Attempt on the Mount Anne Circuit: (Pt.3) Extreme Weather at Shelf Camp

It was a steep descent to Shelf Camp,

through dwarfed trees and unusual vegetation that appeared almost tropical in its lush foliage.

As we arrived at the Shelf, the rain and wind was now uncomfortably cold and persistent and the idea of trying to set up bivvies and sleeping bags in these conditions seemed foolish. We were confident the weather would clear and so we agreed to climb up towards the cliff face to seek shelter from the driving wind. It was a tough climb, clambering over sharp and slippery boulders with numbing fingers.


When we reached the face, there was no relief and no reward as we found it impossible to find any shelter. The best we could do was to press ourselves against a nook alongside a waterfall and pull our hoods tight.

Eventually the rain slowed and we decided to take the opportunity to make our way back down and begin setting up camp. Tim found that water had leaked into his sleeping bag 
because he had forgotten to put a garbage bag over it, but fortunately it wasn’t too bad. Tim also discovered a decent rip in his shorts which left him pretty exposed. The comic relief was much needed. His face looked pretty battered too.

The tents went up quickly, although there was no way of using tent pegs because of the rock surface.The only way to secure the tent lines was to attach them to rocks. It was quite exposed to the wind and we had all read stories of other hikers losing their tents over the side in the gale-force gusts. I think we all overcompensated by choosing particularly large rocks.

No sooner was the job done, than the wind began to live up to its reputation. It blew. Hard.

By now we were losing hope of the weather clearing today. It was only 4:30pm but compelled by the cold the decision was made to prepare an early hot dinner and retire to our bivvies in the small hope that it would blow over.

Each of us had homemade alcohol stoves – lightweight and effective – at least they were effective in normal conditions. It quickly became apparent that these were not normal conditions. The combination of strong wind and cold made it virtually impossible to light the alcohol or to keep it alight once lit. If you have ever used one of these devices, you know that the stove only begins to operate effectively once it reaches a critical temperature.  Another mistake we had made, which makes me cringe with embarrassment to admit, was that we each had only brought fire steels.

 Pete and I had packed cigarette lighters and matches, but had realised only the day before our flight that we were not permitted to have these even in our checked luggage and we had neglected to purchase any on our arrival. This is a mistake I will never make again.

It took painstaking effort to continue lighting and re-lighting the stove whilst crouching over it to shield the flames from the gusting wind. I began to feel a creeping doubt, a horrible nagging doubt that I might not be able to get this to work. But Pete, good ol' law-breaking Pete, found that he had a box of matches somewhere in his pack after all and with the help of these matches and another 30 minutes or more I was able to get my Mac & Cheese cooked. Pete and Tim had also been successful and were already in their cosy sleeping bags tucking in to some hot food. I quickly did the same and I must say the Mac & Cheese was the best I have ever had.

The weather was unrelenting, and although it was still very light outside we had no option but to bunker down and try to occupy ourselves. I began sorting out the gear in my tent, preparing and organising things. There is only so much organising you can do in such a small tent, and as the wind had only got stronger and the rain was setting in for the evening, I slept fitfully. I was warm enough but the wind was battering our tents and the howling of the wind and the drumming of the rain woke me frequently.

It was a long night.