419. Buninyong Boundaries 14km

 U3A Hike No 419




Hike Report by Fiona Deutscher

About 17 hikers enjoyed todays 11km circuit walk along "'roads less travelled" on the outskirts of the Buninyong. The weather was kind to us with little or no rain but we dd need to be cautious stepping through running water & mud along unmade sections of the track. One could easily imagine we were amongst a more remote rural scene with beautiful gums, undulating green hills & farming livestock ( plus the odd Alpaca & kangaroo) . We were also fortunate to have one of our members Monica McCormack to give us some historic background to the area & homesteads we passed.

We commenced our walk through DeSoza park toward the Buninyong Golf Club.
As we turned back toward the town on the Midland highway we passed by the Avenue of Honour- planted in !917 to honour those men & women serving during the War.
We then walked in a southerly direction down Cathcart & Davies Streets to Webb Hill Rd. We hiked up & down the picturesque rolling hills admiring the larger housing allotments, old abandoned houses, stone walls & outbuildings as well as historic homesteads.

One notable historic site was the timber sculptured memorial to Buninyong's pioneers - Samuel & Anne Coxall. They had landed in Portland from England in 1855 (aged !9 & 16years old) & then walked to Buninyong via Melbourne with their wheelbarrow of possessions. They settled there & still have descendants in the area today.
Another historic landmark in Webbs Hill Road  was an old stone horse trough - one of six donated by George & Anne Bills "for the relief of horses & other dumb animals"'.
Clearly they were sympathetic animal lovers!

Our path then turned northwards & upwards along Nash's Rd & Granny Whites Lane with views of Mt Buninyong nearby. We marveled at the craftmanship of the hand-built stone walls along property boundaries.
Some of the group decided to turn back to the town at this point. Others continued to climb up toward the summit of Mt Buninyong. before returning.

Overall it was a scenic & inspiring walk- discovering hidden tracks & historic gems around  Buninyong.

Thanks to Gordon for leading us today & Monica for her insights into the area.

Photos by Alan 

















Photos by Gordon












LINKS

INTERACTIVE MAP

DOWNLOAD GPX FILE

OUR FIRST HIKE IN 2016 Commenced on Mt Buninyong

PODCAST: BUNINYONG GOLD

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