U3A Ballarat Hikers

 U3A Hike No 419 Hike Report by Fiona Deutscher About 17 hikers enjoyed todays 11km circuit walk along "'roads less travelled" on the outskirts of the Buninyong. The weather was kind to us with little or no rain but we dd need to be cautious stepping through running water & mud along unmade sections of the track. One could easily imagine we were amongst a more remote rural scene with beautiful gums, undulating green hills & farming livestock ( plus the odd Alpaca & kangaroo) . We were also fortunate to have one of our members Monica McCormack to give us some historic background to the area & homesteads we passed. We commenced our walk through DeSoza park toward the Buninyong Golf Club. As we turned back toward the town on the Midland highway we passed by the Avenue of Honour- planted in !917 to honour those men & women serving during the War. We then walked in a southerly direction down Cathcart & Davies Streets to Webb Hill Rd. We hiked up & d...

 U3A Hike No 418 Hike Report by Kim R. Six hikers met at Kirk’s car park, and we carpooled in two cars to Shepherds Flat car park. It was slightly drizzling, but within ten minutes of walking, it stopped. The hiking trails were wet, and some parts were boggy. We crossed Long Gully Creek to Tenpenny Gully and saw a huge mullock heap; it must have been good diggings site. We came across four chimneys from what were once cottages. At Smiths Gully, we came across several very deep, unfenced shafts. This is where Gordon’s blood pressure skyrocketed, as someone was standing very close to the soft edges peering into a deep mine shaft. As we left, Gordon had a relieved smile. We had morning tea by the spiky-leafed aloe bushes. We had a great walk, crossing a few creeks and bypassing boggy stretches. Gordon commented on how green it was, as he had never seen it like this. Fungi were in abundance; we even saw one growing from a tree about three metres up, which looked to me like Dopey’...