The Walls of Jerusalem

Introduction:

To borrow a line from Charles Dickens, Tale of Two Cities, it was the best of hikes; it was the worst of hikes.

It was the best of hikes because the area is remote and unmarked by the usual monuments to modern civilisation. On a high plateau, there is unusual vegetation like the extensive stands of pencil pines. In some places flat grassy areas provide ideal camping and scenic landscape (in good weather). And once the plateau region has been attained then there is relatively little in the way of further long, arduous and steep climbs. It took me just 40 minutes to walk from Dixons Kingdom to the top of Mount Jerusalem, and 10 minutes to the Damascus Gate.

Flora and fauna are typical of areas in the region such as the Cradle Mountain – Lake StClair National Park. The dolerite peaks such as Solomons Throne and Mount Jerusalem are easily accessible from either Wild Dog campsite or (another hour’s walk) Dixons Kingdom. Once a peak has been climbed, the views on a clear day are amazing. I could identify to the west all of the peaks through which the Overland Track passes and which I had climbed on other ocassions, starting with Cradle Mountain itself, then all the way south to Mount Olympus overlooking Lake StClair.

A notable feature of the northern area of The Walls National Park are the place names. The valleys, lakes, peaks and saddles are given biblical place names. Having visited Israel on many occasions and taught the archaeology of Palestine, I found it doubly interesting. Some place names are arbitrarily given. Mount Moriah is the highest point of the Temple Mount and the site of the Dome of the Rock today. This is the place where according to tradition Abraham was commanded to sacrifice his son Isaac. Yet within the park, Mount Moriah and Mount Jerusalem are some distance apart. On the other hand the names of the gates – Herod’s Gate, Damascus Gate, Jaffa Gate, Zion Gate, Golden Gate, & Ephraims Gate do resemble the order and rough geographical shape in which they form part of the wall defences of Jerusalem in ancient times.

And it was the worst of hikes. When booking flights and track transport in advance, the weather is the one imponderable. For me it can make the difference between enjoyment and misery. I find myself increasingly a fair-weather hiker and dislike setting up camp in heavy rain and cold wind. In the case of this hike the weather forecast was poor for the second and third day. So it was a hike that began well and finished well. But there were a couple of days when it was best indoors, dry and sheltered. It was also the worst of hikes, because I took an expensive tent into a four season experience. I thought the tent would stand up to the high wind and battering rain, but it performed very poorly and began leaking all over the place. In addition, my hiking poles both failed and fell apart. The lower extendable poles of both detached from their housing. I’ve become very reliant on them for descending since they take up some of the strain and stress on the knees.

The hike started well. After flying in to Launceston and staying with my daughter and family, I was picked up early on the next morning and joined a party of 6 traveling via Doleraine to the Walls car park area and hiker registration. This is the usual entry point and main access into the park.

Having looked at the Bureau of Meteorology weather forecast for the week, I decided to do the walk in an anticlockwise direction. This meant walking along the Mersey Forest Road for another 7 km to the Lake Myrtle track car park. I would then follow the Lake Myrtle track up on to the plateau at Blizzard Plain. From there the track goes via Lake Bill, crosses Jackson’s creek, then up to Lake Myrtle. The final leg was to be over the north eastern shoulder of Mount Rogoona to Lake Meston. At the intersection of the Lake Myrtle track and the Junction Lake track lies an old Trapper’s hut, the Lake Meston Hut. The plan was to wait to see what the weather would do before heading north along the Junction Lake track to Dixons Kingdom.

I really only met two parties on the hike. One at Lake Meston Hut, and the other group who traveled with me on the bus to The Walls and back to Launceston. It is interesting how people’s questions belie their unspoken thoughts. One group was interested in how old I was. I don’t feel old, but I must look it! I suppose when you get to your 70th year you begin to look different.

The other group was fascinated that I walked alone. It wasn’t the safety aspect that intrigued them, but more the psychological element. What happens when you don’t have human contact for six days? How do you cope? I find it refreshing. The analogy of rebooting a computer comes to mind. Switching it off and on to shake out the bugs in the software. The computer retains its memory but some of the software conflicts are removed. Returning to civilization and switching on TV for the first time in a week was a wake up call. I had become so immersed in culture that I had begun to accept some of its less commendable values. A few years ago after having lived and worked in the developing world where poverty and sometimes hunger was rampant, then coming to Australia I was shocked at the tinned pet-food commercials that promoted the fine quality of the food. Good to take a break sometimes and come back with fresh eyes.