Daisy on Warks Rd
Saturday 16 December: Bulls Head Range, Brindabellas – M/E-M. This walk is located on the eastern flanks of the Brindabellas, on the lower part of the Bulls Head Range. It is all on management trails, so makes an easy paced introduction to this area. We visit 3 weirs, climb to 1100m and walk on Pago Break. 2 geocaches. Around 14km and 550m climb. Map: Cotter Dam. Leader: John Evans 0417 436 877 john@johnevans.id.au . Transport: ∼$10 per person. Limit: 8. Book prior to 2 Dec or after 10 Dec.
Summary
Distance: 17.5km | Climb: 700m | Time: 8.10am – 2.35pm (6hrs 25mins), including 30 mins of breaks and 10mins driving between walks | Grading: L/E-M; M(11)
Photographs
Photographs are available, where you can start a large sized slideshow.
Waypoint and Track Files
Download the .gpx file. (Right click, Save Link As…, Save – if you want to use it.)
To use in Google Earth, do File, Open… and select Gps or All files as the File Type.
Track Notes
It was a warm day in Canberra of 31ºC. Also on the eastern flanks of the Brindabellas between 800 and 1100m.
We drove out through the Cotter, then along Brindabella Rd. A left turn and down along Warks Rd to a pre-designated spot.
Walk 1
Here we wandered first up an old decommissioned fire trail, then down through the scrub to Greens weir, to find and log geocache GC3V242 Weird Weir XI – Greens. I shared my knowledge of the Brindabella weirs- you’ll find details of them here. Back to the cars.
Walk 2
We drove a bit further along Warks Rd, over the Lees Creek culvert and to the junction with Yellow Rabbit Rd. A gate is closed a few tens of metres further along Warks Rd. So it was shank’s pony from there on, starting at the 800m contour.
A stroll to the Lees Creek camp and nursery site, but then a haul south up the northern spur of the Bulls Head Range to the top at SH1133. You can see from the walk profile that was all the climbing for the day. Morning tea along the way. Soon after the SH we came to the ‘short course’ turnoff, but the party was easily convinced that the downhill run should be via the ‘long course’.
So we headed along the Bulls Head Range, again I saw the vestigial signs of the old Pago Break. Pleasant walking, the trees only slightly burned.
400m past where New Chums Rd joins Warks Rd we turned right and went down through the bush, to emerge on Warks Rd again. The orest and creek lines are nice here, tree ferns thriving and the creeks running. Returning to what it must have been like.
Lunch was called below Warks weir and three of us popped up there, the other 2 for the geocache there. Time for a short doze after eats.
Warks Rd from here down to the intersection with Blundells Creek Rd, and further on down beside Blundells Creek is very pleasant walking. The creek gurgles away right beside the road, which crosses and recrosses it via well made culverts. A stop at Blundells (Lees Creek) weir for 2 geocachers to gather clues for the single-leg multi there. The rest of us stayed up on the road (to avoid the blackberries and disturbing arithmetic computations). THe main party walked on, whilst the cachers went to the final GZ.
All that remained was to trudge back past the Lees Creek camp site and down to the cars. Hot in the afternoon sun as we were now out of the treed area.
A nice enough amble, a bit too much fire trail. Hopefully everyone was content with visiting a couple of weirs and nabbing some caches. Thanks all for your company.
Track Maps
Party
11 walkers – Roger E, Martin E, Chris F, Robyn H, Ming L, Meg McK, Llewellyn S, Phillip S, Michael T, Imaina W, me.