Mt Bangalora

Mt Bangalora is a small mountain (820m altitude) located on the Boonah side of the junction between the Great dividing Range (Main Range National Park) and the Border Ranges. Access is fairly easy and 9 members of QBW left Brisbane at 6pm to see some of the highlights Mt Bangalora has to offer.

The walk began with an assault on the western face which builds to a steep ascent in the last 300m. Nearing the top we veered to the north shoulder of the peak and then moved on to a large clearing over a basalt platform where the views of Glucose Ridge, Lizard Point, Mt Roberts and Panorama Point was very impressive. The Reynolds Gorge catchment looked well worth exploring as a base camp at some point in the future. A good half hour morning tea break was had by all.

Mt Bangalora was then summitted and passed over as there isn't much to see here but a small cairn. Over the Southern side a superb cliff lookout was located for some superb views to the south and east. We then traversed over to the Mt Bell and Bangalora saddle before a steep descent into Bangalora Gorge was negotiated. Lunch was had in the gorge and an hour or so later we made our way back to the cars. It was good to see Richard had a tracking device in his GPS to record this journey so that others can lead this walk in the future as it is a rewarding experience. We were back at the cars by mid afternoon so I had lived up to the promise of leading a more accessible version of the Bangalora experience.

Thanks to all fellow travellers.

David

Great Ocean Walk

The walk was completed solo. It was a walk I was determined to do solo or not and as it turned out there was no one else using the campsites when I went through. The weather was wild and it only got fine on the last day. The campsites were pristine except for Aire River and Johanna which I suspect are too close to where morans can get to and make a bit of a mess. The coastal views were terrific and the beaches needed to be well timed to be able to do all of the low tide routes. I would do this walk again but probably not alone. I saw an overpopulation of Koalas at Blanket Bay and Cape Otway campsites and the Manna Gums in these areas were distinctly damaged by the overforaging by the bears. The rock formations were quite special and the views were stunning. I would reccommend this walk for anyone - it is easy, well marked and well set up for hikers.

The low tide routes are often along wave break platforms so not recommended unless the seas are calm and the tide isn't high.

Eagles Ridge By Circumstance

The aim of the day was to climb Short Leaning Ridge but a large thunderstorm struck at about 8:30 and kept us pinned under a large bolder overhang in Barney Ck for at least an hour. With the rain easing we progressed slowly up stream as Barney Ck was slippery and flowing very fast. To avoid crossing the creek one more time I made the decision to climb up a little and move towards Barney Water Fall but the ridge we were following was misleading and offered no opportunity to cross to the next ridge beyond which was Barney Falls. We decided to do a modified Eagles Ridge and ascended to Tom's Tum. Trying a new ascent up the summit of TT was problematic and wasted a good hour or so just helping people get up. The rock all day was a bit greasy from the rain so it was fortuitous we did not do Short Leaning as it would have been tough in the conditions. As it was after descending down isolated peak to the ridge going up to North Peak we found the descent from here agonisingly slow as the creek was just so slippery. We got back to the cars at 6pm after commencing walking at 7:30 am. It was a great day of walking and Short Leaning Ridge will now be scheduled for the 9th of August.

The second photo has Eagles Ridge in the centre with Short Leaning Ridge on the right.

Great Ocean Walk

My first night on the trail will commence on 30th of June. I have 7 nights booked through Parks Victoria at the following locations:
Elliot Ridge
Blanket Bay
Cape Otway
Aire River
Johanna Beach
Ryans Den
Devils Kitchen
The walk is about 100kms which if you do the maths is an easy 12.5 km a day when compared to the Bibbulmun which for me was 25km per day. I would welcome people to walk with. If interested contact me via email at d.a.haliczer@stpeters.qld.edu.au
This is short notice but if anyone is interested I also have walks planned for Cape to Cape in WA from late September to early October and South West Cape Circuit in Tas in January.

Long Barrabool Ridge 18/4/09

Long Barrabool ridge was expected to be a day walk but became an unexpected overnight walk (the first time this has happened for me). Four of us left Brisbane at 5am and drove up to Cleared Ridge. We walked along the ridge towards the high point on the south of Upper Portals and descended along the track system to the campsite opposite Barney Gorge. From here we crossed the creek and ascended Midget Ridge. We didn't summit Bippoh until 11:30 am and even then I knew there would be some night walking but we were still ascending West Peak until 1pm when we had lunch. A traverse was made when it was clear that the lovely slabs that exist in this area allowed a traverse around to the ridge to Barrabool. The vegetation was very thick and this added to our time to get to Barrabool.

At the saddle I ascended 5 minutes to get water from the top of Barrabool Creek. We then ascended over Barrabool and past the campsite where we picked up rubbish after people who probably camped up here over Easter. It was getting late in the afternoon and I should have decided on the shorter ridge but enjoyed the long ridge so much on a previous occasion I led us down that way again. There are several interesting crags and caves to use when descending or ascending this ridge and it was great to see and use these again.

Near the base of Long Barrabool Ridge it was getting dark and we found a nice slabby descent off the ridge into the creek that led to some cliff initially but a way was found down in the dark into the creek. As only three of the four had a decent head lamp or torch, the going was slow and by 9pm we all came to the realisation that getting home this night was impossible. We decided to make for the Barrabool Camp site and slept (if you could call it sleep) under the stars without tent, sleeping bag or thermorest. The next day we had a slow rock hop up Barney Ck on account on how full of water it was and it took a good four hors to get back to the cars.

It was an adventure and enough communication was made to people to prevent concerns arising from those closest to us.

Logan's Ridge and North Ridge

7th Feb Ascended Logan's Ridge with Tom (Twig) Wilson and a few of his friends(Po, Steve, Pat). I was greatful for the opportunity to document the ridge further for the on line guide I have published: http://www.geocities.com/qld_bwc/seq/ebarney.htm
Even though it was a summer day the weather was quite pleasant and the ascent was good fun. We met some other walkers on the summit (medical students from UQ) who came with us to North Peak where we located some water to top up and had lunch. Identifying the descent route down North for them, they then left before us as we needed some time to enjoy the top and needed some well earned rest. The descent down North Ridge was overgrown in sections. (I haven't seen the views from here looking this green for more than 10 years.) There are 3 diversions to the south on North and we found them no trouble. Rocky Creek was flowing nicely and I filled up to have some nice drinking water for a week or two. Everyone appeared to enjoy the day and handled even the tough sections with ease.