U3A Ballarat Hikers

U3A Hike No 109 Twenty-four hikers in three groups was a very good turnout considering the weather forecast!  * Indicates that there are links  to historical reports after the photos Hike Reports:  Blue Group Hike Report  by Jenette Callow   The 8 am gathering of the Blue Group saw us driving to our starting point at Mollongghip in rather cold, damp and misty conditions.    It was commented by a member of the group that Dick was actually going to wear a raincoat! An indication of the possible weather conditions?   A large mob of kangaroos looked on as we made our way from the village hoping to find where the *Barkstead Battery once stood. Despite Andrew’s meticulous research into the whereabouts of this once large structure, it was not to be found.    After morning tea, Andrew lead us off track to the densely, moss covered remaining wall of the former Barkstead Mine.    Con...

U3A Hike No. 108 Report by Chris Charleson After meeting in  Smythesdale , ten hikers and their 3 leaders travelled in convoy through the Ross Creek/ Enfield State Forest to the start of our walk.   For much of our journey we encountered various of the water race system set up to service the 19th century mining in the area.   T he race systems were hand dug by miners working for the various companies that the race served. Each race system had to be registered with the local surveyor before works could be undertaken. The water was directed to two relatively shallow dams.   The main one that we followed today was constructed by Thomas Boden who was responsible for much of the water transfer infrastructure here. Andrew shared with us a letter in a newspaper report from 1878 just after Boden’s death, where the then Secretary for Mines discussed offering Boden’s widow about half market value to buy the infrastructure! ( see link after photos to read mor...