I missed out on today's walk and the information below is supplied by Peter and Ron. -Jack
Tolosa Park Walk
11 Aug 2020
The walk today was advertised as Tolosa Park and most of us supposed
that we would be meandering the on some of the many tracks that
commence from Tolosa Park or connect directly to other tracks in the
area including many of the Mountain Bike tracks.
However, just as we were to leave the car park Bob (our illustrious
leader) advised the gathered walkers that today our goal would be
Victor’s Garden which we have visited on a couple of previous
occasions.
Shortly after starting our walk Bob diverted off into the bush seeking a shortcut
to another track.
Whoops, as a result of resent wet weather the access across the creek was a bit
deep so we were back on the firetrail.
After quite a bit of crossing new tracks both walking and biking, we were slowly
climbing the low hills of Mount Wellington towards our goal.
A great view of snow on Mount Wellington.
Local wildlife making sure we did not hang around in their private paddock.
Lunch on a well selected log for the troops.
Then up we go towards our goal with a very well built stone bridge for the bikers
to race across. It is part of the North-South Track the joins Glenorchy with the
main entrance to Mt Wellington near Fern Tree. My guess is that the riders would
not be in a position to appreciate the construction.
I thought it might be interesting for some of our photos to be taken from the front
of the group instead the rear as usual.
As a result we ended up with some posing for the camera.
We then left the fire trails for a bush scramble for the last few hundred metres.
Then Victor’s Garden walls appeared out of the forest.
On the return trip to the cars our leader slipped in a couple of authorized short-
cuts.
It was a cold start but the weather was just right for our walk and we had 15
walkers and covered approx12.5 kms in 5 hours and 10 minutes.
Wayne supplied some old photos from the time Victor lived up here.
The Temple had 4-5 terraces and a hut.
It's thought the main two story hut was built by Victor shortly after
the 1967 bushfires. There was a main hut as mentioned, at the end of the
terrace was a lean-to workshop. A bunkhouse on stilts, painted to blend
into the bush, was also on the same level. There was a cultivated
terrace with a row of small pines (bigger now), two bee hives, a gate, a
benched track and a man made water hole. Strawberries were reported as
growing there by another visitor. Victor evidently kept an open house
and there was a visitors book.
There are several ideas about the site pre
Victor. 1. It was an old logging site. 2. That either during or
immediately after WWII a sect established its self there, but abandoned
it well before the arrival of Victor. This would fit with the name of
"Theosophical Temple" given by the WPMT. That's the Wellington Park
Management Trust. The Temple burned down c. 1985 and Victor moved to
another hut he built.
Victor built Victor's Hut No. 2 after the
fire and it's said he became a priest and returned to the Ukraine around
1988. There is an opinion that Hut No. 2 was the Temple.
I found the following on www.bushwalk.com, by Swifty.
My
goodness that goes back many years. I used to attend a high school at
the top of Tolosa Street, from where we could see the roof of Victors
Hut reflecting the sunlight from the lower slopes of Mt Arthur. We are
talking 1977! Needless to say, we wagged school one afternoon and
followed the fire trails in the general direction and found the place.
It was decorated out with religious themes which changed every few
months - Buddhist, Muslim, Christian at different stages, and yes there
was a garden below, all fenced in. It was a double story hut, quite
comfortable really. Heard a rumour that council eventually got the
structure pulled down. I think we even met Victor there once, a special
sort of guy.
Click here to download GPX file
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