Bushwalk Australia

Had day out down Bungonia on Friday- left a car at White Track car park- cycled to Trestle Track/ Stan Jones FT car park (lots of pushing up the hills for me )
Walked down the Trestle Track to the Shoalhaven River.
Time to inflate the packrafts & on to the river which was a nice brown conveyor. Fun small rapids along the way. A dip near the confluence of Bungonia creek and the the long haul up the white track back to the car.
Big day out! The packrafting was the best bit for sure

Looks like a beaut trip by packraft! Mind if I ask (as someone who knows nothing about packrafts) what types of packrafts are featured?

Amazing the contrast between the rapids in the first photo, and the still stretch in the second.

Both are Alpacka Yaks- quite a few years on them now and still going strong

Lovely! Rough waters! Truly a rapid or what?

Hi Lizzy - Looks like you had a great little trip!

I am planning to pack raft with some friends from Bungonia to Tallowa Dam over the weekend of the 24th March. My only concern is whether there will be enough water to float the rafts. Do you know if the river there ever gets so low that a pack raft couldn't get through? Would it be possible to hike through if too shallow?

Would really appreciate any info you have based on your experience.

Thanks,
Colin.

Hi Colin,
I also plan to do this sometime...
You should be fine. If the water is low (say below about 0.6 ish metres on Hillview gauge) you will probably have to walk thru/around some of the rocky rapids races. In between it’s nice and deep. From below Fossickers Flats to the dam I have done in a canoe lots of times and water levels shouldn’t matter. The biggest problem in a packraft will be if you have the wind against you
How long are you planning on taking?
Liz

Thanks for the prompt response Liz!

That's reassuring. I think I'll go ahead and organise the pack rafts and just hope it isn't windy. I imagine wind could funnel through the gorge quite aggressively....

The plan is to get through in 2 days, but we'll allow enough time to do 2 nights on the river if necessary. Do you think that's enough time?

If I could trouble you further, which track is best to access the river from Bungonia? My colleague did an adventure race through there a couple of years ago and said that some teams took 6 hours getting to the river, but others found a quicker route through a boulder field?

Col.

The easiest access straight out of the car is probably one of the following;
- White Track down Mt Ayre from near Bungonia Lookdown
- Long Point near Tallong
- Badgeries near Tallong.
All would take 1-2 hours I think. badgeries is shortest and steepest. The others are longer and a bit less steep.
You can also via a few others but they require a longer car shuttle or walk and maybe a 4wd. Matadoro ridge to Greater Horsehoe Bend (probably need an extra day) & Trestle Track.
The Red Track at Bungonia is steep & you have a big bouldery creek to follow which is time consuming with heavy packs.

The wind can be really hard - as you said it can funnel thru. An early start when it’s calmer (usually) may help on day 2. I was thinking 2 or 3 days allowing some exploration. Will be interested to hear how you go if u beat me to it!

Here is a link to my trip report & little video of Matadoro Ridge to Long Point as an overnighter- it will give an idea of that section or you can start below
viewtopic.php?f=47&t=22939&p=299497&hilit=Horseshoe#p299497

Thanks Liz - That's a great help. Thanks for the link too, I'll have a good look at that later..

Hey Colin - how did your trip go?