Thursday 11 September, 2025

Gulaga granite formations

Distinctive fungi line

Lunch at the summit

Gulaga rainforest

Rob and Bruce inspecting the steam engine

Checking out the tors

Remnants of the steam engine

A view through the trees

Photos courtesy of Bruce, Cathie and Lenore.  Walk Report by Cathie.

Our fearless leader, Lenore, stared down the previous night’s torrential rain and the morning’s dodgy forecast, refusing to capitulate, so we saw ten intrepid souls set off with an early start from Tilba Tilba.

The ascent of Mt Gulaga is notionally 7km up and then the same 7km down, but believe me, it’s actually (BOM would say ‘feels like’) more like 72 up and 57 down. It’s a test of hearts on the way up and knees on the way down. Pacing is crucial. We had a variety of tactics … some chose an ambitious pace (I believe ‘jackrabbits’ is the technical term), while others chose a more dignified, sedate pace as befits the walking sticks cohort. This meant some managed to overshoot the morning tea stop, but thankfully there were no tears.

The table at the saddle was a welcome sight. A brief side excursion explored the statuesque granite tors along narrow paths strewn with beautiful bark ribbons. Poor old Rob missed out due to office demands.  The final ascent tackled the climb through sublime rainforest with majestic pinkwoods, towering tree ferns and groves of mint bush. With tactful support from our erstwhile leader, everyone, even the whingers, reached the summit for lunch. Happy campers all round.

The descent was enriched with an exploration of ‘the engine room’, being the vestiges of a gold mining operation just off the beaten track below the summit. As we approached the lower part of the descent, the pace slowed to better appreciate and savour the forest.

Everyone made it down the mountain, much credit to Lenore’s gentle shepherding. However, a few questions remain:

What water source was used for the gold mine sluicing?

What was nibbling the low bark of the massive brown barrel trees?

Was that solitary palm a Livistona?

Sunday 31 August 2025

Steve contemplating going down the (jack) rabbit hole

A beautiful fern forest

An inquisitive sea lion

A lovely big spotty

The bridge to Lewis Island…… and lunch

Rob, Glenn, Helen and Steve

Steve…. come back!

Mining remnants of unknown function

Photos courtesy of Margaret, Rob and Helen.  Walk report by Walk Leader Margaret.

Five of us took full advantage of the stunning weather on winter’s final day with a walk to the North Narooma Mines. Under blue skies and warm sunshine, that felt more like spring, we followed the trail through a small section of state forest, past farmland and even tested our leader’s navigation skills on a short stretch marked only with pink tape.

Along the way we explored some of the old mining infrastructure – remains of machinery, concrete slabs and several mine shafts that hinted at the area’s industrial past. It was a mix of history and nature and made for a really interesting part of the walk. Wildlife didn’t disappoint either. We spotted two lyrebirds foraging in the undergrowth, came across a red-bellied black snake sunning itself on the track (which we gave plenty of space to) and later saw a seal in the waters of Wagonga Inlet – a surprise encounter that added to the day’s highlights.

We finished the walk by crossing the boardwalk to Lewis Island, where we enjoyed a relaxed lunch in the sun. It was the perfect spot to sit back, soak in the view and enjoy good company after a morning of walking and exploring.

Thursday 28 August 2025

Keeping feet dry on the Giriwa walking trail

A shelter with a rich indigenous history

Always a spectacular place to visit

Burrill Lake foreshore

Jenny checking out the chop

Helen admiring the Giriwa shelter ‘waterfall’

Photos courtesy of Brian and Max.  Walk report by Walk Leader Sharon.

Very high winds did not deter eighteen bushwalkers from enjoying the Giriwa Walking Trail at Burrill Lake. Signs placed along the way helped us appreciate the culture of the Murramarang indigenous people who have lived in the area for at least twenty thousand years. Luckily, the morning tea and lunch areas were protected from the winds and provided wonderful views of a very choppy lake.

The highlight of this walk comes at the end when we explore the Burrill Lake rock shelter and surrounds. The cabbage tree palms and the ‘waterfall’ give this area, first excavated in 1931, a rainforest feel. Seven thousand artefacts from this site are now stored in the Australian National University.

This walk is well worth doing, especially if you are entertaining overseas visitors. The tracks are well maintained and fairly flat with delightful lake views.

Saturday 23 August 2025

Marshalling at the start

Sim leading the way

A cold surprised snake

Turlinjah Fungi

Big Spotted Gum

Photos courtesy of Neil, Steve and Donna G.  Walk report by Walk Leader Donna G.

Nine walkers were happy to be let loose in the Turlinjah area of the Moruya State Forest following some substantial rainy periods in the preceding days. This meant that the tracks were slippery and treacherous in spots and some fancy footwork was required to keep our boots dry and ourselves upright. This was all managed well and we were rewarded with some lovely rainforest sections that were abundant with moss covered logs and scattered fungi.

There were many undulations across the valleys to keep the cardio working. Along the way we observed many spectacular Spotted Gum specimens which have escaped previous logging operations due burls and abnormal growth. We were also `rewarded’ with not so welcome leeches at lunch and towards the end of the walk a docile looking snake coiled up on the track. Given the time of the year we were all surprised to see the snake but probably not as surprised as it was to see us!

All in all it was a very enjoyable walk and it was great to be back out in Turlinjah.

Wednesday 08 August 2025

Rob enjoying his birthday song

All smiles before the next `undulation’

Max and Donna with such happy smiles at the first creek crossing

Fern goddess

Going up up up

Rob proudly wearing his badge again!

Photos courtesy of Gay, Tom and Donna G.  Walk report by Walk Leader Gay.

Seven bushwalkers met at the start of this medium 12.7 km walk.  After five of us regaled the group with their respective ailments, we then set off down Duntroon Road. Of course what goes down must go up and after crossing a small creek, that’s what we did. Birthday boy Rob and our youngest member Priya, mostly out in front, were showing us how it’s done while the rest of us huffed and puffed our way up the steep incline to I Ridge Road. We were rewarded for our efforts because after the recent rain, the bush was sparkling with droplets of water, the sun was shining, the sky a brilliant blue and we were all starting to feel so much better. Instead of an apple a day keeps the doctor away, maybe it should be a “bushwalk a day”?

Glimpses of Moruya could been seen through the trees as we made our way along well cleared roads. After 6 km we stopped for a morning tea break where poor Tom promptly fell through his stool as the material gave way and Rob tried to lose his life member badge! Badge found and Tom survived. We meandered down through Snake Gully, not letting Rob stop at his infamous hanging tree, though you could see a twinkle in his eye…he wanted to! The gully is particularly lush at present and after making our way through ferns and wattles with not a single snake spotted, we emerged back onto Eastern Boundary Road, before turning back into the bush for another hill.  Innes Cutting Road is rather relentless as it seems to go up and up forever but it really is only just under a kilometre long.

With the group tiring a bit, it was time for a lunch break and removal of a couple of leeches, before tackling the last few kilometres back to the cars, with one more steep incline to conquer. While our legs were getting weary, our vocal cords were not and we finished off a great day singing happy birthday to Rob.

Sunday 03 August 2025

Russell waiting for a clear dry run to the next rock

Waiting for Robyn to find the driest rocks

Some wild surf out there

Walk Leader Jenny blending in

Rosalie happily leading the way off the rock platforms

Some more fancy footwork on the rock platforms

Steve admiring the view

Photos courtesy of Rob L. and Donna G.  Walk report by Walker Leader Jenny M.

Seven hardy walkers set off from Malua Bay under a clearing sky to follow a similar route of the walk I led in September 2024.  Anyone who was on the walk can safely say the similarities ended there!  After taking a peek at the rock hopping option below the offical Munjip Trail, we were excited to head off with a low tide, energetic sea and dark horizon.  While enjoying clambering over the varied platforms, boulders, pebbly inlets and shell coves the swell picked up we needed to quicken our pace and manage the sets to get to Pretty Point without getting our feet wet. Thanks Steve!

After that little heart starter, it was an easy walk to our morning tea break at the end of the Point before a short, muddy climb to join the Munjip Trail again and continue out to the headland for great views of the now pounding sea.  The return path to McKenzies Beach saw a scramble for wet weather gear, the end of hope for clearing skies.  At the Whale Tail the decision to leave the “other hill” for next time and head for the carpark was a very wise one.  Thanks Rob, Donna, Robyn, Rosalie ,Russ and Steve for joining me, it was a fun and very enjoyable walk on the wild side of Malua Bay.

Saturday 26 July 2025

To the hills!

Taking a breather

Almost there

Beautiful scenery

Brian highlighting a gum tree

Happy walkers

Photos courtesy of Brian and Max. Walk report courtesy of Walk leaders Ed and KarenG.

Hopeful that the early morning showers had cleared, seven bushwalkers set off on an 8.5 kilometre walk led by Ed and Karen. The initial mist soon evaporated allowing rays of sunlight to highlight the natural beauty of the forest.

A wide array of trees were spotted, including an abundance of tall straight spotted gum, iron bark and blue gums which were interspersed with ferns and grasses. We traversed numerous hills and a couple of shallow streams and also did a gentle 50-metre bushbash in order to reach the road.

A relaxed morning tea was interrupted with the emergence of several leeches, and since we were on our guard for the appearance of more leeches, the group elected to forgo a lunch stop. Despite this, at least one walker managed to transport a leech back to their residence.

All agreed it was a hilly but also an especially beautiful walk.

Wednesday 23 July 2025

Old grave at Toragy Point

View to Shelly beach

Group shot at the Cemetery

View of the old Pilot Station

Catching the view

Looking out from Quandolo Island

Priya on the “Dragon’s Head”

Beach walk

The Leader awaits

Group watching their feet around the mangroves.

Photos courtesy of Peter and Max. Walk report courtesy Walk leader Peter.

On a recent Wednesday, ten Batemans Bay Bushwalkers set off to circumnavigate Quandolo Island at Moruya South Heads.
They departed at the leisurely hour of 11 a.m.—a time purposely chosen to avoid the chill of a mid-winter morning, to ensure they finished in time for a relaxed lunch at the Shelly Beach picnic area, and to coincide with low tide, allowing the walk around the island to be a “walk,” not a “wade”.

The walk, an easy 5–6 km, offered a little bit of everything. It began with a short but steep scramble up a hill, followed by a wander across to the national park track leading to Toragy Point. Along the way, they passed the skeletal remains of a wallaby, which a local dog also seemed to find interesting.

The track to Toragy Point followed the cliffside, offering stunning views of the ocean—brilliantly blue in the morning sunshine. There, the group inspected the historical cemetery, now enclosed by a new perimeter fence. According to the Moruya & District Historical Society, the first recorded burial is of a three-month-old baby girl in 1858; the last, an adult man of Norwegian descent who died of heart complications in 1909. Moruya Heads’ first pilot master, Captain John Ross, and Moruya granite quarry founders John and Joseph Loutitt also rest here.

The group paused patiently, hoping to spot a passing whale—but it wasn’t to be. However, the seals were, as always, frolicking on their rock in the surf. From there, the path led downhill before briefly diverting into the scrub for a look at the old pilot station, now a meteorological station (according to its marking on the map). Then it was onward to the main attraction: the walk around Quandolo Island. The group zigzagged through mangroves and mudflats at low tide, skillfully hopping over and through obstacles—old weathered logs, spiderwebs, and the occasional light blue soldier crab scurrying ahead. They finally emerged into the sunshine at Quandolo Lagoon.

At this point, the leader (inadvertently) chose not to turn left to follow the shoreline around the lagoon. Instead, the group forged ahead, only to encounter a narrow channel of water where the lagoon had not yet fully receded with the tide. Never one to admit an error, the leader marched the crew through the water—resulting in wet feet all around. He assured them it was all part of the experience.

From there, the group skirted alongside the impressive granite rock wall of the river, onto the river beaches, and finally to Shelly Beach. Lunch was enjoyed with a few cheeky magpies, in the warmth of the winter sunshine at the picnic tables and on the manicured lawn, before heading up the hill to the cars and home.
Thank you to all who attended— a lovely walk on a lovely day.

Thursday 17 July 2025

Morning tea break

Happy walkers

Lunch at Club Malua

Lunch at Club Malua table2

Winter fungi

Photos courtesy of Max and Neil. Walk report courtesy Walk Leader KarenM.

This week’s midweek walk was a brisk trot around some fire trails in a section of Mogo State Forest yet untouched by custom-made mountain bike tracks.

It was a cold morning, but we were stripping off our down jackets, gloves and scarves after the second hill, and by the fourth hill the fleece jackets were coming off as well.

This is a pretty section of forest tucked in between Malua Bay and Dunns Creek Road. There are views over to the ocean at Rosedale and across adjoining acreage. The area is crisscrossed with trails and we spotted plenty of horse tracks, and bicycle and motorbike tyre tracks too. Being so close to town, it’s obviously quite a popular pocket of bush.

After our 8km workout, we headed to Club Malua for a chatty social lunch.