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Photos by David Noble (Copyright)
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In late September, it was one hundred years since Myles Dunphy and Bert
Gallop had set off from Katoomba to explore the largely unmapped country of the
Kowmung river. It was the start of World War One. In those one hundred years,
threats of commercial exploitation have been largely defeated, and the area is
Sydney water catchment, National Park, and World Heritage-listed. That is
largely due to the bushwalking movement which Myles Dunphy pioneered, which
then morphed into a conservation movement. Alex Allchin, a nineteen-year- old
student from Sydney thought it was a good idea to commemorate this walk by
retracing it. The “Dunphy Wilderness Walk’ was born.
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| Bridge over the Cox's river |
My small part in this event was as a driver. The entire walk was broken into sections so that some people could just do a portion. I drove Guy, Myles’ grandson, into the camp at the start of the Unirover trail.
Snake on the
road!
I swerve on
the gravel
tyres make an
'S'
Boyd Plateau
At the camp I
met Alex, and was fascinated to see that he and Sierra were as far as possible,
using the same clothing and equipment that was in vogue a century ago, and used by Bert and Myles. He told
me that the clothing ( of wool) was surprisingly practical.
Rather than
carry a pack, Alex used a swag in the same way that Myles had: weight carried
on the front and back, and held by leather straps, a billy strapped on the
outside.
Dave Noble walked the entire distance (Katoomba to the Six Foot Track
and Cox’s river, Jenolan caves, Kowmung river, Yerranderie, and across the
Wollondillly river to The Oaks) and here is his excellent blog…
…and
his amazing photos
'Twas wonderful, at the beginning of October, to be warming oneself
and cooking over a fire. Wyn decided to make the great Aussie ‘bread’.
beyond the smoke
watching his
fingers
squish
through damper
It is baked in the ashes, or twisted onto a stick.
On the drive out, Keith Muir (of the Colong Foundation for Wilderness)
regaled us with the story behind the eucalypt forest through which we drove, along the
Boyd Plateau. I had noticed the stumps left behind of the forest giants, on my
morning walk. In 1970, the NSW Forestry Commission planned to clear fell the native forests,
and replant it with Pinus radiata. But by now
the Colong Foundation had saved the caves, which were to have been dug up for
the lime industry, and they went on to work out a deal by which the forest
could also be saved. It was finally handed over to the National Parks and Wildlife
Service in 1977. We drove through a small section of grassland. This had been
an in-holding. The Blue Mountains Conservation Society bought it from the
farmer, so that the entire plateau is now a coherent area for the enjoyment and
livelihood of the cockatoos who flew overhead as I erected my tent, the
kangaroos, the echidnas, the snakes… the walkers and drivers too.
I felt proud to be a member of this organization when I heard this.
Here is a link to the short film made by Gary Caganoff, called “Dunphy’s Kowmung Adventure”.
There is an excellent account of the original Dunphy - Gallop walk in "Kowmung River - discovery, history and development" 1993 by local historian Jim Barrett. It is available:
- in Blue Mountains libraries
- at the Turning Page bookshop, Springwood
- Megalong Books, Leura
- Gleebooks, Blackheath
- contact the author.
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RECENT HAIKU
I’ve been brushing up my navigation skills, going out with map and
compass. Where am I, expressed as a number? (Photos below are mine.)
remembering
the names of
the flowers
I am a flower
Faulconbridge
ridge (733730)
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| Sun orchid - Thelymitra epipactoides |
Oh dear, yes. It’s that season again. Already we’ve had two fires in
the mountains, but they were contained by our redoubtable firies.
smoke
billowing
from the
north -
still in my
pyjamas
Have a good Christmas season, everyone. The El Nino creeps closer and
closer. May you all be safe.
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| Angophora costata - smooth-barked apple |
Diana Levy
