Beach crossing - no way off the east sand island.  Left Prion Crossing again at 5PM.

First night with no campers at all in the site, YAY! 
Bath, food, some sleep, I'm stuffed.