Attendees: David Myles, trip was posted last minute so no one else signed up.
Location: Robertson / Kangaroo Valley
Date: Mon 31st Oct – Tue 1st Nov 2016
Photos: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/664y6qs8pk6298r/AADjzpCWHFOsQf7dXX13Cggja?dl=0 (will be available for ~30 days)
This trip was fruitful, with two routes being confirmed as worthwhile, multi-pitch gorge routes with nice waterfalls and refreshing pools to swim in. No-one else signed up so I shortened it to two days.
On Monday morning I checked out an old track near Hindmarsh Lookout at Belmore Falls. The track made its way to below the main Belmore Falls (approx. 90m?). There is a very nice pool at the bottom. It would be a truly remarkable abseil in summer. A track on the other side of the creek gives access to several more very impressive waterfalls downstream. I’ll definitely be back here this summer.
A 50m waterfall prevented easy access to where Burrawang Creek comes in on right. Burrawang Creek was on my list for investigation, so I climbed back up to the car and parked where Belmore Falls crosses Burrawang Creek then walked downstream from there. It is initially a pleasant walk which soon becomes a bit of a mission to push through. I descended for 2 hours and probably won’t be coming back anytime soon. However, in the last 100m, Burrawang Creek drops spectacularly into Barrengarry Creek with a series of nice cascades and finally a two stage 60m waterfall.
From here I was able to traverse around and down to Barrengarry Creek. The confluence of Barrengarry and Burrawang Creeks is a very nice place indeed! I explored a bit downstream before climbing back up the track I found in the morning and then it was a 4km road bash back to the car.
I spent the afternoon driving around some roads to investigate access for some other gorges on my list, before going to Robertson for a very sizeable portion of schnitzel. Robertson Nature Reserve is a nice little reserve with a 1km informative rainforest walk. I slept the night in my car at Belmore Falls.
On Tuesday I investigated an unnamed gorge that starts on private property above an escarpment, and then ends on a different property below the escarpment in the Kangaroo Valley. I had previously got into contact with the lower property owner who is happy to let people walk to a nice waterfall in the gorge. In the morning I approached a property owner at the top of the escarpment who wasn’t too welcoming and warned me of “things” that had happened in the past when bushwalkers tried to cross properties in the area. I took the hint and respectfully left the area. This meant that I had to park on a different road and do a 5km scrub bash around fence lines to access the creek.
When I arrived I was excited to find a very nice waterfall that appears to plunge approximately 100m down to the valley below. The view from the top confirmed that the creek then follows a deep and steep rainforest ravine down to the Kangaroo River. Furthermore, there was a really cool slot canyon section immediately above the falls.
I made my way into the creek above the falls. Three abseils would be required to access the top of the main falls. I set up a rope and descended the first simple pitch which led into the slot canyon. It is a truly remarkable place and definitely worth further investigation! There was no evidence of anyone else having attempted the descent. I ascended back out and then explored north along the cliffline check out a named pass on my topo map. I was surprised when I emerged from the dense scrub to find that an old firetrail zig zags its way up the escarpment. This would provide a means for walking up from the bottom property to descend the gorge.
A bit of a scrub bash and 5km road slog led me back to the car. I’ll definitely be back to descend some more beautiful gorges in this amazing part of the South Coast.
