Budawangs Wog Wog to the Castle

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Budawangs Wog Wog to the Castle

Postby Longboardman » Wed 24 Oct, 2018 7:32 am

I intend to complete a traverse of the Budawangs from west to east starting at Wog Wog and hoping to come out on the Clyde at Yadboro after visiting the Castle. Someone I know was up there recently and told me after going around Mt Cole and up the gully that you cannot get through to Monolith Valley, that the track on the map does not exist and bush bash pretty solid. In the past I have done this walk going up the creek between Mt Cole and Mt Owen and though I might try the route on the map that is shown as representing a track.
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Re: Budawangs Wog Wog to the Castle

Postby Walk_fat boy_walk » Wed 24 Oct, 2018 2:16 pm

The two routes for getting from the west side of Mt Cole to Monolith Valley are: 1) between Mt Cole and Mt. Owen as you describe between Mt. Cole and Owen (including going 'over' the northern end of Owen) and b) around the north of Mt. Cole along the cliffs then east between Cole and Donjon, turning south past Seven Gods Pinnacles into the valley (via the Green Room, which is awesome). The latter is the easiest and most commonly used i think, and i'm not sure what your source was talking about - I suspect they lost the track somewhere and never reacquired it? As long as you follow the obvious pads/markers/cairns it's a reasonably well marked route the whole way??
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Re: Budawangs Wog Wog to the Castle

Postby ribuck » Wed 24 Oct, 2018 6:01 pm

The Cole-Owen route does go through, but you have to walk on a (straightforward) sloping rock ledge at one point. Use a GPS, and follow the navigable route marked on OpenStreetMap which is correct. The route to the north of Cole is longer in distance but quicker in time. Both routes are super interesting.
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Re: Budawangs Wog Wog to the Castle

Postby Huntsman247 » Wed 24 Oct, 2018 6:53 pm

I've been through there just a couple weeks ago. There is definitely a track from Trawalla falls (western side of cole) through the gully between Cole and Owen to the monolith valley. If you were to go between cole and Owen, you do need to come up a steep rock slope. The picture doesn't do it justice. Exciting is a good word to describe it when going up with a heavy pack. The route is rather well marked with cairns that I'd be questioning your sources navigational skills if they think there's no track. lol. As you come down the other "ramp" off mt Owen on the eastern side there are 2 routes. One following the creek and one above the creek which is overgrown somewhat but still would consider it a track.

Otherwise going around the northern side of Cole has a much more established/worn track. If you haven't been through the monolith before I'd go the second route as you get to see more things.

Sounds like a good trip.
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Steep slope between Cole and Owen
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Re: Budawangs Wog Wog to the Castle

Postby Longboardman » Wed 24 Oct, 2018 9:35 pm

Yes I went back to my source and they said they ended up down some ravine which they were forced to come back out of. Sounds like they did lose the track and didn't turn south along Mt Cole.
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Re: Budawangs Wog Wog to the Castle

Postby clarence » Fri 26 Oct, 2018 8:58 am

There are definitely places where you can lose the route between Owen and Cole. Previous posts sum it up pretty well.

If in doubt, go between Donjon and Cole.

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Re: Budawangs Wog Wog to the Castle

Postby bernieq » Tue 06 Nov, 2018 10:33 pm

Here's another angle on the 'rock slab' - it's not difficult.

DSCN6874.jpg
between Mts Cole & Donjon - Aug 2011

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Re: Budawangs Wog Wog to the Castle

Postby crollsurf » Wed 07 Nov, 2018 7:27 am

Someone has placed a fallen tree up the steepest part at the bottom of bernieq's photo which makes it safer. If you're feeling tired, walking around the North side of Cole is relatively easy and a lovely walk through Monolith, Green Room and Nibelung Pass. You'll find water until just before the Cooyoyo turn off (grab it at Nibelung Pass to be sure), then nothing after that until Long Gully. Hope you got good knees, the walk down from the Castle is steep in places and hard for a good part of 4 klms.
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Re: Budawangs Wog Wog to the Castle

Postby ribuck » Wed 07 Nov, 2018 6:45 pm

crollsurf wrote:Someone has placed a fallen tree up the steepest part

Yes, and that's the harder way up. If you don't like the look of the bare rock slope above the fallen tree, backtrack a few metres and go up the rock ledges through the vegetation instead of up the bare rock.
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Re: Budawangs Wog Wog to the Castle

Postby Chrisankles » Sat 09 Mar, 2019 2:57 pm

Getting lost ascending/descending Mt Owen is easy! Here are my top tips:
1. Don't assume you remember the lay of the land from last time! The first time I climbed Mt Owen it was from from Monolith Valley, after the ascent sign, the way was clearly marked with tags. A bush bash, but no doubt you are on a travelled route. Years later I came up from the west near Trawalla Falls and have no memory of having trouble getting down to Monolith Valley.
2. I think the two guides to getting up from Trawalla falls are a) if the gorge seems impassable, it is time to backup and climb the rock face and b) if the rock face seems to steep/dangerous, backup and traverse the rock face on the level back to the gorge until you find a cairn/signs of walkers. I would think twice about going *down* this route unless you have been up it before or are confident/experienced and have plenty of time before dark.
3. So yes I got lost getting down to Monolith Valley. Shrouded Gods will have to wait. Having done it a couple of times before, I did not even have my map/GPS out. If you have come up from Monolith Valley and have a memory of the route this might not be a problem. There are some misleading cairns also noted here (http://bushwalk.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=23355#p301809) that take you to the far North East corner of Mt Owen. There are many paths that go no where. Possibly there once was a track this way, now overgrown, but as of 2019 the way down is opposite the creek coming down Mt Cole marked on the Corang 1:25000 map. There is a picture in the above link.
4. Once down into a wider gully, keep left/North East (that is, a wide gully with a gentle slope down to the south, before getting back to the main Monolith Valley track and the ascent sign). Again there are misleading signs of a path heading south that peter out. In the North East corner the path becomes more obvious where it is less rock hopping and there is more vegetation.
5. There are two paths heading roughly west, the southernmost one takes you to the top of one of the "monoliths" which has fantastic views of the valley and is worth a short climb and back. The rest of the route to Monolith Valley is slightly further North and while a scramble is quite clear.
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