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Pilot wilderness, April 2014
Sat 19 Jul, 2014 3:44 pm
Back in 1993 I read an article about the source of the Murray River. This is not just a point of interest – it is the start of the straight bit of the NSW/Victoria border (the Black-Allan Line), which goes from Cape Howe to “the source of the nearest tributary of the Murray”.
This seemed like a worthwhile goal, and would allow me to tick a few other boxes on the way: The Pilot (highest mountain in the south-east part of Kosciusko National Park), the wreck of the Dakota at Cowombat Flat, Tin Mines Huts, and of course see some country I had never seen before.
The obvious route to this wonderland would be along the fire trail from Dead Horse Gap near Thredbo. This would have been a three day walk each way, plus time for exploring. Maybe a bit long, and possibly a bit boring walking back the same way.
So I started looking for alternatives. One that appealed started from Pinch River, a tributary of the Snowy River, and followed fire trails to Tin Mines Huts then to Cowombat Flat. It then went back to Tin Mines and out to Dead Horse Gap.
Well, the trip was put on the program for October 1996 and we were all ready. Unfortunately, there was a lot of snow that year, and at the time we were to go, there were still several metres on the hills near Dead Horse Gap. Not a pleasant prospect, so we went elsewhere that year.
I forgot all about the trip after that, until something reminded me of it last year. So I did a bit of research and decided I could cut a day out of it by going cross country instead of following the fire trail to Tin Mines the first time. This was a bit ambitious, perhaps, seeing as I knew nothing about the country, and my enquiries revealed no-one else did either. Strangest of all was that six other mad people decided to come with me.
We drove to Jindabyne for our last night of luxury, before getting Jindabyne Taxi to drive us out to Pinch River. (Otherwise it would have been a car shuffle of about four hours. He would pick us up from Dead Horse Gap too. Total cost $300.)
It was a beautiful day, with just a few clouds to take the heat out of the sun. Just as well as the first day climbed 850m up the very steep Nine Mile Fire Trail. There were wonderful views, but…
Most of us have tried to put that day out of our memories! The hill looked like it would never end. But it did eventually, and we came to the Ingeegoodbee Fire Trail. Leading off opposite the intersection was a track to Ingeegoodbee Hut, a pleasant spot with plenty of grass to camp and a quite big hut.
This was our first encounter with the feral horses that plague the area. A stallion must have thought we were invading his territory, and ran beside us for a while, snorting and carrying on. He was only one of thousands reported to inhabit this part of the park. One of our party made the mistake of drinking straight from a stream here, and had diarrhoea for most of the rest of the trip.
We did contemplate camping here, but decided to push on a couple of kilometres to the Ingeegoodbee River to shorten the next day. Due to recent rain, the river was quite full, but we did manage to scramble across on fallen timber to an open grassy plain on the other side to camp.
Again, the horses made their presence felt. Waterholes beside the river were muddy and trampled, and dung was everywhere. During the rest of the trip, we could hardly walk two metres without walking on, smelling or seeing horse dung, even in the thickest scrub.
A pleasant evening ensued around the fire before heading to bed.
Day 2 started along the fire trail north, until just past Freebody’s Hut ruins, we climbed the spur west into the scrub. There is not a lot to say about this. It was thick scrub and rock outcrops, similar to Sydney sandstone country, but not as prickly.
The ridgetops were easy enough to follow, although at one stage we went across to Omeo Flat where the aerial photos showed it was open. It was indeed an open plain, grassy, and much easier to walk through than the scrub.
Sadly the horses loved it too, and the pigs, and we also saw a deer here. The creek that ran through the middle, once half a metre wide, was now a mudhole up to five metres wide.
We covered a couple of kilometres fairly quickly before entering the bush again, and heading down 350m to the Berrima River, our target for the day.
I was not sure what to expect of this river from the map. Maybe a nice open valley, perhaps a bit boggy, could even get our feet wet? No! The river turned out to be only a metre wide but with a good flow from the rain. There was no other water than the river, nor even much moisture. Beside the river was fairly scrubby, but we were able to follow horse trails for a while until we found a place we could pitch our tents near the river.
The night was again very pleasant, and not even that cold. There was a lot of condensation on the tents the next morning though.
This seemed like a worthwhile goal, and would allow me to tick a few other boxes on the way: The Pilot (highest mountain in the south-east part of Kosciusko National Park), the wreck of the Dakota at Cowombat Flat, Tin Mines Huts, and of course see some country I had never seen before.
The obvious route to this wonderland would be along the fire trail from Dead Horse Gap near Thredbo. This would have been a three day walk each way, plus time for exploring. Maybe a bit long, and possibly a bit boring walking back the same way.
So I started looking for alternatives. One that appealed started from Pinch River, a tributary of the Snowy River, and followed fire trails to Tin Mines Huts then to Cowombat Flat. It then went back to Tin Mines and out to Dead Horse Gap.
Well, the trip was put on the program for October 1996 and we were all ready. Unfortunately, there was a lot of snow that year, and at the time we were to go, there were still several metres on the hills near Dead Horse Gap. Not a pleasant prospect, so we went elsewhere that year.
I forgot all about the trip after that, until something reminded me of it last year. So I did a bit of research and decided I could cut a day out of it by going cross country instead of following the fire trail to Tin Mines the first time. This was a bit ambitious, perhaps, seeing as I knew nothing about the country, and my enquiries revealed no-one else did either. Strangest of all was that six other mad people decided to come with me.
We drove to Jindabyne for our last night of luxury, before getting Jindabyne Taxi to drive us out to Pinch River. (Otherwise it would have been a car shuffle of about four hours. He would pick us up from Dead Horse Gap too. Total cost $300.)
It was a beautiful day, with just a few clouds to take the heat out of the sun. Just as well as the first day climbed 850m up the very steep Nine Mile Fire Trail. There were wonderful views, but…
- Nine Mile Fire Trail
- IMG_4682.jpg (608.86 KiB) Viewed 14393 times
Most of us have tried to put that day out of our memories! The hill looked like it would never end. But it did eventually, and we came to the Ingeegoodbee Fire Trail. Leading off opposite the intersection was a track to Ingeegoodbee Hut, a pleasant spot with plenty of grass to camp and a quite big hut.
This was our first encounter with the feral horses that plague the area. A stallion must have thought we were invading his territory, and ran beside us for a while, snorting and carrying on. He was only one of thousands reported to inhabit this part of the park. One of our party made the mistake of drinking straight from a stream here, and had diarrhoea for most of the rest of the trip.
We did contemplate camping here, but decided to push on a couple of kilometres to the Ingeegoodbee River to shorten the next day. Due to recent rain, the river was quite full, but we did manage to scramble across on fallen timber to an open grassy plain on the other side to camp.
- Near Ingeegoodbee River
- IMG_4707.jpg (568.21 KiB) Viewed 14393 times
Again, the horses made their presence felt. Waterholes beside the river were muddy and trampled, and dung was everywhere. During the rest of the trip, we could hardly walk two metres without walking on, smelling or seeing horse dung, even in the thickest scrub.
A pleasant evening ensued around the fire before heading to bed.
Day 2 started along the fire trail north, until just past Freebody’s Hut ruins, we climbed the spur west into the scrub. There is not a lot to say about this. It was thick scrub and rock outcrops, similar to Sydney sandstone country, but not as prickly.
The ridgetops were easy enough to follow, although at one stage we went across to Omeo Flat where the aerial photos showed it was open. It was indeed an open plain, grassy, and much easier to walk through than the scrub.
- Omeo Flat
- IMG_4727.jpg (596.82 KiB) Viewed 14393 times
Sadly the horses loved it too, and the pigs, and we also saw a deer here. The creek that ran through the middle, once half a metre wide, was now a mudhole up to five metres wide.
- Horse damage
- IMG_4737.jpg (762.17 KiB) Viewed 14393 times
We covered a couple of kilometres fairly quickly before entering the bush again, and heading down 350m to the Berrima River, our target for the day.
I was not sure what to expect of this river from the map. Maybe a nice open valley, perhaps a bit boggy, could even get our feet wet? No! The river turned out to be only a metre wide but with a good flow from the rain. There was no other water than the river, nor even much moisture. Beside the river was fairly scrubby, but we were able to follow horse trails for a while until we found a place we could pitch our tents near the river.
- Beside the Berrima River
- IMG_4771.jpg (437.32 KiB) Viewed 14393 times
The night was again very pleasant, and not even that cold. There was a lot of condensation on the tents the next morning though.
Last edited by davidmorr on Sat 19 Jul, 2014 6:01 pm, edited 2 times in total.
Re: Pilot wilderness, April 2014
Sat 19 Jul, 2014 3:54 pm
The plan for day 3 changed a bit. It had been intended to continue west to the Cowombat Fire Trail up the First Creek valley. We would follow the fire trail to Cowombat Flat to camp and explore the Dakota wreck and the source of the Murray.
Instead, given the thickness of the scrub so far, we would head south along the Berrima to where the border line went up a spur of Forest Hill (up 400m) to the first survey station marking out the border, then go to the fire trail and Cowombat Flat.
The other side of the river did indeed become a wide and open valley as the map implied, with large grassy areas that would have been wonderful to camp on. Maybe next time.
Careful navigation following a compass bearing was required from the Berrima to find the bottom of the spur on Second Creek. This was especially deceptive as there were two similar bends in the creek, and we had to make sure we were on the right one. We weren’t, so went upstream a bit to start the climb.
Again the scrub on Forest Hill was thick, and progress was slow. The worst bit was near the top where trees were down everywhere, requiring scrambles over/under/through the debris, or detours around the end. By the time we reached the top, we calculated we had achieved 1km/hour for the last two days.
We popped out of the scrub on top without realising we were actually there. The next job was to find the cairn marking Station 1 of the border. The documents I had read were a little vague about where this was, and we prepared to spread out along the ridge to find it. Then I noticed a structure poking over some bushes nearby – it was the cairn! Great relief all around, and cause for celebrations as we had lunch around it, taking advantage of the sunshine to dry out soggy tents.
The cairn itself was about 1.5 metres tall, a wooden structure with stones piled in between. It had been rebuilt a few years ago by a team from a Victorian university. There were also rows of stones either side along the line of the border.
Obligatory photos were taken with people standing with one foot in NSW and one in Victoria, in front of the cairn.
Having got this far, we now had to find the tributary that marked the source of the Murray. There was a well-used track heading in the general direction, but we took a bearing and followed that 400m to a small soak with a galvanised pole in it. A well-trodden-down soak. Many people had visited it and trampled the soft mosses underfoot. A small tin attached to the top of the pole contained a book and pen recording various people’s visits, and we added our names.
The track continued downhill, following the watercourse as it became more prominent, although even where it was quite wide and open, there was no visible running water. We theorised the track was going to follow the Murray to Cowombat Flat. Inspection of the map showed this was 150m lower, and would mean a 150m climb first thing in the morning! A quick decision was made to look at the Dakota next time, and to head directly for the fire trail and north towards Pilot. This was not as easy as it sounded. The road was only supposed to be about half a kilometre away, but with fallen trees, rocks and scrub, it took us an hour.
About a kilometre up the road was a large grassy plain, the only likely campsite in the area. A dam at the bottom provided somewhere to have a wash, and the small creek that fed it was a reasonable source of water.
Day 4 did not dawn. We could not see the sun at all through the thick cloud and drizzle. This was probably the best time possible for it to start to rain, as the rest of the trip was along fire trails. Rain on the first three days would have just been horrible!
I had read once about how to get up onto the Pilot, but had neglected to reread it before this trip and was relying on a memory of many years ago. This was to climb to the saddle between Pilot and Little Pilot, and to climb Pilot from there. Near the bend in the trail just before it joined Snow Gum Fire Trail, there was a cairn at a small gully. Good enough! And indeed there was a sort of a track going up, but fairly indistinct and we lost it before long. But it was fairly open, with big clearings in places, and quite easy to find a way upwards.
The cloud which had been low and thick when we set off, gradually lifted as we climbed, and by the time we reached the top (1830m), there were extensive views over this part of the wilderness. It did not last long, and before we got back to our packs, it was raining again.
After a quick lunch sitting on sawn logs placed under a tree, it was a trudge through quite pretty country to Tin Mines.
So far, we had not seen a single soul out here, but into the huts sped a German on a mountain bike. He thought this was the main fire trail. We set him straight and off he went again.
There are two huts at Tin Mines, and a huge grassy area for tents. Apparently there are some workings in a neighbouring gully, but we did not see them.
Instead, given the thickness of the scrub so far, we would head south along the Berrima to where the border line went up a spur of Forest Hill (up 400m) to the first survey station marking out the border, then go to the fire trail and Cowombat Flat.
The other side of the river did indeed become a wide and open valley as the map implied, with large grassy areas that would have been wonderful to camp on. Maybe next time.
Careful navigation following a compass bearing was required from the Berrima to find the bottom of the spur on Second Creek. This was especially deceptive as there were two similar bends in the creek, and we had to make sure we were on the right one. We weren’t, so went upstream a bit to start the climb.
Again the scrub on Forest Hill was thick, and progress was slow. The worst bit was near the top where trees were down everywhere, requiring scrambles over/under/through the debris, or detours around the end. By the time we reached the top, we calculated we had achieved 1km/hour for the last two days.
- Fallen timber
- IMG_4793.jpg (749.57 KiB) Viewed 14389 times
We popped out of the scrub on top without realising we were actually there. The next job was to find the cairn marking Station 1 of the border. The documents I had read were a little vague about where this was, and we prepared to spread out along the ridge to find it. Then I noticed a structure poking over some bushes nearby – it was the cairn! Great relief all around, and cause for celebrations as we had lunch around it, taking advantage of the sunshine to dry out soggy tents.
- The cairn on Forest Hill
- IMG_4800.jpg (722.34 KiB) Viewed 14389 times
The cairn itself was about 1.5 metres tall, a wooden structure with stones piled in between. It had been rebuilt a few years ago by a team from a Victorian university. There were also rows of stones either side along the line of the border.
Obligatory photos were taken with people standing with one foot in NSW and one in Victoria, in front of the cairn.
Having got this far, we now had to find the tributary that marked the source of the Murray. There was a well-used track heading in the general direction, but we took a bearing and followed that 400m to a small soak with a galvanised pole in it. A well-trodden-down soak. Many people had visited it and trampled the soft mosses underfoot. A small tin attached to the top of the pole contained a book and pen recording various people’s visits, and we added our names.
The track continued downhill, following the watercourse as it became more prominent, although even where it was quite wide and open, there was no visible running water. We theorised the track was going to follow the Murray to Cowombat Flat. Inspection of the map showed this was 150m lower, and would mean a 150m climb first thing in the morning! A quick decision was made to look at the Dakota next time, and to head directly for the fire trail and north towards Pilot. This was not as easy as it sounded. The road was only supposed to be about half a kilometre away, but with fallen trees, rocks and scrub, it took us an hour.
About a kilometre up the road was a large grassy plain, the only likely campsite in the area. A dam at the bottom provided somewhere to have a wash, and the small creek that fed it was a reasonable source of water.
Day 4 did not dawn. We could not see the sun at all through the thick cloud and drizzle. This was probably the best time possible for it to start to rain, as the rest of the trip was along fire trails. Rain on the first three days would have just been horrible!
I had read once about how to get up onto the Pilot, but had neglected to reread it before this trip and was relying on a memory of many years ago. This was to climb to the saddle between Pilot and Little Pilot, and to climb Pilot from there. Near the bend in the trail just before it joined Snow Gum Fire Trail, there was a cairn at a small gully. Good enough! And indeed there was a sort of a track going up, but fairly indistinct and we lost it before long. But it was fairly open, with big clearings in places, and quite easy to find a way upwards.
The cloud which had been low and thick when we set off, gradually lifted as we climbed, and by the time we reached the top (1830m), there were extensive views over this part of the wilderness. It did not last long, and before we got back to our packs, it was raining again.
- Top of the Pilot
- IMG_4838.jpg (372.83 KiB) Viewed 14389 times
After a quick lunch sitting on sawn logs placed under a tree, it was a trudge through quite pretty country to Tin Mines.
- Track near Tin Mines
- IMG_4861.jpg (648.91 KiB) Viewed 14389 times
So far, we had not seen a single soul out here, but into the huts sped a German on a mountain bike. He thought this was the main fire trail. We set him straight and off he went again.
There are two huts at Tin Mines, and a huge grassy area for tents. Apparently there are some workings in a neighbouring gully, but we did not see them.
- Decadence outside the hut
- IMG_4879.jpg (542.02 KiB) Viewed 14389 times
Re: Pilot wilderness, April 2014
Sat 19 Jul, 2014 4:02 pm
Drizzle again overnight meant very wet tents for day 5. It was a fair climb to Cascade Hut (240m with a few ups and downs), but the mistiness gave it such an atmosphere. Relic tree trunks from before the fires would loom out of the mist, towering over the regrowth which was still only 3-4m high. How long would it be before these young trees reached the 30-40m of the dead giants? Not in our lifetimes!
Cascade Hut had residents already. Three people from the Shoalhaven Heads Intrepid Trekkers had cycled in and taken up residence. They delighted in telling us they were S.H.I.T.s and S.C.U.M. (South Coast United Mountainbikers).
Two of them decided to ride down to Tin Mines for the afternoon, promising to be back by 4pm. By the time they arrived back at 6pm, not having actually made it to Tin Mines, we were getting a little worried as they had taken only water with them, and little protective clothing.
The evening was spent, with the sound of rain on the roof, in convivial company reading poetry aloud. Several tents were leaking by this stage, and three people slept in the hut.
Drizzle again for the start of day 6, a big climb to Bob’s Ridge then across to Dead Horse Gap. One thing to be said for rain and cold is that it motivates people, and we got to Dead Horse Gap late morning. I had rung the taxi from Bob’s Ridge, and he arrived to pick us up shortly after we arrived.
Back at Jindabyne, showers, lunch, relax (watching TV, reading, doing Sudoku), before going out to dinner.
Day 1: 12km
Day 2: 7km
Day 3: 8km
Day 4: 14km
Day 5: 16km
Day 6: 9km
Maps: Suggan Buggan, Thredbo 1:50000
Surveying the Black-Allan Line: http://www.dtpli.vic.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0016/110743/Surveying_the_Black-Allan_Line.pdf
- Dead giants
Cascade Hut had residents already. Three people from the Shoalhaven Heads Intrepid Trekkers had cycled in and taken up residence. They delighted in telling us they were S.H.I.T.s and S.C.U.M. (South Coast United Mountainbikers).
- Inside Cascade Hut
- IMG_4905.jpg (436.31 KiB) Viewed 14385 times
Two of them decided to ride down to Tin Mines for the afternoon, promising to be back by 4pm. By the time they arrived back at 6pm, not having actually made it to Tin Mines, we were getting a little worried as they had taken only water with them, and little protective clothing.
The evening was spent, with the sound of rain on the roof, in convivial company reading poetry aloud. Several tents were leaking by this stage, and three people slept in the hut.
Drizzle again for the start of day 6, a big climb to Bob’s Ridge then across to Dead Horse Gap. One thing to be said for rain and cold is that it motivates people, and we got to Dead Horse Gap late morning. I had rung the taxi from Bob’s Ridge, and he arrived to pick us up shortly after we arrived.
- The last hill
- IMG_4946.jpg (317.1 KiB) Viewed 14385 times
Back at Jindabyne, showers, lunch, relax (watching TV, reading, doing Sudoku), before going out to dinner.
Day 1: 12km
Day 2: 7km
Day 3: 8km
Day 4: 14km
Day 5: 16km
Day 6: 9km
Maps: Suggan Buggan, Thredbo 1:50000
Surveying the Black-Allan Line: http://www.dtpli.vic.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0016/110743/Surveying_the_Black-Allan_Line.pdf
Re: Pilot wilderness, April 2014
Sat 19 Jul, 2014 4:42 pm
Great trip report David, loved reading it and the photos area great too.
Travis.
Travis.
Re: Pilot wilderness, April 2014
Sat 19 Jul, 2014 5:41 pm
I also enjoy other peoples reports from all over of our vast land,
good pictures are a bonus.... thanks for sharing, davidmorr.
good pictures are a bonus.... thanks for sharing, davidmorr.
Re: Pilot wilderness, April 2014
Sat 19 Jul, 2014 9:31 pm
Nice one!
Re: Pilot wilderness, April 2014
Sun 20 Jul, 2014 12:02 am
Very good report, grt pix!
Re: Pilot wilderness, April 2014
Sun 20 Jul, 2014 6:56 am
Great report and some great pics.
thanks
Swampy
thanks
Swampy
Re: Pilot wilderness, April 2014
Sun 20 Jul, 2014 5:18 pm
Now that is a very interesting route. I dare say that very few people have ever been into Omeo Flat. and probably none for a long time judging by all the animal life you saw in there. Shame you didn't make it down onto Cowambat flat. But as you say there is always next time.
K.
K.
Re: Pilot wilderness, April 2014
Mon 21 Jul, 2014 5:07 pm
Excellent trip! Well done.
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