This walk was organised and led by Brian S as an irregular CBC Tuesday walk:
Tuesday 30 September - Morton National Park - L/M-R. Badgerys Spur - Shoalhaven River - Tryers Gorge - Mt Pollock - Rainbow Ridge - Shoalhaven River - Badgerys Spur. Scenic, 14 km, 800m asc, wet feet, optional swim. Map: Caoura Leader: Brian S. Transport: ~$15.
2 of us met at the appointed time and place, with 2 more joining us at the start of the walk. Two from the NSW Central Coast, one local and just me from Canberra. John and Sean found the walk via the CBC web site public walks program. All sealed road right to Badgerys Lookout.
From Badgerys Spur car park, a steep descent on track to the Shoalhaven River. Head upstream about a km, then wade across and enter Tryers Gorge. After a couple of kms, ascend a spur to the south of Rainbow Saddle, proceed to Mt Pollock. From here we have a couple of options for returning to the river - which one we take will depend on time available. About 8 hrs walking.
A scenic walk along an attractive part of the Shoalhaven, with options for swimming if warm enough. About 50% on track, the rest will be mostly light scrub. Tryers Gorge (exploratory) may involve negotiating some boulders.
Meeting time: 0730 (allow 1.5 hrs driving from South Canberra)
Meeting place: Drive to Marulan, go past the BP station and the truck weighing station on the left, make sure you are in the right hand lane. No more than 100-200m past the t.w. station there is a turn to the right (signposted "Tallong", may also say "Bundanoon") going across the other side of the Hume Highway. Take that, drive along that road for 100-150m, and wait there.Walk
Only my second time down in the Shoalhaven River, the first being on 30 Jan 07. Approaching the car park, I caught glimpses of the big slash between me and the other side. This was to be a W walk - not wet (well, it was that too with 4 crossings of the Shoalhaven), but down and up and down and up.
The feral animal control signage was still up at the start of the Badgerys Spur Walking Track and we saw the results of it later - two goats (well, horns, skulls and backbones) probably shot from a helicopter. Other sightings were a goanna (as we did on my previous trip in the area), large carp in the Shoalhaven River, two brown snakes which gave us an adrenaline rush and caused us to move quickly and a red bellied black sighted by Brian.
Absolutely huge views, just by crossing from where we parked to the Badgerys Lookout. The Shoalhaven River snaked between razor ridges and below gigantic cliff tops. Soon away to descend the spur - not a knee-jerk reaction but a knee-strain one. Easy walking down an easy to follow walking track, through hundreds of grass trees and mini-palms (what are these?).
Down at the bottom we walked through the ubiquitous casuarinas to the edge of the Shoalhaven River. A variety of crossing styles. After last Tuesday I chose to do it fully gaitered and booted, but only after John had fearlessly forged across and proved that I wouldn't drown! We turned upstream and trod a variety of going. The sandy, casuarina-ed river flats still grow poison ivy. At one point I said "Excuse me" as there was a dreadful smell, but it was here the goanna scuttled up a tree from feeding on some putrid carcass. Across the bottom of Sparkes Buttress to the mouth of Tryers Gorge we traversed the rockier side of the river. Carp here.
We turned into a lovely grassy area at the mouth of Tryers Gorge. No water flowing down Tryers Creek, but this area would make a lovely camping spot. Sean had filled up with Shoalhaven water; apparently others will not drink it without first boiling. We wandered up the bottom of the gorge, rock-hopping in the dry creek bed. A few twists and turns and we found morning tea on a mini-palm fringed, grassy flat.
We continued up Tryers Gorge until Brian correctly judged that we were at the bottom of a spur heading up to Renns Bluff. It did look steep, but open going through dry sparse forest to start. After a 200m climb we contoured away to gain the spur heading (gently in this rare instance) down to Rainbow Saddle. A delightful area, open forest, a little indigofera in bloom. The S arm of Rainbow Ridge then took us 100m up to Mt Pollock, with huge views down across the Shoalhaven River (see pic 1), McCallums Flat and up to Troy Walls at the E end of Bungonia Gorge.
Good mobile reception (even on GPRS service). A well earned break for lunch.
Our next leg down the NW arm of Rainbow Ridge was the best razor ridge I've ever trodden (see pic 2). Brian's rope came out at one point, just as a precaution. With a Doh! handrail, even I took a turn at the lead and didn't (couldn't for fear of ending up hundreds of metres below) slip off the ridge line. Eventually we curved away to the N then E and slipped and slid 300m down to the river.
We immediately crossed to the left bank (if one remembers that sides are 'handed' left and right when facing downstream, there's no need to say 'true left' or 'true right') to use the gentler, sandy going. A small bluff caused us, after an attempt to climb up and over it, to cross the river then back again (see pic 3). We remained on this left bank, passing the mouth of Tryers Gorge on the other side and disturbing a snake.
At last back at the bottom of Badgerys Spur, the only option being to wander back up. I decided that my lungs like downhill and my knees like uphill.
A little surprise at the top. Sean, with his local knowledge took us, via a public easement at the '333' gate a little way back along the Badgerys Lookout Road, to some reputedly convict era short tunnels carved in the back of a cave overhang (see pic 4). Sometimes called the Tallong dungeons, the cheese cool storage use is more likely.
Later found the following on the web:
The Dungeons, formerly known as the ‘Cheese Caves’, were cut into the rock under Tallawa Waterfall by convicts in the 19th century, and can be found on Badgery's Lookout Road. They were used to store fresh produce due to almost icy year round temperature. Not a lot is recorded about them, but some say that cheese was moved up the Shoalhaven River and stored in ‘the Dungeons’ over one hundred years ago. Terraced Chinese gardens were located in the reserve above ‘the Dungeons’.
A top walk, thank you Brian. Thanks for your company John and Sean.
Distance: 14km Climb: 850m. Time: 8.05 - 3.50pm (7.75hrs), with 40mins of stops.
Grading: L/M-R,W; H(12)
KMZ file for Google Earth/Maps: Badgerys Spur - Shoalhaven River and beyond
