Falls

Claustral capers

| flynny101

03/02/2024

Leo, Madie, Brook, Achi, Toni and meeeeeeeee

Cruisey social trudge through Claustral?

Sounds ace.

In the spirit of cruisey we push that start time 30min later..

That might have been a mistake. As I role up the mountain it seems like every second car in NSW is trying to get a car park at the trail head.

Are you with them? Asks old mate pointing at a large group as I step out of my car.

Not me.

Come on boys let’s get going. Says he. Oh which way is it?

I point old mate and his 2 sons(?) in the general direction.

I notice Leo T marshalling the aforementioned group. That’s a relief. A commercially guided group that all bought their own cars making it seem like it’s a bigger group than it is. I know Leo is efficient and quick with his groups so not too fussed there .

Another group jumps out of their car and heads off to beat the rush.

Madie and Leo arrive and introduce another two of the people milling around. Achi and Toni are with us. Excellent.

Everyone ready to go? let’s get going before anyone else shows up. Says they

Um we aren’t due to meet for another 10 mins and Brook’s not here yet. Says I

Bugger say they.

Another group of 4 arrive. Leo knows them from rescue they banter about getting the jump on us and head off.

Brook arrives. Ok let’s go.

A quick walk becomes a slow jog becomes “keep up!”

Oi! I was promised a cruisey social trip.

By the time we get to the wetsuit change spot we’ve over taken all the groups who started before us.

As I always say, it’s not a competition. Unless you are winning, and right now we are winning.

Winning

Ok get changed and get into it. We’ll slow down when we get to the abseils.

Thank fugg for that.

The “black hole”
Overcast day meant sunbeams were unlikely but oh the ohm-bi-aunce

Obligatory Hulks fist photo
Obligatory Pride Rock silhouette photo ©️ Maddy
©️Maddy‘s boot
Doop da do

Still winning we make our way down the canyon and because half of us haven’t been here before we take the detour up Thunder canyon as well.

I mean, why wouldn’t ya?

We enjoy the 2 glowworm caves then make our way back to the junction and then down to the exit.

©️Maddy

Despite the three thousand two hundred and forty eight cars at the car park we haven’t seen any one in the canyon since one of the groups got to the top of the first abseil just as our last member was roping up.

We figure most of them would have leapfrogged us while we were in Thunder but we catch back up to the group of 4 at the exit and have a chat while we dry off and have a bite to eat and it appears no one else is in front of them.

then it’s up, up and up.

There’s still a gazillion cars at the car park

And while winning is winning, my legs don’t work anymore.

we farewell Achi and Toni then head for a well earned beerio

Part size 6

Time 5.5hr car to car mixed pace.

When you’re dead, you’re dead. Guy Martin

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Dove Canyon

| flynny101

10/01/2024

Gadget and meeeee

After delaying for a day to allow water levels to drop a bit we were keen as mustard to get into this little gem.

Dove Canyon is the quintessential Cradle Mountain canyon and the awesome folk at Cradle Mountain Canyons have done a great job at opening the canyon up and maintaining the entry/exit track as well as the anchors so it’s well worth booking a tour with them if you are in the area but don’t have gear or white water experience.

The canyon has several aquatic hazards to be wary of so most people would be best to book a tour, especially if you aren’t up on how to recognise, navigate and rescue out of that stuff.

Anyhoo. We got going early to get in front of the guide groups and after one of the easiest and prettiest walk-ins ever we reach the get in point.

These bags aren’t going to wet themselves. 🎥©️Kylie

We gear up, go over our notes and abseil in.

A gorgeous little creek greet us. The water was cold but not Bowen creek middle of winter cold so the seland 5mm jacket and John’s were prefect.

We make our way down stream. Already the water is more pushy than anything in the Blue Mountains at normal to high levels so we take our time with the down climbs and assess the eddies at each little jump.

One of the first little pools

Then we come to the first the first of the major obstacles

A five meter jump into swirly white stuff 🎥©️Kylie
You need to pick your landing otherwise it pushes you to the back side of the falls.
Did I say frothy white stuff? The waters around here are steeped in tannins. it’s good for you but froths up ©️Kylie
The Laundry Chute at the exit of the dark tunnel like “Pit” section. Such an awesome feature. Legend has it this is the funnest canyon slide in Australia.
Tea Cup falls has a powerful recirculation in it. If you don’t get it right you’ll get caught in the swirl. At the level we had it’s reasonably easy to escape if you know how but we set up a drogue just to practice the skill in a relatively safe environment 🎥©️Kylie

Once I tested the drogue and worked out the current Kylie just went for it

Then a couple of scrambles and one more slide on Horsey falls

It’s just a bit of fun 🎥©️Kylie
Good old fashion fun

All in all Dove is a beautiful little micro adventure at Cradle Mountain. Heaps of fun but you have to know what you are doing in water.

Once again a massive thanks to the locals for sharing their knowledge and to the crew at Cradle Mountain Canyon for care taking this little gem.

She taught me to relight, relight and relight again: the Avalanches.

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Machinery Creek

| flynny101

9/1/2024

Gadget and meeeeee

The plan was to do Dove today but big dump of rain had spiked the water levels and our local contacts suggested we wait a day for the levels to drop a bit. We were pretty sure they were being cautious with a couple of randoms asking questions but we were happy to take the advice and opted to do Machinery creek instead.

After parking at the bottom it took me a bit to work out the big obvious bridge wasn’t our bridge. The amount water flowing at speed under the big bridge had me a bit 😳

But the correct creek was a lot more enticing. The water was about 15mm off what we were told was the high level (interesting by the time we got back here it had dropped at least 70mm)

Our advice was if we didn’t have a second car to hitch a ride up the hill but there didn’t seem to be too many cars heading our way so we hoofed it up. While there wasn’t much verge at times the we had plenty of warning to get out of the way of the few cars that did pass us.

40 or 50min (or forever ) later we reach the Round Hill Cafe at the top of the hill. Surprisingly there was a little camp area there. Talking to the care taker we discover it had shower, toilet and kitchen area and was only $25 for a powered site! I know where we are staying tonight. Winning!!!

Anyhoo we follow the trail down past some old mine Adits to the start of the canyon.

Enticing. Not.

And soon we were suiting up in a little gorge.

After the slipfest in Urumbilum it took us a bit to trust our footing but the rocks here offered heaps of grip. And soon we were making reasonable time

It threaten to but never really canyoned up.

Still there were some very cool abseils in flow. It reminded me of the better of the Bungonia canyons with good water in it, though the abseils tended to be shorter .

The second abseil is the crux. It lands in an enclosed pool that in high water forms a powerful hydraulic with strainers in the outflow
Even at this level there’s a small recirc and once out of that the water is a bit pushy into those gaps .🎥©️Kylie

It is pretty but
The next few are fairly straightforward
It tries ever so hard to canyon up
The final abseil is the largest at about 30m and is a good finish to the “canyon” section
🎥©️Kylie

We grab a bit to eat in the sun then we’ve got a bit of a walk down stream to finish.

Again, after Urumbilum we are a tad nervous of what this will entail but it’s easy going all the way back to the bridge

Every song has a you that the singer sings to and you’re it this time: Ani

Big thanks to the locals legends who gave us tips and advice.

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Nose Dive

| flynny101

Kris, Hywaida, Kylie and meeeeeeee

01/10/2023

It was a slightly cooler day which worked out perfectly as it’s a bit of a walk to get to this one

Pleasant banter ate up the fire trail and it didn’t seem too long before we were following the HITW exit trail down to Dingo Creek (but really North Bungleboori)

The old dodgy ledge that you could once use to stay dry seems to have washed away and so we stripped down to essentials and waded down to our exit on the other side.

Here we encountered the first of the many large tangles of dead fall we’d encounter today. b

After a bit of effort we were up North East canyon and had a morning tea break looking down over Banks.

The climb out of North East canyon, which runs South West….

We pick an easy path down to cross the head of Banks Canyon. Then over the next ridge to scramble into Nose Dive creek.

Making our way down stream there was lots of dead fall to negotiate.

The gully seemed to be openning out and I voiced concerns that we had dropped in too far down stream (I didn’t get the grid reference or study the map. I go by feel baby)

But then.

The creek drops down a hole. And so do we.
The second of the cavern like sections. It’s ok I guess.

Ok it was more than ok.

Dark yet somehow filled with beautiful light
Really spectacular and somewhat unique slot canyon
Such a cool little section
The water was like glass
Gadget with H in the background
Throw and go because, well you know.
Was it cold. Yes it was
H
K
G

And then we are in T̶h̶e̶ ̶‘̶b̶o̶o̶r̶i̶ Dingo Creek for lunch followed by a bit of creek walking and some long swims to get back up the the HITW exit at the big bend

It’s a gorgeous section of T̶h̶e̶ ̶‘̶b̶o̶o̶r̶i̶… Dingo creek

You should sit in nature for 20min every day.

Unless you are really busy then you should do it for an hour.

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Bindook Chasm

| flynny101

19-08-2023

Gadget and Meeeee

Despite being right next to Bindook cattle Station Bindook falls are in the middle of nowhere.

Sure it’s an interesting bit of nowhere but it’s a longish drive from anywhere.

The creek cuts a short but pretty slot down a series of Falls that have 2 main points of interest

1) they cut through hexagonal columns of basalt (Edit: apparently it’s not basalt but Barrallier Ignimbrite. Ignimbrite is basically the result of hot ash flows if I am understanding things, which I usually don’t)

b) it’s called a chasm.

Plus

iii) the distance means it’s less visited than a lot of blue mountains canyons.

Any hoo it’s been on my radar for a while only I thought you needed permission to cross the private property and I thought it was a very long drive to get to.

A tiny bit of research revealed you can skirt around the property within the boundary of the National park and it wasn’t that much longer a drive than it is to Kanangra which makes it an easy day trip from my place.

And so we thought why the hell not.

It’s a pretty drive made prettier by a dusting of snow coating the pine trees on the way out through Shooters Hill. And the road past mt Werong to Bindook is very scenic indeed. It’s awe inspiring country

We had no problem finding a spot to park and making the short walk to the start of the chasm.

Making our way down to where the creek first cuts into a narrow slot we are greeted by 2 smallish drops each with a long swim at the bottom and little to no anchor options between

The start of the chasm

We discussed setting an anchor for the first abseil and linking them together but it looked like it might be a tricky pull down in cold water so we opted to bypass a short section and abseil in from the side.

There was a reasonable flow of water so I believe the murky green is due to calcites in the strata?

Bypassing the first 2 drops with a 40m traversing abseil from trees above.
Looking down the amazing “chasm” towards the chock stone. With a bit of effort we were able to use the ledge on the left to avoid the early swim.

The anchor for the next abseil was threaded throu a single piton jammed in the back of the chock stone.

We searched for a while for a feasible back up without luck. Test weighting the anchor showed the piton to be solid and with a stepped, scrambley abseil we decided it was good enough and Gadget went down first.

You don’t really notice the columns until you look back

I perch above the pool and pull the rope. It comes easily and I stop to take out the biner block I had in place then go to pull the last bit down…. It locks solid!

It had come super easy til then. But nothing I could do would get it to budge. I assume the end has knotted itself on the ring and not wanting to waste too much time as Kylie was wet and waiting at the next anchor, I resort to cutting the rope.

The next anchor looks like it needed replacing 15years ago… it partly crumbles as Gadget inspects it. Other bits are so stiff we had to cut them out.
Gadget checking angles.

The next abseil is off old pitons again. At least there are 4 of them but we take a bit of time to set new tape. It was impossible to equalise them in the direction we wanted to abseil but again they felt solidly placed. And Gadget lead the stepped 45m abseil.

Another cold swim greeted us at the bottom of this one.

We pull rope from the far side of the pool then have a brief look for an anchor for the final 60-70m drop.

There wasn’t much in the way of obvious anchors and spying a steep ramp leading up to the right we opt to exit early.

It’s steep, loose and at times narrow but it goes.

Back up top we push our way through black thorn thickets up to the clearing below the property fence line, then make our way back to cross the top of the chasm and thus back to the car

Nice spot for a picnic

Part size: 2

Time: 4hr car to car.

Big places help you realise how small you and your problems are

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South Bowen, upper

| flynny101

Upper upper. Like, the very top bit.

08-04/2023

Kylie and meeeee

It’s been a while since I’ve organised an obscure trip.

Others take the piss out of my scrub bashes to shit canyons but I get a kick out of checking out places the majority wouldn’t bother with.

So when we were thinking about what to do and South Bowen formed up as the front runner I suggest how about we go in fro the top.

Not that’s it’s overly obscure, for as long as I can remember David Noble has been commenting that people miss 3 or 4 canyon sections by going in the “standard” entry.

Still upper sections tend to be hit and miss so I wasn’t expecting high quality but they are all worth doing once.

The only hitch was the car shuffle. We didn’t have a second car.

Let’s just do the top and scramble out the Cork Screw entrance. Says I. That way it’s only a 2km walk back up the highway and we can do that first.

Deal.

We pick one of the branches below Mt Wilson turn off and make our way in. It was scrubby on the spur and muddy in the creek line.

Like scrubby scrub and muddy mud

But it’s only a short bash to the first canyon section. And it’s surprisingly high quality.

And once we got to the junction with the “standard” entry we reversed back up the Cork Screw section and found a break in the cliffs to scramble up.

Party size:2

Time: 4.5hrs car to car.

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Juggler

| flynny101

07-04-23

I’m not going to make it.

I’m suppose to be catching up with the crew for a trip through Claustral. But the early start was delayed so I crawled back into bed to wait out the unusual morning storm.

Then I forgot to factor in Good Friday traffic.

I’m no chance of making the new time. Go without me, texted I

Now what?

Hey Kylie want to do a chill half day?

Sure

I’ve never been overly impressed by Juggler but it seems like the least hassle.

It’s was kinda nice after the storms.

Opting for the wet lines
A couple of guys in front

And that’s about it. We are not really fussed on adding in Grand today so we go for a little optional extra

We invited the two we caught up with in juggler to the add on.

Party size:2

Time: 3.5 hrs car to car with a relaxed lunch break.

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Wayper

| flynny101

17-3-23

Jason, Russ, Madie, Leo and me

It’s late, very late as we find somewhere to pitch tents. There excitement in the air and a bit of a buzz as you get after a long drive for adventure.

We have an early start so it’s pretty much straight to bed to find some sleep.

We’ve come north to the hills inland of Coffs Harbour with grand plans but the weather is fickle. Rain through the week has the creeks pumping.

The big canyons are heavy.

The water is dropping each day but still they are heavy.

With this in mind we opt to start with Wayper. It’s relatively high in the catchment so unlikely to be a handful

We hit the creek a little too high up and begin boulder hopping down stream

Creek walking and boulder hopping become the theme of the day.

The water is fairly tame and there are some nice falls at this level

And lots of creek walking and boulder hopping in between

It reminds me a bit of Dione Dell
with a bit of swimming
At least it had some cool jumps.
But it was stinking hot and there was a lot of creek walking between the gooder bits

I’m not going to mention the abseil where I came last only to realise I’d left my bag up top.

The awkward over hanging start made it challenging to get back up. But a bit of creative thinking and a foot loop got me there.

We do the final abseil and decide to beat a retreat straight up a scree gully to hit an old logging track.

The leaches are tenacious up here. My ankle itches but we haul out.

At one point I liken the trip to Dione Dell with a Danae exit.

But it’s hotter than a Lithgowite is use to and there may be another reason I find the exit a tough slog.

Kylie greets us at the car park and we decide to head to Dorrigo because all we want and all we need is a good a pub feed.

And there’s options to chase a bit more water

To be continued.

Watta Canyon

| flynny101

18-02-2023

Jason Kylie and me.

So Watta canyon on the Southern Highlands has been on my list for a while but for one reason or another I hadn’t got there.

Time to rectify that.

It starts with a bit of promise
There’s lots of scrambling down, up, and over boulders but the creek is surprisingly pretty
And there are arches. Beautiful, mossy arches
And long swims
Swims that end abruptly in waterfalls
Jason on the first fun little drop
Kylie having a shower

And then the canyon ends as the arse end falls out of the world.

From the top it looks massive.

Kylie is setting up the short rope. Um, it looks massive…

A 20m abseil brings us to a big ledge. That was hidden at the top.

And now it’s time for the long ropes.

A stunning full length abseil into space.
Kylie giving the falls some perspective
Me and Jas adding some buff, or sumfink. 📸©️Kylie

and that quite definitely is the answer. I think the problem, to be quite honest with you, is that you’ve never actually known what the question is. D Adams

And about 3.5hrs after we started we are back at the cars.

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