Gordons Knob - The Rabble.
The participant list got up to 19 takers by Friday but a few defections saw 16 in four vehicles leave Richmond by 8:15am on Sunday. An uneventful drive got us to Inwoods Lookout by 9am where we kitted up with an eye on the weather that was fine but breezy with cloud around the tops. A kea overhead wished us on our way and up the track we headed.
Gordons Knob The ridge above Inwoods lookout
Sure enough once we got out of the bush a cold wind from the SW reached gale force. As we went higher up the ridge the gusts were nearly knocking us off our feet. One person elected to return to the vehicles but the rest pressed on. We were relieved to find some shelter behind the prominent rocky outcrop on the main ridge track and we took a break. The wind was so unpleasant that there was serious discussion about whether to continue or not; but the trip leader was very persuasive- we had done the hard yards he optimistically told the group.
The route to Gordons Knob heads off from the poled route a bit higher up and goes South with a traverse under North Peak. Fortunately the wind abated and the travel was almost pleasant along the well-defined bush and open ridge route to the saddles at 1230m beneath the summit cone. The dracophyllum scrub has an attractive reddish shade coming out of winter. We rested in the last of the stunted beech forest but decided to take lunch later and so pressed on up the tussock slopes of Gordons Knob.
We were soon in cloud and got rather spread out but the majority made it to the middle peak (1614m). No views were to be had and so lunch was quickly taken in the lee and all retreated down the mountain to meet the 3 slackers having lunch at the bushline. As we returned from whence we came, a keen group of 4 (Chris, Andrea, Astrid, Will) split off down into the stream gully below the saddle and made a rapid ascent of North Peak (1564m) from the West before returning to Inwoods down the poled routWe all arrived back at the vehicles at roughly 3:30pm (6.25 hours round trip including stops). Despite the nasty wind at the start and the views being somewhat restricted, everybody agreed it had been a good day out with excellent company including Bob the dog. The cloud lifted off Gordons Knob just before we drove off.
Debbie admiring the view
Pat H (leader and scribe), Chris L, Andrea C, Debbie H, Graeme F, Mary H, Astrid B, Arif M, Maaike vH. Visitors: Ben A, Will K, Kathy & Trevor H, Mike D, Jo G, Andrew R (+ Bob the dog).