Gardens of Stone NP

[GPSGuided]

Is anyone familiar with this Gardens of Stone NP out Lithgow way? I recently came across some photos of this place and was quite interested in the unique landscape of the area. Looked around but couldn't find too much information on it, specifically where's a good entry and whether there are established tracks for day walks? Or is it one of those place where you are on your own and have to beat out a track?

I don't have a 4WD and wondered what's possible at this NP?

Any pointers? Thanks.

[wildwalks]

Nice area
Have a look at these books -- lots of walks ideas
http://www.bushexplorers.com.au/
Hopefully that helps.

Matt

[GPSGuided]

Thanks for the book suggestion.

I know it's a relatively new NP and looks like not too many knows it in detail.

[FatCanyoner]

I think you'll find bushwalkers have been walking in this area for a long time. Well before it was a national park. There are very few developed, marked tracks. There are plenty of options for day walks and longer trips. Those book will help you. As will buying the topo maps that cover it. Some of the fire trails are 2wd friendly, others are not. It's a little hit and miss. We got some very small 2wds out to near Cape Horn the other week.

[GPSGuided]

Some of the fire trails are 2wd friendly, others are not. It's a little hit and miss. We got some very small 2wds out to near Cape Horn the other week.

That's promising info and thanks. What was the entry road you used for access with your 2WD? Some of the sceneries look too tempting.

[FatCanyoner]

That's promising info and thanks. What was the entry road you used for access with your 2WD? Some of the sceneries look too tempting.

For that trip, turned off Wolgan Rd near the tip. Followed up the headwaters of the Coxs and joined the bicentennial trail. Don't try to push your 2wd all the way to Baal Bone Gap though! You won't make it.

And the scenery is amazing out there. Here's some good photos of the trip I'm talking about: http://www.david-noble.net/bushwalking/ ... orial.html

If you're after a day walk, with spectacular scenery, accessed from a good road, why not try Donkey Mountain: http://fatcanyoners.org/2012/06/02/retu ... -mountain/

[GPSGuided]

Thanks FatCanyoner! I didn't think Baal Bone Gap is reachable and was thinking of dropping the 2WD at some point along the trail. But your suggestion of Donkey Mountain is probably more realistic for me (particularly in terms of time availability). I also found that area interest based on Google satellite images and was trying to work out how to access it last night. It sounded like a great start for the area.

BTW, for Donkey Mtn, how did you access it? Where did you start your trek off Wolgan Rd?

[FatCanyoner]

for Donkey Mtn, how did you access it? Where did you start your trek off Wolgan Rd?

There is a small fenced parking area on the Wolgan Rd near the western of Donkey Mountain. It has a style to cross the fence and NPWS signage. Most of Donkey Mountain is surrounded by private property, so this is the best access point. From there you can climb the mountain at quite a few points.

[GPSGuided]

Excellent! Will keep this in my to-walk list.

[davidmorr]

Nice area
Have a look at these books -- lots of walks ideas
http://www.bushexplorers.com.au/

Looking at the descriptions and sample walks, I get the impression that these books are coffee table-type books, albeit containing descriptions of walks. Is this a fair description?

[kjbeath]

No. I have Day Walks in Therabulat Country (Wild Dog Mountains) and the others are similar. They are A5, colour photos and maps of reasonable quality. As well as walks descriptions there is info on plants, geology, history and place names.

[wildwalks]

Looking at the descriptions and sample walks, I get the impression that these books are coffee table-type books, albeit containing descriptions of walks. Is this a fair description?

I have one of the books -- they are not really coffee table books, although there is some good photography. They are also very fat and fairly heavy - more so then your regular guide book. I would still call it a guide book with a stack of extra info about the area. It is the type of book that you would read well before visiting the area to better understand the landscape.

Matt

[kjbeath]

They now have some sample walk descriptions http://www.bushexplorers.com.au/books/gos1/sample.htm

[FatCanyoner]

I have one of the books -- they are not really coffee table books, although there is some good photography. They are also very fat and fairly heavy - more so then your regular guide book. I would still call it a guide book with a stack of extra info about the area.

Yes, they're an interesting concept. For the Gardens of Stone they are producing 8 books. Each $50. I'm not sure how many bushwalkers will spend $400 on books about a single area.

They are bigger than a guide book -- definitely not designed to be carried on the walk -- but do include track notes and maps. The notes are more in the style of trip reports, so much longer than they need to be with a lot of colour and description. I do wonder why not put that info online, get a bigger audience, encourage young people to go walking etc. Each to their own I suppose.

One point to make about these authors is there strange obsession with renaming places. There are lots of place names they use that I have never heard from other bushwalkers. In some cases, bushwalkers have been accessing these areas for decades, and there are strongly accepted names. Not only do these usually get ignored and replaced, the authors seem to enjoy trying to get their new inventions registered as official place names. Myles Dunphy got a lot of grief for some of his names, but at least he would try hard to find local names / bushwalker names / aboriginal names, and generally would only invent new ones when all that failed. It's sad because a whole element of oral history gets wiped out on a whim...

[michael_p]

for Donkey Mtn, how did you access it? Where did you start your trek off Wolgan Rd?

There is a small fenced parking area on the Wolgan Rd near the western of Donkey Mountain. It has a style to cross the fence and NPWS signage. Most of Donkey Mountain is surrounded by private property, so this is the best access point. From there you can climb the mountain at quite a few points.

Map of access point location: http://goo.gl/maps/bfZnn

Michael.

[Grabeach]

For a general guide, try "The Gardens of Stone Visitors Map incorporating the Gardens of Stone Stage Two Reserve Proposal", published by The Blue Mountains Conservation Society and The Colong Foundation. I got mine from the BMCS website for $9 including postage.

[GPSGuided]

Map of access point location: http://goo.gl/maps/bfZnn

Thank you!

I have also enquired to the NPWS office and a kind Christopher Wood replied. I am sure he wouldn't mind me sharing his advice with a larger interested audience.

Access is 2WD along the Wolgan Valley Road. Follow the signs to Lithgow, then the Great Western Highway towards Bathurst, but take the Mudgee turnoff west of Lithgow. At Lidsdale, where Wallerawang Power Station is, turn right at the service station. There's a sign there that says Newnes 34 km. Follow that sealed road for about 11 km, fairly straight, then it goes down a winding bit through the cliff line and becomes dirt at the bottom. Continue on the dirt for about another 11 km and you'll see the carpark on the right.

Park here. A route is shown on the map attached - this is ONLY APPROXIMATE to give you an idea of where to go. There are NO signs or constructed tracks once you leave the carpark, it's ALL off-track and finding your way, with much scrambling up through the cliff line and sometimes pushing through scrub. Once on top you can head north east along the top fairly easily. The best way down is the way you go up. There are other ways but they are not as easy.

Basically you just follow ridges and gullies up to the top of the Mountain and down again.

This may well be my first off trail walk and hope it's not too tough. Now just need to find a free weekend.

[Allchin09]

Post moved...

[michael_p]

Alex,

I think you've posted in the wrong thread.

Cheers,
Michael.

[tom_brennan]

They're actually producing 9 books now (I wouldn't be surprised if it continues to grow!)

Michael has written a number of books of "track notes" for the Blue Mountains. I say "track notes" because as Tim points out, they are really trip reports.
The Lower Grose Valley (60 pages)
Day Walks in Therabulat Country (aka the Wild Dogs) (200 pages)
The Passes of Narrow Neck (126 pages)
The Upper Grose Valley (567 pages)
The Gardens of Stone (9 volumes ~ 400-500 pages each)

From the Passes of Narrow Neck to the Upper Grose Valley to the Gardens of Stone, the trip reports have gotten progressively more verbose, which is certainly reflected in the size of the books.

Because they are written as trip reports, it's not always possible for someone unfamiliar with the route – even experienced walkers – to repeat the walk. This is particularly relevant to something like the passes of Narrow Neck, where the book is probably aimed at your average bushwalker. It's also relevant in the Gardens of Stone (which includes much of Wollemi), since there are plenty of clifflines, and passes can be hard to find, even with a grid reference.

As Tim also points out, they do have a revisionist tendency in relation to names. I have pointed some out of these to them. They have done a lot of bushwalking trips in areas that canyoners frequent, and are familiar with, and plenty of interesting features already have names.

To be honest, I think that much of the area shouldn't really have track notes at all (even as trip reports with GRs). There's a lot of delicate pagodas, and certainly much of the Wollemi section is declared wilderness. I personally think the books would have been better as simply a reference work on the area. I don't know what proportion of the books is trip reports, but you could probably reproduce the reference material in a couple of volumes instead of 9.