Photos: Bushwalking and canyoning in the 1960s

[FatCanyoner]

G'day folks,

I thought this may be of interest to people. Former Sydney Uni Bushwalker (from the 1960s) Graham Wootton has recently been scanning some of his amazing old Kodachrome slides from the era. He generously allowed me to publish some of them, along with some of his recollections of early canyoning adventures (at a time when canyoning was less it's own thing, and simply something Blue Mountains bushwalkers did on hot days).

One of the amazing things is that, while the gear and techniques have changed a lot over the last 50 years, some of the photos could have been taken yesterday. The places obviously stay the same, but the bushwalkers themselves look remarkably similar.

Anyway, you can see them all here: http://fatcanyoners.org/2014/03/18/sixt ... canyoning/

T2

[GPSGuided]

Amazing stuff and the Botany Lawn! Dunlop Volley really should be voted to be the most versatile shoes ever!

[kanangra]

Simply wonderful. I really enjoyed those. Thank you very much for sharing them. A bit before my time but reminded me of how things were in the mid 1970's when I started out. The comment about the three classic trips being Danae Brook, the Three Peaks and the Western Arthurs traverse really struck a chord with me. I did each of those trips in the 1977-79 period but didn't realise then their iconic status. In my case the descent of Danae Brook was combined with the ascent of Thurat Spires.

k.

[FatCanyoner]

Yeah, the marketing guys from Dunlop should definitely use these pics. Especially the skiing one!

And Kanangra, it's funny how those three trips still have a pretty special place in the imagination. I think you'd be hard pressed to find a serious bushwalker from Sydney that hadn't either done them, or dreamed of doing them!

[north-north-west]

Wonderfully marvellous stuff, Tim. Thanks for bringing a smile to face this morning. Particularly liked the mud-fight - as you almost said, some things never change.

[Rob Gosford]

oooooh how WONDERFUL ! thanks for posting this here Tim.
What great days they were........was a boy in those days. Great to see the 60s cars, clothes etc of that decade. And yes, some photos look like they were taken yesterday !



.

[Mark F]

I recognise many of the faces from my time in SUBW (68-early 70's) - good times.

[DarrenM]

Nice post Tim! Loved the old shots at the Crags in particular. So many people get caught up in counting grams these days they tend to miss out on a good old fashion punish. These guys never seemed to be as gear focused as we are today, and would laugh at the level of caution and conservatism shown by the average outdoor person.
Some of the folks you guys have had at the Hutch have restored my faith in adventure and have made me question what "hard" really means. Thanks again mate, Cheers.

[Mark F]

Darren - gram (ounce) counting was at times quite popular. I think it was Dave Dash and others who occasionally did weekend walks with a Paddymade Bunyip (the smallest day pack in the range). One weight saving trick was to bring a small bottle of spirits instead of dinner and barter.

[DarrenM]

I stand corrected Mark!

[FatCanyoner]

Thanks for the feedback guys. They certainly put a smile on my face, and they're not even from my era! It's great to know there's still plenty of active walkers like Mark that recognise the faces. Bushwalking does seem to be a rather unique pastime in that regard. There aren't many hobbies that see people stick with it for fifty or more years.

Also very interesting to hear about those early gram counters. They really were a tougher breed back then!

[DarrenM]

Saw an old bloke on top of Solitary on the weekend with three others.....Reckons he never comes up the Eastern side because it's hard work....I'll take the tip next visit.

[FatCanyoner]

Saw an old bloke on top of Solitary on the weekend with three others.....Reckons he never comes up the Eastern side because it's hard work....I'll take the tip next visit.

That old bloke did smash out a full 35km circuit of the Jamison Valley though, so not too bad. I can assure you that, based on his sore old-man knees at the end of the day, he was very thankful he never goes up the eastern side!

[DarrenM]

Good work and a decent day out by the sound of it. Where did you come out?

This old bloke took the soft option and parted with $14 to eliminate more vertical at the scenic railway.

http://app.strava.com/activities/122801812

[Lophophaps]

What marvelous pics. It was a fair way into the pics before I could see how old they were - Paddy tents, thick wool shirts, and an A-frame pack. Thanks for posting.