U3A Ballarat Hikers

U3A Hike No 69 By Janet McKay   17 hikers assembled at Kirks Reservoir on a rather chilly, damp morning to drive to Vaughan Springs for the start of the hike. We welcomed 2 new members, Robert and Ian, to the group. We also welcomed back Chris after his recovery from a serious cycling accident. Andrew demonstrated how to use the newly purchased locator beacon. At Vaughan Springs we crossed over the bridge and started our hike following the Loddon River, in full flow after the recent rains. We crossed the river and followed the old bridle path up the side of the valley wall. We soon warmed up as the weather held for us, winding our way towards the Helge track past numerous mine shafts, remains of fireplaces, evidence of the extensive mining that took place in this area.   A refreshment break saw us climb up above the track to a scattering of boulders which made good seats as we enjoyed the sunshine. Along the way Alan shared with us about his recent U.S.A t

Dry Diggings Track Stage Two - Cry Joe Walk U3A Hike No 68  By Jenette Callow  Cry Joe Walk is so named, because diggers would cry “Joe, Joe, Joe” to warn miners of approaching troopers. From 1851 mining gold was illegal without a licence. The group left damp Ballarat (from Kirks Reservoir) in 11 cars and regrouped at Guildford near the Big Tree. After admiring the tree, we then traveled to Vaughan Springs to leave half the cars and take all hikers and remaining cars to the start of our walk from Spring Gully Road. The track was rough underfoot, loose stones indicative of the mining area we were moving into, Spring Gully Mines. The mines operated from 1850’s until the 1930’s. The most prominent feature is the high stone- faced loading ramp from which quartz was fed into a stamping battery for crushing. On an upper level, steps lead to the remains of the 1930’s phase. We walked amongst large mullock heaps, some appeared to be made entirely of