Day 104 Manumbar Station

Came through that farmland

Thursday 29th July, 2021 22.0km

2447.8 / 2651.1km

I was fairly well rested after yesterday's effort. Today was a simple day of walking out to Manumbar Rd past Manumba Station.

This house is mentioned as abandoned in the
old books so that's been at least 30 years.

It was a pleasant enough walk with 3 people stopping to have a chat. A little bit of rain before 10am then sunny for the rest of the day.

I got to the camp fairly early but decided to stay. It's at an old steam wood mill, it looks like an effort has been put in to restore parts but there's a long way to go.

Manumbar Station

There's a chill in the air and it's only early afternoon. I think I will need to rug up tonight.

Manumbar Road. Walked this all day.

The boiler at the saw mill

Saw Mill

Wood chute

Camp for the night

Old truck

Day 103 Wratten National Park

Wednesday 28th July, 2021 24.3km

2425.8 / 2673.1km

Morning view

Mid morning view

Today was a funny day. The trail follows a road across the hills in the Wratten National Park and I know there could be views but there is no where I can actually get a good look.

It's heavily timbered and I really just follow a green corridor.

Afternoon view

turn left

That is until the trail turns down a track to descend a ridge line to the valley below. It started off all right but I lost the ridge line and think I went down one a little bit north. I was fighting my way through Lantana at one stage crawling on hands and knees to push my way through. I paid a blood price and by the time I got down the bottom I just moved back to the correct line and found a flat spot and went to bed. I'd had enough.

Mid afternoon view

I knew there was a view out there somewhere

The track starts down the spur

Blood sacrifice paid

Day 102 Rossmore Rd - Wrattens NP

The marker points to the bar at Rossmore
Caravan Park. Don't know if there's one
showing the way out.

27th July, 2021 19.6km

2401.5 / 2697.4km

Sometimes you see some unexpected things.
They should have been in Birdsville this weekend.

I had to get up early as I was getting a lift with Mal back over to Rossmore Rd where the trail continues. They have another couple of hundred acres that back onto the caravan park.

The pack was very full and heavy and I had a selection of Lesleys slices for smoko.

We said our goodbyes and I was on my way. The trail continues up Rossmore Rd and eventually goes into a dirt road. A good sign initially was water flowing in the creeks and I hoped that would continue.

Rossmore Road

Got excited. This is not just a drain pipe but
clear running water coming out of it.

I was planning to visit some chimneys that are left from an old smelter. It's claim to fame is that it's built with split stone instead of bricks. In my eagerness I turned off the road and started climbing a hill before I realised I missed the turnoff to the chimney. The hill climb was a bugger with a couple of false summits and I wasn't going back down to do it again.

Once on top of the range it was fairly easy going and fine views north. There are rural blocks and plenty of signs telling me it's private property. What is it with people.

I checked out the official camping reserve and it had no water so I had to keep moving past the old shamrock gold mine. There was water in the creeks along here but since they were beside the cyanide pond I decided to leave them. The trail then turns down a road and I enter Wrattens National Park.

I picked up some water from a dam and found a flattish spot next to the road. There were other flat spots but under large trees which I normally give a miss. Being at elevation I'm hoping it is not as cold. -0.8 at Lesleys place this morning.

Looking back towards Kilkivan. I think
Rossmore road follows that valley.

Second jump up. I think I was thinking you've got to be
kidding and then looked up and saw a rare BNT sign
mocking me as if to say yep up this bloody hill you go

My camp spot for the night. Best I could do to
keep away from large trees. A car passed about 4am.
I was thinking after walking it Copperhead Road,
(song reference) especially as it's a back road to Gympie.

Found this stuff at IGA Murgon. 3 different
flavours. Will try it out. 

Day 100 + 101 Kilkivan

My camp

Sunday 25th July and Monday 26th July, 2021

Today was a short walk of 13 kilometres into Kilkivan. A very quiet start to the day as I continue the walk out of the creek into the village of Oakview. There I join up with a single lane bitumen road for a 10 kilometre or so walk to the main highway again.

Morning light

The plan was to meet up with Fred who was on his way to Gympie so I could swap boots and grab book 6. The boots I'm wearing are going to Brisbane to be resoled. The repair we did has worn away but the older boots I'm changing to have cured longer and may last till the other ones come back. These boots are the ones I did the Heysen Trail in.

Moon is still up

So in Kilkivan we did the swaps had a coffee then Fred was on his way. I've arranged to stay at Lesley and Mal's place just outside Kilkivan and have a couple of hours to spare till I get picked up.

I went to the pub which apparently a bloke who used to run the boxing tents runs. I was looking for something to buy as a gift but Kilkivan is short on groceries and bottle shops. I sat at the pub and watched the women's oylmpic hockey team play China. The pub stinks of dog piss and I saw why when a Jack Russell wandered in from the lounge area and peed on the door. He was eyeing off my backpack and I decided to forgoe eating there and went down the road.

Old buildings

Lesley came and picked me up and took me back to their homestead outside of town. Good coffee, good cakes, good dinner and the comfiest bed I've had for a while.

The following day I went for a drive to Murgon with Kevin, Lesley's brother, to pick up some groceries and he introduced me to the Murgon Bakery, good pastie and I had a chocolate eclair for afters. They also had a better bottle shop and I was able to pick up a bottle of Port.

Older buildings

Roast dinner tonight with a steamed syrup pudding followed by a good portion of Port made the day complete. Lesley had washed my grubby clothes and I had put up the tent for some airing. Almost forgot but Lesley darned the hole in my favourite sock as well.

The afternoon was sitting outside a shed listening to a CD of a local artist playing his guitar in front of a firepit talking crap with Kevin and watching the cows in the paddock. I think I need to retire.

I was well looked after, thanks Lesley for inviting me into your home.

Bunya Pine I think. Wonder about
the story when it was planted.

hello girls

The boat is a little ways from the water. Oakview.

Bular Rd 10k to Kilkivan

Kilkivan

Day 99 Wide Bay Creek

Sun rising in the East

Saturday 24th July, 2021 24.5km

2368.5 / 2730.4 km

Off to an early start. It helps there is a full moon setting early morning, so there is plenty of light as I'm pulling down the tent.

Looking across the valley

The day is a fairly simple day with a busy road walk coming up so I head off just after 6am.

The initial road walk back through Miva shows someone last night, threw out their McDonalds rubbish as they passed through. It wasn't there when I walked down to the bridge last night.

Quiet walking through the forest

The trail quickly turns down a country road and I enjoy a couple of hours of peace and quiet. Sitting down for breakfast I can hear the traffic noise of the highway, checking the map I'm still 2 kilometres short. A couple of motorbikes roar down the highway and I think to myself, do you really need the exhaust that loud? I thought they were going to come past me on the track I'm on.

After breakfast it's a quick walk up to the highway then the slog with traffic racing past. Not the worst road but I'm glad to get to the end of it.

Then it's clue deciphering time as I enter a horse paddock and choose which gate to head for with a couple of horses taking a great deal of interest. I picked the closest one on the right and guessed right.

Looks like someone opened the tree
back up looking for an original blaze.
There were survey pegs in the ground
and a nail driven into the centre of the
blaze.

The trail then follows a road easement across the hill into a valley. I can still hear the highway occasionally but it's very peaceful. I get to the end of a formed road by lunch then go through a gate still following a road easement but now just a two wheel track across farm pasture.

Finally I get to Wide Bay Creek and there is water running fairly clear under a concrete causeway with grassy banks to camp on. A good day.

I loved the walk through this valley

A continuation in the valley

The grassy bank on the side of Wide Bay Creek

Day 98 Miva

The trail sign and a private property sign.
Always makes you wonder.

Friday 23rd July, 2021 23.9km

2344 / 2754.9km

Cold start to morning as I walk out of the State Forest area where they had been harvesting and chipping. A quick walk down a road then turn left along a track that follows the Mary River.

The road peters out to a track and enters a heavily forested type area that the owner has deemed a nature reserve. A lot of signs about private property again and then I start passing shacks built in the bush. Can't work out why people who want to live off grid have to have so much junk lying about. Sort of spoils the ambience I thought you may have been looking for.

I pass a shack that I'm sure I've seen in a movie where a kid is playing a banjo, I think I hear a pig squeal. (Movie reference)

Following the trail along the Mary River.
Getting spooky along here

I stop and have breakfast between shacks and it starts to rain, so I spend 5 minutes getting everything covered, have two bowls of cereal as I think I can afford it.

I'm sure I remember a boy playing a banjo on
this verandah once. (Movie reference Deliverence)

The next bit is a tricky creek crossing but with signage and a couple of up to date notes I figure it out OK. Then I am delivered back out of the duelling banjo country into some open farm land.

I pop across a major road then another country road which took me to the village of Miva. Two cars stop and have a chat and I turn off trail to head down to Dickabram Bridge.

Trail heads thataway

It was a camping site but now has a no camping sign up. They allow a 20 hour stopover for vans and since it has a toilet block I decide to ignore the sign. I would have moved further away if no toilets as I would have to go bush to pee and a BBQ rest area is not the right place for that.

Yep, that's the trail

Just as it's getting dark I meet a gent that one of the cars told me about. He has walked 10 kilometres from a bridge on that major road I crossed earlier as it goes across the Mary River. He puts his kayak in at this bridge paddles the river to the next bridge, walks back to the car after hiding the kayak to get the car and drives back to pick up the kayak. He is 70 and we talk for an hour on backpacking, walks we have done, and the enigma that is woman. One subject we can't resolve. He leaves me with his stash of sultanas and cashews then walks across the bridge to his car.

Look at me

Now it's dark I put up the tent, use the BBQ to heat some wraps and go to bed. It's a quiet road till someone crosses the bridge and depending on how fast they travel the noise level of the clatter of boards is loud or very loud. A couple arrive in a van but they setup the satellite TV and disappear real quick.

Dragon Fruit Farm

Dickabram Bridge