2017 was a good year for me. I had a few good hikes and bush-walks and went on a cruise through the Pacific Ocean to New Caledonia and Fiji, got Married and Honeymooned to Bali. So it was only fitting that I ended the year on an adventure. So on New Years Eve my Dad picked me up with our bikes, even though it was pouring with rain and took me up Jamberoo Mountain pass to Budderoo National Park for a Bike Ride.
Now I had never done this trail before, though I have been meaning to do two other blogs about Barren Ground and Carrington Falls which this trail is situated between.
Knowing I was going to get absolutely drenched and covered in mud I borrowed a pair of my Dad's work overalls, put on my waterproof jacket and we began our ride.
It was a beautiful unique experience doing it in the rain and fog. Overlooking the land covered in fog has always done something to appeal to me, there's just something serene about it.
The path is a fire trail, a road that you use to be able to drive down back in the day but now a gate blocking it which farmers and certain others have keys too. The sign on the gate states this is due to people not respecting the area, possibly people in 4-Wheel-Drives tearing the area up. While I do enjoy 4-Wheel-Driving myself I have had problems with people in the past tearing up campgrounds so it wouldn't surprise me. My Dad told me as we continued riding that he had came up the other day and that at the end there was a bit you can swim at and he passed a few people who had came down from Sydney to swim there and that all of them told him they were envious of his bike. Having done similar walks before on fire trails I knew what they meant and they can begin to get a bit monotonous.
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| The road bending and winding |
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| Explaining to Dad to not hold the camera button as it takes a million photos |
The landscape along the beginning of the trail is similar to that of Barren Ground, although as you go further along the landscape shifts and changes and you soon find yourself in woodland.
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| Dad admiring the landscape |
This goes on for a while so if you're walking you should take the time to admiring the sights, and nature around you as there are many beautiful flowers.
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| Unsure currently |
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| Stylidium lineare |
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| Blandfordia nobilis |
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| Xyris |
You will eventually come to a point in the road where you turn right down Hersey Fire Trail.
It was here that things took a turn. While doing exactly what my Dad is doing in the photo above my left ankle gave way, I heard a snap and instantly dropped to the ground. It was killing. I hadn't lost my footing or anything it just didn't want to hold me. I eventually got up and rested on the log next to me and put some cold water on it. The pain didn't go away but lessened.
We waited to see if I had broken it because it was a long ride back, while all downhill towards our destination. Determined I told Dad to just give me a bit, got back on my Bike and continued to pedal.... with my right food mostly, lightly pushing with my left every time I did so getting a huge piercing pain in my ankle.
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| This particularly rocky bit sent vibrations through it that hurt like hell |
We soon reached the water where we left our bikes and continued on foot.
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| Looking right |
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| Looking left |
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| Crystal clear waters |
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| Wasn't even cold |
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| Resting my Ankle |
We headed left and followed the creek along. You'll reach the end of this and there is a spot you can swim at right by a big dead tree.
However you can turn left and follow a little path through the bush and keep walking.
This will take you through to another area with a big swimming area.
And if you turn around and face the other way.
You've reached Gerringong Falls! Which I didn't even know was on this track. It was a walk I had been meaning to do after hearing about it through the grapevine but I had just assumed it was down in Gerringong somewhere. So I'll definitely have to go back and walk it (even if it will be a little tedious) and make sure I have a swim. If you walk around to your left more, you can get some stunning views of the waterfall.
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| I'm not miserable to be here, but my ankle sure hurts |
The area here is beautiful and it's a journey you can make on foot or on bike. If you do go, please leave this area looking as beautiful as when you found it.
We sat for while, just enjoying the sights, sounds, and smells of nature. It was beautiful in the rain and fog and there wasn't a person in sight. We saw some Wallabies and some beautiful Dragonflies and Butterflies.
The ride back was painful, and harder as it was mostly uphill. The ground was softer and it began to pour heavily with rain. Finally we made it back and I was able to strip off my wet clothes for dry ones.
I proceeded to have a fun New Years Night with my Wife and 2 close friends. However the next day I realised how swollen my ankle was, but was still determined to go to work the next day, after some convincing from my Wife I went to the Doctor. He sent me in for an X-Ray, however as I wasn't sent to the hospital I can assume it is not fractured or broken just sprained. It is still swollen today and I have to see the Doctor later this afternoon.
Extra tidbits: WE JUST HAD CHRISTMAS. Hope you all had a good time. Just continuing from my last blog post where I talked about Escape Rooms, we ended up going to Mission Escape in Sydney and did the Dr. M room which we succeeded in Escaping! We are booked in to do 2 more rooms there this very Sunday! The Vampire's Castle Room and the Lost Mine Room hopefully we can escape those too. As for Christmas my wife surprised me with a boarding pass to go Hang-Gliding at Bald Hill, Stanwell Park. So I'm excited for the adventures ahead in 2018!
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Thanks for reading! - Steven