Creswick Forest Circuit

Creswick Forest Circuit - 11 Kms

January 07, 2022

U3A Hike No. 178

Hike Report by Leona

On this calm and mild Thursday morning nine brave hikers, including our leaders Andrew, Gordon and Mark, arrived at the Ballarat meeting place for our very first hike of 2022.

At this point we were reflecting on the dramatic weather event of the preceding day. Rain had fallen hard and fast, accompanied by dramatic lightening and repeated booming thunder. Towns on Ballarat's edge, notably Creswick, were impacted by hailstorms and strong winds leading to flash flooding.

Confident in the comprehensive planning and weather monitoring carried out by our leaders, we set out towards Creswick in a convoy of three cars. Encountering two road blocks, we finally accessed Creswick, third time lucky! We entered over a road thickly covered with leaves and debris, a sign of things to come.

Upon arrival at Sawpit Rd, we were briefed by Andrew, with special attention given to the weather prediction and altered track conditions. On entering the bush we quickly encountered flattened grass land, piles of debris and bark, and a flowing creek that wasn't there on Tuesday. Not far along we chatted to a Parks Ranger who told us of picnic tables that had been relocated by the force of water. We also became aware of the thrum of chainsaws, the beginning of the clearing up operation.

A large timber sculpture of La Gerche provided a memorable photo opportunity as we made our way past old timber huts to Oak Gully. Immediately there was a feeling of a cooler, moist atmosphere, and we were abuzz with conversation and comment regarding the amount of moving water and debris underfoot. Next we diverged to the right, along Tourist Rd and followed the Goldfields track to the summit of Brackenbury Hill. Ah, what a view! Of course we paused to take in the panorama across golden treed plains to hills and mountains in our middle and far view, notably Mounts Bolton and Beckworth.

Departing the summit we headed for St George's Lake and a picnic area. Hmmm.....our picnic table, adorned with piles of bark, appeared to be in the middle of a shallow lake. Never mind, a well positioned log provided a restful morning tea spot. We did, however, discover that this very log had in fact been repositioned, swept across the car park by the water.

More photos taken and appetites now satisfied, we continued along the Wallaby track downhill to a foot bridge, finding it's normally vertical metal sides horizontal, forced there by the tree which was now firmly in place across the bridge. Some fancy footwork gave us access to a track adjacent to a water race.

Here was our most surprising discovery for the morning. A water race occupied entirely by deep hailstones, and this at 11am! After much investigation, mainly by prodding the deep icy piles with walking poles, we continued our adventure, spotting large areas of hail stones along creek banks. "Never seen anything like it" was Andrew's observation. After meandering through the Koala Park, (the less said, the better) following the old koala fence, we reached the Dean/Creswick Rd. Now experts at negotiating the debris and obstacles, we forded another bridge and continued on our way to the Forestry School grounds. From here we headed for our cars on Sawpit Rd, passing behind the shopping strip and by the footy field. Here were large swathes of grasses, now convincingly flattened, and we remarked on the proximity of water to some low lying new homes.

At the end of our hike we realised, not for the first time, what a unique experience this hike was. We were also very mindful of the damage done to property and the impact on the lives of Creswick residents.