U3A Ballarat Hikers

Three Creeks Walk, Brisbane Ranges  September 20th, 2018 By Anne Ottrey We welcomed back Andrew (and Ingrid) to lead us on our spring walks in the Brisbane Ranges. Gordon set a new group record by getting lost before the walk even started. Finding himself alone at Kirk’s Reservoir at 7:45am, he made a note to self to read Andrew’s emails more carefully. Andrew kept the theme going by leading us on a short detour through Steiglitz, before back tracking and finding the correct turnoff. Starting from The Crossing Picnic area, 17 walkers set off for a circuit walk exploring the three main creek systems in the rolling hills north of Steiglitz. We started out along Yankee Gully Creek in crisp sunny weather. We soon came across signs of mining, passing the Bernhardt Mine, a calcining site (where the ore was heated by wood fires to break it up), and the remnants of a steam driven battery at the Prince of Wales mine site. At the United Albion mine, we saw the brick remains

AVOCA - MT SUGARLOAF September 6 th 2018 By Janet McKay 9 hikers, led by Marianne, drove up to Avoca, past the Blues Pyrenees Winery (no, we didn’t stop), along a pretty, winding dirt track to a camping ground where we started our walk up to the top of Mt Sugarloaf to the raucous accompaniment of a flock of cockatoos. The track wound its way up through the bush, to The Waterfall, only a trickle following a dry winter but impressive nonetheless, and a perfect spot for morning tea break. We then made our way, uphill all the way, to the top of Mt Sugarloaf where the beautiful views across bush, farmland and the Blue Pyrenees certainly made the effort worthwhile. We followed the track down the other side to the reservoir, stopping for closer looks at early wild flowers, catching glimpses of the occasional wallaby or kangaroo and some very excitable rosellas, and then found a spot for lunch. A few spits of rain had us reaching for waterproofs which 10 minutes later

Three Creeks Walk, Brisbane Ranges  Sept 9 2018 By Anne Ottrey We welcomed back Andrew (and Ingrid) to lead us on our spring walks in the Brisbane Ranges. Gordon set a new group record by getting lost before the walk even started. Finding himself alone at Kirk’s Reservoir at 7:45am, he made a note to self to read Andrew’s emails more carefully. Andrew kept the theme going by leading us on a short detour through Steiglitz, before back tracking and finding the correct turnoff. Starting from The Crossing Picnic area, 17 walkers set off for a circuit walk exploring the three main creek systems in the rolling hills north of Steiglitz. We started out along Yankee Gully Creek in crisp sunny weather. We soon came across signs of mining, passing the Bernhardt Mine, a calcining site (where the ore was heated by wood fires to break it up), and the remnants of a steam driven battery at the Prince of Wales mine site. At the United Albion mine, we saw the brick remains of the winding gear and marv