Thursday 20 Jul 2023 to Sunday 23 Jul 2023. XC Summit Tour

This year we had 31 skiers participate in our annual Summit Tour. Some departed Sydney on the bus while some made their own way to Thredbo.

Friday was a varied day of skiing. Some climbed Ramshead from the Dead Horse Gap, some headed up to Merritt’s to practice their telemark turns and others soaked up the Thredbo hospitality.

On Saturday we left Thredbo for the XC ski to Charlotte Pass via the Main Range. This year saw a group crossing via Twin Valleys, and some followed the pole line to the Snowy River Bridge while some detoured via Seamans Hut. The snow was hard packed but the weather was glorious – blue skies no wind.

On Sunday we skied to Perisher to meet the bus. The snow was still hard so the best option was to ski the road and make use of the oversnow tracks.

We stopped at Mittagong RSL for a great meal.

Thanks to Owen and Ian for your trip leadership and the Managers and staff at all three lodges for your awesome hospitality and excellent meals. A special mention goes to Ross our bus driver for a safe trip.

Sunday 02 Jul 2023. Kamay Botany Bay - Bronze Sculptures, Angophoras and Whales.

Twenty-five SASC members and friends turned out on a ‘blue bird’ for this Botany Bay foreshore walk. First we set out to view the bronze sculptures installed to commemorate 250 years since the encounter between the aboriginals and the crew of HMB Endeavor

The group continued their walk through Kamay National Park initially along the Banks Solander Track, viewing a large stand of magnificent Angophora trees. Then we followed the Yena Track and the Pipeline Link Fire trail through coastal heathland to the spectacular cliff tops of Cape Solander for lunch and whale watching.

Large numbers of whales were passing and we were able to view several pods including numerous whales breaching further out to sea.

The group then walked along the raised walking platform atop the cliff line to the newly opened and hugely popular whale observation station, returning with a small deviation through remnants of Botany Bay rainforest.

Several members continued along the clifftops to Cape Baily while one super fit member extended her walk all of the way to Cronulla.

By all accounts it was a very successful and enjoyable day. Many thanks to Russell and Col for a great outing.

Sunday 04 Jun 2023. Harbour Foreshore - Wollstonecraft to North Sydney.

Fifteen members came on today’s walk in overcast and cool conditions.

After meeting at Wollstonecraft Station, we set off down a bushland gully, reaching Berry Island where we did a circuit around the headland.

Heading to Balls Head Reserve, we passed the site of the old Oyster Bay Gasworks, now a huge apartment development.

Thence to the site of the old coal loader where we encountered crowds of people attending an Artisans’ Market. This was an appropriate place for morning tea where, despite the numbers of people, we found a nice unoccupied wooden bench.

Resuming our walk down at water level, we traversed a dimly lit tunnel, one of four which constituted the below-ground operation of the coal loader. The old timber wharf at the site, although gradually falling into total ruin, is a remarkable structure.

From Balls Head Reserve itself there are outstanding views over Sydney Harbour, including to Cockatoo Island and Goat Island.

Some further bushland and urban walking brought us to our lunch stop at Sawmillers Reserve. After that it was a short walk up Blues Point Road to North Sydney Station and a 2-stop train trip back to Wollstonecraft.

This part of the harbour foreshore is full of interest: Balls Head named after a commander from the First Fleet; HMAS Waterhen, the 1962 naval base in Balls Head Bay; the past and present fuel terminal operations (BP and Shell); and aboriginal rock engravings. On top of all that are the magnificent outlooks over our beautiful Sydney Harbour.

Sunday 07 May 2023. Dangar Island.

For our May walk we had 32 members, family and friends meet for a pleasant stroll around the very interesting Dangar Island.

After a short ferry trip from Brooklyn we took a well-earned (!) rest at the very picturesque Dangar Island Cafe. Our walking tour started with a visit to the pop-up market in the community park, then on to Bradleys Beach with views across to Little Wobby (the destination for a memorable SASC Easter in 1992).

Next we walked the loop around Riverview Crescent including the short climb to the viewpoint from Kilparra Park. We headed back to the Community Park for lunch, just in time for the clouds to clear for a warm and sunny afternoon.

The island is a fascinating destination: lots of history, easy walking, friendly 'river-dwellers', a lovely cafe and no cars.

Many thanks to Bob and Sally for organising this outing.

Thursday to Tuesday - 23 Mar to 28 Mar 2023. Walking weekend at Kahane Lodge, Perisher.

Since 2006 we’ve held an annual Easter walking weekend at one of our Lodges. In 2023 we moved it forward to avoid the crowds and to allow Kahane to be used by other members during the Easter/school holidays.

We had a full lodge of 40 members covering all levels of fitness and walking experience. We didn’t get the expected ‘bluebird’ days but still managed some fabulous walks.

Again, as in 2022 we were fully catered, this year with Bridgette assisting Tony in the kitchen. Many thanks for all your support.

The whole weekend was enjoyed by everyone and at our Saturday meeting we agreed would maintain a similar early schedule in 2024.

Friday 24 Mar 2023. Walk to the old chairlift and restaurant ruins.

This was the introductory walk for our weekend program.

Ron Giles led a party from Charlotte Pass out to the Old Restaurant. Due to works on the Stillwell track, we had to ascend via the track behind the lodges. The return trip took us on a wide loop below Mt Stillwell for a certain distance after which we rejoined the outbound track down to the Village.

Weatherwise, this was one of our best days and a great adventure for those who had never been out to see the ruins. This is a really interesting part of Charlotte Pass history. The story of the chairlifts and restaurant is one of underestimating the power of the elements. The mammoth undertaking of successfully completing the construction of lifts at this location was utterly undone by severe blizzard conditions in 1964. The lift system could not cope with the Nature’s forces, and after repeated incidents and in financial difficulties, it was abandoned in 1965.

Fortunately we had pleasant conditions for our walk: despite forecasts of almost certain rain, the day was perfect with a mild cool breeze and cloudless skies.

Distance covered was about 6 km.

Saturday 25 Mar 2023. Walk to Spencer’s Creek suspension bridge and return.

We had two groups today. Some attended a small memorial service on Rex’s Run at Charlotte Pass to remember Sue Davies who passed away late last year.

A second group did a return walk from Charlotte Pass to the Spencer’s Creek bridge on a section of the “Iconic Snowies Walk”. This is a fabulous walk, opened in 2022, that gives easy access along the Snowy River providing some great picnic spots near the junction with Spencers Creek.

The turn-around destination and lunch stop was the Guthega side of the suspension bridge.

Several rain showers had walkers reaching for wet weather gear, but on the whole the day was dry, albeit with limited long-distance vistas.

Distance covered was about 12 km.

Sunday 26 March 2023. Charlotte Pass to Perisher walk.

Just about all of our number set off for the trek along a new section of “Iconic Snowies Walk”, this time from Charlotte Pass Village down to Perisher via the Porcupine Rocks.

This track has been in place for only about 2 years and is still a work in progress in places. Recent new work includes long stretches of raised metal boardwalk and granite flagstones. The NPWS have done an incredible job building this track. From The Pass it heads towards Sugarloaf before crossing the valley then up into the snow gums coming out at the Trapyard saddle. After enjoying the views to the Alpine Way, we started a gentle climb north for more snow gums and alpine views.

Some walkers made a small detour to scale Porcupine Rocks and take in the distant views. The actual approach to the Porcupine Rocks from the south is an amazing 3 - 4 km. You will have to walk it to appreciate the area.

The weather was kind today - cool breeze and mostly overcast but with sunny periods.

This walk is definitely recommended for all our members. Whichever direction you walk this track, you’ll be impressed with the views and with the mighty work that’s been done by NPWS to make it accessible.

Everyone agreed that it was probably the best walk we’ve done.

Distance covered was about 12.5 km.

Monday 27 March 2023. Thredbo River picnic area to Gaden trout hatchey, then Pallaibo Track.

A small group drove down the Kosciuszko Road to the Thredbo River picnic area and walked the couple of kilometres to Gaden Trout Hatchery for morning tea.

After that, we walked along the Pallaibo Track to the rest area at Sawpit Creek and return. There were a few shy kangaroos in the bush next to the track.

This is a beautiful piece of bushland. It was easy walking along moderate grades and a few climbs into and out of Sawpit Creek crossings. At certain high points there were distant views of Lake Jindabyne.

By all accounts there were persistent showers at Perisher today, but our group today encountered not a drop of rain.

Distance covered was about 13.5 km.

Tuesday to Thursday - 21 Mar to 23 Mar 2023. Cootapatamba Painting Trip.

There are a lot of historic huts in the Snowy Mountains. Many of them have volunteer caretakers who work under the leadership of the Kosciusko Huts Association. The SASC XC & BW group are the caretakers of Cootapatamba Hut which sits below Lake Cootapatamba in the shadow of Mt Kosciusko.

The hut is an important emergency shelter in a popular back-country ski area just a few kilometres from Thredbo.

Every two years, a group of SASC members walk down to the hut to perform any required maintenance,. For this year, we scheduled the trip just prior to our 2023 Kahane walking weekend.

The plan was to walk down on Wednesday with Thursday as backup but neither day was suitable for painting so we opted for Friday. It started out very cold and windy but soon cleared to a warm and sunny day. We managed to sand and repaint the outside ladder, re-stain the door frame and touch up several areas that had suffered over the last few years.

In 2019 the NPWS replaced the original old timber hut with a near exact replica. The new hut is much easier to maintain and the painted exterior is surviving so much better than the old hut.

Many thanks to the members who volunteered to support the 2023 working party.

Next time you undertake the walk from Thredbo to Kosciusko, look for the little red hut sitting just below Lake Cootapatamba.

Sunday 05 Mar 2023. Northbridge Tour.

Sixteen walkers met to walk from Willoughby Leisure Centre to Clive Park and back.

Our track took in Flat Rock Creek and the foreshore walk below the Northbridge Golf Course.

En route we stopped at Henry Lawson’s Cave, the Fatty Dawson ruins, Tunks Park and Hallstrom Point.

Afterwards a handful of walkers met for afternoon tea at Colin and Fiona’s place.

Our route for the day looked like this:

Sunday 05 Feb 2023. Spit to Manly Walk.

For our opening activity in 2023, a group of about 12 keen walkers set out on the Spit to Manly walk.

Sydney Harbour was at its sparkling best in perfect summer weather.

Many thanks to Adele and Leigh for leading today's walk.

Here is a trace of our route.

Sunday 27 Nov 2022. Xmas picnic at Lane Cove National Park.

On Sunday 27 Nov 22, forty members gathered at the Haynes Flat picnic ground in the Lane Cove National Park for our annual end-of-year event.

It was great to catch up with several members who no longer make it to our regular walks.

The weather was kind and the kookaburras seemed confused by our new bird defensive strategies.

The quality of the cricket never seems to get any better - but when you have a 5 year old batting and a 92 year old fielding …

Many thanks to all who attended, especially the ladies who supplied the vast quantity of nibbles, cakes and so on.

We wish everyone a Happy Christmas and look forward to many more adventures in 2023.

November 2022. Abercrombie 4WD camping weekend - Cancelled.

Our planned 4WD camping weekend in the Abercrombie NP was cancelled for several reasons.

• The main access to the Abercrombie National Park was still closed

• The 4WD crossing at the Retreat River was still not passable

• The forecast for the planned weekend was for yet more rain

As it turned out, our cancellation was a wise move: the forecast rain did come and the river came up into the Jacquie’s garden.

Better luck next year!