Ponchos, Umbrellas or Raincoats? That is the question. What’s the best way to stay dry in the rain and enjoy yourself in the outdoors while doing so? I have been soaking wet, all over, every ‘warm’ layer down to my skin, more times than I can count. Mostly of course it was when I was …
This is a truly wonderful section of the river. One of Australia’s greatest treasures and one of our last wild rivers! It took us fourteen hours (paddling and portaging) to make it from Meyers Flat (15 minutes below Waterford by canoe – but easier to put in) to the first take-out point at Angusvale. The …
How many deer are out there in the bush? The study below looks at an area in the Upper Yarra (Dam) catchment (you may not – legally – hunt) where the author has performed transects and other measurements to estimate 200 sambar deer per square kilometer in this small area of good feed. That’s two …
To continue. Where is the deer? So, let’s say you have mastered walking quietly, that you can reason out where a deer has walked, and that you can see through the bush, so that if a deer is there it will be visible to you. Still and all, you need to also be looking in …
Della: ‘A lovely welcome at our front gate tonight after a counter meal at the local. Poor photo quality due to only having my phone to hand. Tawny Frogmouth? If so, I have heard it on the edge of my sleep for years too numerous to mention, but have never suffered from insomnia, so wandering …
Packrafting the Thomson River Gippsland Day #2: After a delightful night’s sleep on My Neoair (Womens) mat on the soft warm sand snuggled in my little poncho tent, I awoke to a morning you only dream of. Look at the quality of the light behind me! A camera can only capture a faint taste of …
Packrafting the Thomson River, Gippsland #1: This is probably the best weekend trip in Victoria. It may be mid-winter now but soon you should be planning your wonderful spring/summer trips – and this should be one of them! You start this just downstream of the historic Brunton’s Bridge where the road of the same name …
Yesterday was. Our 45th wedding anniversary – so naturally we went for a walk! Mt St Gwinear to Mt St Phillack return makes an enjoyable 12 km on a very hot day down here in the valley (34C). Up there (in the clouds) it would have been at most 21C but with a cool wind …
We returned to this beautiful section of the river again this year for a three day trip. Last year we canoed it in two which did not really give us enough time to savour it. With just a 2WD vehicle you can canoe down from Eaglevale to Kingwill in 3 days, another 3 days to …
Canoe Wonnangatta: Kingwill Bridge to Meyers Flat Read More »
These (more than 70) fascinating photos of a memorable historic trip on the Upper Yarra Track illuminate a journey by John Jensen in 1922. The photos are held by the Melbourne Walking Club and are available here: The photos were sent to me once again by Thomas Osburg of Yarra Ranges Bush Camp. I have …
Nearly 6″ of rain had fallen in the Wonnangatta River catchment recently. The river was still ‘up’ so I reckoned this would be my last opportunity this summer to canoe this section of this wonderful river. Yes, you can hitch a ride in. NB: You can check the river heights here and assess how many …
This delightful track is located right on the Melbourne fringe near Upper Ferntree Gully Railway Station. For people of my era it is a ‘walk into history’ as so many of our close relatives (fathers, uncles, etc) were involved in this heroic struggle, either in New Guinea (or WW2 in general) in one way or …
This was a three part article in the Leader Melbourne, Vic, Saturday 15, 22 & 29 November 1884, The Contributor: ‘By G’ kindly provided by Thomas Osburg of Yarra Ranges Bush Camp. Much of it is incredible, to say the least. The author has explained the value of solitude and the preservation of wilderness so …
Posted Monday night on Facebook: ‘Listen to the birdsong: 6:30am Monday morning in one of the most remote spots in Victoria, Wonnangatta River Alpine Nat Park. From Melbourne it would take you 7 1/2 hours by car (1 1/2 of them 4WD) and either a solid day’s hiking or 4 hours in a pack raft …
Suppose you didn’t have two 4WDs, or a 4WD at all…Nonetheless, could you hitch a 4WD ride to the Wonnangatta Station so you could pack raft the Upper Wonnangatta from the Humffray Confluence to Eaglevale? Sure Can! (Fridays afternoons or) Saturday mornings are definitely the best option. If you are there early, within an hour …
From Neates Track down to the Kingwell Bridge takes about 2 1/2 hours paddling. If you put in at the riverside camp just above Neates track it would take three hours. This would be a pleasant excursion if you were camped there. Mostly this section travels through farmland but as with much of the river, …
Very little rain was forecast for the three days – and very little fell. We were however treated during the night to that beautiful brooding, ominous rolling booming of thunderstorms clawing their way across the faces of the mountains, and to the mysterious comings and goings of the cervine denizens to their wallow not twenty …
Finding just the right conjunction of time, three days of delightful spring weather and enough water to make the river canoeable is harder now than it was before the bushfires years ago when the river height was over 1.8 metres on the Waterford gauge all summer. Now it rarely is. Last winter was quite dry …
Originally posted 2/08/2011: ‘Back early from three days’ hunting/hiking in Wonnangatta-Moroka NP due to sore toes (Have to do more research into boots) and accidentally taking the three-quarter length Neoair mat which was a bit harsh on my bad back. However saw lots of deer, some of whom visited me during the night.’ (This is …
A friend recently sent me a copy of this splendid 1866 map of the County of Buln Buln, to the East of Melbourne. What a historic treasure it is! you can clearly see the route of what would later be ‘The Upper Yarra Track’ on it. This is what makes this fabulous walking track ‘Australia’s …
