This walk was organised and led by Terence U as a CBC walk:

(Saturday 24 November White Horse Rocks – M/M A scenic circuit linking three vantage points. From Smokers Gap we’ll head to White Horse Rocks then across to Orroral Lookout and finally to Square Rock. Short car shuffle required. Map: Corin Dam 1:25000 Leader: Terence U Transport: ~$10.Limit: 8.).

8 of us met in 2 cars down in Gordon and drove to the Smokers Trail car park. We placed a car round at Smokers Gap (Square Rock) car park.

Walk 

Slightly strange to begin heading back down the road we drove in, then turning east along the fire trail, rather than the usual south along Smokers Trail. We very soon came to the u-bend in the trail that signaled our place to leave it - a spiky creek crossing. Lovely to have water flowing. We continued east through shrubby (yes, shrubby, not scrubby) regrowth, skirting the top of the drainage line going down to Punch Bowl Creek, then heading NE to White Horse Rocks (this leg 1.4km in 45mins).

Quite a little feature at White Horse Rocks (see pic 1). Several granite stacks with views over Punch Bowl Creek to White Horse Flats and the Booroomba property. I'm sure we looked up to here as we headed up White Horse Flats on 17 Jul 07. We enjoyed the view for 10mins.

Terence next guided us south to the site of the brumby yards (this leg 0.9km in 25mins). The going was a little more open, except when we battled through the unyielding dead tea-tree in the creek lines. Terence stirred our imaginations with stories of brumby running in the Namadgi in years gone by. Alas, we recognised the site of the yards, but all traces (even the fencing wire around trees seen on 23 Oct 04) were gone.

We turned to the SW and headed through open forest with soft, green grasses to morning tea on an open flat just a few hundred metres to the east of Smokers Trail (this leg 1km in 30mins). We enjoyed a lazy time for 15mins.

An old track led us to Smokers Trail. We followed it to the SW then west, crossing a gurgling Booroomba Creek, to the Smokers Flat link track. Two of us took this to the NW to join the Square Rock Walk, following this track and, after around a kilometre, doing a left turn onto the track to the Orroral Valley Lookout (this leg 5.3km in 1hr 15mins). We passed a party of young and enthusiastic scouts steaming along, the leaders bringing up the rear. The remainder of the party continued SW down Smokers Trail then bush-bashed and sidled around and up to the lookout.

Quite a nice view down to the green Orroral Valley from the lookout (see pic 2). A lot of track clearing via chainsaw has been done and also below the lookout, providing a better view.

We next headed to Square Rock (this leg 1.2km in 20mins).

A very relaxed and enjoyable 1 hour here, with plenty of opportunity to explore around the granite (see pic 3), eat lunch and have a doze. A wonderful place, with views NW across the Corin Dam Road to High Range and W to the Brindabellas with Stockyard Spur taking ones view up to Mt Gingera, Mt Ginini and Mt Franklin.

A final wander of 3.9km in 50mins back to the car.

An extremely enjoyable wander on a mild day to, for me, new and old destinations. Consummate leadership with enviable style from Terence. Stimulating company from Mark B, Virginia B, Alan C, Chris R, Linda S and Jenny W.

Distance: 14.0km  Climb: 450m.  Time: 8.50am - 2.50pm (6hrs), with 1hr 25mins of stops.
Grading: M/M; M(9)

KMZ file for Google Earth/Maps: White Horse Rocks, Orroral Valley Lookout and Square Rock