200905 Newsletter

QUEENSLAND BUSHWALKERS CLUB Inc. Newsletter

74 Kallista Rd. Rochedale South QLD 4123 Email [email protected] Phone No (07) 3341 7509 www.geocities.com/qldbwc

May 2009

Gibraltar Rangers

Club News 10th Anniversary BBQ

Important Points Noted in Recent Helicopter Rescue

26 April 2009

Almost 30 people gathered at Orleigh Park, West End, on a glorious sunny day to celebrate the first 10 years of QBW. Richard and Patricia arrived early on the Sunday morning to reserve tables and a BBQ while Stuart and Traci brought along a large tarp to set up as a shelter from the sun. At about 11.00am present and past QBW members began arriving. Invitations had been sent to past members by email. Among the "old" faces were Bob and Danuta G., Melanie N. and Christine H. Everyone had brought along chairs, drinks and something to cook on the barbie. At about midday the big meat and sausage sizzle began. As everyone settled in and reminisced about old times and present events, the park offered its own entertainment. A group of "jugglers in training" had their exercise session close by while a group with guitars also played nearby. It was a very relaxing event on a beautiful autumn day by the Brisbane River. People lingered on till 5.00pm when finally the tarp had to be taken down. Many thanks to all those who came along to celebrate.

At the April Club meeting the lucky recipients of the donated equipment from Adele Wain of Rochedale were:

QBW Christmas Party

Recently a bushwalker slipped and sustained an injury while climbing a waterfall in a relatively remote part of Brisbane Forest Park. After assessment by others in his group, a call to 000 was made from an adjacent high ridge and a helicopter evacuation was made by RESCUE 500. The group had a 406 MHz personal locator beacon (PLB) and it was activated. Here are a few points noted by the group that they thought needed emphasising: Do not assume that the 000 operator will know the area where you are bushwalking. The 000 operator did not know where Brisbane Forest Park was. The 000 operator on the telephone and the pilot of the helicopter wanted location as latitude and longitude (lat-long). They do not use any other type of coordinates and they do not do conversions. So: know how to determine lat-long from your topo map and know how to set your GPS to show lat-long. Always carry a PLB when route access is difficult. Even though the injury occurred within a few km of roads and facilities, a ground evacuation was out of the question. The helicopter pilot through phone and radio requested the PLB to be activated twice to assist with location (Brisbane Forest Park has a dense tree canopy) - first when initially locating, then again when returning from re-fuelling and the PLB had been switched off.

Donation

Traci Nudl Julie Shera Sandra Thompson

Bushwalking Queensland has received the following information about a recent event and has passed it on to all clubs for their information.

Gaiters, Boots, Backpack 4 - 6 December 2009

The QBW Christmas Party will be held at Mt Nimmel Lodge at Mudgeeraba .on the 4-6th December 2009. QBW looked at various venues for the Christmas Party and the Mt Nimmel Lodge looked the most suitable. Those who attended Pilgrimage 2008 will be familiar with the camping ground which also has bunks, a kitchen and a small covered area. More information will be available in the next few Newsletters.

Always carry something to assist the pilot see you through the trees - it is more difficult from above than you think. Reflective foil space blankets and bright colour clothing were used in the above rescue. Keep away from the helicopter's powerful downdraft as much as possible or get a helmet. Severe injuries have occurred due to falling tree branches broken by the downdraft. Use 000 as your initial mobile emergency number. If you don't get connected or appear to have no signal, try 112 as this number can use the signal from another provider.

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General Information

The Management Committee

Meeting Place

President

Patricia Kolarski

3341 7509 (H)

Club meetings are on the first Tuesday of the month starting at 7.30pm. There is no Club meeting in January.

Vice President

Margaret Rae

3395 1838 (H)

Secretary

Sandra Thomas

3711 4134 (H)

Meeting are held at the Little King's Hall on the corner of Carl and O'Keefe Streets, Buranda. Entry is via the gate on Carl St.

Treasurer

John Hinton

3343 3724 (H)

Outings Officer

David Kenrick

3349 8238 (H)

Membership Officer

Frank Garland

3341 5207 (H)

There is parking within the grounds and in Carl Street. Tea/Coffee and cake/biscuits are provided after the meeting. A coin donation would be appreciated.

Editor

Richard Kolarski

3341 7509 (H)

Membership

Social Secretary

Traci Nudl

3890 8196 (H)

Probationary Membership

Training Officer

Stuart Mackay

3890 8196 (H)

A non-member automatically becomes a Probationary Member on his/her first walk after signing the waiver form. There is no fee payable to become a Probationary Member.

Other Voluntary Positions Equipment Officer

John Brunott

3209 9598 (H)

However a Probationary Member must become an Ordinary Member on his/her second walk by filling out a Membership Form and paying the membership fee.

Supper Convenor

Mary Sherlock

3209 8514 (H)

BWQ Rep

Stuart Mackay

3890 8196 (H)

BWQ Rep

Richard Kolarski

3341 7509 (H)

Ordinary Membership A person may become an Ordinary Member by filling out and signing a Membership Form, having a proposer sign the form and handing the form with the membership fee to a committee member or walk leader. The proposer may be a friend (who is a member of the Club) of the applicant, the leader of the walk that the applicant is on, the Membership Officer at a Club meeting or if the Membership Officer is not available, one of the committee members. An Ordinary Member has the right to vote at an AGM or be elected to a committee position. A Probationary Member has neither of these rights.

Members of Another Bushwalking Club Members of another bushwalking club which is affiliated with Bushwalking Queensland Inc (or an interstate Federation) and who are covered by the same Insurance do not need to become a member of our Club to go on our walks. However Club members will have priority if there is a limit on numbers.

Campsite Monitors John Brunott

Ballows, Paddys Knob

Kerry de Clauzel

Throakban, Barney Gorge and Lower Portals

Ann Kemp

Spicers Peak (east & west)

Richard Kolarski

Running Creek Falls

Barbara Makepeace

Rat-a-tat, Spicers/Doubletop saddle Rum Jungle

John Shera

Panorama Point

John & Julie Shera

Mt Superbus & Rabbit Fence Jct Lower Panorama

Ken Walters

Mt May saddle & Paddy’s Plain

Pictures from the BBQ

Club Equipment Compasses

Topo Maps

GPS's

Emergency Lights

First Aid Kits

UHF Radios

The above are for free use by members. Contact David at 3395 1838 or [email protected] PLBs with inbuilt GPS The Club has 5 PLBs with inbuilt GPS. The PLBs will be made available at each Club meeting and will need to be returned at the following Club meeting. Contact Richard on 3341 7509.

Melanie and Christine at the BBQ

Abseil Gear (ropes, harnesses, helmets, karabiners etc.) There is a $5.00 charge for use of the Club rope and another $5.00 charge for use of harness and accessories by Ordinary Members. There is a $10.00 charge for use of the Club rope and another $10.00 charge for use of harness and accessories by Probationary Members and members of affiliated clubs. Contact Trevor at 0411 512 202 Back Pack for Hire

While the Women Cooked

$5.00 charge

New Members

Contact Trevor at 0411 512 202 Bivy Bags For Sale

Clair Bolton

$3.00 each or 2 for $5.00.

$2.50 each.

Light weight and take up no room at all. A must for all walkers! Contact Patricia Kolarski on 3341 7509.

Monika Mileva

As at 28/4/2009 we have 102 financial members

These bivy bags are 2 metres by 0.9 metres and are bright orange in colour. Use as a pack liner or emergency bivy bag. Contact Patricia Kolarski on 3341 7509. Space Blankets For Sale

The Men Watched

Comings And Goings John B., Sandy T., Richard W., Margie and Dave R. have recently returned from a 2 week trip to NZ.

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Notices Active Outdoors Expo 2009

The First Ten Years 23 May 2009

The inaugural ‘Active Outdoors’ Expo 2009, an initiative of the Queensland Outdoor Recreation Federation (QORF), will be launched at South Bank, Brisbane on Saturday May 23rd. The Expo programme of events runs from 9:00am until 3:00pm at the Cultural Forecourt at South Bank. There will be free activity demonstrations throughout the day including mountain bike trials, rock climbing, canoe polo plus many more still to be confirmed. Further details on the QORF website www.qorf.org.au

Karijini National Park

19 June to 3 July 2009

The Karijini National Park is in the Hamersley Ranges of Western Australia. It will involve a 5 day T/W and a 5 day B/C with day walks in 2 sections of the park. It is dry spinifex country with impressive gorges, involving some wades and possible swim throughs and abseiling. Qantas flies to Paraburdoo where we would hire a 4WD to get to and from the NP. Contact Barbara Makepeace ph: 0422 804 768

First Aid Course Planned

July 2009

A First Aid course for members is being planned for QBW members sometime in July. If you are interested in doing a First Aid course or a refresher for CPR please contact Stuart Mackay on 3890 8196 so that numbers and a suitable time can be finalised.

The very first Club Newsletter was published in May 1999 so this month we will celebrate the Newsletter's 10th anniversary. History With the Club in its infancy in 1999, it was thought a good idea to have a newsletter to give a sense of identity and unity to its members. As no-one in the Club was experienced in the production of newsletters, the Club Newsletter grew slowly from humble origins. May 1999 The first Newsletter was just a single A4 size sheet printed on both sides (i.e. 2 pages) in black and white. It was produced every three months and was included in the cost of the membership. It was distributed to members at Club meetings or posted to them. December 2000 Newsletter increased in size to 4 pages. The tradition of having a page or two of jokes and humorous articles in the December issue began. June 2001 Newsletter produced every 2 months and able to be downloaded off the Club website. December 2001 Newsletter increased in size to 6 pages. April 2002

Newsletter available in colour.

February 2003 Newsletter produced monthly except for January (the editor's holiday). It has stayed at 6 pages except for the December issues which have 8 pages. June 2003 Newsletter no longer posted to members unless requested. Available to all as a free download off the Club website. March 2004 Newsletter no longer part of membership fee but an optional extra. Walk Write-ups and Authors

Snowfield Trip

25 July - 1 August 2009

An open invitation is extended to BWQ affiliated clubs for a one week coach trip to the snow fields departing Brisbane 25 July with the Gold Coast Bushwalkers. Base price: $1,299.00 Contact: Bill Carr ph 55345252 or Mob 0402 839 884 or email billcarr [email protected]

Author

Details are on : http://www.bushwalkingqueensland.org.au/

BWQ 2009 Photographic Competition

31 July 2009

Entries are invited from members of affiliated clubs of BWQ. Digital format only will be accepted and entries must be forwarded on CD-ROM or DVD by post to: Photographic Officer Bushwalking Queensland Inc. GPO Box 1573 Brisbane Qld. 4001 All entries must be in the GPO box by 31 July 2009. Full details of the BWQ Photo Competition are on the website at http://www.bushwalkingqueensland.org.au/photo_current.html

Pilgrimage 2009

21-23 August 2009

This year's Pilgrimage will be at the Lake Maroon Holiday Park 535 Burnett Ck Rd., Maroon from Friday 21st to Sunday 23rd August. The Pilgrimage is an annual bushwalking and social event attracting members of affiliated clubs from throughout the southeast corner of the state and sometimes further afield. A Bush Dance and other social activities are organised throughout the weekend and it is an ideal time to meet and renew friendships with fellow bushwalkers. The activity is run on a non-profit basis. Registration Form Registration (pdf) Registration Form Registration (doc) Phone: (07) 5463 6256 Mobile: (0413) 159 360

The Past Walk write-ups are a major part of the Newsletter and it would not have been possible without members sending in the write-ups and photos. From May 1999 to April 2009 there have been 87 Newsletters with 503 Walk write-ups. As a special tribute I have listed the names of members who have written 5 or more past walks. No of Writeups

Richard Kolarski 152 Patricia Kolarski 50 Danuta Gur 44 Barbara Makepeace 27 David Haliczer 23 Dave Kenrick 16 Barry Ellerington 12 Trevor Davern 12 Dave Rae 10 Trevor Cox 10 Ken Walters 9 Linda Hellmuth 9 Noelene McCay 8 Helen McAllister 7 John Morris 7 Trevor Smith 7 Ed Thistlethwaite 6 Kerry De Clauzel 6 Margie Rae 6 Bob Gur 5 Christine Harrison 5 Gil Gunthorpe 5 Margaret Smith 5 (The above proves that the Editor is seriously overworked!) All the Newsletters can now available to be viewed and read online at http://www.pdfcoke.com/qbw

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Gibraltar Range and Washpool B/C

Past Walks Goomburra Base Camp

30 January - 1 February 2009

I had planned to make this camp a combination of walk and social weekend with only one walk scheduled as I find the heat and humidity at this time of year tends to detract from the enjoyment of walking. Things didn’t look too promising for a while as I only had one person’s name on the event nomination form but I ended up with eight other starters besides myself. I had decided to enjoy an extended stay there, so my wife and I headed up on Wednesday morning with Greg Macrodt saying that he and his wife would be joining us on Thursday afternoon.

9-13 February 2009

Seeing Richard would be attacking Federation Peak on my birthday, I decided to put on an extended trip away and celebrate the big 49er (1949er that is!) with bushwalking friends. With floods in Northern Queensland and Fraser Island walks closed because of fire danger, northern New South Wales seemed a safer bet. An early start on the Monday saw us at Mulligans campground by lunch time. A lovely lemon and passion fruit tart was provided by Lynn for lunch (better than Samford's) and luckily we had time to walk it off with a short afternoon walk before happy hour.

We arrived at the campground at about 11 o’clock Wednesday morning to beautiful weather, dry ground and, looking forward to a great weekend, set up my tent and sat back to take it easy, but this idyllic setting was not to last. By 5 o’clock that afternoon it was pouring rain with the heavy rain continuing through the night. Thursday morning dawned overcast with showers off and on for the rest of the day and when Greg arrived that afternoon he was lucky he had decided to bring his caravan and not a tent as he had to set up in the rain. After that was accomplished we all enjoyed a happy hour under the awning of the caravan as the rain fell steadily. John Brunott arrived early Friday morning to light intermittent rain but by lunch this had cleared so John, Greg and myself went off to explore part of the walk I had planned for Saturday.

Birthday Girl

More Biffy celebrations that night with a yummy cake from Gabe and bubbly everywhere. Tuesday and we set off beside Little Dandahra Creek heading for Dandahra Crags for lunch. What a hot day this was! Much of the walk was through open to light-canopied bush on fire tracks and narrow foot pads, and the only relief we had from the heat was after climbing up the crags: a lovely breeze among the huge Girraweenish granite boulders and slabs.

The Ramparts from Mt Matheson

This walk was to follow part of the circuit from Goomburra campground for a couple of kilometres and then cut up a ridge to another ridge bearing west off a knoll on the Ramparts and then walk the Ramparts to Sylvester’s Lookout. I had been informed by the rangers when I arrived that the road to Sylvester’s lookout was closed to vehicular traffic and that was going to add about 5 or so extra unplanned Kms to the walk. All the rest of the group had arrived by Friday night to more light rain and on Saturday morning to relatively fine weather we headed off on the walk. As we walked closer to the edge of the range it became obvious that it had rained very heavily in the area the previous night and a couple of the walkers decided that they would prefer to return to camp. After some wise counsel with John Brunott we decided to change the walk and after morning tea at a waterfall we explored some of the old logging tracks in the area. I was hoping to pick up some old logging tracks showing on my forestry map that led out along the ridge towards the Ramparts but these proved to be totally overgrown so we returned to camp via what is known as the ridge track. Back at camp for lunch it was decided to do another walk during the afternoon but steady rain put paid to that idea so we sat under the tarp I had set up and enjoyed a couple of drinks before dinner. Sunday morning was fairly sunny and the tents were soon dry so most of the group decided to pack up before the weather changed, and I don’t care what they say, packing up a wet tent in the rain is not my idea of fun. A few of the group decided to do another walk while the rest headed for home before it rained again. Even though the weather could have been kinder everybody said they enjoyed the weekend and I thank all those who attended. By the way, the walk I had scheduled will be put on the calendar later in the year with an overnight stay at Goomburra, which I think is one of the better camping spots in S.E. Qld David Kenrick

A side trip to Anvil Rock was on the agenda but the heat drove us back to camp to jump into the creek, some fully clothed! Wednesday we walked up to The Needles. Light rain fell intermittently and a thick mist rose up and often blocked our view so getting a good photo took a while. From here we headed to Tree Fern Forest. Gerry discovered a python beside the track with a recently eaten meal very visible in its stomach. After morning tea eaten on the track, the rain really came down but it was very pleasant walking after the heat of the previous day. Amazingly, the rangers had built some new track!!! From Tree Fern Forest the track had been extended by about three kilometres to make a loop joining the track we had walked the day before. We were back at camp in time for lunch. With a storm brewing, a few of us decided to do the 6km return to Murrumbooee Cascades. This was the site of a weir built in the 1920s to test the feasibility of hydroelectricity but nothing eventuated. For our last day of walking we drove across the Gwydir Highway to Washpool to do the 10km+ Washpool Walk. This lovely circuit took us up high through thick rainforest to open forest at Washpool Lookout. From here, thankfully, it was down to Coombadjha Creek with a lunch stop at one of the campgrounds along the 5 day Heritage Walk (highly recommended). On the way back to camp we finally did the walk into Anvil Rock, another lovely jumble of huge granite slabs and boulders. The rain began late that afternoon and continued through the night making a wet pack-up in the morning. Compensation on the drive back home was a stop at Vincenzo's for a delicious feed. Thanks to Gabe, Gerry, Helen, June, Lynn, and Noelene for coming along and making this a walk and a birthday to remember. Special thanks for the sharing of the tart, lemon cake, fruitcake, bubbly, wine, Anzac biscuits, Pringles, chips, yoghurt balls, etc. And a BIG thank you to Helen for being a driver. Patricia

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Lower Bellbird & Caves Circuit

28 February 2009

It was a great day for a walk. Brisbane was going to have a hot day but we had it a little cooler up at Binna Burra. The four participants were Richard, Patricia, Margaret and myself. This was my first time as a leader of an official walk, the previous walk I did was an exploratory so I don’t think that really counts. We met at Canungra at 7:30am, then headed up to the Information Centre at Binna Burra in one car (we were helping reduce carbon emissions – pat ourselves on the back), and started out from there on the Caves Circuit. I hadn’t done it before and found it well worth a look. This track comes out near the Binna Burra Lodge and you cross directly over the road to find the Lower Bellbird track. We stopped for morning tea at Koolanbilba Lookout, then hit the track again so we could have lunch at Ballanjui Falls. There was quite a lot of water flowing, creating a lovely cool place to sit and eat.

Brisbane Forest Park

After lunch there was another steepish 180 metre climb back to the main road and the car I had left there earlier in the day. It was a fairly early finish but we had walked about 14 kilometres or so and after picking up the other cars headed off to Mt Nebo for some well deserved refreshments. Thanks to all those members who joined me for the walk David Kenrick

Obi Obi Creek

8 March 2009

Nine members met up at Landsborough early on a Sunday morning to do an exploratory walk up a side creek of Obi Obi Creek. we drove up to Kondalilla Falls and after putting on boots and packs we headed off on the graded track that forms part of the Sunshine Coast Hinterland Great Walk. Lower Ballanjui Falls

After lunch we continued our walk back to the Information Centre which comes out about 600 metres down the road from the centre. It was about 1:15pm and the day was getting much warmer. The last 1.6kms was uphill so I was a little red puffing billy by the time I got to the road but Richard, Patricia and Margaret looked like they could do the walk again. Richard’s eagle eyes spotted 3 green tree snakes for us as well as a Lace Monitor up a gum tree. We drove back down to Canungra for coffee and cake, or tea and a meat pie (had by one of the team), and departed to our respective homes at approximately 3pm. Thank you all for joining me for one of my favourite walks. Traci Nudl

Brisbane Forest Park

After viewing Kondalilla Falls from the top, about midway down and at the base we headed downstream along Skene Creek. Near the junction of Skene Creek and Obi Obi Creek we had morning tea on a large flat rocky slab. From here on we would be going off track. As we followed the bank of Obi Obi Creek there was heavy growth of spiky plants and high grass along the first part but we were able to "bash" our way through. When the bank became too steep we crossed over to the other side where luckily there was less impediment to walking. We were soon at the side creek where after a short rest we began our exploratory. We headed up the side creek alternatively walking on the bank or rockhopping. A huge tree had fallen down into the creek from a recent storm but we were able to make our way round it.

1 March 2009

Six other walkers plus myself rendezvoused at Jolly’s Lookout for this circuit along some of the well maintained service roads in Brisbane Forest Park. After organising a short car shuttle we drove about ¾ Km up the road towards Mt. Nebo to the start of the walk. I thought this walk might be a good one for the hot months as there was no bush bashing but with a few climbs to get the heart started and the blood pumping. It certainly turned out to be a very hot day. The first eight kilometres or so took us on some undulating ridges and then a long downhill slope to our morning tea break at a shady creek crossing which was very welcome as the heat of the day was starting to build up. After morning tea there was a fairly steep 200 metre climb up to the top of the ridge which certainly got our hearts started but it also raised the body temperature so a short rest was had at the top while we cooled down. A fairly flat walk along the top of the ridge for the next couple of kilometres brought us to a storm shelter shed and camping area where we again rested for a short spell. From the shelter shed it was a long descent down to our lunch destination in Enoggera Creek. After a previous walk in this area I knew there was a nice little water fall surrounded by rain forest about 100 or so metres below the road crossing so we headed to the top of the falls for our lunch break. This also gave us all a good opportunity to take our boots off and soak our overheated feet in some cool pools as by this time the day had become very hot indeed.

Small Waterfall but a Big Surprise

We came upon a small waterfall and pool and here we stopped for a swim to cool off. After searching for a way to get round the waterfall some of us made our way further upstream and soon we were at a second more spectacular waterfall. It was a dream spot made special as not many people, even bushwalkers, would have been here before. After photos and lunch we made our way back along the same way. Some had a final swim at the top of Kondalilla Falls which was now packed with picnickers, a great contrast to where we had just come from. Afternoon tea at Landsborough finished off the day. Many thanks to those who came along to share this special walk. Richard

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Pine Valley

Tasmania Tasmania is a popular area for our Club members. It offers a variety of walks from easy day walks to extremely hard multi day throughwalks. A couple of the most popular areas of walking are Maria Island and Pine Valley which have easy to moderate day walks available plus the options of doing throughwalks.

Maria Island Maria Island is a national park off the east coast of Tasmania . It is about 90 kilometres by road to Triabunna where a ferry can be caught for a 16 kilometre ride to the island. The entire island is a National Park and it is about 20 km in length from north to south and, at its widest, about 13 km. There is only one "town" on Maria Island called Darlington but it has no permanent inhabitants other than a few park rangers. There are no shops on the island. All equipment and supplies need to be taken with you.

Pine Valley in Tasmania is situated just north of Lake St Clair. It derived its name from the King Billy Pines, Pencil Pines and Celery Top Pines which thrive in this valley. These pines occur only in Tasmania as on the mainland they were overtaken by flowering plants. The walk into Pine Valley is sometimes done as an extension of the Overland Track but can be done separately. After catching the bus from Hobart to Lake St Clair take the ferry to Narcissus Hut. Then it's time to put on the throughpack and head north along the Overland Track for about 4 kilometres to the turn off to Pine Valley. Another 4 kilometres will bring you to Pine Valley Hut which has accommodation for about 20 people but some campsites nearby are also available. The hut can be used as a base for day walks to the Labyrinthe (1150m) and the Acropolis (1471m).

The island has a rich past history. In the first half of the 1800s, it hosted convict settlements and several buildings remain in Darlington. From the 1880s, various industrial ventures were attempted but failed. Eventually the State resumed all of the island's freehold land and established Maria Island National Park in 1972.

The Labyrinthe

The Labyrinth is a high alpine plateau dotted with lakes caused by glacial ice scouring. It is a steep but short walk but and can be done in a few hours return. Along the way are views to the south and on finally reached the top of the plateau views to the north reveal a complex of tarns with views of Mt Geryon and the Acropolis. Painted Cliffs

The island has several day walks which can be based from Darlington. The Painted Cliffs and the Fossil Cliffs are two popular walking destinations, both on the island's coastline. The Painted Cliffs are sandstone with beautiful patterns formed through staining by iron oxide. The Fossil Cliffs are tall limestone cliffs containing prolific ancient fossils.

Care needs to be taken to keep an eye out for the weather. Thick cloud can cover the plateau and the maze of lakes can easily confuse a walker. If the weather is fine though, you can spend a few hours exploring. However the area is renowned for myriads of flies, mosquitoes and ants which could ruin any picnic.

Views from the top of Bishop and Clerk

The Acropolis

Longer day walks include tracks that ascend Bishop & Clerk (620m) and Mt Maria (711m). Bishop and Clerk can be completed in about four hours return while Mount Maria is a six to seven hour return walk from Darlington. Through walks are possible as there are campsites at Frenchs Farm, 11 km from Darlington, and Encampment Cove, a further 2 km away, which is also used by boating visitors. Both Frenchs Farm and Encampment Cove have rainwater tanks but the rangers should be consulted about the supply of water in these tanks prior to venturing south from Darlington.

The Acropolis is a mountain in the Du Cane Range and is the 14th highest mountain in Tasmania. It has sheer dolerite cliffs plunging hundreds of metres to the valley below and is topped by multiple spectacular columns. The walk takes 5 to 7 hours return and should not be attempted in bad weather. After climbing up to a saddle there is a walk crossing an alpine meadow with good views. The track then skirts the base of the cliffline before climbing steeply. There is some scrambling up and over some small cliff ledges but once on the summit the views are stupendous. Richard

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