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Trip Report: Gympie-Point Pure & Eagle's Nest-Mt Clara Chimney-Mt Mia-Gallangowan Fire Tower-Kandanga
Photos located Here: Gympie - Point Pure & Eagle's Nest - Mount Clara Chimney - Mt Mia - Gallangowan Fire Tower Photos
TripLog located here: Point Pure & Eagle's Nest - Mount Clara Chimney - Mt Mia - Gallangowan Fire Tower TRIPLOG
Report:
Since Pete; Dave & myself had the Day-off, what better way to spend it then by going for a bit of a small drive.....
This was always going to be a LONG Day, so we headed off early @ 6am, reaching our 1st destination - Point Pure & Eagle's Nest Lookouts for smoko. Great spot for views/scenery & if you're into Rock Climbing &/or Abseiling, this looks like a popular spot for it with numerous Rock Anchors around the top of the Cliffs - Not the spot to go if u have adventurous young kids.....
Next port of call was the old Mount Clara Smelter Chimney on the edge of Oakview NP, SE of Kilkivan. After the fellas had a good look around, it was time to get off the beaten track and head up and out of the valley and southwards to our next destination - Mount Mia. Reached Mount Mia about 1hr later & 15kms down the track where we decided to stop for lunch. Upon reaching Mount Mia & getting out of the car to an absolute windy & very chilly lookout.....
With a quick bite to eat as time was starting to slip away from us it was back on the road again, this time heading further south where we reached a new track that I wanted to explore. This track turned out to be a little more used than I 1st thought as it was a well-used forestry track & we ended up passing a few cars along this road. After passing a few cars, it was time to look for a side track to get back off & into the bush again, so we found our 1st track off to the left (Minyea Track). Turning into it look like it was going to lead somewhere but a couple of kms down the track it just became completely overgrown and we had to reverse and turn around and back track.... not as easy to do when you're in a bigger car than what I'm use to in my little Zook.
Back out on the Forestry Road, we took the next left track again and headed off to see how far we would get this time.... The Track lead us into a Forestry plantation, which usually means it does go and come out somewhere, so we pushed onwards as the vegetation started to enclose in on us to where we had to stop & break away some lantana to prevent us from getting too many bush pinstripes... We came to a Track Junction to the left and a quick look on my GPS; I saw that it headed towards the direction of the old abandon Manambar Mine. The track headed down and became quite wet and started to get a little slippery + a deep washout running down the right hand side of the track. Pete remained at the top until I got down the bottom to ensure that the track indeed went somewhere.... We came to a fence gate and proceeded to go through with the surrounding bush starting to open up. Call on the radio to Pete to head down and we were off and making our way towards where I thought the track might come out, at a point where I had been before....hopefully. Came to a small creek crossing which I thought might have had a bit of a soft/muddy base, but turned out to be firm, so we crossed it without any issues...... We cont'd along with the track eventually coming out where I had thought or hoped it would, at an old abandon homestead/house.
We continued south and again turning off the main road when we could and into an area that I hadn't been b4. We followed the smooth dirt road coming to another "Y" junction. At this point I had planned to take the LH track, but looking at the rutted track and the time and knowing Dave had to be back home by 7pm for Dinner with his wife, we decided to leave the left-hand track for a future day/explore and pushed onwards down the R/H track. The track lead us out near the Gallangowan State Forestry Office. Here the roads became "one-way" only and we headed up and out towards Kandanga. Upon reaching the top, Pete got on the Radio asking if we were going to stop and check out the Fire-Tower..... I hadn't even seen it so, a quick U-turn and back to check out the Tower. The Tower is every bit as BIG as the Old Jimna Fire Tower and this one was sadly closed to Climb as well.
With time getting on (2.40pm) and still quite a few hours from home we headed off and onto some more forestry tracks. We took some tracks that Pete & I had been on some years ago, but not knowing how open or overgrown they might be..... Came to our 1st track junction decision in which track we should take.... then heard the following wise words come over the radio - "Take the one less travelled".... So with that, we turned right and off we went.... With time getting later & later we came to a gate that was previously locked closed last time we were here, but this time it was open........ Again, I heard the following wise words come over the radio - "Take the one less travelled"..... So, through the gate we went, following the track. The track started off fine, but slowly become less of a track, to the point that we came to another gate. With the time being around 3.30pm and not fully knowing where it would lead us and the possibility of getting to the end, only to find a locked gate, we decided to turn around and try our chances at the overgrown track Pete & I had followed years before.
Upon turning around and coming back through the open gate, we turned right onto the overgrown track and followed the fence-line down the side of the mountain. To my delight, the track wasn't that overgrown and the going was easier than I thought it would be and it wasn't long before we down the bottom and making our way out and home via Kandanga and out to the Bruce Hwy & home.....I even managed to get Dave home with 10mins to spare
Trip Distance for the Day: 500kms
Time (Driving Time): 8hrs 34mins
Time (Stopped Time): 3hrs 54mins
Time (TOTAL Time): 12hrs 28mins
Eagle's Nest & Point Pure Lookouts:
Photos located Here: Gympie - Point Pure & Eagle's Nest - Mount Clara Chimney - Mt Mia - Gallangowan Fire Tower Photos
TripLog located here: Point Pure & Eagle's Nest - Mount Clara Chimney - Mt Mia - Gallangowan Fire Tower TRIPLOG
Report:
Since Pete; Dave & myself had the Day-off, what better way to spend it then by going for a bit of a small drive.....
This was always going to be a LONG Day, so we headed off early @ 6am, reaching our 1st destination - Point Pure & Eagle's Nest Lookouts for smoko. Great spot for views/scenery & if you're into Rock Climbing &/or Abseiling, this looks like a popular spot for it with numerous Rock Anchors around the top of the Cliffs - Not the spot to go if u have adventurous young kids.....
Next port of call was the old Mount Clara Smelter Chimney on the edge of Oakview NP, SE of Kilkivan. After the fellas had a good look around, it was time to get off the beaten track and head up and out of the valley and southwards to our next destination - Mount Mia. Reached Mount Mia about 1hr later & 15kms down the track where we decided to stop for lunch. Upon reaching Mount Mia & getting out of the car to an absolute windy & very chilly lookout.....
With a quick bite to eat as time was starting to slip away from us it was back on the road again, this time heading further south where we reached a new track that I wanted to explore. This track turned out to be a little more used than I 1st thought as it was a well-used forestry track & we ended up passing a few cars along this road. After passing a few cars, it was time to look for a side track to get back off & into the bush again, so we found our 1st track off to the left (Minyea Track). Turning into it look like it was going to lead somewhere but a couple of kms down the track it just became completely overgrown and we had to reverse and turn around and back track.... not as easy to do when you're in a bigger car than what I'm use to in my little Zook.
Back out on the Forestry Road, we took the next left track again and headed off to see how far we would get this time.... The Track lead us into a Forestry plantation, which usually means it does go and come out somewhere, so we pushed onwards as the vegetation started to enclose in on us to where we had to stop & break away some lantana to prevent us from getting too many bush pinstripes... We came to a Track Junction to the left and a quick look on my GPS; I saw that it headed towards the direction of the old abandon Manambar Mine. The track headed down and became quite wet and started to get a little slippery + a deep washout running down the right hand side of the track. Pete remained at the top until I got down the bottom to ensure that the track indeed went somewhere.... We came to a fence gate and proceeded to go through with the surrounding bush starting to open up. Call on the radio to Pete to head down and we were off and making our way towards where I thought the track might come out, at a point where I had been before....hopefully. Came to a small creek crossing which I thought might have had a bit of a soft/muddy base, but turned out to be firm, so we crossed it without any issues...... We cont'd along with the track eventually coming out where I had thought or hoped it would, at an old abandon homestead/house.
We continued south and again turning off the main road when we could and into an area that I hadn't been b4. We followed the smooth dirt road coming to another "Y" junction. At this point I had planned to take the LH track, but looking at the rutted track and the time and knowing Dave had to be back home by 7pm for Dinner with his wife, we decided to leave the left-hand track for a future day/explore and pushed onwards down the R/H track. The track lead us out near the Gallangowan State Forestry Office. Here the roads became "one-way" only and we headed up and out towards Kandanga. Upon reaching the top, Pete got on the Radio asking if we were going to stop and check out the Fire-Tower..... I hadn't even seen it so, a quick U-turn and back to check out the Tower. The Tower is every bit as BIG as the Old Jimna Fire Tower and this one was sadly closed to Climb as well.
With time getting on (2.40pm) and still quite a few hours from home we headed off and onto some more forestry tracks. We took some tracks that Pete & I had been on some years ago, but not knowing how open or overgrown they might be..... Came to our 1st track junction decision in which track we should take.... then heard the following wise words come over the radio - "Take the one less travelled".... So with that, we turned right and off we went.... With time getting later & later we came to a gate that was previously locked closed last time we were here, but this time it was open........ Again, I heard the following wise words come over the radio - "Take the one less travelled"..... So, through the gate we went, following the track. The track started off fine, but slowly become less of a track, to the point that we came to another gate. With the time being around 3.30pm and not fully knowing where it would lead us and the possibility of getting to the end, only to find a locked gate, we decided to turn around and try our chances at the overgrown track Pete & I had followed years before.
Upon turning around and coming back through the open gate, we turned right onto the overgrown track and followed the fence-line down the side of the mountain. To my delight, the track wasn't that overgrown and the going was easier than I thought it would be and it wasn't long before we down the bottom and making our way out and home via Kandanga and out to the Bruce Hwy & home.....I even managed to get Dave home with 10mins to spare
Trip Distance for the Day: 500kms
Time (Driving Time): 8hrs 34mins
Time (Stopped Time): 3hrs 54mins
Time (TOTAL Time): 12hrs 28mins
Eagle's Nest & Point Pure Lookouts:
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