Kowen Pine Forest: Mount Reedy

General Information

Distance: 11.2 kilometers
Total climb: 445 meters
Time taken: 4 hours
Maps:  Canberra 8627-3N 1:25 000; Bungendore 8727-2N 1:25 000
Guide:  link
Start point distance by road from Canberra GPO:  19 kilometers
Start point map grid reference:  55H GA 04479 88164 [Canberra]
Destination map grid reference:  55H GA 05428 90559 [Bungendore]
End point:  same as start

Route

Commentary

This walk started at the Molonglo Gorge picnic area, which is off the Sutton Road approximately 5 kilometers north of Queanbeyan. The 3 kilometer walking trail trough Molonglo Gorge begins here. It is well-marked at the start and very clear along its entire length.



We proceeded east along the walking trail on the north side of the Gorge, with the Canberra-Goulburn railway line across on the other side of the river. The trail starts close to river level, but climbs up the side of the Gorge, giving some good views of the river down below.



At the end of the Molonglo Gorge walking trail is Blue Tiles picnic area, where we stopped for a snack. Apparently there is good swimming here in warmer weather. From Blue Tiles we headed north into the Kowen Pine Forest along wide and clear management trails.



Veering northwest, we picked our way through the 5 kilometers to Mount Reedy (763 meters) on the edge of Kowen Forest. There were some views towards Canberra and Queanbeyan both from the higher management trails and the summit of Mount Reedy.







Leaving the summit we headed southwest along a management trail, but after about 1 kilometer the trail ended unexpectedly - not as it is marked on the map. We were then obliged to cut through the bush into a gully with a creek at the bottom. This was a bit of a scramble and quite a climb back out of the gully, but turned out to be quite picturesque.



At the top of the gully we met up with Kowen Road which we followed to the west before turning south into the road back to the Molonglo Gorge picnic area.

Assessment

Molonglo Gorge is a great short walk in its own right, but it was even better to go on to Mount Reedy than to just backtrack the way we had come. Navigating through the pine forest requires a map with the management trails marked, or wrong turns could easily be taken.

Monga National Park: Corn Trail (part)

General Information

Distance: 11.4 kilometers
Total climb: 484 meters
Time taken: 3 hours
Map: Monga 8826-1N 1:25 000
Guide:  link
Start point distance by road from Canberra GPO:  110 kilometers
Start point map grid reference:  55H GA 64832 60829
Destination:  None - hike was exploratory
End point:  same as start

Route

http://maps.six.nsw.gov.au/

Description

The Corn Trail is usually a one-way walk, most commonly from north to south (downhill) although some walkers do it in reverse or as a return hike. As a one-way walk it is necessary to have transport at both ends, which can be quite a logistical hassle since the start and end points are over 32 kilometers distant by road - including 18.5 kilometers of the narrow, winding and gravel Misty Mountain Road and No Name Mountain Road. On this occasion we planned to only walk part of the Corn Trail from north to south and return. The map shows the Corn Trail starting to the south of the Kings Highway at Clyde Mountain, but this access has been closed by the National Parks. The actual northern start point of the walking track is the Dasyurus picnic area. To get to Dasyurus, turn off the Kings Highway into River Forest Road which is just to the west of Clyde Mountain. Approximately 2 kilometers along River Forest Road turn left down a side track to Dasyurus.



The Corn Trail is well marked at Dasyurus, but it is first necessary to cross the Mongarlowe River so waterproof boots are advised.



Just over the river we noticed a grassy area which had obviously been used as a camping area - perhaps useful for a later walk along the full length of the trail. The walking trail itself is well defined, passing first through forest and ferny undergrowth in an easterly direction.





Passing north of Murrenburg Mountain the trail then heads south, joining the map-marked trail around grid reference GA670604. There are occasional views through the forest as you walk along the ridge.





About 5.5 kilometers into the walk, the trail starts its 600 meter descent to its end at No Name Mountain Road. We descended about 100 meters of this before deciding to head back.

This is an excellent walk through a very nice area with an interesting history. After finishing the walk we decided to do its full length north to south a few months later, but we were rained out before we could start the actual walking. It's still on the list, but difficult to organise due to the car placement logistics.

Deua National Park: Big Hole (2) and Marble Arch

General Information

Distance:  12.6 kilometers
Total climb:  475 meters
Time taken:  4 hours 20 minutes
Map:  Kain 8826-4S 1:25 000
Guide:  link
Start point distance by road from Canberra GPO:  129 kilometers
Start point map grid reference:  55H GA 39292 43340
Destination map grid reference:  Big Hole - 55H GA 40570 42986
                                                    Marble Arch - 55H GA 43468 43196
End point:  same as start

Route

http://maps.six.nsw.gov.au/

Description

The starting point for this hike was the Berlang camping area, which is off Krawaree Road at the Gundillion Cemetery. The camping area is well signposted fro Krawaree Road. Soon after leaving the camping area it is necessary to cross the Shoalhaven River. Since it is shin deep I decided to take off my boots and cross in a pair of thongs (Australian for flip-flops, just in case you were thinking of something else) to protect my feet from the sharp rocks.



The walking trail goes through largely open terrain, steadily climbing up the flank of a hill to the Big Hole viewing platform.






Unfortunately I've never been able to get a satisfactory picture of Big Hole itself, but there is a very good one in the guide referenced above. From Big Hole we continued along the trail, now through forest.



The trail as we followed it actually runs north of the trail as it is marked on the map (but still south of the Bettowynd Fire Trail). About 5.5 kilometers into the walk we started our decent to Marble Arch, which we reached about half a kilometer later. We passed through the arch and the cave beyond until we entered the slot canyon.








We followed the slot canyon until we came on a spring coming out of the limestone wall on the right, where we stopped for lunch. The limestone-filtered water coming out of the spring was pure and very cold.

After lunch we headed back the way we came, the climb out of the gully made easier by steps thoughtfully built in the trail.



This walk is well worth the 115 kilometer drive from my place to Berlang via Captains Flat. Both Big Hole and Marble Arch are striking natural features and are both easily accessible via a well defined walking track.