Closure of part of Mittagong to Katoomba walk Dec 2 - 6

[FatCanyoner]

The Mittagong to Katoomba walk will be temporarily closed next month where it crosses the Warragamba Dam exclusion zone to allow for an aerial pest control operation targeting feral pigs.

The area is closed from 8am on Monday 2 December to 4.30pm on Friday 6 December 2019.

This is the section of the walk east of Yerranderie, crossing the Wollondilly at Murphys Crossing, then heading over to the Nattai River via Beloon Pass.

Burragorang lookout and picnic area will also be closed.

Anyone who has spent time in the southern Blue Mountains in recent years will have seen the significant environmental impacts of feral pigs, particularly along rivers and watercourses. It is great that the unique native flora and fauna in the area are being protected through improved pest management.

If you plan to walk that section of the track, keep an eye on the NPWS alerts page in case the closure is postponed or extended: https://www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au/vi ... cal-alerts

[rcaffin]

Butchers Creek nearby (and Green Wattle Ck too), deep in the exclusion zone: our estimate was 100 cattle, 200 horses, 300 pigs and 400 goats. And I am serious about the numbers.
Count the poo. Wade through the poo. Listen to the herds going by. The smell in places was awful!
And they worry about bushwalkers? I think they are more worried about us publishing photos in the media!
The ferals leak over into the Kowmung. NPWS at one stage took many hundreds of pigs and cows out of there.

Cheers
Roger

[FatCanyoner]

Yeah, my preference in that area is for high water sources -- above the escarpments -- due to how much crap is around creeks like Butchers. A lot more resources needed to remove the ferals and reduce the huge amount of damage they cause.

[Hughmac]

The Nattai is crawling with feral pigs. I've had a number of uncomfortably close encounters with them over the last few years.

[wildwanderer]

.....

Would you mind PMing me. I have a question about a sensitive track.

Sending PM's to you seems to be disabled.

Many thanks.

Actually all good. I found the info elsewhere.

[rcaffin]

The Nattai is crawling with feral pigs. I've had a number of uncomfortably close encounters with them over the last few years.

Plenty of them in the Kowmung still. We walked past a mating pair recently, on Veyrets Track. Not a good photo, but it was very dim in the gully there.

8083.jpg (149.46 KiB) Viewed 10660 times

Never let it be said that the ferals are still in those valleys because some locals (including Water Board employees) are ... farming them. I would never suggest that.

Cheers
Roger

[puredingo]

I would say 300 pigs is a conservative estimation from a walk I did recently.
From Murriun Ck out to Scott’s MR and back to the Nattai is literally riddled in the manky critters. The Wol is infested and the banks are decimated consequently. Sad.

[Petew]

Did this walk two years ago and the Nattai in particular was absolutely trashed by feral pigs. Much less noticeable after Beloon pass. Nice walk. We started at hilltop rather than Mittagong.