Blue Mtns 4 day hikes with pub transport?

[skibug]

Hey fellas,

My last question was so successfully answered I thought I should ask this as well.

I'm looking for Blue Mountain hikes with the following criteria:

3 nights/ 4 days
Around 50 - 60 km total
Campsites with water, preferably with no car access, reasonably isolated bush settings
Public transport to start and from finish.
Minimal bush-bashing

6 foot track is too short, and the camp sites are getting overrun with 4 wheel drivers.
Wild Dogs require either a car, or the overly long narrow neck entry - exit.
Kanangra walls to Katoomba needs a car.

Any and all ideas welcomed, and thanks in advance.

Skibug

[ULWalkingPhil]

Sounds like heaven, if you ever find it, let me know.

[tom_brennan]

I don't think you will get all of your criteria in one walk.
- If you're prepared to bush bash for some way, it probably opens up a few more options.
- Alternatively, walk Narrow Neck and get into the Wild Dogs where there are plenty of tracks. Keep in mind that there are a variety of ways on and off Narrow Neck. You don't have to go via Tarros (Carlon Head, Dunphys, Harmil Ledge are all options if you can do a bit off track and handle exposure/scrambling)
- try and get a lift with someone out to Kanangra, and then there are plenty of options for walking to Katoomba (or even Mittagong)
- there are other contrived options
- the Grose from Mt Vic to Blackheath or Leura, with side trips to Pierces Pass, Perrys, Govetts Leap, Lockley Pylon
- Glenbrook to Woodford or Wentworth Falls (lots of fire trails)

[Wolfix]

Kanagara to Katoomba may need a car but it doesn't have to be yours. Why not ask for a lift?

[jonnosan]

What about train to Wentworth Station, taxi to Lions Head Pass, down into the Wild Dogs from the back of Mt Solitary, back to Kedumba Crossing for your last night, then up over Mt Solitary to Katoomba on the final (long! steep!) day.

[davidf]

I have done a lot of train based walks.

Narrow Neck is a great launching platform. I recomend doing it in the evening. Its monotonous and a few hours the niht before gives you a great head start.

Taxi from blackheath to packsaddlers is an option.

Its not blueys and i haven't done it but Bundanoon to Talong.

[bumblefoot]

Hi, you don't say why you want/need to use public transport.

If there are at least 2 of you, then hiring a car is an option. I live in Brisbane and have been down a couple of times to do Bluies walks where we have hired a car from Sydney airport. Last time, for 3 people the cost was less than $100 each (including tolls) for the trip from the airport to Dunphys, (3 day walk) then to Kanangra Walls (8 day walk) and return.

When you consider that the train fare from the airport to Katoomba is approx. $40 return per person, (and then you still need to get to the Walls or wherever) this makes pretty good economic sense, and very convenient. Even though we left the car at the Walls for a week while we were walking, the convenience of having the car waiting with our clean clothes when we returned, and that we could head off straight back to Katoomba for a slap up meal, more than outwieghed the cost.

Annette

[ULWalkingPhil]

It only just clicked that your referring to Public Transport. when I first initially read this, I was thinking hiking from pub to pub.

[skibug]

Thanks for all your replies - I really value the time and quality people give to these forums.

OK the reason for the strict criteria is that I help run expeditions for students, so car transportation is impractical (except by having parents do pickup/drops, which I,d like to avoid.)

I'm simply surprised that there would be such limited availability of 4 day walks like this - after all there is so much terrain out there, and even people with cars can prefer the simplicity and practicality of public transport. There are plenty of 3 day options, and plenty of options for people prepared to go outside the typical - days greater than 20 km, dry and rough campsites, several km bush- bashes, using public transport or hitching a ride to link sections, and so on - but these all get problematic when you have a duty of care for kids.

Not to worry - I have a few ideas, which I've been recc'ing lately, which should work - but I was just interested in others' thoughts.

Again, thanks for the input, and I wish you all some good camping over the next few months.

Ski bug.

[tom_brennan]

I'm simply surprised that there would be such limited availability of 4 day walks like this - after all there is so much terrain out there, and even people with cars can prefer the simplicity and practicality of public transport. There are plenty of 3 day options, and plenty of options for people prepared to go outside the typical - days greater than 20 km, dry and rough campsites, several km bush- bashes, using public transport or hitching a ride to link sections, and so on - but these all get problematic when you have a duty of care for kids.

Bottom line is that there actually aren't that many longer on-track walks in the Blue Mountains. The majority of the walks are day walks, with a smaller number of overnighters. Once you get to 3 days you're starting to to get pretty thin on the ground unless you're prepared to go off track.

That said, there's not that many longer walks on track anywhere in NSW.

[wildwalks]

Hi Skibug

Tom is right - it is surprising but there are not a lot of ontrack overnight walks in the Blue Mountains NP. Part of the reason why the Six Foot Track is so popular.

This might be of some help if you can play a bit with scope. This is a list of walks that are two days or more that have public transport at the start (and end) that I have documented. I am sure there are more but it is a pretty good starting point. Some of these can be extended, some of them overlap - you can play with all kinds of different ways of stitching tracks together.
http://www.wildwalks.com/walk_search.html?&park=hide&min_time=48&transport_to_walk=pt&transport_from_walk=pt&limt_to_map=0&lat=-33.8217&lng=150.9282&zoom=8

Hope that helps.

Matt

[kjbeath]

Blue Mountains Bus Company did have smaller buses, and Blue Mountains Trolley Tours have smaller buses. Otherwise check the taxi services or anyone who offers tours.

[WarrenH]

How about this option?

http://www.curtisaviation.com.au/Yerran ... ights/ea/1

There are some interesting walks out that way.

Warren.

[bumblefoot]

We looked into Curtis Aviation to get into Yerranderie at one stage too. So many great routes from Yerranderie but a long way to get there!

In the end we didn't go with Curtis because they told us that the Yerranderie strip is a short, difficult one to land on and if there is too much wind they won't fly - which would put you behind a day before you even start walking, assuming you were lucky enough to get in the next day.

Secondly, I didn't pursue it to the end, but they were not too keen about us taking gas for our stoves on the plane. (understandable). Not sure if it is possible to buy gas at Yerranderie.

Speaking of Yerranderie, I am planning another Blue Breaks trip in a few months time. Can anyone report on the state of the road into Yerranderie and whether it is currently 2WD friendly (with care). Once again we will be hiring a car but don't want to go to the expense of hiring a 4x4 if not necessary. Esp. when it may be sitting there sleeping for over a week while we are out walking.

Or, does anyone know of any other options for getting into/out of Yerranderie?

Thanks all.

[FatCanyoner]

Bumblefoot, I haven't driven to Yerranderie since last September (so no idea about the impact of a wet summer) but it was fine in 2wd then. It was deteriorating according to the locals I spoke to. Apparently the face that the road is maintained by a mix of NPWS and two councils doesn't help.
My advice is just to call the caretaker - (02) 4659 6165. The two guys who share that role are very helpful and will definitely be able to tell you what the current conditions are like.

[skibug]

... answering my own question,

I posted this earlier in the year, didn't get the responses I was hoping for, but did come up with some solutions for myself, which people may be interested in.

I created this by putting together some routes I knew with some information I picked up by chance off this forum, so thanks to everyone for the constant involvement. I've grandiosely entitled it the "Waterfall Way", because it starts at Mt Victoria, then passes by Victoria Falls, the many small cascades of Victoria Creek and the Grose, past Govett's Leap and the other falls of the Grose around Blackheath, up past Beauchamp Falls, and finishes in Wentworth Falls (village, not the waterfall).

Briefly:

Day 1 - From Mt Victoria station, walk (carefully along the highway stretch) to Victoria Falls Road, then out to the lookout, down past the Falls and camp at Burra Korain.
Day 2 - follow the Grose downstream to BlueGum forest/Acacia Flat. Camp
Day 3 - follow Govett's creek/Greaves Creek upstream, via Beauchamp Falls, to the lower end/exit of the Grand Canyon. About 500 metres in (?) the Pilcher Track ascends on the left, leaving the canyon and coming out on Grand Canyon Road, which goes past Katoomba airfield. (The Pilcher track has recently been cleared by National Parks, though the entry is a bit tricky to find at the Canyon end, as it passes through some low ledges that are not obviously a "pass".) Around the airfield you'll need to bush camp, inspect Google Earth for possibilities (or walk into Medlow Bath and have a night in a B&B!)
Day 4 - At the airfield, turn left/east around its fenced border on a gravel road, and turn onto the second fire trail on the right. About a kilometre along is the start of Bruce's Walk, an old, overgrown and challenging track used by engineers decades ago for power line inspection/access. The track is not well used, but has been "ribboned". (As of September 2013, there were 2 rock cairns forming a "gate" to the track.) It descends steeply into Katoomba Creek, up the other side, then links with firetrails before descending into and crossing Govett's Creek, rejoins fire trails and climbs up to Mt Hay Road. Turn left, then first right (400m), right again, and this time cross Wentworth Creek and finally out at Evans St., from where you can walk to Wentworth Falls station.

So, the walk uses public transport, is 4 days/3 nights, has some great scenery and water/swimming spots, is in the 10 - 15km per day range, and is relatively "unspoilt" in places. It can be done in either direction. Disadvantages are that there is no formal camp site, nor water, around Katoomba airfield (though some rough bush camping is possible). Bruce's walk is a bit rough, requires some rock clambering (though not dangerous), and can be a bit scratchy, and soaking in wet weather, due to pushing past drooping branches. The hike in general has a fair amount of up and down, and many areas have limited phone reception. There are many escape/exit points, especially days 3 and 4.

I've done the whole walk myself, thoroughly enjoyable. As always, before you attempt it you should have appropriate maps, a worked-out route plan (with copies given to friends), the correct gear, suitable experience, and the right attitude.

Of course, the recent bushfires (October 2013) have closed the first one or two days of the walk, so you'll need to wait for National parks to re-open those sections - by Christmas?

Hope this of interest to some of you,

Skibug

P.S. If anyone does know of nice camp sites in that Katoomba Airfield area, I'd love to know.