Category Archives: Country

The Monolith – Echo Point – The Gorge – Lake Catani Walking Track

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Wednesday 6/04/2022   Park Office Carpark – Monolith Walk – The Monolith – Echo Point – The Gorge – Lake Catani Walking Track – Lake Catani Campground

                                             Mount Buffalo National Park, VICTORIA

                                             Taungurung Country

                                     

Participants: Stephen Davies (Photos, Report), Sue Davies

Starting opposite the National Parks Office near Lake Catani, this walk takes you up through the forest towards a huge granite boulder known as The Monolith. Although there is no access to the summit, there is a  great view back towards Lake Catani from its base.

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Mount Buffalo Road (at 700m) – The Big Walk – Mackeys Lookout – Marriott’s Lookout – Reeds Lookout – Wilkinsons Lookout – Pulpit Rock Lookout

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Tuesday 5/04/2022   Mount Buffalo Road (at 700m) – The Big Walk – Mackeys Lookout  – Marriott’s Lookout – Reeds Lookout – Wilkinsons Lookout – Pulpit Rock Lookout – Falls Lookout – Bents Lookout – The Gorge Carpark

                                       Mount Buffalo National Park, VICTORIA

                                       Taungurung Country

Participants: Stephen Davies (Photos, Report), Sue Davies

With our travelling companions Beth and Pablo needing to head home after lunch, Sue and I grabbed the opportunity to walk The Big Track one way. Pablo having raced over it’s full length on Sunday, suggested we skip the less interesting lower section which we did.

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Spring Creek Sawmill Campground – Lightning Track – Mount Samaria Track – Mount Samaria

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Saturday 28/05/2022   Spring Creek Sawmill Campground – Lightning Track – Mount Samaria Track – Mount Samaria – Mount Samaria Road

                                           Mount Samaria State Park, VICTORIA

                                           Taungurung  Country

Participants: Stephen Davies (Photos), Sue Davies (Report)

After completing our Saturday morning parkrun in Euroa, we cleaned up, had breakfast and entrusted Siri to get us to Mount Samaria State Park. We came in from the northern end and found the gravel road to be of good quality, except for a couple of potholes sections which were marked. The road is narrow in sections and could make passing another car rather interesting in a few places.

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Wild Dog Creek Campsite – Wild Dog Creek Falls

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Sunday 29/05/2022   Mount Samaria Road – Summit Link Track – Wild Dog Creek Campsite – Wild Dog Creek Falls

                                        Mount Samaria State Park, VICTORIA

                                        Taungurung Country

Participants: Stephen Davies (Photos, Report), Sue Davies

The track to Wild Dog Falls starts from a small Carpark on Mount Samaria Road at the bottom of the Mount Samaria Summit Link Track. The forest here is varied and the track is easy to follow. It is only about 800m until you walk into Wild Dog Creek Campsite. This is an excellent campsite with a long drop toilet, two picnic tables and a stone-lined fire pit. A fantastic spot to take anyone to for a very peaceful camp with plenty of shade for warmer weather, however, we didn’t see where you might collect water.

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Cathedral Hump Track Carpark – The Hump – The Leviathon – Torpedo Rock

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Tuesday 5/04/2022   Cathedral Hump Track Carpark – The Hump (1680m) – The Leviathon – Torpedo Rock

                                       Mount Buffalo National Park, VICTORIA

                                       Taungurung Country

Participants: Stephen Davies (Photos, Report), Sue Davies

After summiting The Horn we walked the track to the summit of The Hump. The Rocky climb to the top ends with a series of massive granite tors with ladders to the summit. Again fantastic views from the top, especially to the neighbouring Cathedral and more distantly The Horn.

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The Horn

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Tuesday 5/04/2022   Mount Buffalo Carpark – The Horn Track – The Horn (1723m)

                                       Mount Buffalo National Park, VICTORIA

                                       Taungurung Country

Participants: Stephen Davies (Photos, Report), Sue Davies

A very short but steep walk to the highest point in Buffalo National Park. Pablo, having finished Sunday’s 42km Buffalo Stampede in 4 hours 48 minutes was in great discomfort with every step. He was forced to kind of hobble his way along.

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Bahía Hermosa – Playa Hermosa

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 Friday 21/10/2022   Bahía Hermosa – Playa Hermosa                              

                                      Guanacaste Province

                                      COSTA RICA

Participants: Stephen Davies (Photos), Sue Davies (Report), Cal Stewart, Kerrie Stewart

The day before our daughter’s wedding we decided to take a drive to the Pacific coast as this was our only opportunity to see this side of the country. It was about an hour’s drive west of Canas where we were staying at Hacienda La Pacifica so it was an easy day trip. 

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Monteverde Cloud Forest – Biological Preserve

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Monday 17/10/2022   Sendero Cuecha – Quebrada Cuecha – Monteverde Cloud Forest, Biological Preserve

                                        Tronadora, Monteverde

                                        Alajuela Province

                                        COSTA RICA

Participants: Stephen Davies (Photos), Sue Davies (Report), Beth Davies, Kerrie Stewart, Cal Stewart, Felipe Ureña-Araya, Pablo Ureña Vega

We all headed off to explore the world-renowned cloud forest in Monteverde.  Cloud forests are unique ecosystems as they represent less than 1% of the remaining forests on earth. Costa Rica boasts 5% of the world’s biodiversity so for a small country it puts Australia to shame. The conditions were noticeably cooler than in lower altitude areas in Costa Rica, which made a pleasant change from the tropical heat. 

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Sloth’s Territory – La Fortuna

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Sunday 16/10/2022   Sloth’s Territory

                                        La Fortuna, Alajuela Province

                                        COSTA RICA

Participants: Stephen Davies (Photos, Report), Sue Davies, Cal Stewart, Kerrie Stewart

This is a privately owned and run sloth sanctuary. It consists of a relatively narrow corridor of remnant rainforest through which a population of sloths can be found. We were very fortunate to have Reuben as our guide today.

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Hotel El Icaco Tortuguero – Tortuguero National Park – Tortuguero Village

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Thursday 27/10/2022   Hotel El Icaco Tortuguero – Tortuguero National Park – Tortuguero Village

                                           Tortuguero National Park

                                           Limón Province, COSTA RICA

                                                                          

Participants: Stephen Davies (Photos, Report), Sue Davies, Cal Stewart, Kerrie Stewart

Following on from our guided night walk, canal canoeing and day walk over the previous 36 hours, today we opted to venture out on our own. Already fully aware that previously our guides had been the first to locate and identify 90% of our sightings we were hoping our observational skills may have improved a touch.

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Hotel El Icaco Tortuguero – Tortuguero National Park

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Wednesday 26/10/2022   Hotel El Icaco Tortuguero – Tortuguero National Park

                                               Tortuguero National Park

                                               Limón Province, COSTA RICA

Participants: Adrian (Guide), Stephen Davies (Photos, Report), Sue Davies, Cal Stewart, Kerrie Stewart

For our afternoon we had booked a two-hour guided walk in Tortuguero National Park with our guide, Adrian. We got underway at 2:00pm after Adrian managed to gain us free park entry after Sue had had numerous failed attempts at making and paying for our reservations on the National Parks website, the only method provided for doing so. It turned out their system was down.

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Rio Tortuguero Canoe Trip

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Wednesday 26/10/2022   Hotel El Icaco Tortuguero – Tortuguero Village – Rio Tortuguero – Canales del Tortuguero Rogelio Pardo Jochs

                                               Tortuguero National Park

                                              Limón Province, COSTA RICA

Participants: Adrian (Guide) Stephen Davies (Photos, Report), Sue Davies, Cal Stewart, Kerrie Stewart

Late yesterday we had been greeted by our English-speaking guide Adrian as we arrived at the carpark at La Pavona. This is the “ferry” terminal for transporting people, goods and everything else to Tortuguero 19km, 90 minute trip to the east on the Caribbean coast along Rio Suerte from La Pavona. There are dozens of these long, shallow draft, fibreglass craft constantly ferrying people back and forth along the narrow, shallow tidal canals. Masterful boatmen navigate these canals negotiating a multitude of sharp turns, shallows, concealed boulders and submerged fallen trees multiple times each day with barely the slightest of scrapes across the shallow bottom at low tide.

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