Water levels in the Lerderderg gorge.

[Dreamer 61]

Hi my mates and I are contemplating a through walk of the lerderderg gorge in late January. Whilst I dont really foresee there being insufficient water for cooking and drinking,I would feel more comfortable with being able to obtain some accurate information. Any assistance on this topic would be much appreciated. We are actually hoping for a swim each day which is great after a hard days walk.

[overlandnoob]

I went in Feb a few years ago - unless there has been recent rain there's not likely to be much water apart from a few pools/billabongs here and there. Should be good for a swim and for drinking as long as you treat it. Look out for snakes there are plenty along the river.

[Snowzone]

The Lerderderg was still running 3 weeks ago and there has been rainfall in the area since. There are usually some deep pools that remain suitable for swimming in. I would be treating any water taken from the river.

[bigkev]

I was down in the gorge at the bottom of Bears Head Range Track and then again at the Ah Kow Mine Ruins last Saturday. The Lerderderg is not flowing at the moment. There are plenty of pools that are great for swimming though:). I've posted a few photos here if anyone's interested http://goinferalonedayatatime.blogspot. ... -park.html

[OllieVic]

Ye same might be quite dry now but there's usually always some big pools along the length of the river providing you take a filter or something to treat your water. I pump all my water through a Katadyn filter, usually does a good job. Also yes nearly everytime I've been there especially along the river you will most likely see snakes, usually red belly black snakes. Be sure to wear some good gaiters and just be aware in very bushy sections to take it slow.

[Drew]

I think I'll go on an impromptu overnighter in Lerderderg tomorrow night. Some sort of circuit from Lohs Lane. I'm thinking that this week's rain will have just filled up a few pools and flushed things out a bit. The river should be very low again (if flowing at all) by now, right?

[Drew]

In answer to my own question: lots of lovely pools for swimming, but easy walking along the river bank with no flowing water.

We started at Loh's Lane, descended Lower Chadwick Track, walked downstream along the river until the bottom of Bears Head Range Track, where we camped. The river was flowing from just upstream of our campsite (only just). Next day we climbed Bears Head Range Track, then returned to Loh's Lane via Blackwood Ranges Track and Foxy Gully Track.

It was only about 15km. We started walking about 2pm Saturday and were back at the car at midday Sunday, so a pretty short walk that could easily be done as a daywalk. However it was lovely to spend the night out there. It really is a nice place. Feels a million miles away from the city. And only two snake sightings!

[Eremophila]

Thanks Drew, will be heading there in the next couple of months.

[GregR]

Did a quick 8km wander around the O'Briens Crossing to The Tunnel area on Saturday. No flowing water, just some stagnant pools.

First time I have been able to walk right up to the tunnel (well almost -there was a pool of putrescent muck at the entrance itself)

Could have walked as far as we felt in the riverbed if we were so inclined.

[bigkev]

For anyone heading out to Lerderderg over Easter it would probably pay to BYO H2O. I did the Sardine, Clear Water, Lerderderg loop from O'Briens today and things are as dry as I've ever seen them out there. Some of the deeper pools have still got water but they look very dodgy, I wouldn't be drinking from them unless it was a last resort.

Looking downstream from the ford at O'Briens Crossing.

[rumblepants]

I was up at Lerderderg last weekend and the water levels have come back a bit after the rains. Looks like there was some flash flooding along the river.

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[Orbita_Serenitatem]

I was up at Lerderderg last weekend and the water levels have come back a bit after the rains. Looks like there was some flash flooding along the river.

Rumblepants, I'm planning to do the Lerderderg Trail B'March to Daylesford this weekend etc. How deep was the water at O'Brian's?

[Drew]

Has anyone been down to the gorge in the past week or two? I'm thinking of walking a route that I've done in drier months but not sure how feasible it is in Spring. There would be a section of river walking from the bottom of Razorback Track to the weir (or could be shortened to come up Bears Head Range Track if the going is too slow along the river).
Thanks.

[Drew]

Has anyone been down to the gorge in the past week or two? I'm thinking of walking a route that I've done in drier months but not sure how feasible it is in Spring. There would be a section of river walking from the bottom of Razorback Track to the weir (or could be shortened to come up Bears Head Range Track if the going is too slow along the river).
Thanks.

To answer my own question (hopefully for someone's benefit!) the river was flowing very nicely but it was easy enough to walk along. Slower going than when it's drier (with lots of criss-crossing required) but no thigh deep wading or anything near it - in fact my feet almost stayed dry.

[bigkev]

Hi All,

I walked the middle section of the gorge today, downstream from McKenzie Track to Bears Head. There is a good amount of water down there for this time of the year. It's not flowing however there are numerous big pools, just treat it as there are also numerous goats Incidentally it looks like a big firebreak was cut during the fires out near Lower Chadwick Track last year and the bulldozer has wiped out a section of McKenzie Track making navigation a little tricky going down.

Cheers Kevin

This long pool is just up stream of where Old River comes in.

[Pink Cap]

I’m thinking of walking the Lerderderg Track between Daylesford and Bacchus Marsh as my final walk of the Goldfields Track. The website has no info about water; does anyone know the current water situation in this area? It’s a 4 day walk so I’d be needing to find water along the way. I’m assuming I’ll have to bush camp as I don’t see much in the way of official campsites. Has anyone else done this track recently?

[Drew]

I’m thinking of walking the Lerderderg Track between Daylesford and Bacchus Marsh as my final walk of the Goldfields Track. The website has no info about water; does anyone know the current water situation in this area? It’s a 4 day walk so I’d be needing to find water along the way. I’m assuming I’ll have to bush camp as I don’t see much in the way of official campsites. Has anyone else done this track recently?

I haven't been in the gorge lately but from past experience, and with the recent rain, I'd be confident that there will be plenty of good pools of water for swimming and drinking. You'll want to purify it though.

There are a few good campsites along the way. Most will have been discussed on the forum previously, but let me know if you can't find info and I can look on the map when I have time.

[DavidB]

We did the Lerderderg Track from Bacchus Marsh back in October 2019 so can't comment on current water levels. But we camped at Amblers Crossing, Blackwood caravan park and Nolans Creek. Plenty of water back then. Nolans is not strictly a camp ground but we were the only people there (it was a week day). Coming the other way it will be easier to walk into Bacchus Marsh. Leaving BM the track disappears with all the new housing development. We just followed our noses up a hill till we found the track again a few km out of town.

[Pink Cap]

I’ve just returned from doing this track, I started from the end of Swans Rd and walked to Daylesford over 3 days. I camped at Ambler Lane and Balts. I was intending to camp at Nolan’s Creek but the camping is in full sight of the road and that day there were lots of 4WD folks going by and dropping in for a look around. Balts had good secluded camping spots and Ambler was not too busy. There was more water along the track than I expected, probably because there has been a considerable amount of rain recently, like there was water in Whisky Creek and other small creeks. Between Balts and Jubilee Lake I didn’t see water on the map but there was a good creek 2.5 kms beyond Balts on Cairns Rd. Coming into Daylesford is a slog - I wish the track ended at Jubilee Lake! Otherwise it’s a nice track, lots of single track and deep forest. There’s a welcome shop in Blackwood to get a snack. The track is well signed, I just had one issue a few kms before Nolan’s Creek where there’s a creek crossing necessary and the access is hard to locate.

[bigkev]

Thanks for the update Pink Cap.

I'm thinking of doing this walk in the next couple of months.

[indented]

Went down the East Walk track from O'Briens Crossing over the weekend. There was decent flow and water in the river the whole way. Vast difference from previous visit Feb 2019 when the riverbed was dry apart from the odd waterhole.

[BenBen]

I was just trying to check water levels in the Lerderderg and came across this Melbourne Water site which lists the water level at Obrien's Crossing. Which is super handy. You can look at historical data too (confirmed that it really was totally dry when I passed by a few years ago).

https://www.melbournewater.com.au/water ... er/231213A

There are a whole lot of other sites listed across the state too, so not just relevant for the Lerderderg.

Ben