Aussie outdoors. Bushwalking, etc.

B

Bob W

Joined
Dec 31, 2000
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Australia has an incredible variety of outdoor recreation activities. I don't often have time for such activities when visiting Down Under for work, but I squeeze in as much as I can when the time allows. Sometimes it's an all-day bushwalk, or sometimes it's merely walking around the closest city park or scenic overlook.

Here's what I came up with this trip:
Quick stop and walk at a scenic overlook near Wollongong. Great views, great weather. Australia is at peak summer right now and it's very hot with no rain, so wildflowers were in short supply during the entire trip.

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Had a bit of time between appointments in Wollongong and it happened to be low tide, so off to the ocean to find some tidal pools.

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Tour buses at the lighthouse. Stayed the hell away from there.

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Driving through the Blue Mountains late afternoon. Best time to avoid the tour buses and crowds at Echo Point and the Three Sisters. In fact we were the only people on the walk to the Three Sisters. The larger and longer Giant Stairway is closed due to a rock fall. Really want to revisit when the park gets it re-opened.

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The three pointed rocks are the Three Sisters, obviously. And the background scenery, mountains, and canyons is all the Blue Mountains National Park. With the exception of the overlooks and towns along the highway, there is very little development in the Blue Mountain National Park. Not a single street light or car light visible out there anywhere after dark. The park is about 613,000 acres, and much larger if you include adjacent park lands, state forests, and nature reserves. About 500,000 people visit the park each year, but practically none of them enter the park interior.
 
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Near Mudgee is the Munghorn Gap Nature Reserve. A couple of years ago I explored the area roads and hiked a very short at the reserve to a historic spring. This trip I had the chance to hike the longer 8km track to Castle Rocks. The walk itself wasn't very interesting, 8 kilometers of sandy track through a dangerously dry woodland in 95-degree heat and humidity. The rocks at the end were worth the walk.

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I'd be surprised if anyone has ever heard of this national park. And honestly, there's not much there. The walking and bicycling paths are old roads that remain accessible to vehicles. The resulting trash dumps and burned tires are ubiquitous along the tracks. Apparently the park was started to preserve some uncommon forest ecological zones and plant habitat. But in the current drought the entire forest floor was dead and brown - ferns, grasses, flowers, shrubs. I'm sure the park is more interesting after a good rain season.

The hiking tracks in summer... imagine walking a Southern Illinois gravel road in early August. Same experience.

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And of course the typical Aussie crowds were unbearable. :D

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One of the coolest places and coolest people in the world - loved my trip to Ayres rock.
Just wondering, the lighthouse pic seems familiar. If memory serves, there is a nearby blowhole attraction (seacaves) which spout seawater like a geyser. Or maybe I'm thinking further south.
 
Hi Bob,

It's great to hear you like what we've got down here. And you're right there are some amazing places if you're into bushwalking trails.

Not far from where I live (South East Queensland) is the spectacular "Conondale National Park". It's pretty big at 32,500 hectares or roughly 88,000 acres.

I have camped in the park a few times but would love to do "The Great Walk", which is a 56 kilometer (35 mile) remote hike which is typically done over four days.

Hopefully you can download this .PDF http://www.nprsr.qld.gov.au/parks/great-walks-conondale-range/pdf/conondale-gw-info-sheet.pdf

As it happens I spent 4 days & nights at Conondale National Park over the recent Christmas holidays with my wife and daughter. It was supremely relaxing and I can't wait to go back there. Swimming in a chilly crystal clear creek during the heat of a summer day is hard to describe, as "awesome" doesn't do it justice.

The below link has a slideshow my wife posted with some pics of our time at Conondale. We followed it up with 2 days and nights at the Woodford Folk Festival which was also kinda interesting (not that I'm a hippy!)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OmwYs-RYTQQ

Cheers...Pete
 
Forgot to say we shot that YouTube slideshow on a Canon 5D MkIII so to appreciate the quality of the photos you should view it in either 720p HD or 1080p HD (sorry if that's stating the obvious!)

Cheers....Pete
 
Ultraman said:
One of the coolest places and coolest people in the world - loved my trip to Ayres rock.
Just wondering, the lighthouse pic seems familiar. If memory serves, there is a nearby blowhole attraction (seacaves) which spout seawater like a geyser. Or maybe I'm thinking further south.
Click to expand...

The lighthouse above is at Wollongong. There's a famous blowhole and similar lighthouse in the town of Kiama, which is a little further south.
 
Was thinking of ya that day, mate, remembering that you lived close. Wish there was more advanced notice when and where I was having a break from work - I'd of bought you a pint somewhere. We stayed one night at the Crown Plaza, and the Werakata National Park is practically next door, by the town of Cessnock. Had a feed at Cessnock, hiked the Werakata tracks, and drove the Wollombi scenic loop road.

Next time I'd really like to explore the Pokolbin State Forest. I'll have to do a bit of research to find a route into the place. I know I drove around it in a circle, but never saw any public access or signage.

After the Crown Plaza, our next night was at a rented house in the paddocks near Singleton. Cows on one side, olive grove on the other. Not really an outdoor experience, but here are a few pics anyway.

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The dusty haze made for a nice sunset. :thumbup:
 
That's a nice little waterfall. :thumbup:

Can you share the locational information? I've had a hard time finding outdoor spots in the Singleton - Hunter Valley area. Love the Barrington Tops area, but that's an all-day excursion, a rare luxury on work trips.
 
Bob I'm guessing you're based in Singleton. Do you get out to Chain Valley area? What sort of locations are you after?
Blue Mountains is absolutely majestic! My favourite.
What sort of landscape, coastal, rainforest, tidal salt or fresh water ...
There's Lostock, Chichester, Watagans, Wollombi, Yengo, Barrington, Ku Ring Gai, Dharug, Hawkesbury, Bouddi ... lots of areas all I have been to.
 
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I have pretty good luck finding information and maps for the large national parks in NSW, but finding good information on the smaller national parks, state forests, and nature reserves is challenging.

One hurdle is that my spare time available for recreation is often minimal. So although trial-and-error exploring can be very rewarding, it can also burn up the time allotment. There are also logistical limitations with regards to a single vehicle shared among multiple workmates, and with very fluid work schedules - I can't can't just disappear for hours - so I need targets that are very close to the towns we work in: Singleton, Mudgee, Campbelltown, Lake Macquarie...
 
Blue Mountains is absolutely majestic! My favourite.
Click to expand...

Generally, I'm more interested in smaller, out-of-the-way parks and reserves, but I've been around a bit too.

Here are some pics from two days in the Blue-ees last year. http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/s...he-Blue-ees-NSW-Australia?highlight=australia

And also a full-day exploration of Mount Royal National Park, and one side of the Barrington Tops: http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/s...tional-Park-NSW-Australia?highlight=australia
 
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