South Cape Bay - 6th and 7th September 2008

Alex and I went to South Cape Bay for the weekend. Alex wants to do the Overland Track next summer, so he needs to practice carrying a pack. I could do with keeping in practice too, especially if I have to carry stuff through the OT for him. Anyway, we loaded him up with his own gear and some of his own food, and he managed very well. I don't think he's carried this much before, as, in the past someone else has carried his food. He did a good job, and only had problems when he found he was carrying too much weight on one bit of his anatomy or another. The walk to South Cape Bay is quite easy with only small undulations, so it's a good practice walk. The weather was quite kind on Saturday, but did deteriorate today.

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There were quite a few walkers on the track on Saturday, and the sun was out for much of the time. Once on the coast we needed a bit of extra warmth, but it was tee-shirt weather across Blowhole Valley. The waves weren't huge, but were sweeping well up the beach - it was one of those days where a slightly larger wave would sweep an extra 50m up the beach, catching the unwary off-guard. I noted that there was still just one Hooded Plover (Thinornis rubricollis) in evidence. Having seen two here (at least) in previous years, I wonder if this one is missing a mate.

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After trying fishing for a while, we went for a walk up to the lookout on the westward side of Coal Bluff, with the view along the 2nd and 3rd beaches on South Cape Bay. This track is muddier than anything up to that point, but nothing like the rest of the South Coast Track. The view from the lookout is well worth the effort, with grandstand views along the beaches, to South Cape and to Pindars Peak. It started to rain while we were there. Alex pointed out that if it was to rain, we could sit in the tent and play chess. At this point I realised I hadn't put the magnetic chess and draughts in the pack. I told him it might have to be hangman. I described the mud on the SCT to Alex as we came back down the hill, and as a result he has decided not to do that track with me. Two other walkers who had gone to South Cape Rivulet returned to Lion Rock having decided that the Rivulet campsite wasn't as good as Lion Rock. I tend to agree, so I'm not sure what the attraction of the Rivulet is. Maybe it's just because when people come across the South Cape Range they're so depressed by the mud that they want to stop at the first flat place. There are plenty of spots to camp in at Lion Rock. I like the sandy area at the bottom of the steps. I think it would be a bit exposed in poor weather though.

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Alex went fishing before dinner, the idea being that he would supplement the fare. The water was freezing, and it was hard work for a small bloke to cast a lure into solid surf with a nine-foot spinning rod. However, he persevered, and actually caught us a salmon. This happened quite early on, and I think was the main motivator behind his hour-long effort. The salmon was delicious, although a bit hard to cook in an aluminium suacepan over a Whisperlite. Alex was very proud of his catch.

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The sunset was attractive, and made a pleasant end to an enjoyable day. Our camping companions were also fishing. They caught one salmon, quite a bit smaller than Alex's and threw it back. It rained during the night, but eased up for breakfast and packing. We tried to fish again, but between us lost two lures to snags. The small salmon cost $9.00. The walk out was dry to start with, but rain set in half-way. We met a party of four with minimal rain gear going the other way. One had just a windcheater. Hope they enjoyed their walk, because by the time we reached Cockle Creek it was raining quite solidly.

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Organ Pipes Walk, Mt Wellington - 30th August 2008

Yesterday I went for a walk on Mt Wellington for a while. It was supposed to be a warm day, but it remained overcast with a chilly breeze on the mountain slopes. I discovered part-way around that I seemed to be doing the "Organ Pipes Walk" which is one of the 60 Great Short Walks. There didn't seem to be very many people around. This walk sets out from The Springs, climbs beneath the Organ Pipes, then descends to Junction Cabin via Hunters Track. The last bit is the gentle climb back to The Springs along the Lenah Valley Track. This is a good walk on a day when you don't want to climb to the summit. The forest below the chalet along Hunters Track and through along part of the lenah Valley Track shows the effects of fire a few years ago. As I recall, this was a deliberately lit blaze that started behind Glenorchy and climbed the mountain, cutting quite a swathe through the nearly 40 years of regrowth since it was devastated by the 1967 fires. It wasn't as devastating as the earlier fire though, and the forest is recovering. The light yesterday wasn't very inspiring for photographs, but the walk was welcome exercise after a week at work.

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Junction Cabin is a cosy place on a wet day as long as someone has lit a fire. The area around here has been used for camping as well at times, and I have heard people say it was the first place they took their young children for an overnight walk. The grassy areas around the hut are a little slopy, but you could certainly put a tent up. The hut has a water tank and table/benches inside. There is often a supply of firewood left here by the rangers/council.

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Remarkable Cave

I tried to find some good information about Remarkable Cave online, as the bits of info from brochures and signs is fairly sketchy. Having failed to find much, I read my books. There I found some good info. I'll put this up for now, but I need to read more, get some better pictures, now I know what I'm looking for, and also get inside the cave.

Most of the solid information I have found about Remarkable Cave comes from the work of David Leaman. This comes from his books The Rock Which Makes Tasmania (Review here) and Walk Into History In Southern Tasmania.

The cave was originally called “Remarkable” because of the way there appeared to be a map of Tasmania if you stood inside and looked through the cave at the right angle. You can see this clearly as you stand on the viewing platform.

Now, to make the cave more interesting, it has two entrances from the sea-end. Two separate caves have joined up. I recall walking through the cave many years ago. I think at that time access to the floor of the cave was less restricted. The viewing platform these days tends to discourage venturing further. I didn’t clamber down, as the sea was washing into the cave rear, and there was little point. However, when you can walk through the cave it is very interesting. I’m trying to find photos from all those years ago.

David Leaman’s view is that the cave is quite unremarkable (“run-of-the-mill”). He’s speaking as a geologist. His view is that the intrusion of the dolerite, the rocks it intruded, and the effects that intrusion has, is what makes the area remarkable. I suppose most tourists would disagree, but the rocks are very interesting. They can be seen clearly from a number of vantage points. I think there is also much to be seen inside the cave, so I’m keen to return when the tide is low enough.

In summary, Leaman says the following:

Most of the rocks here are Triassic sandstones. These were intruded by Jurassic dolerite. The intrusion can be seen clearly around Remarkable Cave. The top of the intrusion and its contact with the sandstone can be seen in the cliffs and shore platforms around the area.

The sandstone in contact with the dolerite as it intruded displays “exquisite and intense folding”. The easiest place to see this is from the lookout below the car-park, looking south to the cliff below. Leaman says that if you can walk through the cave, then there is more folding to be inspected. Dolerite of course forms many major nearby features; Mt Brown, Cape Raoul, Cape Pillar etc

The question is whether the folding occurred at the time of the intrusion, or when the rock was laid down. There is no firm answer. A previous doctoral thesis (Powell, 1967 - Studies in the geometry of folding and its mechanical interpretation) had suggested that the folding was caused by the heating of the rock with hot liquids and gasses related to the intrusion. Leaman thinks this is unlikely, and that the sandstones were folded soon after they were deposited, when they were poorly compacted. They were then overlaid by more sandstones, and then later intruded by the dolerite. The dolerite intrusion has altered (metamorphosed) the sandstone by heat. Leaman notes that the distorted sandstones are also intruded and cut by the dolerite suggesting that the folding existed before the intrusion of the dolerite.

Interesting place anyway.

Freycinet Fungi

Didn't spend a lot of time looking for fungi, but here are three examples.

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Freycinet Peninsula - 21st-23rd August 2008

Had a very nice winter walk down the Freycinet Peninsula for three days. Many of the creeks were flowing, making it a somewhat different experience to my last visit, and to the usual situation. Thursday, and Thursday night, were cold and snowy around Hobart I gather. On the peninsula there was some rain on Thursday night but apart from that it was fine although cool. I even had a coolish dip in the sea on Friday afternoon, then let the sun and gentle breeze dry me off. I walked down to Cooks Beach via Hazards Beach to find myself the only camper for two nights. In fact, I didn't see another person south of the Isthmus Track at all.

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Friday was mainly spent climbing Mt Freycinet. The actual Peninsula Circuit walk involves walking south along the west coast to Cooks Beach, and then returning via the heights of Mt Freycinet's flanks and Mt Graham. I did this last time, but this time I avoided the carry of a full pack up the nearly 600m climb to Mt Graham, and made Mt Freycinet a morning's walk with just a daypack. Mt Freycinet is the high point of the area at 620m. Snow was forecast down to 500m the night before I think, and, true, I found snow on top of Mt Freycinet. I presume this is not very common, although I did read the warning in the walk registration shelter that walkers should remember to take warm clothing as snow did fall there at times. I suppose it's unusual to think of snow on Tasmania's east coast in such a maritime location. I have to admit that the total area of snow I found still protected from the sun by rock shadows was probably less than a square metre. Flowing water was available in several creeks along the track to Mt Freycinet inlcuding quite high up.

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The views from Mt Freycinet and Mt Graham of the peninsula, Wineglass Bay, The Hazards and Schouten Island are very good. Of course you can also see quite a lot of Tasmania's east coast. Mt Freycinet is the mountain the runners have to climb when the Three Peaks Race visits Coles Bay, and I have to say I admire people who can run up and down this peak, from Coles Bay, especially if they have to do it in the dark. In the afternoon I visited Bryans Beach for a short while, which looks south to Schouten Island. Bryans, which faces southwest, is often rougher than Cooks Beach, which faces east and northeast. However, when I visited it was very calm. I cut short the visit in order to get back to Cooks for sunset on the Hazards, which turned out to be well worthwhile.

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Walked out by the low level route on Saturday, stopping to watch Southern Right Whales (Eubalaena australis) (See here for the best info on Right Whales that I can find so far) lazing around in Wineglass Bay. It was hard to tell how many there were from the shore, but inspection of the photos on return home revealed three in at least one shot - I suspect this is a mother, a smallish calf and maybe another older calf. I don't think father-whales hang around with the family, but I must read up on them a bit more. They were attracting attention from walkers, but it was interesting to see people gawping about the bay without noticing these very large creatures moving about only a couple of hundred metres away. I recall sitting in Wineglass Bay, on the granite near the track-end, on a Geology excursion some few years ago. The teacher was banging on about pink and grey granites while behind him a whale played in the bay. In the end he had to sit down and shut up until the whale got tired and moved on, when the class were able to direct some attention to how The Hazards formed.

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Crescent Bay and Mount Brown - 19th August 2008

Having been inspired by Peter to go and do this walk again yesterday, after probably a 20-year break, I found I thoroughly enjoyed it. The distances aren't too great nor the climbs too onerous, and there's lots to look at. I hope Phil isn't reading, as he wanted to do this walk a while ago. I did try to ring him. The walk starts at the Remarkable Cave carpark, and winds across old dunes to the Maingon Blowhole, Mount Brown and Crescent Bay. Remarkable Cave has enough interesting features to score a blog entry of its own I think.

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The Maingon Blowhole has a serious warning sign ("anything that happens is your own fault" -type of sign) just before you get to it, and I think it's justified. It's a narrow slit in the earth, which drops some rather large distance into a heaving sliver of white water. The edges are sloping, crumbly, grassy and slippery, and a fall would undoubtedly be fatal. Well worth a look! I'm not sure if it actually "blows" in a heavy sea. I haven't been there before, having done this walk from the opposite direction in years past. Just beyond here, the rocky shore could be explored at length if time and sea conditions allowed.

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The track then passes Mount Brown, a large dolerite protuberance, and a rough cairned track heads steeply up the hill. The views from the top are great; Crescent Bay, Port Arthur, Cape Pillar, Tasman Island and Cape Raoul make a dramatic 360 degree vista. Particularly spectacular is the view from the high western end of the hilltop, which is basically a 170m cliff. There are great views from here down onto Dauntless Point, which has its own dramatic and interestingly fractured cliff. I can say the dolerite on this headland is particularly gritty and sharp, having personally tested it with hands and knees when a rock shifted beneath me.

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Descending Mount Brown, the track then heads down to Crescent Bay, which is a beautiful beach with high dunes. At the far end of Crescent Bay is Standup Point, which has its own blowholes. I only made it to the first one (apparently smaller) before my turn-around time arrived, enabling me to be taxi in Hobart later in the afternoon. Apparently these blowholes do blow spectacularly in heavy seas when I assume they become more difficult and/or dangerous to access. The amount of time that could be spent taking in the views and investigating the various sights along the way took me by surprise, and I found I ran out of time, which probably requires a return trip (Phil).

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I found three Hooded Plovers on the beach, and a gaggle of angry and noisy Yellow-Tailed Black Cockatoos in the dunes. None of them were very pleased to see me. I'm assuming the plover with the blotchy head markings is actually a juvenile, perhaps hatched last spring.

Mt Wellington - 18th August 2008

The good forecast today and the good snow cover suggested this might be the best day to get into the snow. Mt Wellington was the easiest target, although I met Roger at the Chalet, and he was planning a walk to somewhere like Nevada Peak or Adamsons for tomorrow. Adamsons certainly has a very solid cover of snow, and makes a fine sight from Huonville when the sun catches it right now. However, Mt Wellington was pretty good.

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I walked up the ZigZag Track, and had some trouble on sections of it. The snow was mostly quite firm, but the usefully hard crust also made it difficult on the steepest section. The ZigZag isn't too bad, but there are sections where if you went sideways off it you'd slide a fair way before fetching up against a rock or a tree.

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I hoped to have the summit to myself, but the snow ploughing crew were there. The little snow plough is quite interesting to watch, although they did rather shatter the silence. The design of the actual ploughing implement is intriguing, but obviously effective. I asked them to keep the road closed for a while so I could walk down it without having to look out for cars. They managed to do so.

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The return was easier, as I avoided the ZigZag and used the road and other tracks to return easily around the north and east sides of the mountain. A couple of others who had climbed the ZigZag decided this was the best policy too. I think crampons would have helped in a descent (or an ascent for that matter). The snow is really quite deep in places, and reminds me of years past. I don't think I've seen this much snow on Mt Wellington for a long time. I recall a good fall when my eldest was about 12 months old (1994), and then some really deep snow in the 1970s, when the road was cut between 2-3m banks of snow. With more snow forecast, it looks like it will continue for a while. The amount of snow that is there now will take a while to melt even without further falls.

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A pair of Wedge-Tailed Eagles passed across the front of the mountain as I walked down. I was accompanied at this point by Ray, who told me that there are two pairs of eagles who frequent the mountain at present. The only photo I could manage at the distance was unfortunately not worth the the inconvenience I caused the electrons with which it was recorded. I will refrain from troubling any more electrons, or your eyeballs. This is the northerly view to Mt Hull, Mt Faulkner, Mt Dromedary and Platform Peak, upon the last two of which it appeared to be precipitating in direct contravention of the BoM's instructions for the day!