Day 1, Cooma
After making their way down separately the gang of 7 all met up at the Cooma Tourist Park just outside of town. The cabin only slept 6 but Terry graciously said he’d get a motel room in town so nobody had to camp. So Cos, Dave, Don & Tracy and Keri & Paul all shared the two room cabin. The bunk beds in the cabin were not very robust and anytime someone moved made loud squeaking noises meaning it wasn’t a very restful sleep for some.
Cos had passed a turn off to Mt Gladstone viewpoint on the way in and he went for a quick drive up there to check out the view.
Day 2, Cooma to Buchan
After our first morning briefing we drove off into the mist to start our two week High Country adventure.
We made a quick stop in Jindabyne on the edge of the lake to visit the gift shop and were pleasantly surprised to find it open given it was Anzac day and the main street was blocked off for a parade. Dave’s kids had requested something from the gift shop that he’d bought them about 10 years ago but it turned out that was the last time they had stocked it so he came out empty handed.
From Jindabyne we continued southwest along Barry Way which eventually turned into Snowy River Road and became a steep windy road with some spectacular views. We stopped at Wallace Craigie Lookout along the way.
Our next stop was the tiny Suggan Buggan historic school built in 1865.
Don and Terry had been talking to a local who told them Little River Falls was an 800 metre walk and dropped 300 metres so we stopped there for a look. It turned out the gorge was 600 metres deep but the waterfall was only a 30 foot drop so wasn’t as spectacular as we were expecting.
We continued on along another narrow steep winding road with limited passing areas (supposedly rated as one of Australia’s most dangerous roads, but wasn’t as bad as we expected).
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1uSIci1 ... sp=sharing
The end destination was McKillops bridge. The 225 metre long, 4.5 metre wide and 29 metre high bridge was built in 1936 after its predecessor was destroyed in a flood days before it opened.
We had to drive back along the same dangerous road to get to Buchan. Buchan is a tiny town with one servo that was closed when we pulled in at 5:30pm, one hotel/bar/restaurant and one general store. We stayed in the excellent Cottage on Main, a rental house, opposite the hotel.
Day 3, Buchan to Swifts Creek Return
It was a nice clear day once we got above the fog.
The plan for day 5 was to get to Swifts Creek via 4WD tracks and arrive around lunch time. Things didn’t go according to plan though. The tracks weren’t really difficult until we came to one creek crossing on Wilkinson Bend Track.
Keri got through the creek but sunk into the mud on the other side. Terry winched Keri back into the creek where she could drive out and then Terry tried driving across but got stuck as well. He was able to winch himself up the steep bank with some trouble but got out eventually.
We were worried about Cos and Keri’s vehicles getting across and it was suggested putting in lots of rocks so we wouldn’t sink into the mud and shovelling out the bank to make it less steep. It was decided this would be hard work and take too long and we decided to go back the way we came although there was some concern about being able to get back up one the hills we had come down. Terry took Paul and carried on rather than crossing the creek again while the rest of us went back and we met at the junction of Horseyard Track and Timbarra Bridge Track.
From here Keri led us along various tracks, non of which were challenging but were an enjoyable drive. We made a stop a the remains of the Washington Winch near Bentley Plains. The winch was steam powered and was used for moving large timber, first in Western Australia before being sold to Victoria.
We eventually got to Swifts Creek about 4pm where we stretched our legs and stocked up on supplies at the local shop. We drove back to Buchan via Bruthen arriving just after 6pm.
After dinner at the pub the skies briefly cleared up and Dave gave Cos and Don a lesson on photographing nebula’s
The Carina Nebula
Day 4, Buchan Caves to Dargo
An early morning stroll in Buchan
The Buchan Caves were just a quick drive from our cottage. We did the Royal Cave and Fairy Cave tours.
Keri went for a drive instead and we met her at Bruthen park for lunch. After lunch we drove onto Bairnsdale where we stopped to have a look at St Mary’s Catholic Church. It was only supposed to be a quick stop but there was a guy there who does little tours and he talked for ages about the priest who built the church and the painter who painted the ceiling and walls.
From there we drove straight to the Dargo Hotel where we checked into our log cabin for three nights, except for Keri and Paul who decided to camp down by the river.
Day 5, Dargo to Dargo via Blue Rag
We were driving up to the Blue Rag Range Track which has fantastic views when the weather is good. Sadly the weather wasn’t looking too good as we made an early start so we wouldn’t be driving back in the dark. Once we turned off Dargo High Plains Road onto the Blue Rag Track we started to climb and soon we were up in the clouds.
The weather didn’t improve and when we got to the top all we could see was cloud. The Blue Rag Track wasn’t particularly challenging when dry and nobody had any trouble getting up.
Our next stop after descending the long steep winding Great Alpine Road was the delightful little town of Harrietville. We had lunch next to the Ovens River amongst the colourful autumn trees. We were wondering where Terry had got to when he came back with hot doughnuts for everyone. That’s one way to make sure you get invited onto more trips!
The most photographed trees in Harrietville. Everyone who stopped here took a photo of these trees.
At lunch we discussed whether or not to drive up to Mt Buffalo and walk up to the lookout but we decided it wasn’t worth it as it was likely we would have the same view as on top of Blue Rag. So instead we carried on towards Bright where we spent a leisurely couple of hours wandering around town and along the river taking in the scenery.
Drive into Bright
From Bright we drove back to Dargo making just one quick stop at Lankey Plain Hut, just an old tin hut near the start of King Spur Track.
Day 6, Dargo to Dargo via Billy Goats Bluff
Billy Goats Bluff had been planned for Saturday but with rain supposed to be on the way we voted to try and get up there a day early. Billy Goats is one of the highlights of the High Country but we didn’t think it was a good idea to try it when the track was wet. On the way to Blue Rag we crossed the Kingwill Bridge where last time we drove through the river for fun and to try and clean some dirt off the vehicles. This time we made straight for Billy Goats.
Once we’d started up Billy Goats we soon discovered that the track was a lot rockier than last time we went up it. That time it was not long after it had been graded. We lined all the vehicles up at the helipad and took some group photos.
It was more challenging than Blue Rag but nobody had any problems getting up it. It was just extremely bumpy the higher we got. I was bouncing around all over the place. I did get stuck in a couple of places when I didn’t have my locker on so in the end I left it on until we got to the top. None of the dashcam footage does it justice but I’ve put some in anyway.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1anwMyz ... sp=sharing
Bouncing my way up Billy Goats Bluff
Up at the top the group stopped at the Pinnacle Firetower lookout that has fantastic views from 1,343 metres up.
After lunch at the Pinnacle car park the plan was to drive back down Billy Goat Bluff Track, stop at Kingwill Bridge and have a play in the river before heading back to Dargo well before sunset. This plan went up in smoke when I got in my car and tried starting it but had no power. At first I thought the battery was fine and there was a connection issue but Dave suggested it was a collapsed battery. Luckily we were able to jump start my car but it was decided it would be too risky for me to go back down Billy Goat Bluff Track in case I stalled it. It could prove to be very difficult to get the vehicles in a position to jump start me again while going down Billy Goats I was very lucky I didn’t stall it on the way up, I almost did once or twice. The only other option was to drive to Licola and then we thought we could get to Bairnsdale before 5pm to buy another battery. We could have split up with some people going back down Billy Goat and one car coming with me but everyone decided to go via Licola.
After having no luck getting a battery through RACQ we made it to Sale just in time to get one from Supercheap Auto before they closed. We fitted the new battery and the car started first time. Feeling relieved we still had a 2 hour drive back to Dargo and we made it back to order dinner at the pub not long before the kitchen closed at 8pm.
Day 7, Dargo to Licola
It was time to say goodbye to our comfortable log cabin as we checked out and drove north along Dargo High Plains Road. We turned west onto McMillans Road stopping at Grant Cemetery for a quick walk around the graves. Dave and Cos spotted a few different types of fungi, including a rare blue type.
Just down the road we stopped at the site of the old town of Grant. There is nothing there now apart from signs with information about the old town on them. From there we continued along McMillans Road to Talbotville where we camped last time we were in the High Country. We didn’t stop for long and drove out along Crooked River Road and its multiple river crossings.
The first river crossing was deep enough for water to come in the back doors of Cos’s cab. Keri and Paul were kind enough to lend Cos a couple of towels that came in handy for the next even deeper crossing that came up to just above the top of his bull bar.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/11UMPi8 ... sp=sharing
There was a track that bypassed the last two river crossings and Cos wasn’t game to try them in case they got deeper and so everyone followed Cos on the detour around the river crossings. We continued on as the road meandered along Wongungarra and Wonnangatta Rivers. The High Country is an amazing place to drive around, you are either down in the valleys driving next to the rivers or up on the mountains getting amazing views through the trees.
Day 8, Licola to Licola
After having several long days behind the wheel the goal for day 8 was to explore the tracks north of Licola and return to our cabin with plenty of daylight left and light up the camp fire and have a relaxing evening.
A quick photo opportunity on the way
It was another fantastic drive following Target Creek for much of the morning. We got to end of Black Soil Gully Track and forded Macalister River. It was deep enough for Cos to get water in the back seats again but the towels soaked up most of it.
The next river crossing was less than a kilometre up the road track and was much wider. It was difficult to see how deep it was and as it was almost time to turn around and go home everyone decided not to cross it except Keri, who couldn’t resist the temptation. She chose a good path across that wasn’t too deep but it was very rocky and she made across and back again with no trouble.
We stopped for lunch back at the first river crossing and the mushroom hunt continued. Don managed to find some with the wheel of his car when drove down a little side track to what was there. Cos also found a frog sitting out in the open and couldn’t resist taking a few snaps.
On the way back up Black Soil Gully there were more great views.
We arrived back at Licola right on schedule and enjoyed a nice relaxing afternoon and evening. Don tried out his gold detector for the first time on the trip, down by the river. He didn’t find any gold nuggets to make him rich but he did find a gold ring that someone may have planted there to test out how well his detector worked.
Day 9, Licola to Rawson
As we were preparing to depart Licola we heard a shout that Terry had seen a wombat crossing the road. Dave and Cos ran to grab their cameras that for once weren’t already in their hands and made a dash for the road. Unfortunately where the wombat crossed was on the other side of the bridge and by the time we got across it had disappeared into the bush. Cos did get a brief glimpse of it as it walked around a big tree trunk but sadly that was the last we saw of it.
The drive to Rawson went via Mt Useful.
We made a short detour across the fire tower at the top of Mt Useful. At 1,435 metres high you could see what seemed like for ever.
Back on Springs Road we turned our CB’s to channel 39 to listen out for logging traffic that used the road. It wasn’t busy and we only passed one truck going the other way and he kindly pulled over to let us all by. As with most roads in the area there were lots of side tracks but unusually a lot of these weren’t on the maps and a few of them were overgrown suggesting they didn’t get much use. We eventually turned onto the picturesque Donnelly’s Creek Road that led us to Store Point Hut, marking the site of Store Point town in the 1860’s which had a population of over 1,200 people.
Cos and Dave went mushroom hunting again and you knew they had found some good ones when they put on their macro lenses and got out their tripods. Luckily we were making good time as they went missing for a while and probably would have been there all day if they hadn’t been politely requested to rejoin the rest of the group so we could continue on to Rawson.
Along the way we had time for a quick stop at the site of Goonans Hut, now a modern colour bond shed. It was right next to a fast flowing Donnellys Creek that made for a nice photo opportunity.
After crossing Donnelys Creek again further along by Jorgenson Flat we started to climb and came to the ruins of Toombon town and mine. The town was from 1870 to 1912 and had over 200 houses in it. In 1926 the town was destroyed by fire. We spent a while here exploring and reading the information boards.
A little further up the road we passed the Toombon Cemetery but didn’t stop long as there was nowhere to park up. Keri was the only one to get out of the car and have a quick gander. For a cemetery in the middle of nowhere it had a lot of rules, including opening times!
We had a view of Lake Thomson on the drive.
And time for one final stop at the Lake Thomson Dam wall just before we drove across it. We made good time and arrived at Mountain Rivers Tourist Park before 4pm.
We all had dinner at the Erica Hotel. It was an interesting place with a bunch of massive old chainsaws hanging up around the place. Dave and Terry ordered hot rock steaks that came out on slabs of rock at 400 degrees and still cooking and they had to cook them as they liked them.
Day 10, Rawson to Rawson
This morning we sadly had to say goodbye to Tracy & Don as they were having trouble with their starter motor. It had started the day before and they felt they couldn’t take the risk of getting somewhere like Craig’s Hut and not being able to start the car. The starter motor wasn’t very accessible and being an automatic they wouldn’t be able to clutch start it. So as they started the long drive home to Queensland the rest of the group left to take the scenic route to Walhalla whilst trying to get used to only having four vehicles now.
Sunlit tree at our accommodation.
We spent a couple of hours wandering around taking in the colourful little town of Walhalla.
Like a lot of small towns in the area it seemed to have been hit hard by the Covid lock downs so very little in town was open due to staffing shortages. The Long Tunnel Extended Mine Tour was still open and was fully booked which was unusual for a Tuesday according to our guide. It was an interesting tour and made you feel for the poor miners who had to work in those awful conditions underground risking life and limb for gold.
After the tour we had time to explore some more tracks in the area on the way back to Rawson.
Day 11, Rawson to Mansfield
The plan had been to travel to Jamieson and stay the night there but the weather was supposed to rainy and /or snowing the next few days. So we decided to play it safe and drive to Mansfield and see what the weather was going to be like before deciding whether or not to drive up to Craig’s Hut the following day.
We drove back up past Lake Thomson and carried on north towards Mansfield. Don had warned us the road was a rough one and we should air down. Although the road was rough with a lot of corrugations, particularly on the corners it was another scenic drive. Much of the road was up around 1,000 metres with nice views through the trees.
We had lunch at Matlock. We drove up to the viewpoint but it was decided it was too cold to have lunch so we went down the hill where it was a bit less windy.
The road dropped a fair bit after lunch and we ended up driving next to the rivers again. We passed through some isolated communities on the way such as Woods Point, an hour and a half drive from Mansfield along a bumpy road just to go to the shops and fill up the car with fuel. We pulled into Mansfield about 3:30pm and looked for a cafe so we could have a hot drink and find some accommodation. Most of the cafes were closed but we eventually found one that was open and we all had a drink. We booked a couple of rooms at the Delatite Hotel for one night and all met up there after going to fuel up.
I wonder which guests get put in room 13?
Day 12, Mansfield to Craig’s Hut
They had been forecasting bad weather for days but there was only some morning fog. Once that had burnt off it was a beautiful day so we decided to press on for Craig’s Hut via some of the lower huts along the Howqua River. We turned off Mt Buller Road onto Howqua Track and followed that to Sheepyard Flat. We weren’t sure where the huts were so we drove onto Tunnel Bend along Brocks Road. We had trouble finding the southern entrance so walked up to the north entrance first.
You couldn’t walk in far before you came to a couple of metres of water on the floor that was too deep to walk through without getting wet feet. You could see all the way to the other end of the tunnel and Cos said he’d wait there while everyone else went round to the other entrance to make their way in from that side and he’d take photos of them. There was water that end as well and Paul was the only one who went through the tunnel.
From Tunnel Bend we drove back and found Pickering’s Hut where the sun was lighting up the colourful autumn trees and making them look very photogenic.
After following Keri over to Fry’s Hut and spending some time there we drove back up past Tunnel Bend towards Craig’s Hut.
It was another windy bumpy road but we were able to do it in high range. When we got to the junction with Upper Howqua Road Keri heard a couple of young women asking us if we could hear them. It transpired that they had bogged their 4WD and had gone hiking to try and get mobile reception so they could call for help. They had been walking an hour and a half from their vehicle and picked us up on their CB radio while they had it on scan. They explained to Keri that their vehicle was stuck at Pikes Flat along Sixteen Mile Jeep Track. Keri told them we would go and find their vehicle and try and start the recovery while we waited for them to walk back to their car.
When we got to Pike’s Flat we couldn’t immediately see their vehicle until Keri drove across the river and found it on the other side. It was well and truly stuck at an angle across a big log in wet muddy track.
There was much discussion on how we could go about getting the car out. We couldn’t get our cars to the other side of theirs and it didn’t have any recovery points on the front which was facing us. There wasn’t any close convenient trees to winch off either.
It was decided we would try and winch from a tree about thirty or forty metres away using Terry’s winch and winch extension. These weren’t long enough though so Dave unspooled his winch rope to give us more length. In the meantime the young women had made their way back to the car. They had gone hiking in slide on sandals with no socks and no wet weather gear. Given that the temperature was supposed to get down to near freezing overnight they were very lucky we came along. I’m pretty sure they said they were trying to hike back to Lovick’s Hut where they stayed last night because they had mobile reception there. The track they were walking up though didn’t go anywhere near Lovick’s Hut but it did lead to the Circuit Road which is main the road for the area. Keri had planned to take Terry and drive up towards Lovick’s Hut and meet the girls as they were coming down and give them a lift. Luckily she didn’t get around to doing it because she would have gone completely the wrong way.
Terry decided to try and drive the ‘95 Toyota Prado out or at least get it into a better position. One of the ladies threw the keys onto the drivers seat through the open sunroof. The car was locked though so she had to climb in through the sunroof to get the keys and unlock the car. Unsurprisingly Terry was unable to move the car even with some logs and max tracks under the wheels.
After that didn’t work they used a winch block tied to a closer tree stump and Terry’s winch tied to the recovery point at the rear of the Prado. Keri jumped in the car to try and help drive it out while it was being winched. The winch just pulled the car sideways across the big log. The winch was taken off the winch block and shackled straight to the car and Terry dragged the car out. It was muddy but appeared undamaged and was still driveable.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1uKJ2dk ... sp=sharing
Keri gave them the advice to never leave their vehicle if they ever get in trouble like that again but if they do leave it at least stay on the main track or road instead of going off on a side track. They followed us up Bindaree Road to Circuit Road where they went back to Mansfield and we took the Monument Track up to Craig’s Hut.
Drive up to Craig’s Hut
The recovery had taken a couple of hours and we didn’t get up to Craig;s Hut until gone 4pm. The sky was still mostly clear and when Cos checked the radar there was no sign of bad weather coming in so we decided to camp up there despite the temperature likely dropping to freezing overnight. Terry was tempted to camp but he had to make an early start in the morning to head home so he drove back to Mansfield by himself and stayed there. So we said our goodbyes and then there were 4.
We went to set up camp and tried to make it back to the hut for sunset but by the time Cos got back up there the sun had already gone behind the clouds on the horizon. It wasn’t a very good sunset so he didn’t take photos as he had good ones from the last High Country trip.
Later on everyone rugged up and walked back to the hut from camp to enjoy Craig’s Hut under the clear starry night. It was remarkably quiet and still up at the hut. It is rare for it to be that quiet anywhere these days let alone 1,450 metres up where it is usually windy. With practically no wind and no wildlife making any noise I can’t remember the last time I was somewhere that peaceful.
Dave let Cos use his star tracker again and he just had time to get some photos of the Orion Nebula before it set over the horizon.
Orion Nebula
Another photo of the Carina Nebula
Day 13, Craig’s Hut
The temperature overnight dropped to near zero degrees but everyone was toasty and warm in their sleeping bags. It was a different story however when we got up early to see if there would be a nice sunrise. Sadly we were to be disappointed as the clouds had come in and we could no longer see the stunning view.
We headed up to the hut for breakfast anyway. While up there the temperature dropped below zero and the dew and water particles started freezing making for some great photo opportunities.
Our camp just down from the hut.
Despite the wind having picked up making the freezing conditions worse we spent several hours enjoying having the hut to ourselves and didn’t leave for Mansfield until gone 10:30am. Once in Mansfield we parked up and said our goodbyes as everyone went their own way at the end of a fantastic two weeks.
Whilst not everything went according to plan we all had a thoroughly enjoyable time thanks in large part to Keri. So again, a big thank you to her for all the effort she put in making it another unforgettable High Country Trip. I’m sure we’ll be back there again before too long for more adventures.
