Devil's Hole.

[kanangra]

On Saturday I headed out along Narrow Neck. Noted the new toilet at the firetower. After descending the spikes I took the road instead of route over Mt Debert, just for something different. Passed through some rainforest as it descended steeply. At Medlow Gap I took the waterboard road north to Green Gully saddle. At the gate I backtracked and took an old overgrown track that headed up hill. A sign said Black Billy Mine. I followed the track through a gate and downhill to a surprisingly large creek. Mitchell's Ck I think it was. From here it went uphill steeply before levelling out. I passed a couple of old relics along here including a mound with bricks on top? Perhaps from the mining days? Suddenly I came upon a much better road which I followed down to the Six Foot Track. Here I turned right up past the old village site and then right again on the waterboard track. Soon I came to the cairn and took a foot track off to the left. Refilled the bladder at a small creek before climbing steeply. Eventually I reached the cliff line and then followed a defile up under a chocstone which brought me out at the Devils Hole CP on Cliff Drive. An excellent circuit of 40.5km according to the GPS. It was 1:15, 6 hours after setting out. Now time for some lunch.

K.

[eggs]

40.5km of up and down in 6 hours.

Well done - but I am feeling really old now...

[johnw]

What eggs said ... You definitely set a cracking pace. Did you walk all of it or do some trail running as well? I've been to most of those places but never all of them in a single day. The defile and chockstone is the Devils Hole, nice walk.

[kanangra]

Jogged the flats and the down hills and walked the rest.

K.

[ninjapuppet]

kanangra, you must be a super fit energiser bunny or something!

i'm only in my 20s tried part of that walk yesterday. theres no way I can even hope to keep up at that pace.

[kanangra]

The key I find is just to keep moving. These days I just trundle along really. The pinch up through the Devils Hole is a tester though. Some interesting finds in there. The old mine workings at Black Billy Head. The old abandoned? farm on Mitchells Ck. the new property built on an inholding surrounded by NP. and others.

K.

[Pterodactyl]

Good on you kanangra! If that is "trundling along" you must be in the elite class when you are really trying hard. An old bloke like me would need a sleeping bag and breakfast for that lot. More like Orienteering than bushwalking. I was walking at my usual snail pace (I pretend to be admiring the scenery at regular intervals!) uphill from Jerusalem Ck last Sunday when I was passed by a young man and woman with mini-packs and bladders. They were really moving and still breathing at an even pace. Ah, youth is wasted on the young!!!

[kanangra]

Ah know the feeling well. Would have been a beautiful day at the bay? Great spot. Some good tent sites overlooking the water too.

K.

[iandsmith]

Dare I say that, while it is a creditable achievement, it misses the point why I go bushwalking.
My take is that I go to be there. To stop and savour the environment. To sit on a log and wait for the birds to come around; to sit beside a waterfall and simply listen to it for ten minutes, to discover some fungi beside the trail that I haven't seen before. Averaging 5 kms an hour I would certainly miss SO MUCH and, worst of all, would take no photographs. Cheers all

[kanangra]

Love the allyn river shot.

[Pterodactyl]

Landsmith, the Allyn River photo is good. When I was a young man (might be a lyric in that one!) I wanted to ascend by the most difficult ridge in the shortest possible time, ride the hairiest water, go very remote and far away etc. etc. But there are many ages of man. To reflect on the beauty of our world and to try to capture that in an image is my present age. Just a simple photo, as is your Allyn River, can say a lot - well done. I will use it as a desktop for a couple of weeks. Thanks.