Hikes with 13 yo near ACT

[Backspace]

Hi

My son, 13 who is is reasonably fit (but not heaps) wants me to take him hiking.

I got back into hiking about 4 years ago, and recently lead a small group up the castle and into Monolith valley. I have PLB, Garmin GPS watch, all my own gear, some basic navigation XP (always carry a map) and have a few hikes in mind.

I have a decent Matt for him, and will hire a backpack from Mont, and borrow a decent sleeping bag. I'll prob get him a small one person tent.

I don't want to go too far and put him off, but also want it to be a great experience so he wants to go more.

Here is what I am thinking

He has expressed a desire to do Light house to lighthouse. I have done this, but unsure if saltwater creek will have water (it should), and we would not be able to do a car shuffle, so would need return.

Am also thinking Wog Wog to Burrumbeet Brook (have done this, seems like an adventure, has water and a toilet).

Also thinking Mount Gingera from Mt Franklion carpark (If I took him up Stockyard Spur, he may never come again:)

Leaning on Wog Wog trip.

In terms of weight distro, I would like him to carry his own sleep system, food, clothes and water. He is taller tan me and about 70kg at 13. I would not want his bag more than about 10kg to 12 kg. Prob lighter. He has some Keen hiking boots.

Oh, I have taken him bush walking his whole life:).

How does this all sound? We can bicker from time to time, and I want him to have a good time. So I need to make sure he is comfortable.

[mjjh]

Hi Backspace,
A few suggestions.

Walk the Nursery Creek trail from Orroral valley and camp somewhere up the top - lots of nice spots to camp around the swamp/fen just beyond the end of the track. This is relatively short walk, so the advantage is that there is more camping, less walking. I did this with my 13yo daughter as her first overnight pack walk and it worked out well for us.

Walk west up the Rendezvous valley from the carpark on Boboyan road. Any combination of track, fire trail and relatively easy bush-bashing up the valley can go on for many hours if you want. Once the valley narrows look for the old vehicle track as a way to get through the thicker bush. This one is flat and there is ready access to water and it is also pretty much always deserted once you walk for a couple of hours or more.

My last suggestion is more challenging but walking from the start of the Square Rock walk down to the Orroral tracking station is a good through hike with lots of downhill and nice camping at the top of the Orroral valley. A car shuffle is needed but through walking always feels like more of an event than an out and back or loop.

Sounds great whatever you choose - spending time in the bush and doing adventures with my kids and nephews is one of my favourite things!

[kanangra]

You're a lucky man.

K

[Backspace]

Hi Backspace,
A few suggestions.

Walk the Nursery Creek trail from Orroral valley and camp somewhere up the top - lots of nice spots to camp around the swamp/fen just beyond the end of the track. This is relatively short walk, so the advantage is that there is more camping, less walking. I did this with my 13yo daughter as her first overnight pack walk and it worked out well for us.

Walk west up the Rendezvous valley from the carpark on Boboyan road. Any combination of track, fire trail and relatively easy bush-bashing up the valley can go on for many hours if you want. Once the valley narrows look for the old vehicle track as a way to get through the thicker bush. This one is flat and there is ready access to water and it is also pretty much always deserted once you walk for a couple of hours or more.

My last suggestion is more challenging but walking from the start of the Square Rock walk down to the Orroral tracking station is a good through hike with lots of downhill and nice camping at the top of the Orroral valley. A car shuffle is needed but through walking always feels like more of an event than an out and back or loop.

Sounds great whatever you choose - spending time in the bush and doing adventures with my kids and nephews is one of my favourite things!

Hi, great suggestions.

For the Squarerock mission, do you Sawpit creek (at bottom of Smoker's trail) would have water? Or would we need to get to the Orroal River? I have noticed that part of Orroal River is very "reddy".

For the Rendezvous Creek mission, do you mean staying roughly adjecent to Rendezvous Creek itself? Or further up towards Middle creek (I guess yes as this is West?). If so, do you know if Middle creek has water?

Am thinking an over night hike would be best to start with.

[Chev]

Growing up in Canberra my first few overnight walks, aged 12-14ish were

Dead Horse Gap - Cascade Hut (return)
Sassafras - Watson's Pass (return)
Smoker's Gap - Orroral Campground) through)
Wog Wog - Burrumbeet - Corang (loop)

Most flagged here already, all good and all doable by a reasonably but not heaps fit kid.

But I reckon your first leaning, Wog Wog, is the pick. So much wild and wow factor (views, cliffs, gorges, caves, water holes) in an overnight walk an hour and half from home.

Leftfield and not so near ACT, Warrumbungles Grand High Tops is excellent. We did this with a 9 and 13 year old. Easy track, almost yellow brick road in parts, but the landscape is spectacular and so different to anything around here it's enjoyable for everyone.

[Walk_fat boy_walk]

I reckon your first leaning, Wog Wog, is the pick. So much wild and wow factor (views, cliffs, gorges, caves, water holes) in an overnight walk an hour and half from home.

Agree with that. Do a side trip to the cascades as well.

Re the above question, sawpit ck is always flowing I think


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[Backspace]

Hi
Doing Budawangs as it is the one he wants to do:). It may be an overnight, but I feel two nights would really allow him to get a sense of things out there (hopefully). As an aside, he did cubs in Covid times, and into scouts. Never got to get out with them before he decided to leave. Poor guy. But he is fairly resilient. It is a shame as I am sure they would have taught him more than me:)

Does anyone have a link to a trail to access the cascades from Canowie Brook campsite? Also any intel on how hard this is, round distance from Canowie Brook and if it can be done avoiding private land?

I assume rock ribs is different to the cascades? As seen in this link?
Getting map tomorrow, researching now.
Planning on camping at Burrumbeet Brook via Wog Wog campsite first night, and keen to do a side mission to the cascades if that is viable and relatively easy to navigate and do in a day, returning to Burrumbeet Brook on second night. Walking back to Wog Wog campsite on third day.

https://www.gaiagps.com/hike/408747/bur ... ing-track/

[Chev]

Sounds like a good plan. Best wishes for a fun trip.

Cascades is an informal name, so there may be other interpretations, but I've always taken it to be the chain of pools and falls on the rugged section of the Corang below its junction with Canowie Brook, in the vicinity of the 'many rock ribs' marked on the sketch map. It's tagged as 'rock ribs' on google.

The route from Canowie campground used to be scrubby and easy to lose in places but was very clear when I last did it in 2021. There will have plenty of regrowth since but I think the wog wog tracks are getting a fair bit of traffic (as other parts of the Budawangs get overgrown and harder to access) so I'm guessing it should still be easy to follow. Hopefully someone here who has walked it more recently can advise.

[Walk_fat boy_walk]

Sounds like a good plan. Best wishes for a fun trip.

Cascades is an informal name, so there may be other interpretations, but I've always taken it to be the chain of pools and falls on the rugged section of the Corang below its junction with Canowie Brook, in the vicinity of the 'many rock ribs' marked on the sketch map. It's tagged as 'rock ribs' on google.

The route from Canowie campground used to be scrubby and easy to lose in places but was very clear when I last did it in 2021. There will have plenty of regrowth since but I think the wog wog tracks are getting a fair bit of traffic (as other parts of the Budawangs get overgrown and harder to access) so I'm guessing it should still be easy to follow. Hopefully someone here who has walked it more recently can advise.

Yep I meant the "main" cascades below the Canowie junction, aka the rock ribs (and yep there are more cascades downstream which you have to circumvent private land by crossing to the northern bank to get to, but they're not as worthwhile IMO anyway).

The trail from Canowie camp is easy enough to follow once you locate it behind the campsite (it's pretty obvious leading north from the sole campsite on the north side of the track). From memory about 45 mins to the ribs? It's flat and easy... just keep an eye out for when it makes a sharp left (maybe 15 or so mins in). After a larger pool and small campsite at a junction between a minor stream and Canowie the track goes upslope to the left a little and braids, but rejoins soon after and not long after that you reach a cairn/junction at the top of the slope. The right hand track is the short scramble down to the ribs (on the way down there is another minor fork to the right that takes you to the bigger waterfall). Can spend a while swimming/checking out the few cascades and waterfall .

Also if taking time to explore the area definitely check out yurnga lookout, only half hour or so from burumbeet caves.

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[Backspace]

Cheers, was going to checkout yurnga lookout too. Do you think the caves are worth looking at for a camp? They look dusty to me and unappealing but it may appeal to him.

[Walk_fat boy_walk]

Cheers, was going to checkout yurnga lookout too. Do you think the caves are worth looking at for a camp? They look dusty to me and unappealing but it may appeal to him.

The caves are great, much nicer than the open campsites IMO. Yes the floor is dirt but pretty compacted (take an extra ground sheet if concerned) and means you can pitch an inner net only and take in the stars and fire, and no condensation or frost to deal with. They're not all equal... the ones further east are bigger and flatter. The second last (I think) even has a waterfall adjacent to shower/gather water from.... has varying levels of flow depending on recent rain.

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[mjjh]

Hi Backspace,
A few suggestions.

Walk the Nursery Creek trail from Orroral valley and camp somewhere up the top - lots of nice spots to camp around the swamp/fen just beyond the end of the track. This is relatively short walk, so the advantage is that there is more camping, less walking. I did this with my 13yo daughter as her first overnight pack walk and it worked out well for us.

Walk west up the Rendezvous valley from the carpark on Boboyan road. Any combination of track, fire trail and relatively easy bush-bashing up the valley can go on for many hours if you want. Once the valley narrows look for the old vehicle track as a way to get through the thicker bush. This one is flat and there is ready access to water and it is also pretty much always deserted once you walk for a couple of hours or more.

My last suggestion is more challenging but walking from the start of the Square Rock walk down to the Orroral tracking station is a good through hike with lots of downhill and nice camping at the top of the Orroral valley. A car shuffle is needed but through walking always feels like more of an event than an out and back or loop.

Sounds great whatever you choose - spending time in the bush and doing adventures with my kids and nephews is one of my favourite things!

Hi, great suggestions.

For the Squarerock mission, do you Sawpit creek (at bottom of Smoker's trail) would have water? Or would we need to get to the Orroal River? I have noticed that part of Orroal River is very "reddy".

For the Rendezvous Creek mission, do you mean staying roughly adjecent to Rendezvous Creek itself? Or further up towards Middle creek (I guess yes as this is West?). If so, do you know if Middle creek has water?

Am thinking an over night hike would be best to start with.

Sorry for the slow reply...

Orroral river is reedy in places but the fire trail crosses the river near the top of the open part of the valley at a point where it is lovely, clear and sandy/rocky. There is a creek crossing shortly after that (when following the walking trail that leaves the firetrail) that is also lovely and almost always has water. Walking along the open valley there is plenty of easy access to the river's water. I can't remember if there is water on the way down to the valley before it opens up.

For the Rendezvous creek suggestion: walking along the Rendezvous creek valley is best - there is plenty of water access along the way. It can be marshy and reedy at times but easy enough to skirt around (or find the old vehicle track for an express route).

Have fun!

[Backspace]

Ty all.

We did Wog wog to Canowie Brook. Feeling tired after carrying a bit more weight than I am used to (or perhaps I am a little unfit, or both).

Was great, he loved it.

Ty.

[rcaffin]

Many MANY years ago (60?) another Boy Scout and I went up onto a ridge W and S of Cotter Dam, and then S along it. Very rough country, shattered mudstone I think. The old imperial topo map (1945?) was a shade off, with a big waterfall where there should have been a saddle. I was following down the creek through scrub when I had to stop very suddenly, as my toes were just about over the edge. That left us a bit vague as to our real position, and we had to meet our transport next morning on the other side of the ridge. So we camped, ate, and then next morning headed off over the nearest peak and down to the road. A car turned up.

MANY years later someone from Canberra sent me a photo of the remains of the trig marker on Mt Yarara with our names in pencil on it, dated May 1961. My thanks to him. Was that the ridge we were on? Dunno - too long ago.

Cheers

[Walk_fat boy_walk]

Many MANY years ago (60?) another Boy Scout and I went up onto a ridge W and S of Cotter Dam, and then S along it. Very rough country, shattered mudstone I think. The old imperial topo map (1945?) was a shade off, with a big waterfall where there should have been a saddle. I was following down the creek through scrub when I had to stop very suddenly, as my toes were just about over the edge. That left us a bit vague as to our real position, and we had to meet our transport next morning on the other side of the ridge. So we camped, ate, and then next morning headed off over the nearest peak and down to the road. A car turned up.

MANY years later someone from Canberra sent me a photo of the remains of the trig marker on Mt Yarara with our names in pencil on it, dated May 1961. My thanks to him. Was that the ridge we were on? Dunno - too long ago.

Cheers

Sounds like you hit Pierces Creek Falls?

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[Backspace]

Many MANY years ago (60?) another Boy Scout and I went up onto a ridge W and S of Cotter Dam, and then S along it. Very rough country, shattered mudstone I think. The old imperial topo map (1945?) was a shade off, with a big waterfall where there should have been a saddle. I was following down the creek through scrub when I had to stop very suddenly, as my toes were just about over the edge. That left us a bit vague as to our real position, and we had to meet our transport next morning on the other side of the ridge. So we camped, ate, and then next morning headed off over the nearest peak and down to the road. A car turned up.

MANY years later someone from Canberra sent me a photo of the remains of the trig marker on Mt Yarara with our names in pencil on it, dated May 1961. My thanks to him. Was that the ridge we were on? Dunno - too long ago.

Cheers

Is that this one?

https://johnevans.id.au/sunday-2-octobe ... eek-falls/

On the list.

[Walk_fat boy_walk]

Many MANY years ago (60?) another Boy Scout and I went up onto a ridge W and S of Cotter Dam, and then S along it. Very rough country, shattered mudstone I think. The old imperial topo map (1945?) was a shade off, with a big waterfall where there should have been a saddle. I was following down the creek through scrub when I had to stop very suddenly, as my toes were just about over the edge. That left us a bit vague as to our real position, and we had to meet our transport next morning on the other side of the ridge. So we camped, ate, and then next morning headed off over the nearest peak and down to the road. A car turned up.

MANY years later someone from Canberra sent me a photo of the remains of the trig marker on Mt Yarara with our names in pencil on it, dated May 1961. My thanks to him. Was that the ridge we were on? Dunno - too long ago.

Cheers

Is that this one?

https://johnevans.id.au/sunday-2-octobe ... eek-falls/

On the list.

It's a great walk, fair bit of off (or very sparse) track but only gets really scrubby down into/up out of the creek, although I'd prefer out and back along hardy range over the fire trail loop described in your link

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[Chev]

Well done @Backspace. Good to hear that you got out there and your son enjoyed it. I should do this one with my 13 year old too.

[Chev]

I took my 13 year old in from Wog Wog to Burrumbeet. The weather was excellent so we had great views. There were a few other groups in the area but we found a cave to ourselves. I think my daughter might have enjoyed the camping more than the walking but she did very well for a first full pack walk. Thanks Backspace for this thread which helped put the wheels in motion for me to get us out there.