Queensland (and upper NSW) walks

Queensland specific bushwalking discussion.
Forum rules
Queensland specific bushwalking discussion. Please avoid publishing details of access to sensitive areas with no tracks.

Queensland (and upper NSW) walks

Postby Kainas » Sun 30 Nov, 2008 4:09 pm

I would love to write my own favourite walks list here...but I haven't been on any. Okay I did go on a 3day hike once, but I don't even know where it was (near Maroon I think).

I do have 3 very empty weeks to fill in January. Suggestions?
User avatar
Kainas
Athrotaxis cupressoides
Athrotaxis cupressoides
 
Posts: 411
Joined: Mon 24 Nov, 2008 3:31 pm
Location: The Hunter (Cessnock), Australia
Region: New South Wales

Re: Queensland (and upper NSW) walks

Postby johnw » Mon 01 Dec, 2008 12:09 pm

Kainas wrote:I would love to write my own favourite walks list here...but I haven't been on any. Okay I did go on a 3day hike once, but I don't even know where it was (near Maroon I think).

I do have 3 very empty weeks to fill in January. Suggestions?

Hi Kainas,
Are you looking for multi-day options or just day trips? I've only had one trip to SE QLD with any bushwalking involved, which was in mid-2007 and limited to day trips. I don't cope well with really hot weather and couldn't imagine walking in too many QLD locations in mid-summer. I suggest looking at the Gold Coast hinterland area as a starting point. We spent a few nights at Binnaburra Lodge next to Lamington NP and did the following walks which were all nice:

Ships Stern circuit (fairly solid day's effort...which we underestimated and finished in the dark by headtorch)
Tullawallal circuit
Daves Creek circuit
Caves circuit

You could have a base camp there and do these (and other) walks. I know that people sometimes do an overnight trip from Binnaburra to O'Reillys and back. Note: If it's wet you will get a lot of leeches on some of these tracks.

Others were the Warrie Circuit and Twin Falls track in Springbrook NP, these were also good but Warrie appears to be closed at present due to landslips.

For info see http://www.epa.qld.gov.au/parks_and_forests/find_a_park_or_forest/lamington_national_park/. From there you can navigate to find quite a bit of information about other nearby options.

Also visited Main Range and Moogerah Peaks NPs taking the following walks. All were interesting but I don't know about doing them in January:

Mt Cordeaux track/Bare Rock track/Morgan's Walk/Palm Grove circuit
Mt Mathieson and Heritage trails
Mt Edwards summit

...and Glasshouse Mtns (same comments as above).

I know there are overnight and multi-day options in SE QLD if you want longer trips but haven't done any of those. We mostly used Jon and Lyn Daly's "Take a Walk in Queensland's National Parks - Southern Zone" book for research and track notes. Looks like they have a new version coming out in Jan.
John W

In Nature's keeping they are safe, but through the agency of man destruction is making rapid progress - John Muir c1912
User avatar
johnw
Lagarostrobos franklinii
Lagarostrobos franklinii
 
Posts: 8985
Joined: Wed 23 Jan, 2008 11:59 am
Location: Macarthur Region - SW Sydney
Region: New South Wales
Gender: Male

Re: Queensland (and upper NSW) walks

Postby Kainas » Mon 01 Dec, 2008 2:03 pm

johnw wrote:[ I don't cope well with really hot weather and couldn't imagine walking in too many QLD locations in mid-summer.


Yeh, I stupidly looked at the period of time I had free *before* remembering I live in Qld. I might head down to the Blue Mountains instead (cooler hopefully). But thanks for the links, we have been to Lamington a couple of times, we are also considering doing some of the 'great walks' in the hinterlands.
User avatar
Kainas
Athrotaxis cupressoides
Athrotaxis cupressoides
 
Posts: 411
Joined: Mon 24 Nov, 2008 3:31 pm
Location: The Hunter (Cessnock), Australia
Region: New South Wales

Re: Queensland (and upper NSW) walks

Postby johnw » Mon 01 Dec, 2008 3:20 pm

Kainas wrote:I might head down to the Blue Mountains instead (cooler hopefully).

Should be cooler than most of QLD and usually 5-10 degrees cooler than Sydney in the upper mountains. However that time of year you can get some hot days. I try to stick with the rainforest walks then and avoid the exposed ridge tops etc. We were up there yesterday doing a "training walk" for our Tassie trip coming up. It was a pretty warm day and the trip involved 17km of walking with 700-800m ascent, including a 40 minute very steep rock scramble each way. We were sweating buckets by the finish.

If you decide to go there and would like info on specific walks I can provide details, including some less well-known places. Blue Mtns are not too far from home and one of our regular destinations.
John W

In Nature's keeping they are safe, but through the agency of man destruction is making rapid progress - John Muir c1912
User avatar
johnw
Lagarostrobos franklinii
Lagarostrobos franklinii
 
Posts: 8985
Joined: Wed 23 Jan, 2008 11:59 am
Location: Macarthur Region - SW Sydney
Region: New South Wales
Gender: Male

Re: Queensland (and upper NSW) walks

Postby scockburn » Sat 06 Dec, 2008 9:51 am

Hi PM me and let me know what sort of walks you might be interested in and I can point you in the direction. I'm up this way.SC
User avatar
scockburn
Athrotaxis cupressoides
Athrotaxis cupressoides
 
Posts: 100
Joined: Tue 22 Jan, 2008 6:41 pm
Location: Brisbane

Re: Queensland (and upper NSW) walks

Postby scockburn » Sat 06 Dec, 2008 9:54 am

Hi forgot to mention the ticks!!! Need to be a bit careful at the moment as they are quite bad in some areas.I have a few hints re these if needed. SC
User avatar
scockburn
Athrotaxis cupressoides
Athrotaxis cupressoides
 
Posts: 100
Joined: Tue 22 Jan, 2008 6:41 pm
Location: Brisbane

Re: Queensland (and upper NSW) walks

Postby Kainas » Sat 06 Dec, 2008 4:42 pm

Yeh, I picked up two ticks on a walk near Maroon in September.

One died between my toes...I don't think it ever attached...the poor thing.

The other on my stomach. I pulled it out, it took a month for the lump to go away and 3 months on there is still a skin discoloration where it was.
User avatar
Kainas
Athrotaxis cupressoides
Athrotaxis cupressoides
 
Posts: 411
Joined: Mon 24 Nov, 2008 3:31 pm
Location: The Hunter (Cessnock), Australia
Region: New South Wales

Re: Queensland (and upper NSW) walks

Postby tas-man » Thu 11 Dec, 2008 11:32 am

As an ex-Queenslander, I could go on a bit here about walking options in this part of OZ but given the summer weather, one of my favourites for a weekend or longer away from Brisbane in summer was Gibraltar Range National Park between Glenn Innes and Grafton in Northern NSW. Great granite country to explore with heathland areas and deep narrow streams great for skinnydipping in hot weather. The campsite at Mulligans Hut on Dandahra Creek is a top spot if you can avoid the crowded times and go midweek during school holidays. NSW Parks link http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/Natio ... x?id=N0012
"The world reveals itself to those who travel on foot."
Werner Herzog
User avatar
tas-man
Athrotaxis selaginoides
Athrotaxis selaginoides
 
Posts: 1469
Joined: Mon 03 Sep, 2007 8:55 pm
Location: Riverside
Region: Tasmania
Gender: Male

Re: Queensland (and upper NSW) walks

Postby MichaelfromQLD » Thu 15 Jan, 2009 11:58 am

Kainas wrote:I would love to write my own favourite walks list here...but I haven't been on any. Okay I did go on a 3day hike once, but I don't even know where it was (near Maroon I think).

I do have 3 very empty weeks to fill in January. Suggestions?


Escape the heat.

Girraween can be quite hot in summer but it cools down at night, and combined with bald rock NP there's scope for a good 4-5 day circuit. At least being up higher (900M ASL) it SHOULD be cooler)

One could happily spend 3-4 days walking and swimming up and down Mt Barney Creek, and possibly climbing via the gorge, which is cool until you get within an hour or so of the top. The waterfalls will be flowing, which is nice.

Main Range would be pretty hot, and probably too remote in the snake season, although there is water there. A daytrip or return overnighter to Lizard Point stays in rainforest 99% of the way, so it's cool, and it's arguably the best lookout in the region.

The Warrie Circuit at springbrook at 17K will eat up a day, pools are great for swimming, and a few days can be spent at Lamington, but it will be busy there being school holidays, so I'd avoid Lamington (o'rielleys and binna burra both).

Also, if you're in SEQ right now, and are free the week of Australia Day, send me a PM
MichaelfromQLD
Nothofagus gunnii
Nothofagus gunnii
 
Posts: 28
Joined: Mon 28 Jul, 2008 2:28 pm

Re: Queensland (and upper NSW) walks

Postby prankphonecall » Fri 16 Jan, 2009 9:44 am

If you can get your hands on a copy - "The Bushpeoples Guide to Bushwalking SEQ" (ISBN 0 646 03753 6) is a great resource. I think it's out of print now, but you might be able to find a copy. The Brisbane Librarie's have a copy (if you can get your hands on it).

If not i scanned some pages a while back from mine and could send you some JPEGs. It's a good resource for planning hikes in the region.
User avatar
prankphonecall
Nothofagus gunnii
Nothofagus gunnii
 
Posts: 35
Joined: Fri 16 Jan, 2009 8:13 am
Location: Brisbane, QLD

Re: Queensland (and upper NSW) walks

Postby the_camera_poser » Fri 16 Jan, 2009 10:30 pm

There's a walks guide to National Parks in SE Queensland- there's awesome walks there.

For a one day walk, you just cant go past the Nerang River circuit that goes down off of Springbrook and all into the rainforest behind Nerang and then back up the plateau. It is awesome.

My favourite of all are the walks from O'Reilly's in Laminton- I preferred the ones that go up onto the plateau- amazing Antarctic Beech forests there.

Giraween is awesome, but gets crowded.

Border Ranges has some great walking, but I'm not personally familar with the park.

Mt Barney has two really nice hikes- one up to the top and one to a really nice couple of water holes.

Next to the Springbrook hike and Lamington, Washpool and Gibralter NP's have some to-die-for walks, but they are a bit far from you.

Also good is the hike up Mt Warning. I haven't done it, but the wife's done it heaps.
the_camera_poser
 

Re: Queensland (and upper NSW) walks

Postby prankphonecall » Sat 17 Jan, 2009 8:52 am

Have you looked into an of the 'Great Walks'?

http://www.epa.qld.gov.au/parks_and_forests/great_walks/
User avatar
prankphonecall
Nothofagus gunnii
Nothofagus gunnii
 
Posts: 35
Joined: Fri 16 Jan, 2009 8:13 am
Location: Brisbane, QLD

Re: Queensland (and upper NSW) walks

Postby the_camera_poser » Thu 22 Jan, 2009 8:47 pm

I completely can't remember the name, but there's a couple of peaks that you access from the back of the Gold Coast that might offer you a bit less travelled path. I'm buggered if I can remember their names, or if they are managed through Burleigh Heads or Springbrook. I always wanted to do them, but ran out of time.
the_camera_poser
 

Re: Queensland (and upper NSW) walks

Postby the_camera_poser » Thu 22 Jan, 2009 8:53 pm

Mt Cougal- that's the name
the_camera_poser
 

Re: Queensland (and upper NSW) walks

Postby SuzieAndrew » Tue 27 Jan, 2009 10:52 pm

Hi there, I am actually looking forward to Girraween National Park this Saturday. I have to drive almost 270kms to get there but it is worth it!
SuzieAndrew
Nothofagus cunninghamii
Nothofagus cunninghamii
 
Posts: 2
Joined: Tue 27 Jan, 2009 10:45 pm

Re: Queensland (and upper NSW) walks

Postby Kainas » Tue 03 Feb, 2009 6:36 am

Where about did you drive from?
User avatar
Kainas
Athrotaxis cupressoides
Athrotaxis cupressoides
 
Posts: 411
Joined: Mon 24 Nov, 2008 3:31 pm
Location: The Hunter (Cessnock), Australia
Region: New South Wales

Re: Queensland (and upper NSW) walks

Postby I Am The Ant » Tue 03 Feb, 2009 9:06 am

SuzieAndrew wrote:Hi there, I am actually looking forward to Girraween National Park this Saturday. I have to drive almost 270kms to get there but it is worth it!


I'm heading there myself in June... have to travel approx. 550kms to get there, so will probably be splitting up the drive in two parts, as lethargy is a problem for me on the roads -- better to be safe than sorry!

I've never been before but I've heard it's beautiful and can't wait to go. :D Are you pitching a tent in the park or staying in one of the other camping grounds close by?

Ant..
User avatar
I Am The Ant
Nothofagus gunnii
Nothofagus gunnii
 
Posts: 17
Joined: Thu 08 Jan, 2009 3:30 pm
Location: Queensland
Region: Australia

Re: Queensland (and upper NSW) walks

Postby prankphonecall » Tue 10 Feb, 2009 12:18 pm

if you go to Girra, climb down the back side of the first pyramid and have a crack at getting to the top of running rock (you'll know which one it is). And if your keen, you can go round the left side of the 2nd pyramid to a chimney and summit.

Also keep an eye out for "rock bottom" just before the turtle rock, castle rock junction.

If your going to do Mt Norman and don't wanna do the long hike in, there is a carpark (Mt Norman Day Use Area) on the otherside (access through Wallangarra or a 4WD track on the way to underground creek/dr roberts

Also pack your winter woolies for June, will get cold at night, but probably still hot during days.
User avatar
prankphonecall
Nothofagus gunnii
Nothofagus gunnii
 
Posts: 35
Joined: Fri 16 Jan, 2009 8:13 am
Location: Brisbane, QLD

Re: Queensland (and upper NSW) walks

Postby prankphonecall » Sun 19 Apr, 2009 8:50 pm

Just did the first section of the Sunshine Coast Hinterland Great Walk as day trip and it was pretty nice. The first and last few km are great, but the middle is old farmland which is still recovering, lost of poisoned lantana and pioneer species. But the finish at Kondalilla falls is worth the walk. We did the 12km from Baroon Pocket Dam to Kondalilla in 3hrs, but if was bucketting down and we were being devoured by leeches, so we didn't stop much.

I'd actually be keen to do it again, but this time canyon/rock hop Obi Obi creek and Skene Creek.

Worth a look as a day hike or extended to do the full 4 days.

http://www.epa.qld.gov.au/parks_and_forests/great_walks/sunshine_coast_hinterland/
User avatar
prankphonecall
Nothofagus gunnii
Nothofagus gunnii
 
Posts: 35
Joined: Fri 16 Jan, 2009 8:13 am
Location: Brisbane, QLD

Re: Queensland (and upper NSW) walks

Postby under10kg » Mon 20 Apr, 2009 7:50 am

The second day of the great walk is not great at all in my opinion.
There is only one view of egg rock which is pretty amazing as the track goes right past it.
Much better is to go up to bushrangers cave from the pass and up to the bina bura track system.
This has a steep section and you need to follow the tape at places. If you do the first section of the great walk you could hitch a few ks along the road to the pass to save the road walking.

Binna burra to green mountain direct across the ranges is a great walk. One needs to be confident in off track walking although most the walk is taped and have a good map and directions.
under10kg
Athrotaxis cupressoides
Athrotaxis cupressoides
 
Posts: 320
Joined: Mon 15 Oct, 2007 6:33 am
Location: Australia
Region: New South Wales
Gender: Male

Re: Queensland (and upper NSW) walks

Postby Kainas » Tue 23 Jun, 2009 10:21 pm

I have been looking at the great walks in Qld. They all disappoint me in there lack of transport options. Often there is no easy way to get back to the start of the track without backtracking, or driving for hours.

I am happy to do that for world-class walk, but as a weekend getaway they leave a lot to be desired. I get the feeling there were designed for/by people with support vehicles to come pick them up when they are finished. [/end gripe]
User avatar
Kainas
Athrotaxis cupressoides
Athrotaxis cupressoides
 
Posts: 411
Joined: Mon 24 Nov, 2008 3:31 pm
Location: The Hunter (Cessnock), Australia
Region: New South Wales

Re: Queensland (and upper NSW) walks

Postby north-north-west » Tue 23 Jun, 2009 10:49 pm

Go and climb Wollumbin. Everyone should do it at least once in their life.
"Mit der Dummheit kämpfen Götter selbst vergebens."
User avatar
north-north-west
Lagarostrobos franklinii
Lagarostrobos franklinii
 
Posts: 15069
Joined: Thu 14 May, 2009 7:36 pm
Location: The Asylum
ASSOCIATED ORGANISATIONS: Social Misfits Anonymous
Region: Tasmania

Re: Queensland (and upper NSW) walks

Postby the_camera_poser » Tue 23 Jun, 2009 10:53 pm

Mt Barney and Lamington NP both offer a couple of good loop-type walks with a range of overnight options.

Also, I only got there once, but Washpool NP in northern NSW looks absolutely amazing for bushwalking. Magnificent rainforest-covered valleys. Lots of wildlife too.
the_camera_poser
 


Return to Queensland

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 20 guests