He hasn’t climbed every mountain, but Launceston’s Zane Robnik has climbed every Abel.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
After two-and-a-half years the 26-year-old has managed to climb all 158 Tasmanian Abels.
The effort equates to about one mountain every six days.
Mr Robnik now holds the record for being the youngest person to have successfully climbed all of the peaks and in record time.
On June 10 he reached his final peak – the summit of Stacks Bluff.
Joined by his family and friends, Mr Robnik said the feeling was indescribable.
“It was an amazing feeling,” he said.
“Having some of my friends and family with me for that final moment was also really special.
“It was so nice to share it with them.”
An Abel is a mountain more than 1100m high with a drop of 150m or more on all sides.
Mr Robnik is now one of only 15 people to have climbed all Tasmanian Abels, completing 77 of the climbs alone and 81 in groups.
He said the feat was not without its challenges.
“I set out initially on this mission, just to do something a bit different,” he said.
“But it soon became much more than that.
“The biggest challenges were definitely the physical, mental and the spiritual.
“The physical was situations where I was struggling to move an inch through thick shrub, all the while carrying a 30 kilo pack on my back.
“The mental would have to be the rubbish walks in the often terrible weather.
“Spiritually, I had to reflect on why I had decided to do this in the first place.
“I realised I needed to just enjoy the experience for what it was and not get caught up in being the fastest or the youngest.”
Despite the hardships, Mr Robnik said he one day planned to climb all 158 Tasmanian Abels again – but he wasn’t in a hurry.
He is now looking forward to some overseas travel, including a trip to Europe later this year.
The Sunday Examiner asked Mr Robnik to name his 10 favourite Tasmanian Abels.
Top 10 Abels:
- Federation Peak
- Precipitous Bluff
- Stacks Bluff
- Mt Hyperion
- Eldon Bluff
- High Dome
- Goulds Sugarloaf
- Mt Anne
- Mt Arthur
- Frenchmans Cap