I have spent the past four days walking ~6okm alongside the Wonnagatta River within the trackless Mt Darling Wilderness with my lovely dog, Honey as (illegal) company. At 76 a 20 km stretch which used to take me five hours is now taking me six (with a 10 kg+ pack) but it is much less clear than it was. There is just so much fallen timber for one thing. One scarcely goes more than 3 metres without having to step over something, then there is much poa tussock and sword grass to push through, blackberries etc. Still, I am pleased that I am still up to this fairly vigorous (but to me relaxing) activity. I was following the old C19th pack track into the Wonnagatta Station: See Wonnanagatta Pack Track.
I went up to where you can see the Hernes Spur Track coming down the mountain (and back – about 25 km each way) with some side trips. Surprisingly I did ‘discover’ a couple of good camping spots I had missed in the past. I will not be explaining where they are. One in particular is very unlikely to be found. I will be back. I hope that if people find my caches of firewood they will either not use them or will replace them.
I did some track clearing with my Fiskars machete (brush hook) but much more needs to be done. This tool is not banned in Victoria judging by the fact that Amazon are still delivering them. In any case as a hunter and farmer I have an exemption to the absurd ban on such handy tools. Instead of banning such things (as weapons) I think we would be safer if licenced firearms owners were permitted to carry handguns for self-defence. Once a few machete wielding thugs had been blown away by honest citizens the others might well wise up and desist.
Another two stones of weight loss and I really believe I will be able to walk the very daunting (but awesomely beautiful) remote Dusky Track in Fiordland NZ again (for the tenth time!) next autumn – which I plan to do somehow. I last walked it in 2017 when I was a mere 68. It may involve a bit of hammock camping I suspect, but still…
Two nights I camped beside this magnificent (trout-filled) deep pool on a river’s bend.
Here you see my tent (campfire out front) sheltered amongst the trees by the water’s edge.
Honey (too) loves a warm fire.
Here she is curled up on my sleeping bag/quilt (See Converting a Sleeping Bag into a Quilt).
Her eyes are glowing like head lights.
Time for breakfast she reckons.
This is my old campsite on the ‘top flat’ below Hernes Spur. Note firewood cache.
I have spent many lovely idle days there approx 20km from any track or road. The deer keep it well mown as you will note.
The view downstream from my campsite there.
And the view upstream. I often see a platypus (or deer) there when getting water or washing up.
It is a good crossing point too. There are few of them. One about half a km below and another at the next large flat downstream. Honey wants to cross.
Some may recognise this as my Seventieth Birthday Platypus pool. He wasn’t home today, just two wood ducks.
My old campsite at Mt Darling Creek (confluence). Other folk have used all the wood for hundreds of metres around so I no longer camp there.
Someone else’s firewood cache just below Mt Darling Creek. There are mountains of flood wrack firewood nearby.
My morning alarm clock.
A welcoming and warming campfire out the front of your tent is better than any TV programme.
See Also:
Wonnanagatta Pack Track (many other links)
A couple of years back I walked McMillan’s Track. the blackberries and scrub was so bad along the Moroka valley that we walked a lot of it in the river. Summer low water.
We had walked up the road from Eaglevale. My memory was that it was quite eroded. What is the state of it now ? I was wondering if my Subaru Forester would make it up to the end. If so I could go in and clear a bit of the Wonnangatta Track. I am nearly 70 years so am a bit younger than you. I have some sort of Fiskars brush hook as you put it which could be put to use. I like your description of the that section of the valley. It sounds appealing. In fact if you ever wanted to meet me there I would open to that.
Anyway I would prefer to drive not walk from Eaglevale, basically to save time for clearing.
Best regards,
Gordon
Hi Gordon, I will try to reply via email. I used to drive in in my Subaru. There are some rougher sections and a few deep, muddy holes. If you have a set of wheel chains or a hand winch that would be a good precaution but last time I was there about a month ago I could have driven in and out in a Forester (i think). I know the section of blackberries along the Morola you mean from Higgins Yards down to the Moroka Creek Track. It is est to walk on the other side of the rive there. Indeed it is generally best to just not follow the track. The Wonnangatta Track route is in much better condition (largely due to me). If a few other applied their Fiskars machetes and saws to it it would be quite splendid again. In any case it is a lovely place to go walking, camping, canoeing, hunting , fishing etc. Maybe we could combine our efforts. Cheers, Steve.