Thursday, October 27, 2016 – 19.79 km

I was skeptical about the Heysen’s route today since it employs a roundabout road walk from World’s End rather than cutting through Hopkins Creek Conservation Park, but the trail passed through a conservation area not marked on the map. On my way there, I met a driver heading to the conservation park for feral animal control. He questioned me about my hiking experience, whether I have a medical kit and phone, whether I’ve been lighting campfires, etc. A nicely logical interrogation.

The walk through the conservation area was easy creek walking and pretty, then the trail followed fences over the view-rich Bluff and Tothill Ranges. I saw a nice place to camp on the Tothill Range and was tempted, but it was private property and I wanted to cook supper over the fireplace in Huppatz Hut to save gas.

Arrived at Huppatz Hut. It’s gotten dark and, though I’m alone as per usual, the hut feels distinctly inhabited. There are huge spiders, lots of the moths with glowing eyes, an adorable bat that may be eating the annoying moths, and a cockroach that didn’t survive. I think the spiders are huntsmen, which are relatively harmless, but I’m not entirely sure. When I saw the first one, I thought that maybe I had better trap it beneath a bowl and release it when I left (it was very large…).

I poked it with the edge of the bowl to get it to fall, but it just scuttled beneath the sleeping platform. I felt bad then for prodding an innocent spider and decided to leave it alone. I’m a hypocrite since I killed the cockroach mercilessly, but cockroaches are yucky insects whereas spiders kill yucky insects.