Blundell trig | Stairway to Heaven | walkers at Uriarra trig

Map: Cotter Dam 1:25000

Walk Description

This walk was organised and led by Roger E as an irregular CBC Tuesday walk:

Tuesday 10 December: Uriarra Hill, Mt Dowling, & Blundell Trig - M/E. A walk mainly along fire trails to Uriarra Hill and then Mt Dowling. Start is from near Blue Range Hut. About 600 metres of climbing, expect a few blackberry bushes to get through. Afterwards drive another 6 kilometres to near the Reid Pinch arboretum and bag Blundell Trig, which is not on Mt Blundell Hill. Map: Cotter Dam. Leader: Roger E. Transport : $36.00 per car. Limit: 8.

8 of us met at my place and drove first to near Blundell trig on the Brindabella Rd, then to near Blue Range Hut.

Further Information

With obligations back in town, Roger kindly permitted me to drive out; we did Blundell trig first; then, after visiting Uriarra trig, he allowed me to leave the party and return to my car. Many thanks for accommodating me.

Photographs

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Track Maps

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Track overview - Blundell and Uriarra trigs

Track W1 - Blundell trig

Track W2 - Uriarra trig

Google Earth

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Track Notes

We parked at the bottom fire trail leading to Blundell trig. Personally, I would have parked at Reids Pinch and walked in the shorter, flatter FT, but the wander up the hill was good exercise.

As you can see from the photo, Blundell trig is a rock pile cairn and pretty unimpressive. There is a nearby weather station.

Back to the cars and drove to the intersection of Blue Range Rd and East West FT, just before the locked gate on the access road to Blue Range Hut.

I understand that the last time Roger did Uriarra, blackberries were encountered. This time, with me as a newly credentialled old codger, he used old and current fire trails to get us there.

From 800m to 900m the going was a disused FT (with moguls and small diameter pine logs across it). I named it the 'Stairway to Heaven'. Some walkers wanted to join me on the real one, but I had to point out that, although available to all, it's a solo walk (grin).

Uriarra trig is most unimpressive. We wandered all over the little rise, just to prove that we'd been there. A few bits of tin (none circular as coming from an old trig). Two naturally placed stones, along with a now-placed stick, formed the focal point for a photo.

We returned N to the major FT. I returned down NE to my car and the others stayed on the crest and wandered along FTs to Dowling trig.

I'd showered, lunched, spent a couple of hours at the hospital, took a lovely wife to coffee, and returned home to collect the mail to meet up with my walking companions returning to various vehicles scattered around my home.

Trig bagging is trig bagging, no matter how unimpressive the trig - as long as it's on the official list. Today's tally at:

Cynthia 41, Roger 72, Chris 43, Eric 33, Nathan 56, Phillip 20 (he is just getting back to walking after his second ankle op), Ian 53, me 5 to go.

Summary

Distance: 7.8km Climb: 385m. Time: 8.20- 8.45am; 9.05 - 10.45am (2hrs 5 mins). That's for me; ~20km for the others.

Grading: S/E; E(6) - for me

Walk Participants

8 walkers - Cynthia C, Roger E (leader), Chris F, Eric G, Nathan H, Phillip S, Ian W, me.