BUSHWALK AUSTRALIA 2021 20 | BWA December 2020
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Bushwalk Australia Borderless Bushwalking Volume 44, December 2020 2 | BWA December 2020 Bushwalk Australia Magazine An electronic magazine for http://bushwalk.com Volume 44, December 2020 We acknowledge the Traditional Owners of this vast land which we explore. We pay our respects to their Elders, past and present, and thank them for their stewardship of this great south land. Gillen Sunset Brian Eglinton Editor Matt McClelland [email protected] Design manager Eva Gomišček [email protected] Sub-editor Stephen Lake [email protected] Please send any articles, suggestions or advertising enquires to Eva. BWA Advisory Panel North-north-west Mark Fowler Brian Eglinton We would love you to be part of the magazine, here is how to contribute - Writer's Guide. The copy deadline for the February 2021 edition is 31 December 2020. Warning Like all outdoor pursuits, the activities Ettrema Wilderness described in this publication may be Beautiful boulder-strewn dangerous. Undertaking them may result in 6 loss, serious injury or death. The information waterways in this publication is without any warranty on accuracy or completeness. There may be significant omissions and errors. People who are interested in walking in the areas concerned should make their own enquiries, Tripping in NSW and not rely fully on the information in this publication. A series of day trips The publisher, editor, authors or any other 12 entity or person will not be held responsible near Sydney for any loss, injury, claim or liability of any kind resulting from people using information in this publication. Please consider joining a walking club or undertaking formal training in other ways to ensure you are well prepared for any activities Calendar 2021 you are planning. Please report any errors or 19 omissions to the editor or in the forum at BWA Available now eMag. Mount Snowy from Hartz Peak Competition: Australia December 2009 Andrew Strikis BWA December 2020 | 3 Western Macs 20 Majestic rock faces and magical waterholes Photo Gallery 28 More outstanding pictures A symbol of survival 46 The extraordinary story of Wollemi pines Rubbish! 50 If you carry it in, you should carry it out Keep my bushwalk satisfied 56 A song for when I escape lockdown 4 | BWA December 2020 From the Editor Hi I hope this edition finds you fit and well. This time last year we were all in shock with the fires raging around Australia and had no idea about the pending storms, flooding and pandemic. What a year it has been. I was spoiled to have squeezed in 20+ days on track in Tassie between all that. Each of the articles in this edition are about places and topics that are dear to my heart. Some amazing wilderness areas and some stunning dry landscapes. Hopefully, they can help inspire you in your next adventure. Thanks so much to our authors for their dedication in sharing these stories. Let's hope that 2021 is a better year for our broader communities and getting out bushwalking generally. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. Matt :) Matt McClelland (aka Wildwalks) [email protected] Declaration The opinions stated in articles are those of the authors and not of those involved in the production of this edition. If you are worried about transparency or any editorial aspect please either write to me or raise the issue on Bushwalk.com. The bushwalking community is a small world and paths often cross. To improve transparency I thought it would be helpful to list my main associations within the outdoor community. I operate Bushwalk.com, Wildwalks.com and Overlandtrack.com, a number of other smaller websites (and related apps) and have written several walking guide books, published by Woodslane. I contract to National Parks Association NSW and I am a member of the Walking Volunteers. I have had contracts with state and local government departments regarding bushwalking and related matters. I have also partnered with a large number of other organisations in environmental campaigns. Any commercial advertising or sponsorship will be clear in the magazine. BWA December 2020 | 5 In the News Snowy 2.0 scheme Former federal Liberal leader John Hewson has cast serious doubts on the proposed Snowy 2.0 scheme. The NPA has similar views. Campfires in Victoria Authorities found 87 unattended or abandoned campfires in Victoria on the weekend of 14- 15 November 2020. It seems that the lifting of stage 4 restrictions led to people going bush. Malbena update On 9 November 2020, Sussan Ley MP, federal Minister for the Environment, said that Wild Drake’s plans to privatise and develop Lake Malbena is a controlled action under EPBC Act. The Statement of reasons are here. Point 79 says: "Having considered the advice in the recommendation brief and the attached material, I found that the impact on the world heritage values of the TWWHA from the use of helicopters is likely to be significant." The Wilderness Society website has a summary. TNPA has a Statement of Reasons why Malbena proposal is a Controlled Action. The next stages of the process are environmental assessment and approval, similar to what has happened to date but at a federal level. It would be good if as many people as possible wrote to the Minister thanking her for her decision. It's important to use your own words. Sussan Ley can be contacted at [email protected] After that, be involved in the process, again in your own words. Bushwalk Australia has discussed Halls Island in the past, the most recent being October 2020. Falls Creek to Mount Hotham track ugpgrade As part of an economic recovery plan, the Victorian government has allocated $15 million for the Falls Creek to Mount Hotham track. Details are unavailable as we go to press. While there are sections that need attention, many hope that this is not an attempt to construct a track like the one that was heavily criticised in 2018. It seems that the funding will be for track work and maintenance, not the overdevelopment planned several years ago. Bogong High Plains region Tony Robinson 6 | BWA December 2020 Ettrema Wilderness Rob Wildman The Ettrema wilderness is 120 kilometres south of Sydney in the coastal hinterland south-west of Nowra. This area, which gently slopes to the north and east from a height of around 750 metres, is characterised by huge rock platforms split by streams which inevitably fall over high waterfalls on their way to meeting the Shoalhaven. The gorges are steep sided and rough but the boulder- strewn waterways which run through the middle of these are some of the most beautiful you will see in Australia. Near Camp 2 Helen Jones BWA December 2020 | 7 The Shoalhaven River starts its relatively The walk short journey from the hills south of Walk dates 10-12 September 2020 Braidwood and grinds its way north through Walkers Rob Wildman, Josh Neri, Helen a magnificent gorge until it swings east to Jones, Max Dona, Clay O'Brien the Tallowa Dam and finally Nowra. The high country to the east of this forms, in part, the The descent Budawang and Ettrema Wilderness. The We had three days to cover what, in the final main road linking Nowra to Braidwood and analysis, was a very short distance of about Canberra cuts these areas in two, and the 20 kilometres. I decided to take the extra tableland north of this road is where you find time because on every other trip in this area the wonderful wild Ettrema Creek. I had simply run out of time and energy. This time I was the only member who had actually The political battle to ensure this area was been in this area before and so I wanted the declared a wilderness has been ongoing group to enjoy this beautiful country as much since 1937 and was fought at every turn by as I had. miners, dams and loggers. There are still ... fires had many areas not included in the park because Given that the burnt this area they are freehold farms or reserved by the National Parks to a cinder only a few government for potential gold mining or Service had opened “months earlier ... possible dams. However, the wilderness we up Morton National do have is magnificent and well worth a visit. Park north of the Braidwood Road when pretty much everything else was either A word of warning for your adventure; closed or access roads were cut, and that there are effectively no tracks throughout the fires had burnt this area to a cinder only the whole of Ettrema, Tullyangela and a few months earlier, it seemed like a good Bundundah gorges and navigation can be option for a slightly extended walk. A few difficult because of some extensive areas weeks before the start, we saw this part of of scrub and unexpected cliffs. The best the south coast receive something like 300 seasons for visiting this area are spring and mm of rain in two days. The national parks autumn as summer can be too hot. But the workers were getting bogged on the access water’s nice then! road so we really didn't know what to expect. Burnt out Xanthorea above the creek near Camp 1 Max, Rob and Clay about to deep wade Helen Jones Helen Jones 8 | BWA December 2020 I was particularly keen to get into the area because normally the scrub found on the high rock platforms can be impenetrable. So much so, trips in here need to be carefully planned to allow for this. This time we found vast swathes of open country with lots of spindly blackened stalks of Banksia and other scrub typical of this area.