Meehan Range 2014

Yeah, yeah, good weather again for our walk on the Eastern Shore.

I'm only human...

I have a confession to make. I've been playing with my camera settings and somehow I've put it on low resolution so the photos aren't up to standard.

I've had a very strong word with myself and feel severely chastised and promise not to fiddle again. I told myself if happens again, I'll have to hire a child to take care of all the technical work. Sorry.

This is a walk through open bush in the Meehan Range with the start at the end of Belbins Road. Except for a couple of tracks, this is all on old or existing firetrails or old roads left over from various commercial operations.

Team discussion

Slightly damp under foot, but not bad

The Meehan Range is named after James Meehan who, in 1803, was the first registered surveyor to operate in the Hobart area. Actually, in the Risdon area as it was Lieutenant Bowen's original site.

James Bowen was sent by the colonial government of the time to help settle the Hobart area. This was to stop the French, who Britain was at war with at the time. Nothing changes.

Up the first little hill

We then turn off to traverse the hill

Attractive gums

 This area is home to eucalyptus risdonii, (Risdon Peppermint) a very rare gum that only lives on dry, north-east to westerly facing slopes on the eastern shore of the Derwent near Hobart. If I had known what they look like, I would have taken their picture. Next time.

Slight holdup

Open bush

It's a pleasant walk and we turned off the old road to follow a track along the side of a hill before turning up to cross the track again.

Along the way, we didn't go unnoticed.

Interested local

We now follow an old, well constructed road down and come to an area of quarry activity. Seems the old siltstone deposits were good for road surfaces as it needed no crushing to use.

Up the hill to the road

We came to a gate (locked) and made our way through the fence and went into stealth mode for a short while, before entering back into the reserve.

We were never here!

Through another gate and back to a road

Not exactly a major obstacle

Morning Tea

Back to the reserve... for a while.

We followed and crossed several small creeks before coming to a little hill as promised by Bob.

Creek hopping

Possibly Anthracobia muelleri object at top is tip of a walking stick.

Very busy wildlife path

Heading down to a creek

Fire went through here in the not too distant past

There's a creek down there

Very rare Lightus rotatii fungus

Now, I've been on this road before and I remembered the way up the hill as a very steep, loose surface. But not too bad before we turned off to the left on a smaller track along the side of a hill.

I'm not sure what's happened, surely my memory's not faulty. I think there's been a seismic event that raised hill to about 3 times the height it was when I first walked there.

We begin joyously to climb

Not so joyous now, are we?

Looking down.

Now we're on the traverse track

Rare distant view

Anyway, we did turnoff and follow a small track through the open bush and reached the top of the hill. After a short walk we turned left onto a steep, but not unpleasant track down again.

I should mention this is also a popular place for mountain bikers. Indeed, we met one coming up and nearly got taken out by another coming down. The bush is much wetter on this side of the hill, and we follow another old road out and along Stringy Bark Gulley. This takes us through an area of old workings with some concrete slabs, strange cuttings and other signs of civilization, before we reach the end and find our cars again. We decided to have lunch at the end of the walk.

Hard to miss the track

Top of the hill

Starting down

Healthy looking gum

Popular with mountain bikers, as we found.

Near the bottom

Some young cyclists and their mother

As it's school holidays, we met 2 separate mothers and their children. The first had, I think, 4 young boys and the second had only one to look out for. Better to be biking out in the bush then sitting inside.

Through old quarry area

Lunch

It's a good walk and there are tracks all over the hills so you could spend some time exploring each.

We had 14 walkers and covered 10.79km in 3:32 hours.

Click here to download GPX file 

Lower Mountain Tracks (Wellington) 2014

I'll open with the weather, you must be as bored reading this as I am writing it. We had good weather for our walk on the lower tracks of Mt. Wellington. As usual.

If we had gone up to the top, it would have been a different story, but now's not the time of year for long walks up there.

 We were being led by Gordon and we started off at the cutting just below the Fern Tree Tavern. I, and several others, had been in two minds about carrying more wet weather gear and gloves, but didn't, and didn't need them. It was a little windy at the start which cooled things down, but as it was all uphill, it wasn't too long before clothes began being shed.

Everyone getting kitted up.

Some kind soul left his stick there for another walker.

Up the stone steps into the gloom.

The Fern Glade track was a little muddy in places, but really not bad at all.
Leeches are always a worry, but at the end of the day I don't think anyone had found one.

The climb continues up towards O'Gradys Falls & Betts Vale tracks, through the bush to pick up the Shoobridge Track leading onto Lenah Valley track.

Looking off track

 There are a myriad of tracks in this area, and I'm having trouble making various maps agree. So just look at the photos and enjoy.

Left over from the 1967 fires.

Now we know where we are.

Up again

Lots of Man Ferns here

Large old gum that recently came down

For scale, it's nearly head height lying on the ground.

The U.S. may have the tallest trees (just) but Tasmania has the tallest hardwood.

Just when you thought you got away, here's a Urnula campylospora

Growing in the top of a stump

Morning Tea

Morning Tea was taken on the way. After tea, we continued on to pick up the Lenah Valley track. Passing over old avalanche sites with glimpses of both Hobart and the Organ pipes.

We walked down past an old cabin picking up the Finger Post track.

Rock Cabin

Looking over Hobart, River Derwent to the Eastern Shore.

Heading down for lunch

It's fairly steep with muddy places and rocks to trip you up.

Heading down the Finger Post track, we turn off for our lunch destination at Rocky Whelan's Cave.

Rocky Whelan's cave

It's called the back entrance, but you'd have to be a Hobbit to use it.

Detail of cave roof. Possible art shot

Rocky Whelan was a Bushranger and not a very nice one. John "Rocky" Whelan was big for the time, over 6 feet with a big build. He had a couple of bolt holes, here on the side of Mt. Wellington and another near Kingston. He would murder then rob his victims. For more information this website of the Hobart Walking Tours gives a colourful description.
Just click here Rocky Whelan bio

After lunch, we continued on our way down past Radford's Monument. No good comes of running, you see. Stick to walking.

Radford's Monument

Moving on

After  a while we came to a turnoff to the top of Sphinx Rock, which gives a good view over Hobart. As several of the walkers hadn't seen it, some of us undertook to show them.

It's been a while since I've been there, the nanny state has taken over and put up a child proof gate. I guess the large number of children running along the path and straight over the cliff got to the authorities. Must have happened, well, never that I know of.

Despite being young at heart, we had trouble defeating the childproof lock on the gate, but we finally got the bloody thing open. Too bad we didn't have a child along to show us what to do.

Once there, it is a great view, but Carol wanted some action photos which follow.

I was asked to point my stick at Wellington, which I did while throwing in my best Fu Manchu impression. However...

This wasn't accurate for Carol, so I drew on my old Army training and tried again. But...

Everyone's an expert! Unfortunately this has put paid to my dream of a precision pointing team.

Finally, we leave and continue down to Fern Tree and a short walk along the road to the cars.

A great day was had by all. Thanks to Gordon, none of us got lost.

We had 16 Walkers and covered 9.65km in 3:43 hours.

Click here to download GPX file