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Posts Tagged ‘bushwalking’

Walking in the Red Centre Part 2: Kata Tjuta (The Olgas)

Posted in Bushwalking, Places to Visit, Travel, Walking with Children, Walks, Wildlife, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , on 06/07/2012| 2 Comments »

Kata Tjuta Sunset (c) JP Mundy

Perhaps the most spectacular walking in the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park is at Kata Tjuta – just 90 km from Uluru through spectacular red dune country. Sitting on the landscape like a group of huddled sisters, it’s no wonder Kata Tjuta translates as ‘Many Heads’.  The rock here is very different to the coarse sandstone of Uluru – it’s a munched up conglomerate which once formed part of the sea bed – yes, the land in the centre of Australia was once covered in ocean. The mind boggles!  Large boulders are spewed out from the rock at irregular intervals, looking much like glacial moraine spattered over the land. Here there is the opportunity to wander between the towering walls of the impressive Walpa Gorge, to again find permanent waterholes carved into the base of the rock. But perhaps my favourite walk of this whole weekend was the Full Circuit walk which climbs for 8km up and through the aptly named Valley of the Winds, then descends treacherously down through a gap in the rocks to walk out around the dry back country, with huge domes of red on either side of you.  In the late afternoon it was nothing short of magical. The walk is closed off at the first lookout point (Karu Lookout) when temperatures are forecast to reach 36C, so winter is the perfect time to pull on your books and head for the Red Centre.

Kata Tjuta backcountry on the Full Circuit Walk

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Burchell Trail 3 day walk in the Brisbane Ranges

Posted in Bushwalking, Places to Visit, Walking with Children, Walks, Wildlife, tagged , , , , , , on 06/03/2012| Leave a Comment »

Little River Gorge, Day 2 of the Burchell Trail (Brisbane Ranges)

Friday was just glorious in Melbourne – once the ice had melted off the windscreen!  The rest of the day was crystal blue skies and not a breath of wind: perfect winter walking weather.  My erstwhile walking buddy, Deb, volunteered to brave a car shuttle with me so we could do Day 2 of the 3 day Burchell Trail, which runs north to south for 39km through the little-visited Brisbane Ranges, south-west of Melbourne.  This is a fantastic walk for those wanting to get away from it all – we didn’t see another soul for the entire walk.  On this section, which runs for 15km from Little River Gorge camping ground to the Old Mill walk-in camping ground, the orange flash trail markers are a little erratic, especially where they have been washed away along Little River in recent flash flooding, so it does require a level of confidence and sound map reading to keep on track. However, the paths themselves are quite clear – a mix of management vehicle tracks and fantastic ridge climbs with big views.  The unexpected bonus of the day was Little River Gorge – every bit as spectacular as nearby Anakie Gorge. Really looking forward to going back and walking the other two sections, which I will be writing up for the new Geelong, the Bellarine and Brisbane Ranges book.

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Walking in the Brisbane Ranges

Posted in Bushwalking, Places to Visit, Uncategorized, Walking with Children, Walks, Wildlife, tagged , , , , , , , , , on 04/30/2012| Leave a Comment »

Late autumn afternoon, Island Track, Brisbane Ranges National Park.

Well, having finally resolved my technology inadequacies, yesterday I managed to persuade my daughter to come for a wander in the Brisbane Ranges, just an hour’s drive from Melbourne to the south-west of Bacchus Marsh.  I have no idea how this absolute gem of a place has stayed so ‘undiscovered’ for so long.  In just minutes, you can be walking out in pristine bush, with not another person in sight and nothing but the sounds and smells of the bush.  We headed up to the Boar Gully campsite, the location for the start of the 3 day Burchell Trail, which traverses a good length of the Brisbane Ranges National Park on it’s way to Fridays Campground. From there, we walked back across Reids Road, along Farm Track and then joined  Spring Creek Track in the very North West tip of the Park, and did a series of loops following the contours of the creek below.  It was a gentle wander, with just the occasional eastern grey kangaroo thumping through the bush, groves of towering grass trees – some over 2 metres in height – and some impressive bushfire regeneration in the ironbark woodlands. I can’t wait to go back in the spring to see all the wildflowers.  Just what I needed to get my mojo back!

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Final wanderings along the Surf Coast

Posted in Birdwatching, Bushwalking, Coastal Walks, Dogs, Great Ocean Road, Places to Visit, Walks, Walks with dogs, Wildlife, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on 04/11/2012| 6 Comments »

Sweeping views back to Point Addis from the Jarosite Headland

Well, I am down to my last two walks for the Geelong, Bellarine & Brisbane Ranges book, which brought me back to Point Addis along the Surf Coast.  I couldn’t believe how quiet it is out here – even in the middle of school holidays we only passed one or two walkers along the Ironbark and Jarosite tracks.  The views really are stunning, with the rich reds of the jarosite in the soil absolutely glowing in the afternoon sun,despite the cloud cover.

Tracks are reasonably well sign posted, though the map on the information board at the car park was woefully inadequate and there don’t seem to be any Parks Victoria parknotes or maps to download online either.  Hopefully the two walks I will include in the book will help close that gap.  While walking here, it is important to stay away from the high cliff edges, as the soft sandstone and jarosite is rapidly and unpredictably eroding and crumbling away.

Seacliff erosion at Pt Addis

We took our two dogs along (both on leads) and it is critical that dogs (and walkers) keep on made tracks and are diligent about using the cinnamon fungus boot wash stations on entering and leaving the park to help prevent the spread of this devastating disease which is destroying large tracts of our beautiful grass trees.  A big unexpected bonus at the end of the walk was this fearless Peregrine Falcon, sitting right on the edge of the clifftop, surveying his territory.

I am heading off to Point Danger at the end of the week to complete the walks, then it will be head down and walking boots hung up for a while, to get the walks all written up for the publishers, hopefully with a view to the book being published by August.  I have posted the list of planned walks for the new book on its dedicated page.

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Point Addis Walks

Posted in Bushwalking, Coastal Walks, Dogs, Great Ocean Road, Places to Visit, Walking with Children, Walks, Walks with dogs, tagged , , , , , , , , on 03/24/2012| Leave a Comment »

View North from Point Addis Clifftop boardwalk

Just past Torquay, and an easy day trip from Melbourne, is a wonderful pocket of bushland which boasts some stunning views from its sea-cliffs.  For some reason, which I can’t fathom, Point Addis seems to miss out on most of the tourist traffic, who are focussed on either Bells Beach or heading to Anglesea, Lorne and the Great Ocean Road beyond.  However, Pt Addis is a wonderful wild destination in its own right.  There is an excellent short Koori Cultural walk with interpretive information boards along the way, or a more challenging Ironbark Basin walk – you can see the distinctive slip of the basin from the main car park – which also allows access to an old jarosite mine site.  Finally, there is a great short cliff-top board walk from the main car-park which allows for fantastic views up and down the coast, as well as access down to the beach itself – though take great care even if it is low tide.  Despite it being part of the Great Otways Park, dogs are fine as long as they are on leads.  An added attraction (depending on your viewpoint!) is that the northern end of the beach is one of Victoria’s only four legal ‘clothing optional’ beaches – don’t say I didn’t warn you!

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Werribee Gorge from Falcon’s Lookout

Posted in Bushwalking, Dogs, Walking with Children, Walks with dogs, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on 03/01/2012| 2 Comments »

Werribee River from Falcon's Lookout

Snatched a quick day out yesterday, under the cool cloudy skies, and headed for the edge of the Brisbane Ranges, out near Bacchus Marsh.  This lovely walk, while short, was so pretty and interesting – and smelt great after all the rainfall of the previous day.  Falcon’s Lookout is reached via some up and down through gullies and easy rock-hopping along Ironbark Gorge – named for all the stunted Ironbark gum trees which grow on the hillside around here.  The walk brings you out to the very edge of the red and orange rock cliffs of Falcon’s Lookout, named for the hunting falcons which ride the thermals above the cliffs – though you have a good chance of spotting wedge tailed eagles out here as well. The view down into ice-age, glaciated Werribee Gorge is nothing short of breathtaking, and the opportunity to walk down to the base of the cliffs to watch the rock climbers in action is an additional bonus. Dogs are also welcome in this part of the park, as long as they are on leads, so mighty Indie lead the way, leaping up and over the rocks with abandon while we huffed and puffed behind her!

Falcon's Lookout cliffs, Werribee Gorge

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GPS technology and the Luddite

Posted in Dogs, Geelong, Walking with Children, Walks, Walks with dogs, tagged , , , , , , , , , on 02/19/2012| 3 Comments »

Buckley Falls, Geelong

Well, my publishers, Woodslane Press, have kindly sent me through a very impressive Garmin exTrex GPS to use on all the new walks, as we ‘go digital’ and get ready for e-books, apps and all things digital. So I headed back out to Steiglitz with my trusty assistants: my son and our dog, Indie, to re-walk the path I had just done, as I needed to check a bit of it where the track was indistinct – and it was a beautiful day, so gave us a great excuse to get out.  On the plus side, the GPS was ridiculously easy to use (even for me) so allowed for lots of enjoyment of the rock-hopping through the Sutherland Creek gorge along Deadman’s Loop and the continuing display of monarch butterflies.  On the negative side, I am not sure I like the idea of being tracked by 4 different satellites to within 4 metres – felt a bit creepy!  Isn’t the point of getting out in the bush being about getting away from it all?! Well, the Luddite in me will have to embrace the technology so that the walk waypoints are as accurate as possible for you, and available to you in a variety of formats – but yes, I still use old fashioned paper maps to cross-check at the same time!  On the way back, we took a quick peek at Buckley Falls on the outskirts of Geelong, which I am also writing up for the Geelong book – after all the recent rain, it was looking spectacular, as you can see! And a bonus for dog-owners – both walks are OK for dogs on leads.

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Melbourne’s Best Walks book is now here!

Posted in Bushwalking, Coastal Walks, Melbourne, Walking with Children, Walks, tagged , , , , on 11/04/2011| Leave a Comment »

Melbourne's Best Bush Bay and City Walks

Great news!  Today, my copy of Melbourne’s Best Bush, Bay and City Walks arrived, which means it is also now available through bookstores, other retailers and online – just in time for Christmas.

There is lovely weather beckoning you out of doors after the harsh winter and spring, so no excuse not to stretch your legs and take in the air (and the odd cafe or two)!  RRP is $29.95.  I hope you enjoy using it as much as I enjoyed walking and writing it! If you wish to order it direct through Woodslane Publishing, you can do so via this link: http://www.travelandoutdoor.com.au/title.aspx?isbn=192187435X

Do let me know what you think of the walks when you do them!

Thanks to all of you who have followed my authoring journey for this book – hope you will stay with me on the blog to whet your walking appetite for my next one, Best Walks of Geelong, the Bellarine and the Great Ocean Road, which will be out mid 2012.

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Blue Sky Walking at Blue Lake

Posted in Bushwalking, Places to Visit, Walking with Children, Walks, Wildlife, tagged , , , , , on 05/24/2011| 1 Comment »

Blue Lake, Yellowgum Park, Plenty River

An unexpected break in the weather today was a big bonus for Deb and I on our walk around Blue Lake and along the Plenty River in Yellowgum Park.  The birds obviously agreed: squawking away like mad amongst the late flowering gums by the lakeside were finches, wattlebirds, grey fantails, a pied cormorant and even lots of endangered Swift Parrots.  This was a great little 3km circuit for the Melbourne Walks Book, with magnificent views up and down the Plenty River and a really lovely picnic area up by the Blue Lake lookout. With just one walk left to do (sad!), I have now listed all 44 walks by chapter headings on the ‘The Walks’ page, to whet your appetite for when Melbourne’s Best Bush Bay and City Walks is published in September.  The more walks I do, though, the more wonderful tracks I find yet to do – Melbourne offers a surprise at every turn and definitely rewards exploration!

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Walking the goldmines of Warrandyte

Posted in Bushwalking, History, Places to Visit, Uncategorized, Walking with Children, Walks, tagged , , , , , on 05/16/2011| Leave a Comment »

Had a fabulous walk around the Goldmine Heritage Trail behind Warrandyte today – wish I’d taken my torch to explore Geraghty’s tunnel – carved into solid rock.  A great walk for kids as well as adults, with stepping stones across Anderson’s Creek, gold panning possibilities and all those mines.  Stopped by Pound Bend Reserve on the way back to look at Pound Bend Tunnel, which was carved into the rock to divert an entire bend of the Yarra River while the miners fossicked for gold on the dry river bed.  With the recent rains, the river is swollen and the water is absolutely gushing out of the downstream opening of the tunnel – think grade 5 rapids!  A very impressive sight – I was keen not to fall in!!!

Pound Bend goldmining tunnel

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