There is a storied history of nude bushwalking in the SUBW, which is part of a broader tradition in which cultural figures such as Percy Grainger and conservationists like Myles Dunphy were among the best known participants. In recent decades there has been renewed interest in the practice, especially where it involves skinny dipping in wild places. SUBW’s nude…
For many many months, bushwalkers have mourned the temporary closure of Ruined Castle. The days of crying ourselves to sleep after viewing the NPWS alerts page are no more. Ruined Castle is back open, and what better way to celebrate than climbing it at sunset? So, from Katoomba station at 11:11am, our party of 11 set off bound for the newly reopened track. We began…
Taronga (Athol Wharf) to Chinamans Beach 15th March (The Ides of March) 2025. This walk replaced one originally planned to go to Patonga near Woy Woy, but changed because of expected hot weather. It turned out to be a wise choice as the temperature on the mostly unshaded track at Patonga reached 33 degrees C in the day. It was…
Helensburgh-Burning Palms-Figure 8-Otford Walk 2/3/2025 This walk had some interesting turnarounds: weather being the opposite of what was forecast, a previously easy track now getting overgrown, leeches spooking some people, and myself forgetting to bring something important. Read on….
My friend from Schofields really misses Kosciuszko and wants a trip there. While he couldn’t make it at the end I’ve found the perfect long weekend with time to get there and back comfortably. It’s when a clinical placement ends and another one starts- back to back with 3 days to stretch. Inside my…
Wondabyne Station is a halt on Mullet Creek on the north side of Hawkesbury River. The tiny platform is only long enough for one carriage so you have to sit in the back carriage and tell the guard you need the extra stop at Wondabyne. There is no other way to get there and apart from bushwalkers the halt seems to exist only for people with water-only access houses on the Hawkesbury. The tiny…
Attendees Abseiling and camping Ashley Burke Olivia Carolan Jag Ganti Han (Vicki) Long Carrie Ke Isla Shen Lin Wang Yuxin (Clara) Liu Danniella Larobina Randi Horstrup Vincent Lai Tim Hanigan Cowen Zhang Jiankang Dong Camping Only Aidan Pollock Eszter Coombs Victor Caxala Qiuyue (Moon) Hu Bill He Yiming Zhao Walked in from Katoomba Sean Armson Vyom Arya Sunil Jassal Turned up Independently Jo Boyd Joe Brischetto Roger Lembit David Noble Robert Hynes Jiri Svec Catherine Svec Cameron and Jayden Svec (children) Mitchell Isaacs Chantal Bronkhorst Trip Report The Christmas Dinner Walk is an annual SUBW tradition dating back to the 1970s. I have…
My hiking trips come at only inopportune times. We were looking at doing some canyoning on Saturday but the threat of lots of rain and thunder had me thinking about a bit of exploratory walking instead. The only real parameters I had for the trip were that it should involve a bit of rough walking somewhere new and that it should incur a bit of suffering. In the…
Nothing gets you through the exam season like the promise of a night by the Coxs River. So, on the very next day after all of our exams were over and 3 months of freedom loomed, we set off from Katoomba station for the Six Foot Track. Off we went, eager to spend the night away from any form of university commitment. Through the…
Afternoon walk in Kamay NP La Perouse, and we did see Mercury, Fri 8/11/2024. There was a good turnout for a friday afternoon walk during exam time; maybe examiners tend to avoid friday afternoon exams! There were a couple of minor transport glitches but mostly everything was sorted out okay. And best…
With just one boring exam at the end of semester it’s the perfect time for interstate trips. A bit of research, finding best prices for flights and rentals, and off we went. Car rental prices have been pricey, pushing for the need for more participants to lower costs (the cost was ~$600 at the end, including flights and all expenses). A trip…
Several people are free over the weekend and thought it’d be a good idea to do a camping trip. A rough plan of going somewhere around the Capertee area on the Castlereagh Hwy was devised, and an Expression of Interest was published yet with no solid plan. It was when my friend came to my place for laundry that I asked him to plan the trip for me in exchange for free laundry. Putting together…
Halloween walk: Dover Heights to South Head & Camp Cove. 31/10/24. The weather forecast for the evening of this walk wasn’t all that good, but things didn’t turn out too bad overall, and the weather did provide some dramatic photographic scenes at times. Most people met up at Macquarie Lighthouse on Old South Head Road around 5pm, and we then set out along the paths that followed the cliff line towards South Head and The Gap. It was…
Coalcliff-Stanwell Park Beach-Otford, Tuesday 1st October You might notice that the heading of this trip report is not the same as what was originally planned. That’s because a track closure required a change of destination. And the heading pic doesn’t exactly look like a beach. Read on….
Umina – Pearl Beach – Patonga Walk SUNDAY 22nd September. We had a fine mostly sunny day for this walk, and 16 members arrived off the train at Woy Woy Station, with Rickie and Ali driving up separately in their own cars. The train was a bit late, and I needed time to get everyone together and giving them a briefing about what we were doing. Therefore I…
Fernleigh Track, Glenrock Conservation Area, & Merewether Beach, Newcastle 1/9/2024. The rare unseasonable very warm weather this weekend gave me some concerns about this walk, because of the possibility a high fire danger, and even maybe a “Total Fire Ban” being declared because of the strong and dry NW winds. As it…
Helensburgh, Stanwell Tops, Kellys falls to Stanwell Park. Initially the weather didn’t look too promising, with possible rain forecast, but as it turned out, the day turned out to be OK with no rain although cloudy all day. The rain had gone north to the Hunter Region and left us alone. Most of…
A hotter-than-usual day in Ku-Ring-Gai National Park sees a beginner trip heading down Great North Walk down to Jerusalem Bay and up to Taffy’s Rock. We didn’t reach the rock itself but have been fairly close to where it is on the trail. The day started at Cowan where ~10 people came, many beginners while some have been on my other trips. Jin was…
With a party of 7, we set off from Springwood station for the Magdala Creek track that would take us around to the base of Martin’s Lookout. The track was as spectacular as any in this area, heading through Fairy Dell with the tall trees shielding us from what was a pretty hot and humid July day. Fairy Dell…
Walk in Mount Victoria area; Tuesday 2nd July 2024. This walk was intended as a relatively easy walk to Blair Athol Mine, and then to Mt Piddington. It turned out to be anything but. Read on. Four of us met up at Central for the Lithgow train, which being a normal weekday was unusual in stopping at only four stations along the way, so it took only 2 hours to get to Mount Victoria. Along the…