Green Gully Track - Day 1 - Cedar Creek Cottage to Bird's Nest Hut

We arrived at around 6pm the night before, to a welcoming mob of kangaroos. The cottage and the setting had us pleasantly surprised. A great spot to transition out of the city head-space and slow it down ready for a week in the bush.

We wake with trepidation on Day 1. It was a cold night but the sun is out and its warming up quickly. The red and blue birds are feasting and the breakfast hits the spot. Lots of chatter and speculation around the breakfast table. Stunning views down the valley. It's only going to get better.

There's only so much prep you can do for a 4 day Grade 5 hike. We think we have everything. We'll find out soon enough!

17.5kms, all on management trails. Underfoot its OK, but plenty of ups and downs get the heart going. Nothing ridiculous and we keep reminding ourselves "this is nothing compared to Days 2 and 4".

We stop for a snack at an old cattle holding pen. How they got cows up here is a mystery. The scenery looks great as we are fairly elevated, but it's hard to get a great look through the trees.

We stop on the side of the track for lunch. Not the most picturesque spot, but we need the energy. We've been going at a decent pace, probably because there hasn't been much to look at yet plus there's a touch of "what have we got ourselves into" adrenaline kicking in.

A few tough ascents after lunch followed by a pretty steep decent. A touch of delirium is kicking in. Everyone is hurting. Maybe its a lack of sugar or water. But the hut for the night is in sight!

We make it to Birds Nest Hut and collapse on the lawn, animal poo be damned. No one moves for 20 minutes.

Slowly we rise and wander down to the nearby creek to cool off the feet.

We set up camp. The hut is rustic but has everything we need. We start boiling water. We are all empty and very thirsty.

We cook up and eat our dehydrated beef curry and desert. It's starting to get dark so we pack up. And then the night time activities begin!

We wander to the lawn and turn off the headlights. Within 2 minutes the sounds of the environment come to life. Rustling here. Bouncing there. A possum pokes his head out of the long grass to say hello. We see eyes everywhere.

We get a bit closer to investigate. It looks like small kangaroo, but aren't sure if it's a pademelon or a wallaby or what it is.

We accidentally spook one with our light and it takes flight in panic but it bounces straight towards us. We don't move and it jumps straight into John's leg before carrying on. Poor bugger!

Another little wander to another part of the creek and we see 2 kangaroos (or wallabies) having a drink. Wildlife is everywhere! An amazing surrounding for our first stop. We are feeling accomplished at having tackled such a tough day and survived, but we still have 3 days to go, so we are also assessing the damage and feeling like its going to be a loooong trek from here still.

Off to bed on the squeaky camping cots. Comfortable enough, it sure beats carrying the tent and mattresses.