The stinking hot, humid weather in Sydney has finally stopped, and it’s time to get the boots out. Excited about the weather, I wanted to get out on the trail, but had no walk in mind to do. I remembered seeing all the cars lined up for walks along Bells Line of Road and decided to find out what all the fuss is about. I finally decided to walk down the Kamarah Ridge, a short 5km walk.

I park the car and see there are many others who were just as excited about the weather as me. I lace up my boots, and I’m off. Not even 5 minutes in, I see a guy with a large climbing backpack and know instantly that all these cars belong to climbers.

I walk under the massive power lines, and I’m greeted by native grasses and trees. The bush here is lovely. There was a massive fire here, and it shows. All the mature trees are dead and silver. But the bush is regenerating. The new growth looks healthy, and the grasses are back. There are two main species of tree here. Both are regenerating with new young trees.

I pass some amazing rock structures that look like folds and strips of iron rich rock. They are geologically interesting to look at. I also notice the trail's footpad or soil at parts is very red compared to elsewhere in the area. I see many small birds and wished I had brought some binoculars.

As I walk along the trail, I get a small glimpse through the trees of North West part of Grose Valley. The walk is easy, and the trail is well defined. I pass what looks like an old, collapsed pagoda. The whole large structure is sitting at a 45 degree angle.

Shortly after, the trees disappear, and the view reveals itself. The views are amazing. I get to the end of the ridge and start descending down the spur. The bush changes to grasses and short shrubs. The view of the The Grose Valley is blocked by Wilkinson Hill.

The trail takes a big turn off the spur and starts heading down the eastern slope. It gets pretty steep, but there are solid slabs of sandstone that give you grip.

The Jungaburra Brook canyon reveals itself, and the trail ends at a cliff top. There is a scramble down to the valley, but it’s not a high-traffic trail. There are various rock faces. I look across, and I see rock climbers on the rock faces. I sit down and have lunch, watching the climbers on the cliff face. I hear other hidden climbers somewhere else in the valley yell with excitement as they fall safely.

After lunch, I start to head back to the car, which doesn't take long. The walk is nice, it’s obviously mainly used as an entry point for the climbers.

Below are some more photos taken on a different camera.

It’s a public holiday, and I’ve decided to do a walk somewhere in the Wollangambe Wilderness. I print out a map that I’ve marked up with a few POIs, grab my bag, and go. I’m at the Trailhead, and it’s not too hot for mid-summer. So initially, I was going to visit Goochs Crater. I’ve been wanting to do this walk for a while now. More on that later. I start walking down the main trail to the Crater. I’ve skipped the popular Dargans Arch as it adds a bit too much up and down, and I like to do easy walks in Summer.

The bush is nice. Sparse gum trees, grasses with the odd shrub. The start of this trail follows a long spur initially. I spot a few Waratahs that have finished flowering and have created seed pods. There is very little flowing in the bush. Looking around, I think this bush would be great when in flower.

As I’m walking along, a juvenile Eastern Brown Snake - Pseudonaja textilis crosses my path and hides in a nearby shrub. I wait for it to finish slithering away before navigating around the world's second-most venomous land snake. I’ve got a snake bite kit in the bag, and I go over in my head how to wrap a snake bite. I’ve forgotten, gotta follow up on that.

Almost immediately after I spot a beautiful Blotched Blue-tongue lizard - Tiliqua nigrolutea (Northern upland form), it has beautiful yellow and salmon-red blotches. This is the first time I’ve spotted this species, so I’m pretty happy. It lets me photograph it. I carefully step over the rather large Blue-tongue and continue on.

After about 2 km, I hit the first Pagoda rock formation. Pagodas are these stepped rock formations found in the Blue Mountains. Almost always above or around 1000m elevation. I continue on and find a large outcrop of Pagodas. The 360 degree views at the top are remarkable. From the top looking East, I can see Submarine Rock and where I have walked over there.

The trail starts to descend, and I get a glimpse of the next section of the trail. I continue on until I hit a Y intersection. I look at the steep Goochs Crater trail and at the other trail, and it appears to go down to the Wollangambe River. It’s getting warm, and I decide that in this heat and nice soak in the river is the go. I’ll return when it’s cooler to do the remainder of the Goochs Crater Trail.

After deciding to change up the planned walk. I start to descend down the other trail. It’s a bit steep but nothing outrageous. A little bit of minor scrambling down the sandstone. I can hear the river as I get closer. Once I arrive, I’m greeted with a calm, flowing Wollangambe River. I explore around, crossing over the river and having a bit of a look. It’s a nice spot. I see that upstream it’s sandy and flat. I’m strip down and hop in. It’s freezing, but well worth it. I relax for some time in the river. I examine the chunky sand and look at all the different types of rocks. After a while, I decide I kinda need to return home. I hop out, dry off, and have some lunch.

After lunch, I start heading back up the Spur, retracing my steps. I stop at the big Pagoda and look at all the little rocks stuck in place. They’re the same rocks I was looking at in the river sand. The pagoda I’m at looks so fragile, lots of little arches and waves of stone that would not stand up to an astray boot.

After soaking in the 360-degree views again, I make my way back to the car. Treading carefully so as not discover another snake. I’m laser-focused on every stick, twig, and branch. I see multiple Jacky Lizards - Amphibolurus muricatus dart away. Not a bad bushwalk, even if I changed the plan.

Well, I’m on holidays in Hong Kong, it’s New Year's eve, and I’ve packed my hiking shoes as Hong Kong is a bit of a hiking Mecca, just like Sydney. There are many walks you can do all around Hong Kong, and it’s easily accessible islands. I’ve decided to catch a ferry to Lamma Island, the third-largest island in Hong Kong. There is a walk there where you can walk from one ferry pier to another on the other side of the island. Sounds great.

So I’m at the Central Ferry Piers in Hong Kong Central, and getting a ferry to Lamma Island is pretty straightforward. I find a spot on a fairly new ferry and settle in for the ride over. The ride is pleasant and offers great views of Hong Kong Island.

After a while, the ferry pulls into Yung Shue Wan, a small town on the western side of the island. This is the start of the hike. I wander through the pleasant fishing village. I could just stop here and spend the day relaxing, but I push on through the narrow streets. It’s not too long before I see the transportation on Lama Island. These petrol buggies. The island has no cars, so they use these buggies to travel around. They load these up with boxes and whatnot and travel all over the place.

The start of this hike is mainly wandering through the narrow streets. Eventually, the houses start to disappear, and we are in the bush. The hike is paved, and this is for the entire length of the walk. Guess I won’t be getting my new hiking shoes dirty. This will make Customs back in Australia easier. Everyone entering Australia must present their hiking shoes at Australia Customs. They usually clean any dirt on them and return them. I’m happy they’re looking out for our flora and fauna.

The bush is thick sub-tropical scrub with little stands of bamboo and some rare pines. After 30 minutes, I walk into the picturesque beach town of Hung Shing Yeh Beach. The shops have beach chairs and umbrellas set up for weary hikers and tourists. Again, I could stop here and call it a day. Who doesn't love a remote beach village only accessible by hiking? There is accommodation here, which I did think about.

I walk past the surf club and start walking up the hill into the bush. From the trail, you can see the power station on the island. The island has only recently gotten power and running water. There is a singular windmill, but it’s not enough to power the island. There are also nice little lookouts down to the waters edge and views out into the South China Sea. You can also see the tallest mountain, Mount Stenhouse (353m), in the distance.

I find a little side path to a pavilion with views. The pavilion has some useful grid coordinates for hikers, which is a nice feature if you’re lost. I read a plaque explaining that Lamma Island had lost all it’s woodlands to logging and fires and that the island now has a secondary woodlands (The Succession of Woodlands).

After walking up to and over a saddle, I’m now on the east side of the island. I walk through the tiny village of Lo So Shing Beach. I pass two tunnels (Kamikaze Grottos) cut into the mountain during the Second World War by the Japanese. They planned to hide speedboats in these tunnels, but fortunately, the war ended.

From the beach, I can see the fishing village of Sok Kwu Wan. There are many boats and traditional floating fishing platforms. I arrive at Sok Kwu Wan, passing a temple with large water Lily pots. The fishing village has many seafood restaurants and a Ferry terminal that will take me back to Hong Kong Central later in the day.

I pass through the village as the hike now does a large loop of the south half of the island, returning back to Sok Kwu Wan. I check the ferry timetable, and I start walking clockwise around this section. I pass a cliff face where some people are rock climbing. Then a person running, coffee in hand, trying to catch the departing ferry passes me. They would have come from the next town, Mo Tat Wan. I see the very steep path to Mo Tat Wan and decide to skip it.

I cross over the island again, passing through Mo Tat New Village and Mo Tat Old Village. The story goes, termites made an entire row of houses collapse. So the entire village moved 45 meters south. I’m now on the far east side of the island, and this side of the island is much more remote. The vegetation has changed to a healthy sub-tropical rainforest in parts and a swamp. I spot a casuarina pine native to this area. Same long leaves, but that’s where the similarities end.

I start to see some butterflies, which turn into many different species of butterflies. Blue ones, yellow, and various different ones. I start counting species, but quickly lose count.

Eventually, I see some dramatic rocks in the ocean and arrive at the very remote fishing village of Yung Shue Ha. The beach here is amazing. And there are pockets of brown volcanic granite in the ocean and on the land. The sand here is nice and is worth a swim. I walk to the other side of the beach, where the second town, Tung O, is.

This beach village reminds me of the movie trope where the hero of the movie is hiding away in a remote beach village in lands far away. This village is also very inaccessible, so it also meets that criteria. I see a house for rent and ponder.

After walking through the mostly abandoned Tung O village, the walk starts climbing up over the mountain. This is the steepest part of the walk, still paved. I pass a wild boar foraging in a swamp. It hadn’t noticed me. As soon as I made a sound, it bolted out of sight.

Soon the bush thins and Mount Stenhouse appears and a hill top pavilion. The landscape is littered with volcanic granite and short shrubs. I eventually arrive at the pavilion to be greeted with amazing views of Hong Kong and its islands. I also see the path that leads up to the summit of Mount Stenhouse. I look at my watch and see I’m already 3 hours into this hike, and decide to get the next ferry rather than summit the mountain. The path up looked fun and steep, and no doubt you’d be rewarded with even better views.

I slowly descend down the steps to Sok Kwu Wan. Passing an old cemetery. I start to see other hikers again, and I take in the views of Sok Kwu Wan. I arrive at the ferry where there are many people waiting. Restaurant guests as well as other hikers from Yung Shue Wan. The ferry arrives, and I find a comfortable seat on the Sea Star for the ride back to Hong Kong to enjoy the festivities of NYE and welcome in 2026.

An old friend got in touch with me and wanted to know if I wanted to go for a bushwalk around Woy Woy to see a waterfall that we could potentially swim in. Since it was summer and I had not seen him for a while, I was in.

After catching up at the trailhead we start walking along a fire trail, and not even 50 meters in, there’s a large, beautiful Red Belly Black snake, sunning next to a pool of water. Normally, in the summertime, there’s always a chance to see a snake or two on the trail.

After admiring the snake, we enter Brisbane Waters National Park and are met with a sign “HELP STOP ROOT ROT” (Phytophthora). I don’t normally see these signs around Sydney, but this was a first. The sign had some good tips for how to clean your boots and prevent this mud-loving fungus from spreading around the bush. It recommended having a mix of 70% methylated spirits and 30% water in a spray bottle and one of those dishwashing brushes in your car and scrubbing your boots before and after use. As I bushwalk in a lot of different environments I think it’s important that I start doing this. In Tasmania, they had boot cleaning stations with hand pumps which are very handy.

After walking a little while, we get to the cross-section to go down to the waterfall. I suggest we go climb Mount Wondabyne (251m) then come back down to the waterfall to cool off.

Having decided to climb Mount Wondabyne first, we get to a bridge and my friend spots an engraving in the stone. It’s a bit odd. It’s on a vertical sandstone face and not flat on the ground, and it’s a bit cartoon-looking, ruling out it being indigenous. This area has a history of fake glyphs engraved in its sandstone. There are some very popular Egyptian-styled glyphs elsewhere in this National Park that have spawned all sorts of fun theories over the years. Sadly, those glyphs are graffiti, like our rabbit-like creature with a bucktooth here.

Being warm, there are all sorts of insects out and about. There’s a decent amount of Golden Orb Weaving Spiders (Nephila plumipes) that are blocking the trail and these things aren’t small. We even spot a Botany Bay Cockroach (Polyzosteria limbata).

Just before we start to ascent Mount Wondabyne, we pass a nice campsite. It has pit toilets and ample room for tents. No doubt this is here for bushwalkers on the Great North Walk.

As we ascend Mount Wondabyne via its spur, the trail narrows and there’s a bit of scrambling to the top. As we get higher the view gets better and the environment changes. I can count three different species of butterflies flying around us as we climb up. The spiders are also hunting with their large spider webs across the trail.

The top of the mountain is marked by a tig station (TS5606) as well as spectacular views. Moving about the trees you can get a 360° view around the Central Coast. South southwest you can see the Buddhist Temple in Terrey Hills. North east you can see Gosford. North West you can see Dharug National Park in the distance and southeast you can see the South Pacific Ocean
.

After enjoying the view we make quick work of getting to the waterfall. The waterfall (The Trough Waterfall) is actually a man-made water reservoir situated underneath an existing natural waterfall and on top of a rock shelf. It creates a picturesque pool that you can swim in. The history of the pool is unknown. It has been used as a reservoir for various reasons over the years.

After a swim and a bite to eat, we head back up to the top of the waterfall where I discover indigenous tool-sharpening grooves which are always great to find. There is also an odd convict-like marking at the top of the waterfall.

Shortly after this, we head back to the trailhead and visit the nearby indigenous engraving site, with many indigenous engravings including a kangaroo, dolphin, fish and the famous Bulgandry man who wears an impressive headdress. After this, we call it a day and grab a coffee.

I wanted to do a walk using Myles J. Dunphy, Gangerang Wild Dog Mountains sketch map. I found a campsite named Frying Pan Campground and Heeler Campground that seemed like a good candidates. Being an old map I had to cross reference with modern maps to confirm that these trails and campgrounds still existed. Frying Pan is still used as a campsite and is now named Frying Pan Flat. I couldn’t find any modern references to Heeler. With my research done it was time to pack the tent and head off.

Day 1

 - Creeks and Challenges

The initial walk down is along the national parks marked Carlons Creek Track to Breakfast Creek. The start of the track goes down some reclaimed farmland. It’s nice, but it’s obviously old farmland and there’s lots of weeds. I spotted a feral pig on the opposite side of the gully. This is the first time I’ve seen a feral pig in a National Park.

Eventually, the track gets down to the creek and it’s quite overgrown with weeds including stinging nettles. I carefully step around them and only get stung once. It had rained the previous day and it was warm and I thought "Oh, I should check for leeches". I pulled up the legs of my pants and my shoes and socks were alive with leeches. I quickly flicked them all off and applied some insect repellent to my shoes. I periodically checked my shoes for the rest of the walk and didn’t get bitten. It's easy to flick them off before they bite you.

Because the track was wet, it was quite slippery especially with the type of rocks on this trail. I also lost the trail and started heading up the gully on an animal trail. The animal trail that I was on was quite pleasant but I clued in that I was walking too high in the gully. I backtracked and headed directly down until I hit the trail or creek.

I finally get to the end of the Carlons Creek Track and continue down the creek until I hit Breakfast Creek. With the leeches, stinging nettle, slipping on the rocks and continuously losing the track. I’m finding the initial part of the walk slightly unpleasant.

Finally, the weeds and leeches disappear and the walk becomes quite pleasant along Breakfast Creek. There is a challenge of finding where the trail is and what side of the creek I should be on but it’s extremely hard to get lost as the creek is well defined and the track hugs the creek.

I approach where Heeler Camp was shown on the sketch map. I see a flat section from the creek of where it could be. I go off track for a bit to see if I could find it, but I couldn't see any clearings.

The trail rises in spots and at one section it goes over a ridge to skip a U-turn in the creek. Eventually, I reach Frying Pan Campground. The creek is beautiful and there’s plenty of spots to camp. From the camp you can see Ironmonger Hill which looks like an arduous climb. There is evidence that pigs have dug up part of the campsite and it’s a little sad.

I set up camp, have a swim and reflect on how those early bushwalkers would’ve walked down here with those old canvas A-frame tents with wooden poles. The birdlife around camp is outstanding. The only bird I could identify was a pair of wedged-tail eagles. For the rest of the day, I keep an eye on two nosey redbelly black snakes around camp.

Side note: I upgraded my tent situation from a tarp shelter to a tent with walls. So luxurious.

Day 2 - Clear Waters

After a great sleep, I pack up camp and start the return journey to the car. Today is sunny and the trail is much more enjoyable. I take my time along Breakfast Creek and stop to look at the various flowers and views along the way.

I’m unsure how I missed this on the walk-in, but I spot some very old River Sheoak with very thick bases. The water along breakfast Creek is crystal clear and you can see all the rocks along the bottom. It’s a very pleasant walk.

As I’m taking my time it’s easy to find the trail that was originally on Miles Dunpheys sketch map. Parts of it hard to find due to tree fall or animal trails. I take my time and find the trail, never needing to walk along the creeks, like yesterday, only cross them.

There is one section on the track where a lace monitor decides to walk along the trail just ahead of me. It does so for a while. Then it decided to play dead and I’m unable to pass. I lightly tap the end of its tail with a twig to give it some encouragement to move to the side. Unfazed by the light taps I decided to dart around it. Lace monitors are known to crawl up you like a tree. Something I didn’t want to experience.

A little disappointed, I get to the start of Carlons Creek Track. Same as yesterday there are heaps of leeches and plenty of stinging nettles. After a bit of a slug up the hill, I get back to my car. I do spot some more lace monitors and two Echidnas along the way back.

While I was down in Tasmania, I really wanted to walk the Walls of Jerusalem track. It’s usually done as a multi-day hike but I really wanted to try and just walk the first section of the walk as a day hike.

While driving to the trailhead for this walk, I look out and see these giant tall trees that surround the road. I have not seen so many tall trees like this in Australian bush. It was the perfect setup for what was to come.

After signing the walker register, I start the first part of the walk which is a steep ascent up to 1250 m. For this part of the walk, I’m walking amongst these tall eucalyptus tree giants. They must be so old.

During the ascent I pass the old trappers hut, an old wooden hut where the trappers used to stay whilst snaring animals for skins. The original hut, which fell into disrepair, has been replaced with a replica.

Once at the top, the trail flattens out into a plateau. The tall trees disappear, the bush changes to alpine scrub and you can see the snow capped Cradle Mountain in the distance. There are small pockets of snow that are quickly melting in the sun.

After a while, I pass the first tarn, a small mountain lake on the plateau. The track in spots is muddy and marshy. I’m doing an excellent job at keeping my shoes dry by rock-hopping.

After a while I reach the Solomons Jewels, a collection of small tarns scattered amongst the alpine environment. From here I see King Davids Peak (1499m) and this really frames up for me what Tasmania is all about.

The bush up here is mainly alpine with pencil pines scattered around. The pencil pine is a relative to the King Billy pine with some pencil pines up here aged over a thousand years old. I see a few large stands of pencil pines but I have no way of knowing their age. I'm really enjoying this new environment. It’s so unique and feels distinctly Tasmanian.

I walk over a small hill and down into the marshy Wild Dog Creek. My shoes squelch as I walk along the wooden boardwalk that’s barely above the mud line. After the creek, I pass Wild Dog Creek Campsite and head towards Herods Gate. Heroes Gate is the entrance to the Walls of Jerusalem and as I crest the top of the pass, I see the view of the walls that surround Lake Salome. What a sight. I walk along Lake Salome to find a good spot for lunch. I find a dry rock, sit down facing Mount Ophel (1355m) and soak up the view. The trail heads towards Mount Jerusalem (1459m) which I can see between two mountains however Lake Salome was my intended destination for today.

After lunch and a long break, I turn around and backtrack to the hire car, passing multiple walkers doing the multi-day walk. I have the gear in Tasmania to do the multi-day walk but sadly I’ve run out of days in Tasmania, so I’ll have to return to this amazing part of the world later. This would be my last walk for my trip as well. What a trip.

After finishing the Three Capes Track I wanted to head north to Cradle Mountain. I originally wanted to do the cradle mountain circuit but the previous night had dumped snowfall on the track and I don’t have walking gear for snow so I opted to do the Dove Lake circuit instead. I normally bushwalk with trail runners that are not watertight. Coming to Tasmania, I realised that my shoes were actually summer shoes. If your feet get wet they dry pretty easily with warm weather. Down here in Tasmania, when your feet get wet they stay damp and cold longer.

After catching a bus to Ronny Creek from the visitor centre, I start heading up the mountain. There’s a light dusting of snow and almost immediately I’m greeted by two wombats grazing on the grass. I must admit these wombats are much cuter than the mainland ones.

I continue up the trail to Dove Lake. The snow on the trial is making this walk mystical. As elevation gets higher, the dusting of snow gets thicker.

After while I get to Dove Lake and the highly photogenic Dove Lake Boatshed. There is quite a lot of people around so I don’t stick around long and start to walk around the lake in a clockwise direction.

As I start the loop it begins to snow and I start to layer up my clothes. This is where I accidentally left a glove behind on a rock about five minutes prior on the trail. I realise I left my glove on the rock and head back to pick it up, unfortunately, the glove is gone. A little annoyed, I continue on the trail but I don’t let the lost glove dampen the mood.

The walk stays very close to the water which makes for a very picturesque walk. You can look up and you can see Cradle Mountain, Mount Campbell, Hansons Peak and various other mountains.

I’m taking it all in. With the light dusting of snow, everything looks mystical. I wish I had researched the types of trees before I started this walk as they’re some spectacular ones.

After while I reach the Ballroom Forest and what a sight. The forest, which is normally green and lush is frozen and white. Some of these trees look extremely old.

After stopping for some lunch head around to the start of the loop and catch the bus back down to the visitor centre. I spontaneously get off at Ronny Creek again to get some more photos of the wombats as now the snow has melted. As I’m walking along the boardwalk, I pass a large rock and lo and behold my glove is on top. I am taken aback by the chance of finding the glove again, hours later in a complete different section of the park.

This was my first walk with snow and I’m already thinking about my next winter trip using snowshoes.

Port Arthur to Surveyors, 4 km

I’m down in Tasmania and about to embark on the three capes track. I’m waiting at a wharf where a boat will pick us up and drop us off at the trailhead which is a remote beach. It’s one hell of a start for such an epic hike.

As the boat pulls up to Denmans Cove, everybody steps into the knee-high water and walks towards the beach, carrying all their gear for the next four days on their backs.

I’m quite excited because this is my first bush walk in Tasmania. After drying off our feet and putting our shoes back on, I start walking up the hill, as the track rises in elevation I get these sweeping views of Port Arthur.

The day-one walk isn’t exactly hard. It’s quite short being only 4 km however they provide you with a book that has short stories and pieces of information that match up to marked seats along the trail. They call these encounters. These encounters really add to the whole experience of the walk. Stopping and reading these pages that are tailored for the exact location is really great. An example would be flowers in the vicinity of the seat or a story from a lighthouse keeper.

Along the way I stop at Surveyors Cove which is a lovely Cove with small round rocks. I spot a yellow-tailed black cockatoo in the trees. This will be the last time until the end of the trip that we are at sea level.

On the way to the first hut, I see a very tame echidna and an entirely new set of flora that I’ve never seen before.

Each night the walk provides a shared hut to sleep in. These huts have gas and all the kitchen utensils you would need to cook an amazing meal however they don’t have any food or refrigeration. The first hut on this walk is called the Surveyors hut. I reached it pretty quickly and I was blown away by the quality of the hut. There is a communal area with a kitchen and a small library and games. There are individual rooms with bunk beds for sleeping. You are assigned a room with others and you keep that room number for the entire walk and at all the future huts.

After cooking dinner and getting to know everyone I retire to bed.

Day 2 - Colour and contrast

Surveyors to Munro, 11 km

Refreshed and ready for day two, the start of the day is met with a small obstacle. I managed to break my front main hip buckle on my backpack by stepping on it. After finding a small carabiner in my bag I use that as the main way of connecting the two hip straps. After a little bit of adjustment, I’m happy with my fix and I start the day's walk.

Sleeping at the trailhead allows you to get on the trail early in the morning. The trail starts off really quiet before the wind picks up, it’s like walking through a stillness. Then, slowly, you get the birds chirping and the sun rises and the bush comes alive.

Today’s walk is only 11 km so I take it slow and take it all in. After walking through a heath. I start to climb Arthurs Peak which is 312 m. The views from the top are amazing and hint at what’s to come.

After a very light shower, the wind starts to pick up. More on the wind later. I stop with a few others on the walk and have lunch with views of the Tasman Sea. There’s a great sense of community on this walk something that I’ve never had on other multi-day walks.

I stop at some seats that overlook Haines Bight. The Tasman Sea is ferocious and non-forgiving. I sit here for just under an hour watching the waves crash against the cliffs. With the wind picking up the the sea is turbulent and spotting whales is tricky.

The rest of the day's walk is pretty uneventful. I visited a free campsite with another walker which is well equipped with a toilet, water and platforms for tents. As I arrive at Munro hut, I noticed that there is a hot shower next to my cabin. With the sun poking out I decide to quickly take advantage of it before the other walkers arrive. The open-air shower was amazing.

The view from the lookout platform looks up Munro Bight. You can see Cape Hauy, the 3rd cape, in the distance. It’s an amazing view and over the next two days, I revisit the platform multiple times.

Day 3 - Drama and adrenalin

Munro to Retakunna - via Cape Pillar, 19 km

Today’s walk is the longest of all four days. The night before we had a briefing from the hut caretaker of high winds and gusts 80 km an hour. Something you don’t want on the top of a cliff. A few of us were chatting about it and had collectively decided to leave early to try and beat the wind. Others were trying to aim for the afternoon when the wind was predicted to die down.

Starting early on the trail, the wind had not picked up yet. Before we leave for the day we drop our packs in a storage hut and do the day walk with a day pack. The walk today is out to Cape Pillar and back to another hut, so I’ll be able to pick up my bag later on in the day.

The start of the day is pretty nice. It’s a pretty good walk. I’m enjoying the heathland environment and the valleys with ocean views. It’s pretty telling when all the plants are so short because the winds won’t let the plants grow any taller.

After a while, a sign warns of cliffs and sure enough, there were cliffs. From this part on there are many vantage points from the trail. They are all spectacular. I passed multiple vantage points and had a look around. Every spot is a little different. Eventually, I get my first view of Tasman Island and its Lighthouse.

Tasman Island is a fairly round Island with a bit of elevation. It has steep cliffs on its sides and has a Lighthouse and three buildings. It also has a mechanical lift to bring passengers up from boats. It looks like an extremely remote place to live, to say the least. The Lighthouse is fully automated today and no one lives there anymore. The only way to get onto the island these days is via a helicopter.

Continuing on along the trail, I stop at another lookout and I see the Trident. This is a rock formation with three individual spires and looks like a Trident. Shortly after this, there’s a turn-off for The Blade. The Blade is the most exposed part of the entire trail but doesn’t require any major scrambling. By this time the wind had picked up quite substantially and those 80 km gusts on the very exposed Blade were interesting. At the top of The Blade, you can sort of crawl through some boulders and poke your head out. I did this very briefly, but the wind made it somewhat dangerous. Nobody crawled onto the last boulder.

After visiting The Blade, I quickly walked up to Cape Pillar (second cape) by this stage it was too windy to enjoy the views. I think I only spent two minutes up there. After this, I started the long return walk to my bag with the wind picking up more. You could hear the gust coming as it made the foliage bend and flap in the distance. When the gusts got to me, I just had to stop and hold my position. It reminded me of one time on top of Mount Kosciuszko where you could really lean into the wind, and it would support your body weight.

I get back to the bag hut, pick up my bag and start heading for Retakunna hut, the last hut for the walk. When I get to Retakunna I’m pleased to see wild Tasmanian grasslands surround the hut. The wind had started to die down. It was quite peaceful and a great respite from the wind. The rest of the day is uneventful.

Day 4 - Up, over, out and back

Retakunna to Port Arthur - via Cape Hauy and Fortescue Bay,
14 km

This was my earliest start for the entire walk at 7:30 am. The start of this walk requires you to summit Mount Fortescue (483m) and slowly make your way to the last cape.

Walking up Mount Fortescue requires you to weave through a rainforest on the side of the mountain. I’m doing this extremely early in the morning and the entire rainforest is quiet and still. It’s quite magical. There are lots of moss-covered rocks and logs.

After you reach the Summit, you start to descend the other side of the mountain, you encounter these giant tall ferns completely contrasting the rainforest on the other side of the mountain.

After a while, the bush changes back to heath. I finally get to the last intersection where we dump our packs temporarily and head for Cape Hauy, the last cape. After not too long, I reach Cape Hauy. The views from this cape are quite spectacular with a lot of unique rock formations like The Candlestick and Totem Pole. I stay here for a little while before finishing the entire walk with the last leg to Fortescue Bay, where a bus takes us back to our cars.

With the walk done, we say our goodbyes and off we go. I quite enjoyed this walk. This was a new way of multi-day walking for me. The lodges were great and not needing to carry cooking gear was a bonus.

A note about the 'three' capes. The walk includes two of the three capes. Some fit walkers do the first cape, Cape Raoul before the boat ride on Day One.

I’ve been wanting to visit the Valley of Dinosaurs within Genowlan Mesa for a while now. I originally found this walk in ‘Mugii Murum-ban State Conservation Area - A Bushwalking Paradise’. A book I found in a bookshop in Blackheath. I've been up on the mountain multiple times during family holidays. But we never explored the area on the mountain.

I start the day by walking up the very steep Genowlan Summit Track. This track was originally built for the diamond mine that's located up on the mesa. The diamond mine shut down decades ago but artefacts of its existence are littered throughout the conservation area.

Most bushwalkers drive to the top of the mesa to start the various walks. The track to the summit is worth walking as you get to see some views of the mesas cliff edges and pagodas. On the way up, I managed to spot a giant pagoda that had fallen down a long time ago, almost intact just upside down.

Once on top of the mesa, I head towards the TS7138 Genowlan Trig station (1038m). I stop and explore a few pagodas on the side of the trail with great views. I later came back to these pagodas for lunch. I notice a cairn and a small trail on the side of the road, I save its position as a GPS waypoint and decide to visit it later.

While walking to the trig, I spotted a male Lyrebird, only meters away from me. Its tail feathers were quite exquisite. The bird itself was silent, once we saw each other, the bird quickly walked away.

The trig is just a modern cement trig, painted white. As I study the trig, I start to hear something falling from the trees. I'll look around and see some she-oak trees and make out three Red-tailed black cockatoos. Breaking open nuts on the shortest she-oak trees I've ever seen. The birds aren't phased by me and I just enjoy their presence.

My next destination is to visit the top of the Ultimate Chute. It was near where I was going and I figured I should go and see it. unfortunately, I couldn't find the entry without climbing down some large pagodas that exceeded my apatite for danger. I did however find some amazing moss-covered pagodas.

After admiring the moss-covered pagodas, I backtracked to the trig. And headed down to the pagodas southwest of the trig station. There were many pagodas here and the views were sensational. You could see the various landmarks inside the Gardens of Stone National Park including Pantoneys Crown.

I head towards the entry to the Valley of the Dinosaurs. I start to descend into the steep narrow valley. It's very steep and requires careful walking. I finally get to a drop which requires either a rope/tape or careful legwork and a small jump. initially, I decided not to go down this drop. I did have a short hiking rope as it is suggested for this walk. in the end, I bum-shuffled down to the ledge, carefully climbed down to the drop and made the small jump to the valley floor. No turning back now. After this drop, the walk is easygoing.

Once in the valley you immediately notice the very tall rough tree ferns, Cyathea australis. These ferns are quite tall and have large round bases. With a growth rate of 25-50 millimetres a year, they may be several centuries old. These ferns are why this valley is named the Valley of the Dinosaurs as ferns existed before the dinosaurs.

I continue to walk down the valley taking in the ferns and the rock faces as I walk along. There are small little water drops that trickle down to the ground. In the sandstone cliffs are water-rounded stones. I can't fathom how long ago this was all underwater. This is truly a magical place.

The valley opens up and I exit the valley. I do notice a few invasive species on my way out, that have most likely come from birds or walkers. Including Lantana.

Once back on the road, I decide to visit The Grotto. I have been up on this mountain multiple times and failed to find The Grotto multiple times. Today I come armed with a waypoint. And sure enough, I find The Grotto. As you walk in, you'll notice a handrail made of construction metal installed by former landowner Col Ribaux, the handrail guides the way. The grotto is a 200-metre-long canyon with a stream flowing through it. There are various thin handrails along the entire length of the canyon.

After exploring The Grotto, I head back to the pagodas I visited earlier and have lunch. I study the map to try and figure out where the cairn I found earlier heads. It looks like it heads to the top of the Ultimate Slot, which I was planning to visit today. I find the cairn and I follow the path, it looks like it heads to the very top of the slot canyon. I backtrack and use my pre-planned path to the top of Ultimate Slot. I slide down a narrow gully that puts me into the valley with the slot canyon. I walk down to the start of the slot and I’m forced to remove my bag. I work my way through and down the very narrow Ultimate Slot until a fallen rock blocks the rest of the path.

After a few pictures of the slot canyon, I head back to the road and down the mesa to my car.

I was talking to a fellow bushwalker about the blue gum forest in the Grose Valley and have never done the bush walk to it. Unsure why, I'd never visited the forest, I now had my next bushwalk planned, Pierces pass to Blue Gum Forest. There are seven ways to get down into the Grose Valley. This walk is the easiest.

The day was pretty gloomy, wet and cold, but this didn’t deter me. Starting the walk it was apparent that this was going to be a very muddy walk. At the start of the walk, there's lots of wattle around and plants you’d expect in the classic blue mountains bush. But as you start to descend the steps, the environment changes into a rainforest. I pass some rock formations that are similar to the rock formations near Bell.

Because it is raining the rainforest is alive, wet and vibrant. The water is flowing down the creeks. And the moss is alive. The track descends the gully alongside the creek. After a while, the canopy opens up, and you can see the full valley. The orange sandstone cliff faces present themselves and they are spectacular. Low clouds are hanging around the valley with fog rising as the day warms up.

The walk down to the gross river is fairly quick and very steep. I try not to think about the walk back up. I eventually reach the gross river, which is flying with the recent rain. After rock hopping across the river, I head downstream on the western bank of the river. Once on the western side of the river, I get a glimpse of the walk I’ve just walked down. Luckily, the beauty of the sandstone cliffs makes me forget that I need to walk back up there later.

The walk along the grove river has a formed track, but there are parts of the Trail that have been washed out by landslides. There are a few parts where the track ascends the valley partially to avoid these landslides. I would recommend shoes that have ankle support for this Trail as the track is mostly at an angle.

After a few kilometres, I start to see the blue gum forest. The tall blue gums tower over the forest floor. Reaching into the sky. I’m glad Myles Dunphy and others saved this great forest. The forest today is within a UNESCO World Heritage Site. For future generations to admire.

I sit down and have lunch amongst the stand of trees admiring how tall they are. After a while, I pack up and start to return down the path I came. Knowing that I had a big climb out of the valley.

After a few kilometres across to the river and start to send the steps out of the valley. As I'm walking up the steps, I hear a massive boulder dislodge and fall from the cliff face with a deep low thump. I decide to walk a little quicker past the parts of the track that are closer to the cliff.

I briefly take shelter in a rock overhang when it starts to sprinkle and to have a rest. I then hear a lyrebird rotating through the various bird songs. Mimicking the birds perfectly.

I soon get up to the rainforest and it's so dark. With the short winter day and the dark clouds, hardly any light gets down to the forest floor. Yet, the rainforest looks magical.

I start to see flowering wattle and know that I'm close to the start of the Trail. And sure enough half a kilometre later I'm back at the car. I loved this walk and will be visiting the valley again, maybe from one of the other passes into the valley.

I had the itch to do an overnight hike and looked into walking to a campsite that I had previously camped at, Ten Mile Hollow in Dharug National Park. I've walked to this campsite from Dubbo Gully Road, Mangrove Mountain. However, this time I wanted to walk to the campsite from Wisemans Ferry via the Old Great Northern Road.

There was no parking at the start of this walk, so I had to park on the other side of Hawkesbury River and catch the car ferry across. The ferry is pretty quick and offers a quick glance up the river.

The Old Great North Road was originally built by convicts between 1825 and 1836 and is now a World Heritage Walk.

The start of the track is well-maintained. There are lots of info blocks on the Devine's Hill section with little facts about the road with replica items like shackles used on the convicts.

The road has an engineered stone retaining wall on the left, cut out from the sandstone from a nearby quarry, all done by hand, by convicts.

It's not long until I come to the infamous Hangman's Rock. I remember visiting this as a kid. The story goes that convicts that got out of line would be hung through the hole. There appears to be no evidence that the cave was ever used for hangings.

I finished the Devine's Hill section of the track pretty quickly, and started heading towards Ten Mile Hollow.

I had found out that there are koalas along this trail, and I knew of a section that had some sightings, so I was keen to try and spot a koala. Not entirely sure which trees they would be in. I had to guess. I found some trees with some roughed-up bark on them, but I'm not sure if these were koala markings or another animal. I then found a smooth eucalyptus tree that had markings that looked like a koala. later, I confirmed with my 'Tracks, scats and Other Traces' book that they were. Sadly, I didn't see any koalas, but finding these markings was pretty good in itself.

I'm about halfway and it starts to sprinkle. I put on my wet weather gear, pick up the pace and get to camp as quickly as possible.

Before you get to Ten Mile Hollow, you pass Wat Buddha Dharma, which is a Buddhist temple in the middle of the national park. I didn't visit on this occasion, however visitors are welcome.

I arrive at Ten Mile Hollow, and I set up my tarp before the heavy rain starts. Happy with my setup, I decided to go for a short walk to see Clare's Bridge, the second oldest bridge in Australia. The bridge looks like It's part of a castle. It doesn't look like it's a bridge. It's quite the sight. It's been partly restored, and NPWS plans to build the original timber decking. I return to camp, just as the rain starts, and I'm confined to the tent for the rest of the evening.

The next morning, the sun's out, and it's a glorious day. I wait for all my gear to dry before packing up and setting off back to Wiseman's ferry.

I'm constantly reminded walking along this road of its convict origins. You can see the marks of the Convicts along the entire way. The chips in the wall, the reinforced road, the cobblestone. Every kilometre or so something reminds you that convicts built this entire thing in chains.

After four or so hours, I arrive back at Wiseman's Ferry, catch the ferry back over to my car and call it a day.

I've been wanting to do a bushwalk in the Heathcote National Park for a while now. The Royal National Park just over the road gets all the attention. Today I planned to do the Bullawarring track, visit Yelgun cave and return via the Mooray track.

As soon as I hit the trailhead, it was immediately clear that this was going to be a wet walk. It had been raining quite a bit in Sydney. The stairs had a pool of puddles, yet it was a very sunny day.

This is my first walk in Heathcote National Park, and the bush immediately feels very similar to the Royal National Park. There are heaps of gymea lilies. The trails are similar to the rugged tracks of the Royal National Park.

I'm not even 100 metres into this track, and my shoes are already completely wet. Normally, when it rains, a Bushwalker should stay on the path, and this is what I intend to do. The reasoning is when you walk out of the puddles or mud, you widen the path and create more damaging erosion in the environment. So it's important to stay in the middle of the path when it's raining.

The initial walk down the Bullawarring track follows some steep rocks. There's a nice rock with the footholes cut out in the sandstone, which shows how old the track is.

After a small stroll down the hill, I encounter my first creek crossing, Heathcote Creek. It's got a steady flow, but it's apparent that my shoes are going to get fully submerged. I wade through the creek up to my knees and let my shoes empty after I exit. I recently switched from Goretex-sealed shoes to fully open shoes. I found the water would stay in a Goretex-sealed shoe for the entirety of a walk. Whereas shoes with mesh would let the water exit easily. I apply some insect repellant after seeing a leech and follow a sign to the Kingfisher pool.

The mainly flat track down to Kingfisher Pool Campground is more wet than the other trail. There is a stretch where I'm walking entirely in water for 50 meters.

I reach Bondel Pool, and with all this rain, it doesn't look very inviting. I probably wouldn't swim in it. I reach the Kingfisher pool shortly after, and the waterfalls are in full flow. There's one particular part of the waterfall that looks like they were originally lava tubes that weave around each other and you can see water through the gaps. I've not seen anything like it.

The falls go over a small ledge and disappear underneath a large rock slab and continue into a larger pool area. After having a quick bite to eat, I continue to Kingfisher Pool Campground. There is a small sidetrack that goes down to Yelgun Cave, which follows Kingfisher Creek. I initially walk down this path, and it's clear that this hasn't been walked along for quite some time. The track is very overgrown but pretty easy to follow. I reached what I initially thought was Yelgun Cave, which was a rock overhang that could easily be used for cave camping. I continue along the trail because I want to know what's at the end. I get to the end of the path that is marked on my GPS, and the creek opens up to a sandstone bedrock creek with water flowing down it. It reminds me of the creeks along the America Bays track in Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park. After taking a few photos, I backtrack to the campground. During this, I discover a well-defined trail on the right. As I walked up it, I discovered that this was Yelgun cave.

The cave is not a traditional cave that you could explore with ropes and torches but a small enclosed space underneath a large sandstone shelf. It's quite dark, and I can't see inside.

after looking into the cave a bit, I return to the Kingfisher Pool campground. From here, I continue along the Bullawarring track along Heathcote Creek.

After I cross the creek, I immediately notice the amount of bird life. There are small birds everywhere.

Eventually, the track comes to an absurd amount of trail signs. This is where the trailhead for the Mooray track is.

The Mooray track follows closely to the Mooray Gully up the hill. It's less wet than the other parts of the park. I'm enjoying the Mooray track as it's more rugged than the other tracks, however it's all uphill. The bush surrounding me is the quintessential bush south of Sydney, with Giant Gymea lilies dotted around the landscape. I eventually finish the track and I see a sign exiting the national park with a koala on it, I forget that there are koalas in Heathcote National Park, and I forgot to look for them during my walk. I'll have to revisit this track.

I'm down in Kosciuszko National Park for the Easter long weekend. I'm staying in Thredbo Village. I’ve planned to go for an off-trail bushwalk along the Rams Head Range.

I start my initial walk by taking the Kosciuszko Express chairlift up to the Kosciuszko walking track. The views from the chairlift are pretty good. Once off the chair lift, I'm greeted by the crowds heading up to the Kosciuszko summit. Because it's Easter, there's a massive crowd. So I get in line and start walking up along the Kosciuszko walking track with the crowd.

I reach the Kosciuszko View Lookout, and this is where I plan to head southwest off the trail and head towards Rams Head. I first gauge the best way to walk up the first Ridge. I see a grassy access and aim for that. Once I get over the first steep ridge, I get my first glimpse at Rams head north. I walk right up to the base of it and skirt around to the north side. I look at trying to summit it but decide not to as it requires rock climbing.

From Ram's Head North, I start to look at the Ram's Head Range and Ram's Head Mountain and how I intend to climb it. I head towards the northern part of the ridge, towards Cootapatamba Hut. It seems to be the easiest way to get onto the range. Also, I’d like to get a glimpse of Cootapatamba Hut.

I make my way up to the northmost end of the range and the views from this ridge are absolutely spectacular. I can't see the hut. So I descend the ridge following my compass bearing for the hut and see if I can start to see it. I descend quite a bit down the ridge, and then I get my first glimpse of Cootapatamba hut. It's so tiny in the middle of nowhere. It's bright red. This hut is still in use and is used for walkers or skiers who descend the south side of Mount Kosciuszko and end up in this wilderness by mistake. There's a ladder on the outside so you can climb into the hut via the chimney if the door is blocked by snow.

After I see the hut, I walk back up to the ridge and continue along the spur onto the Rams head range. You can see all the way down into Victoria. It's quite beautiful. I slowly walk up to the first peak (2,152m) on the Ram's Head Ridge, and the views are spectacular. Along the top of the ridge, there are remnants of a chairlift that used to be here. Throughout the day, I see many of these scattered around the landscape. I try to find a survey marker or something for the first ridge, but I can't seem to locate anything. I then head to the second peak (2,183m) along the ridge, and it's a fairly easy walk. At this peak, there's a rocky outcrop, and I climb to the top, again, trying to find a survey mark or anything, but I can't find anything. From up here, the views are spectacular. 360 degrees unobstructed. You can see Mount Kosciuszko easily. You can also see Lake Cootapatamba directly south of Mount Kosciuszko.

The landscape is barren, there are no trees, and there are rocky outcrops everywhere. There's the odd piece of metal from the abandoned chairlift from a bygone era. After a while, I plan my route to ascend to Rams Head Mountain. It has an elevation of 2,190 metres. It's the fourth tallest mountain on the Australian continent. Only 38 meters under Mount Kosciuszko.

To get over to the base of the mountain from the 2,183m peak, I walk down along the saddle between the two peaks. To get up to the summit of Rams Head Mountain, I ascend the east side along a small, narrow part where there's grass, With my well-planned route, climbing the mountain is very easy.

The views up here are just spectacular. You also get a view of South Rams Head. Which does look quite far away. There is a trig station of sorts up here. It doesn't look like an official survey marker, but it's a few scraps of metal supported by some big rocks. I found what I think is the TS60-SMA-0134 marker, which is a bolt glued into the rock.

I walk to the western side of the summit, and you can just see the Cootapatamba hut. Because it's bright red, it's easy to spot, but it's very, very tiny. After taking a few photos and soaking in the views, I plan my route back to Thredbo. I decided not to walk down to South Rams Head as I didn't have enough time left in the day. From Ram's Head, I aim to go towards the Easterly side of Rams Head North and back to Mount Kosciuszko Walk. I set a bearing on my compass and descended the mountain. Heading this way is a little bit more challenging as there are more rocky outcrops and creeks to navigate around. It's not too challenging, but it's more tricky to navigate accurately with so many rocky outcrops. I trust my compass bearing and head that way.

As I'm walking along, I see a flock of a hundred ravens, Maybe 200 ravens. When I get to the base of one of the gullies, I cross Merritts Creek. Which in parts is dry and trickling in other parts.

I don't know how anything could live in this environment up here. It's a very harsh environment, except for today. I've been up on the main range in snow, freezing rain and wind. But today the weather is absolutely perfect. I could have worn shorts with my shirt but didn't pack any assuming the mountains would throw some harsh weather at me.

I find a blue yabby claw on the bottom of one of the creek beds. A very bizarre discovery. I later find out that the ravens catch these in the rivers below the snowline, and they bring them up here to eat.

From Merritts Creek, I head over another ridge and down another gully until I'm on the Eastern side of Rams Head North. From here, I only need to go over the first ridge I crossed, and then I'll be able to see the metal walkway up to Mount Kosciuszko.

I've overshot my return to the metal walkway, and I've encountered a bit of a steeper descent from the original walk-in. I encounter some issues with my GPS, so I can't see where I have walked previously. I want to use the same safe route back to the steel walkway, but I can't see it in my GPS. So I set my compass to a bearing for the shortest path. This means that my descent is a little slower than normal. So I zigzag down this ridge to try and avoid the steep parts and the sheer rock faces. I eventually get to the steel pathway. The only real issue for the whole day. I have a drink of water, pack my compass away, and then head my way down the Kosciuszko walk to the Kosciuszko Express chairlift and descend back down into Thredbo.

I'm down at Thredbo for the Easter long weekend, and I decided to walk the Dead Horse Gap walking track.

There's two ways you can approach the track. You can either walk south out of Thredbo along the Thredbo River walking track and walk up the Rams Head range and return by the Kosciuszko Express chairlift, or you can take the Kosciuszko Express chairlift up to the start of the track and casually walk down the range.

Because this was my third day of walking around the snowy mountains, I opted to take the easier route and start with the Kosciusko express chairlift and return via the Thredbo River walking track.

To use the Kosciuszko Express chairlift, you need to get a scenic pass to use the park's chairlifts for the day. During summer you'll be sharing the chairlift with mountain bike riders. The ride-up is picturesque. You can see great views in all directions when you get to the top there is a cafe that's usually packed. I would just skip the cafe and continue with the walk.

The start of the dead horse walking track is about 200 meters up the Kosciuszko mountain walk. There's a sign that marks the start of the walk.

The walk starts on a narrow trail that’s well-maintained with crushed granite. To your left, you have sweeping views of Thredbo Valley, and to the right, you can see the Rams head range. At the start of the track, you'll walk past a T-bar used in winter.

As you progress along the walk, the views become more spectacular. The Stone structures along Rams Head Range look spectacular.

I stopped for a moment here to take in the view of Rams Head Mountain (2,190m) as I walked to the summit of Rams Head Mountain the previous day. Which is partly why I'm walking down the mountain today. I'm glad I decided to skip climbing South Ram's Head, but I'll save that story for another blog post.

The weather today is absolutely superb I'm able to get away with wearing just a T-shirt. The skies are blue and visibility is far.

As you start to descend the range, the foliage gets thicker and trees start to surround you. The last part of the track becomes steep with stairs. You are greeted by the Thredbo River and a bridge that you can walk over.

This is the end of the Dead Horse Gap track and the start of the Thredbo Riverwalk which will take you back to Thredbo. There's a sign that shows you the direction to the walk.

The walk back to Thredbo is along long grassy plains, with a few occasional crossings of the Thredbo River. The river itself is picturesque and worth a stop or two. The walk back to Thredbo takes about an hour.

After the walk, I noticed that both walks have a total combined descent of 600 meters. My legs thank me.

It's Autumn, and it's starting to cool down in Sydney. While the weather is still warm, I decided to walk down to The Basin campground in Ku-ring-gai chase national park and do some snorkelling.

I've never been to the Basin, which is surprising. So today was a great opportunity to check out the camp facilities. I packed a towel, swimmers and rashie. I strapped my snorkelling gear to the outside of my pack, and I was ready.

Near the start of the trail are a half dozen aboriginal engravings depicting fish and people. They are in excellent condition and are worth a look.

The road down to the Basin is a well-graded dirt path that changes to a grooved cement road on the steep decline down to the campground.

The road to The Basin is pretty uninspiring until you hit the cement. From here, you steeply wind down to the campground. If you look around, you'll see the environment change rapidly from some bush with turpentine trees to pockets of rainforest.

Once I get to The Basin campground, I check out the wharf where the ferry docks. There are heaps of boats visiting for the day. I'm amazed at how busy the whole area is.

The campground looks good. There is a paid phone charging station, ice for sale, toilets and showers. There are vending machines with snacks. From what I saw, there was NPWS staff staying at the campground.

I head over to the protected bay, find some shade and gear up for a snorkel. The water is perfect, and it's a great way to cool off.

It's not very clear water, but I come across a well-camouflaged cuttlefish which I almost miss. There are lots of small tropical fish. I then find myself in the centre of a school of hundred or so medium-sized fish. They don't really care that I'm there and swim around me. I'm unsure what species they are.

I head back to my gear, dry off, have a bite to eat, use the toilets to change into dry clothes, and start the trek back to the car. I see a handful of lace monitors walking around the campsites looking for a feed.

The hill out of the Basin is not too bad. It is steep, but the cement does make it easy. As I'm slowly walking back, I pass a very tame swamp wallaby. It's not bothered that I'm walking past.

It's only a short time until I'm back at the trailhead.