THE NEWSLETTER OF CANBERRA BUSHWALKING CLUB it Volume 42, Number 11 December 2006 Canberra Bushwalking Club Inc PO Box 160 Canberra ACT 2601 President’s Prattle n behalf of the Committee I Owould like to wish all mem- bers of the Club a very happy, healthy and active Xmas and New Year. We hope that you are able to fi t in some good walks over the holiday period wherever you are and we look forward to seeing you on walks and/or at Club activities during the coming year. Club members participated in the 14th annual broom clearing exercise at Cotter New Treasurer Hut on Saturday 4 November. John Thwaite (Conservation Offi cer) said many I am pleased to announce that hundreds of plants from this invasive species were removed. Volunteers on the George Carter has been appointed day were, back row, l-r: Alan Vidler, Tom George, Pat Pickering, Allan Mikkelsen, John Thwaite, Sue Vidler, Roger Edwards and Eric Pickering. Front (l-r), Quentin Club Treasurer by the Committee Moran, Rene Lays, Rene Davies. thereby replacing Michael Sutton, who had been Club Treasurer for have plenty of drinking water with As water supplies in the bush are six years. them when embarking on a trip. In scarce in the current drought we summer people should be carrying need to be particularly careful to George brings highly relevant skills 2.5-3 litres on a short to medium ensure that walkers are carrying to the Treasurer’s position as he has day walk and more if the walk is plenty of drinking water to avoid a background in accounting. He is a going to be particularly long and dehydration. It is also important long-term member of the Club who strenuous. to wear broad brimmed hats and has led numerous trips and will be preferably long sleeved shirts to known to many members. He also Leaders should check to ensure that avoid heatstroke and sunburn. wrote and has recently revised the new or relatively inexperienced booklet, Finding Your Way in the walkers are carrying enough water Contact details for leaders Bush, shortly to be republished. for the proposed trip. Inexperi- Occasionally members of the Club enced, and sometimes experienced may be asked by non members Avoid dehydration walkers, can make the mistake of for the contact details of a leader All the predictions indicate that it running out of water on a hot day. whose walk they are interested in. is going to be a long hot summer. In instances like this Club members (great for those long lazy beach and Last summer we had a number of should simply forward the non river trips, although fi nding a river instances where walkers suffered member’s contact details to the with a reasonable amount of water heat stress as a result of a shortage walks leader so that the leader can is becoming a challenge.) However of water in the party and already this contact the prospective walker I would like to take this opportunity year there have been some cases of directly. This approach has been to remind walks leaders to ensure people running very low on water adopted to protect the privacy of that all members of their parties on a hot day. leaders. Canberra Bushwalking Club it December 2006 page 1 Walks urban cousin it is the large number fi nishes there is a lovely spot to sit While there has been a large number that have effect. Another thought and if inclined one can descend on of people participating in day that sometimes makes one wonder the right of the falls to the bottom walks, the number of weekend is the myriad of fl ies one gets on to wallow in the pools beneath the walks appearing on the program one’s back or pack: one fl y ~20 mg, falling water. has declined in winter and again 50 fl ies ~ 1g, 50,000 ~ 1 kg. I must in December/January. Therefore do a little counting next time I’m A spur-line that parallels Cave Creek it would be desirable to increase walking. some one or two hundred meters to the number of weekend walks on the south is the usual route down to the program to provide a more Thank you to leaders for the walks the Goodradigbee. Where the creek for the program over the new varied weekend walks program. The and river meet there is a good camp year. There is a good selection for number of day walks could also be site and I have heard that the trout members. increased given the high level of fi shing there is good. interest from day walkers. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Vehicle access and good camping Year to all and good walking! Rene Davies are found almost at the Waterholes President Rob Horsfi eld and the solar powered toilet, among Walks Secretary other functions, has generated many a conversation. Walks It would be wise to have at least one Waffl e Membership four-wheeled drive in the party; not matters far from the Waterholes there is a steep road gradient that could be a n Saturday 25 November Jenny problem in wet weather. Oand I looked at the corroboree New members: Upstream on Cave Creek the bed is frogs at Tidbinbilla. This activity usually dry. There are two signifi - Jennifer Arnold, Jane Deerson, cant cave systems, Murrays being was organized by John Thwaite Margo Condoleon, Liz Harman and there were quite a few people the better, finishing some 50 to interested to view them. Murray Allan Mikkelsen 100m in, at a siphon. I’ve known of Evans who addressed the club on Membership Secretary people getting past this point after a the subject at a recent monthly particularly dry spell. meeting was on hand to explain all. CBC Top Ten On high ground to the south of It was fascinating. Thank you John Cave Creek there are the remains of and Murray. several huts and a mining site with The hot weather is now upon us and Weekend Walk # 7 tailings scattered nearby. These are a number of people have mentioned plainly marked on the 1:25,000 map the prime considerations of fire Blue Waterholes. of the area. safety and heat exhaustion. The bush The fi re trail through to the Tantan- is quite dry, easily ignited and there Maps: Peppercorn, Rules Point gra Dam Road is closed to vehicles would be few places of sanctuary in 1:25,000. and passes near Pockets Hut. From the worst case scenario. To prevent the T. Dam Rd one can visit Old- heat exhaustion adequate water and Recently Michael Gorgolewski ran a trip to the Blue Waterholes. It’s a fi elds Hut, one of the most attractive appropriate clothing (with hat!) are in the region. Both huts have their important but the less often appreci- great venue and it was booked out. interest and Oldfi elds is perhaps 3 ated factors are levels of fi tness and The Waterholes are part of Cave or 4 hours walking each way from moderate effort. In a large group it is Creek and are formed from a spring likely that one or two may not be up in the creek-bed. As the water wells the Waterholes. to the demands of the day; so lead- up to the surface and the pressure From Canberra the road drive is via ers have to be vigilant. Fortunately lessens, carbon dioxide bubbles Cooma, Kiandra, Rules Point and increasing numbers of people have form. Natural soda-water! It has the Cooleman Homestead – some current fi rst aid certifi cates so one the tint of blue that one often sees 3 to 4 hours driving. The vacant would hope that prevention or early in limestone country. homestead is of historic signifi cance diagnosis are more likely. The creek runs down through Clark and interesting to examine. I’ve dispensed with the Great Gorge for a kilometre or so to a So, the Blue Waterholes is a Australian Wave and have been waterfall of perhaps 20 or 30 m in bushwalking gem and well worth a using a fl y veil. Whilst I think that height, then on and down a series of weekend visit. the intelligence of the bush fl y is steps to the Goodradigbee River. At markedly lacking compared with its the top of the falls where the track Rob Horsfi eld Page 2 – Canberra Bushwalking Club it December 2006 Photo by Lois Padgham – why is it never so easy when The High Hills you’re heading for some wild gran- ite outcrop? Eight students made it of the ACT to the fi nal exercise, an overnight Part 1 walk to Sentry Box Mountain, which at 1673m was the fi rst of my high hills. Club member John Evans, Many lessons were learned: the “a baby boomer with a little spare fi rst and last time I shared a 2-man time”, has written an entertaining tent; the fi rst but not only time I’ve account of his adventures over the walked through snow and now past two years, in which he has appreciate Gore-Tex lined boots; the climbed all 10 of the ACT’s hills generosity of the leader in carrying over 1700 metres. Part 2 will be in a drop of port to share (I now published in February’s it. always carry some on overnight walks, so can never get my pack weight down). s most would know, the Aus- I doubt if would have persisted tralian Capital Territory in- A without mentoring such as this.