The Steamers, Main Range

[Pteropus]

I just want to share these amusing photos I took at the Steamers in Main Range on the weekend. Many of us are familiar with the Daly’s Take a Walk in SEQ book and may have looked at the front cover and longed to see that glorious view from the Stern to the Mast, Funnel and Prow. Well, my copy accompanied some friends and I on the walk, and lo and behold, when we got to the top the view was EXACTLY like the photo on the front cover...well, one or two clouds were out of place
So I had a little bit of creative fun

mmm, just like it is supposed to look!

Judge this book by its cover

Some other pics from the walk for your enjoyment

Cave in the base of the Funnel with an eastern horseshoe bat roosting within

Cliffs

Drinking in the view

[ofuros]

A wander with great views.....my kind of walk.
This walk has been gnawing at the back of my mind for quite a while....along with Blackfellow Falls(waiting for the rains to come,
to see them at their best), Yuraygir coastal walk, Guy Fawkes river N.P(trout fishing & exploring),
Carnarvon Gorge great walk, etc etc....just no spare time at the moment.
Good to see someones out there, enjoying the bush. Very nice job with the pics, Pteropus.

[Pteropus]

Cheers ofuros. The Steamers walk is straight forward. As far as getting out enjoying the bush, I haven't actually done that as much as I would like this year due to time constraints and some illness. But All those places you mentioned, and more, beckon...as always...

[Bluegum Mic]

Gorgeous pics. I cant wait to do this walk. I've got a couple of other walks/o'nighters coming up this year but Im hoping to get to this soon. Very high on my to do list.

[phan_TOM]

Yeah, great view, top pics, I wanna do it too, no spare time either...
Any chance of a photo of the view sans book?
Do you ever wonder when going into a cave like that how long ago those slabs of rock came down, I do

[Pteropus]

Hey Mic, the walk is pretty straight forward. The hardest part was knowing if we were allowed to be where we parked the car because we had to drive through a closed gate and I think we were on private property. Fortunately we ran into a bloke who I presume was the land owner and he said that it was fine to go through the gate.

Tom, I am saving my best pic for a photo comp
Oh and yes, it did cross my mind that there could be a rock fall, as always when around cliffs, and there is another cave that looked like it had more recently broken rock. The other thing I thought about, when my friends entered the little caves, was it was like the scene out of Picnic at Hanging Rock when the girls just walk into the crevice...minus the trance! haha
I’m totally spewing I didn’t bring my zoom lens to take a decent pic of the horseshoe bat though....

[Pteropus]

Ahh bugger it, I took many photos, so here is one I wont be using in a comp

[tomh]

For those that haven't been there, just a note of explanation as to why those Steamers end-view photos all tend to look the same. There is only one spot to take the photo - move more than a meter left, right, forward and you have nothing under your feet. Move back up the track to the security of some small boulders and bushes get in the way.
It truly is a magnificent view but not a place to slip so take care. The main photo gives a side-on perspective of the Steamers taken from Panorama Point; the small photo extract from the headland to the left of the main photo, and marked with a red spot and arrow, shows where the end-view photos are taken.

Looking south from Panorama Point towards the Steamers

steamers fr panorama pt.jpg (57.21 KiB) Viewed 50208 times

steamers photo posn.jpg (6.68 KiB) Viewed 50208 times

[cams]

Great photos Pteropus. Would love to get there one day.

[muzzthegreat]

OK, now I am officially very attracted to the Steamer - the photos make it so much more real - Autumn 2013 [the tail of the wet] : I shall be there;
And as Ofuros mentioned - I have wanted to do Yuragir for years ; I know you can get a lift across the Yamba river [plenty of boaties] but it does seem that a Wheelie-Bin Liner to float my pack will be needed at Sandon - a Bigger and more "logistic' [Bus/train Coffs to Yamba] walk that I am very much looking forward-to.

[tecais]

For those who like historical trivia the "Steamers" actually consist of 5 named formations. They are Stern, Pinnacle, Mast, Funnel and Prow. I'm out of touch now and don't know if the latest walking guides make this distinction.

The Pinnacle is separated from the northern end of the Mast by a chasm and is better recognized by climbers as a stand-alone formation. Here's a picture crossing the chasm:



This Pinnacle separation never shows in distance photos like tomh's side view or the classic end shot discussed here. The chasm can only be glimpsed briefly as you hike under the formation.

Finally, here is a climbers view of the Stern vantage point from the Mast summit. It's obvious why there is little room for a different perspective on the classic "Steamers" shot.



Cheers, TC

[Pteropus]

Nice one tecias. In what year were those photos taken? I did notice that the Mast had a gap in when I looked up (we were often looking up because there were so many orchids in flower on the rock face) it but I didn't realise this was a separate feature. At least, I don't think it is marked on the maps as such. I did a search online and found a climbing site that did describe the Pinnacle though. Nice shot of the Stern, it is interesting to see that perspective.

[tecais]

Thanks, Pteropus - I took these pictures in 1966. I always thought "The Pinnacle" a trite name considering the nautical context; perhaps "Quarterdeck" would have been more fitting. Anyhow, it was probably so named by John Comino and Bob Waring who made the first ascent in the 1950's. Here's one of their pictures showing the fearsome chasm or crevice between the formations:

http://climbinghistoryoz.blogspot.com/2005/09/more-ascents-in-steamers-two-weeks.html

Cheers, TC

[tas-man]

I just want to share these amusing photos I took at the Steamers in Main Range on the weekend. Many of us are familiar with the Daly’s Take a Walk in SEQ book and may have looked at the front cover and longed to see that glorious view from the Stern to the Mast, Funnel and Prow. Well, my copy accompanied some friends and I on the walk, and lo and behold, when we got to the top the view was EXACTLY like the photo on the front cover...well, one or two clouds were out of place
So I had a little bit of creative fun

Those of you who have been around long enough might also have a felling of "deja vu" if you pull off your shelf the BBW's "Bushwalker's Guide to South East Queensland" by Hammond and Young. First published in 1964 as "Walkers Guide to S. E. Qld's Scenic Rim" it went through four editions (1964; 1970; 1973 & 1978). When BBW decided not to publish any further editions, Ross Buchanan a BBW member, with his wife Heather spent a lot of the the next decade updating and expanding all the information, and publishing "The Bushwalk Book of South-East Queensland" in 1987. It too included this photo of the Steamers on page 90

This photo of the Steamers is on page 90 of "The Bushwalk Book of South-East Queensland" published in 1987.

[tas-man]

. . . The main photo gives a side-on perspective of the Steamers taken from Panorama Point . . .

Here's one I took on my first trip along the Main Range from Spicers Gap to Mt Roberts in May 1970. Looks like the tree on the right is still there

The Steamers from Panorama Point

[scockburn]

Good info . You always come up with great historical info . I did not realise BBW published this treasure . Would love to get a copy somewhere . Regards

[tas-man]

Good info . You always come up with great historical info . I did not realise BBW published this treasure . Would love to get a copy somewhere . Regards

Steve, they occasionally turn up second hand. I just did a search using my favourite global book serch engine http://www.usedbooksearch.co.uk/ and it drew a blank
Check with Tom Cowlishaw, he edited the last edition and may have secreted a few away in the BBW archives.

[davepurnell]

Can someone help with directions to the start of the steamers walk? I have the Daly's "Take a Walk" book, however it doesn't seem to give directions to the start of the walk. I have borrowed the book from a friend

[Pteropus]

Hi davepurnell. I thought the Daly's book had quite explicit directions to all the destinations? I haven't got my copy handy so I can't check. But here is a Google Earth link to the Steamers. Basically, drive out on the Cunningham Highway, over the gap and head towards Warwick. You want to nav to Emu Vale, on the Yangan-Killarney Rd, then pick up Emu Creek Rd. This will take you there to the Steamers. To get to the Start of the walk, take the left turn towards the end of Emu Creek Rd that goes through a gate and through Emu Creek (shown on the first link). Then Park the car up the hill near a fire trail with a gate (I think). If you have the topo of the area it should be pretty easy to work out where to start from there. That's about the best I can do from my memory. Good luck.
Cheers
Andrew

[cams]

Hi davepurnell. I thought the Daly's book had quite explicit directions to all the destinations? I haven't got my copy handy so I can't check. But here is a Google Earth link to the Steamers. Basically, drive out on the Cunningham Highway, over the gap and head towards Warwick. You want to nav to Emu Vale, on the Yangan-Killarney Rd, then pick up Emu Creek Rd. This will take you there to the Steamers. To get to the Start of the walk, take the left turn towards the end of Emu Creek Rd that goes through a gate and through Emu Creek (shown on the first link). Then Park the car up the hill near a fire trail with a gate (I think). If you have the topo of the area it should be pretty easy to work out where to start from there. That's about the best I can do from my memory. Good luck.
Cheers
Andrew

I'm fairly sure there is direction too. That's what we followed. Even though we didn't make it past the creek crossings in the end. Sometimes you have to look back a few walks in the book to get the road directions if there is more than one walk starting from the same area.

Good to have your notes too Andrew. I really should get back there sometime. Although I think the weather is heating up a bit much now.

[Pteropus]

Btw, the name of the road that goes left through the gate is called Old Mill Rd. It should be marked on the map as such.

[davepurnell]

Thanks Andrew - you are right, the book gives very clear directions - I just didn't look hard enough - cheers

[tomh]

This link gives four routes around the steamers
http://en.wikiloc.com/wikiloc/find.do?q=the+steamers
try 'steamers one day' - the green balloon arrow next to old mill rd near the creek is the parking/start

[gbagua]

Make sure you access that area with a 4WD due to several creek crossings, two of them had a significant amount of water on October last year when I hiked to the Lincoln wreck/Mt Superbus.

It is a long drive to get there after you cross Cunninghams Gap.

I also have to agree the Take a Walk book is poorly written and loaded with unnecessary marketing material (they could have used those pages to provided relevant info). I rather use Google for general info + Google Maps + wikiloc files.

Here's a detailed Google Maps description:

https://maps.google.com.au/maps/ms?t=h& ... b7d0c075a8

G'luck!

[gbagua]

Has anyone been in that area recently? I was wondering how much water is going through the creek crossings and their current state and also if they are doable with a SUV vehicle.

Cheers.

[Aardvark]

If it hasn't rained much for a few days prior to your visit, it isn't likely to be a problem. We are entering what is generally the dry season here. Any creek risings are likely to be down again in a day or two. There would need to be sustained rain.
The real problem is the mud. Locals don't like it if you chew up the road. Once again, there would need to be sustained rain.
Over twenty years ago i was driving my ford meteor up there. I didn't do it any favours though.

[gbagua]

Yes I have been in that area but that was in October 2012 and I wasn't driving, so I have forgot what the creek crossings are like. I'll be heading again next Sat. but I'm not driving yet again however the driver who owns a SUV asked me if it was OK wit it. Thanks for the update though. It should be OK.

[Jp89]

Does anyone have any information regarding the height of each of the peaks? Ive been researching but cant find it at all. Lots of knowldge in here though by the sounds!

[Pteropus]

Does anyone have any information regarding the height of each of the peaks? Ive been researching but cant find it at all. Lots of knowldge in here though by the sounds!

Hi Jp89, my Mount Superbus topo map says Prow is 1043 m, Funnel is 1026 m, Mast is 1056 m, and Stern is 1075 m.