Party: Fraser, Matthew, Kylie, Tina, David, Leo, Jacqualine, John
Leader: John Friedman
Date: 17/6/2018
One of the coldest June days ensured we would stay moving for most of the day in order to keep warm as we explored the waterfalls south of Lawson. The day began with 4 of the 12 attendees not putting in an appearance or notifying me of their absence. Their loss. After a brief visit to the monthly market at Lawson and the renowned artisan bakery, the chocolate shop, and the cake shop, our group members were in a hurry to move to a more wind protected path. The descent to Adelina Falls provided this and as long as we stayed in the valley, we remained more protected from the icy wind blowing at 30 km/h than if we were in open woodland. Our walk to Junction Falls followed by Federal Falls provided us with time to appreciate the forest with its towering gums and following our arrival at Cataract Falls the sun was beginning to shine overhead. Once back on the fire trail, we commenced our walk to the waterfalls less visited as we ventured further south. Victor Falls was our next stop after a small boulder scramble that everyone took in their stride. From here it was down and more down as we walked to Terrace Falls, this often being named as the most beautiful in the area. The water output in all the waterfalls is the lowest that I have seen for some years, and some of the vegetation is discolouring from being so dry. Our final stopping place was Bedford Pool but we decided to walk over the stepping stones to the sandy beach rather than go for a swim. Maybe it was just a bit too cold (air temp was 7 degrees). The ascent from Bedford Pool along the track was not difficult but everyone was glad when we reached the top where it joins Terrace Falls Road. Another trek along a bush track to Lake Road and then to Hazelbrook station so that we would be back in time to catch the 3 PM crowded train back to Sydney. We had spent the day exploring the area and walked about 10 km horizontal with a vertical gain of about 300m over the day.