Editor’s note (Joe): When I saw that Angus Tolson had run the Overland track out and back in a new record time (FKT) I wanted to know about the experience. He was keen to write about it, and with this feat, he solidifies his place as one of the fastest people to run the track both one way and out-and-back. I hope you enjoy this post chronicling his incredible journey through the mountains.

My report on the Overland out and back has taken me about 3 months to finish. I just read Ziggy’s report on his GPT race which gave me the inspiration to finish mine but his is much better so if you haven’t read his just do it now.

Origins of the Mission

This winter I wanted to set myself a challenge. Last year I did a vertical 10k which was 18 repeats of Higgs Track on the Western Tiers. It was pretty pointless really but somehow I enjoyed it. I want to race a miler maybe next year, so I thought why not do one as a practice to see if I could go the distance.

I’ve been interested in doing the Overland Track out and back for a while so I decided that would give it a crack. It’s 78km one way, so return it would be 156km, not quite 100 miles but I thought close enough. It can only be done during the non booking season of the Overland track, June until September, you’re not allowed to go south-north during the booking season.

I can remember reading about someone doing it a few years ago, then I wasn’t a runner and it seemed impossible. It was Piotr Babis and he was the first to do it and I don’t think anyone else has done it since.

First Attempt

My first attempt was on the June long weekend. The plan was to start at Lake St Clair and run north, meeting Dad at Pelion and my brother at Ronny Creek before turning around and running back to Pelion to meet my mate Daniel and run the last part with him.

Dad was crook in the week leading up to the run and unfortunately passed it on to me. The night before I started feeling a bit drained, not sick but I knew I wasn’t right. The morning of the run I was pretty sure I was getting sick but I told myself I was just nervous and carried on as planned. 

Mum picked me up and we drove to St Clair. The day was almost perfect for running, partly cloudy and no wind although it only got to about 4 degrees. I left with all the usual snacks but changed it up for the main course with beef stew sandwiches as a change from the tried and tested roast lamb. 

The track was in good condition, it had been an extremely dry summer and autumn up to that point. I made good time and met Dad at Pelion for some Spaghetti Bolognese. After Pelion I started to struggle. My legs were feeling good but my energy levels were low and I was starting to realise I more than likely wouldn’t have it in me to turn around.

I can remember checking my watch around Lake Windermere, I had done 60km and was thinking to myself I’ve still got a whole Gone Nuts to do. The sun was starting to set as I passed the Lake Will turn off, it was lighting up the mountains with orange and red light and it gave me a bit of a boost. 

I got another boost when I met my brother Brad at Waterfall Valley. I wasn’t sure if he would make it up or not, so it was a great surprise, he would join me to Ronny Creek.

Our head torches went on up the climb towards the Barn Bluff turn off and with Brad’s company I was starting to think I would make the turn back. Brad was worried he was holding me up so he told me to go at my own pace. I had another big low not long after leaving him and by Kitchen Hut I had all but made my decision to end at Ronny Creek. Going over Marion’s lookout it was so still there was no wind and I could see lights down on the Ronny Creek boardwalk, shortly I was down there too amongst the tourists chasing wombats.

I called Daniel, Mum and Dad and told them I wouldn’t turn around. To be honest it wasn’t a hard decision to make. I ran back out the track to meet Brad. I told him I wouldn’t turn around. The last bus was long gone so we had to run the 10kms out. It was pretty fun running out with Brad, by now it was his longest run and I think he was in more pain than me. When Brad said the car was in the carpack I assumed at the boom gate but he parked at the visitors centre car park. So it was another 2 km down the road and he picked just about the furthest park he could find. Brad did 36km and I ended up doing 92.

I wasn’t too disappointed that I didn’t go back, I was happy I had a crack and I learnt a lot that would help next time. I knew I needed to start earlier in the morning to turn around and start coming back before dark, organise someone to run the return with me and take lamb sandwiches! I also got an insight into how tough it was going to be. I think it would be easier to run 160km on one track. Something about turning around and going back was a bit daunting.

I woke up the next morning sick. I looked at the calendar and set aside 3 weekends in September for the next attempt.

Second Attempt

I don’t like not running, so I only had one day off and then started to shuffle up the axemans hill again and I was happy a few days later I was pretty much back to normal. My mate James was keen to run the return but unfortunately he didn’t recover in time from his UTA miler, 2 weeks before the second attempt I was talking to Markus Larch at the last race of the North West Trail Running Series and he was keen to come with me. My cousin Joseph wanted to walk in the Arm river track and camp at Pelion for some support and my brother organised the Fat Chance Run Club to meet me at Ronny Creek.

The weather wasn’t looking great, it was forecast for drizzle almost the whole time. I was pretty keen on going but I didn’t want to drag everyone out for a weekend in the rain. Thursday morning the forecast got slightly better and Markus sent me a message saying “Let’s do it”. So I sent out the message to mobilise the crew which was now a small army.

Running to Cradle

I started off for the second attempt at 4am Mum dropped me off at Lake St Clair again and just as I started it began to drizzle. 

Around the lake the track was very wet and muddy, my feet were wet in the first couple of kms and they stayed that way pretty much the whole run. It started to lighten up after a couple of hours and I took my head torch off but there wasn’t any blue sky, it only changed from black to grey.

In the forest towards Windy Ridge the recent snowfall had pushed the branches over the track and I got soaking wet brushing past them. At a small creek after Windy Ridge I stopped to fill my bottles, I was wet through and had gotten pretty cold. It had me worried about how cold the night could get.

Over the Du Cane gap there was some snow on the ground, there was a small breeze which helped to dry me out and the sun was trying to push through. The rain forest from Du Cane gap to Kia Ora is a slow and technical section, it’s very rooty and between the roots was water or mud. I was glad to break out of the forest past Kia Ora and start climbing over the Pelion Gap, all the mountains were covered in snow. I started to meet walkers down the gap, most of them were pretty miserable, I think they had a few wet days in a row. Some were more keen for a chat and they were pretty impressed I was running the track. I said I might see them on the way back but I don’t think they quite understood what I meant.

At Pelion I met my dad and my cousin Joseph as well as a couple of their mates. Dad warmed up some spaghetti bolognese which really hit the spot. I had 15 minutes there before leaving and heading into another muddy section of track towards Pine Forest Moor. Across Pine Forest Moor I sent Markus a message on how I was tracking, I was really enjoying it and the running felt almost effortless.

I passed through Windermere and Waterfall Valley and started climbing up into the Cradle area where there was quite a bit of snow. The water on the track was painfully cold. Between Kitchen Hut and Marions Lookout the wind was blowing, and there were some big snow drifts, some still up to a meter deep, luckily it was week old frozen snow so I could run across it without falling through.

I descended Marion’s fairly quickly and before long I was on the boardwalk and I could see Brad and Markus’ heads sticking out of the little day shelter. I wanted to do the first lap in 11h 30m and I got into the shelter with 30 seconds to spare. In the June attempt I ran it in 11h 26m but I did it much easier the second time around. It felt like this was the starting point.

It was great to see Markus as well as Brad, Taylor and Fraser who make up about half of the Fat Chance Run Club. They had a thermos with soup as well as a cup of tea.

Running Back Again

It was still well and truly daylight when I set off for the return leg with Markus and the Fat Chance Run Club in tow.

Over Marion’s lookout and onto the big snow drifts was lots of fun and the others were also enjoying it, they planned to turn around at Kitchen Hut but they did an extra few kilometres. It was great to have the support of the FCRC but they had a pub meal to get back for so they wished Markus and I good luck and headed back.

I really enjoyed having Markus company, he’s a great person to run with. He’s got a lot of experience in Ultra running he’s done a miler before as well as 31 yards in the Greenvale backyard ultra last year, he was giving me an insight into what to expect and none of it sounded very good, I was especially hoping I wouldn’t get to the bleeding bum cheeks stage.

Our head torches went on at the lake Will turn off, it was starting to drizzle again and the wind was getting strong on the exposed sections. Half way across Pine Forest Moor the drizzle turned to rain, I can remember the rain hitting the side of my face. It didn’t worry us too much, we were expecting rain at some stage and before long we were back in the Forest below Pelion West. At frog flats I asked Markus to lead for a bit.

I felt all right up to Pelion where we met Joseph again. He was in his tent but not yet asleep, we had made good time and we were about an hour earlier than I told him we’d be. He offered me a hot drink. I would have killed for a cup of tea but he only had coffee. I don’t drink coffee so the three of us decided it would be safer if I stick to water and not risk shitting myself.

We were in the little group camping shelter. I changed my thermal and I started to feel quite sick. I tried to throw up but I couldn’t and I started to feel dizzy. I had a five minute lay down in Joseph’s tent which was the fastest five minutes of my life and almost instantly felt better.

Markus was encouraging me to start eating again. So I had a banana and we carried on walking up Pelion Gap. From the gap to Narcissus was a bit of a blur, lots of mud and tree roots which all looked the same with a headlight. I know I felt quite good down the Du Cane gap but I can also remember promising myself I would never do anything like this again, a promise that I’m sure I’ll break. I can also remember saying I would give up running, and I was even considering giving away my spot in next year’s Cradle Mountain Run.

At Narcissus we were both soaking wet, Markus changed his raincoat and I was feeling cold so I put on thermal pants which I regretted after about an hour because I was too hot but also too lazy to take them off. Along the Lake I think I was still running most of the way but very slowly. I was happy, I knew we were almost done.

The sun rose with about 5km to go which was a good feeling. We got to the Watersmeet bridge which leaves about 1.5km to finish on a gravel road. Along the road I felt like we were flying but we definitely weren’t. We were chatting about the adventure and it was a good way to finish, Markus was great company and I thanked him again. Mum was waiting at the sign which I touched, stopped my watch and gave her a hug. It was a funny way to finish an epic adventure. No one else was there and we just walked back to the car.

I was pretty keen to take my shoes off, my feet had been in them for about 26 hours. I was expecting to see some real carnage but they were fine, just wrinkly from being wet the whole time. 

My watch froze for a few hours after I stopped it then it turned off. Luckily when I turned it back on it had saved, which I was glad about. I didn’t want to have to come back next weekend and do it again.

It took 25 hours and 51 minutes which I was pretty happy with, I was hoping to do it between 24-28 hours.

The sky was never blue but at least our clothes were!

Random Facts

• 11h30 on the way out
• 14h21 on the way back
• 2 ½  Lamb sandwiches 
• 6 Bananas
• 2 Gels probably not enough and maybe why I almost died at Pelion
• K time twists were by far the best snack and are now a staple in my running vest
• 213,638 steps according to Garmin I lost count

Conclusion

I would not have been able to do it without the help of all my friends and family. Mum, Dad, Brad and the Fat Chance Run Club, Joseph and especially Markus. I’m not going to rush back and do it again anytime soon but I think I will at some stage on a dry track. I would also like to thank Joe for asking me to write about it. Lots of people have asked why I did it and I just wanted to. I think that’s a good enough reason.

Angus Tolson

A Tasmanian bushwalker that has caught the trail running bug.

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