U3A Ballarat Hikers

 U3A Hike No. 194 Hike Report by Joan The Spirited Six, despite the weather forecast, took up the challenge to see what new and interesting features Mother Nature could present to us in this neck of the woods .  After traveling through Beaufort and Raglan we turned onto Mt Cole Road which took us to Mugwamp Hut  and campsite, the start of our adventure. The small hut is made of old sheets of corrugated iron with a beaut old stone chimney and with its surrounding area is used as a rest area/overnight campsite for hikers .       From the moment we started our hike we were glad we came as we were surrounded by beautiful tall gum trees dressed in velvet green moss with large knobby burrs spattered along the length of the trees. The fog and light mist added to the peaceful and serene feeling of knowing that we were safe and were lucky to have this whole section of the forest to ourselves to explore . Our first destination was Mt Buangor which is the highest peak in this area measuring

 U3A Hike No. 193 Hike Report by Rick On a very good day for hiking (cool and overcast) 16 hikers met at Kirks Reservoir at 7:45 for an 8:30 start exploring the small Basalt farming community some four kilometres east of Hepburn. Basalt has a recorded population of 10 persons and is named after the volcanic rock. Mt Franklin, an extinct volcano, is less than 10 kilometres away as the crow flies. The hike started with a brief introduction of the area by Andrew and we quickly made our way off Basalt Road into the bush on a 4WD track toward the ruins of Charlesford mine, a gold mine that operated in the last half of the 19th century.  Present in the area was a quartz burning oven. We proceeded on the 4WD track to Charlesford Dam where we had morning tea.  From the dam we passed a breached mining dam and continued to Old Werona Road leading back to Basalt Road and the township of Basalt.   There was little to see in Basalt, a few old structures in disrepair the Basalt Rock Cottage Nursery