Glen Park State Forest Circuit - 12 Kms

 U3A Hike No. 163

Hike Report by Mark B

Despite the strong possibility of rain, eight of us drove to the "Five Ways" intersection in the Creswick Forest and parked along the road near there. The walk involved a mixture of roads and various tracks including part of the Goldfields Trail.

The overcast day allowed us to see the colours and shapes of the forest without being distracted by shadows and bright reflections from the sun. Also, there was no wind and it made for a very tranquil mood.

The walk was generally not difficult with notable exceptions of gully crossings, where the track had been severely eroded by 4-wheel drivers. Some of the climbs down these gullies was quite difficult and required great care not to slip down into the very steep dips made by the vehicles. In addition, there were many pools of water covering the track and a bit of bush-bashing was occasionally required.

The initial length of the walk was planned to be about 15 km but it was decided to cut off 2 km of the bit on the western side of the White Swan Reservoir, as rain was threatening.

It was an enjoyable walk and the small group encouraged us to discuss lots of topics together. Also the message here may be that, despite forecast of bad weather, we always seem to be quite lucky on a Thursday morning.

Photos by Mark B