24 September 2011 Tinderry Peak

Map: Tinderry 1:25000

Getting There

This walk was organised and led by me as a CBC walk:

Saturday 24 September - Tinderry Peak - M/R,ptX. Insert via the Round Flat Fire Trail, then continue north at its east bend. Use Roberts Creek as a hand-rail to gain the Tinderry ridge. Then N to Tinderry Peak with fabulous views over Michelago. Exit via the top of Roberts Creek, but then E via the N of the 1450+m feature and so to the pig trap at the end of the unmarked track down from the East Tinderry Fire Trail. Off track, this is rough going. Around 14km and 500m climb. Map: Tinderry. Leader: John Evans - jevans@pcug.org.au, (h) 6288 7235. Limit: 10. Transport: ~$10 per person.

6 of us drove from Canberra and met 3 at Michelago. We then drove to the intersection of the Tinderry Road and Round Flat Fire Trail. Striking views of the tops shrouded in cloud, with rays of sunlight lighting up sections of the cloud. The hardengergia and indigofera is magnificent at the moment, on the drive up the east side of the range via the Tinderry Road.

Further Information

On 17 May 11, we followed an unmarked vehicle track from the East Tinderry Fire Trail, looping N of SH1325, to a pig trap just near the S bend of Groggy Creek. From there, we headed SW to a wonderful granite knoll at 1450+m. It seems that a useful route to the Tinderry ridge, S of Tinderry Peak above the source of Roberts Creek, and providing access to Tinderry Peak, could be made by heading 200m N of this knoll and thence to the top of Roberts Creek. This is not my territory, but I'm led to understand that this is not the usual route to Tinderry Peak. So we'll try the reverse of this description for the way out.

The proposed route is:

Photographs

You can access all photographs here.

Walk

Track maps: thumbnails are active - click for a larger picture
Track overview	Track 1	Track 2

We walked N along the Round Flat Fire Trail, leaving it after 1.7km at the right-angled bend to the E and continuing N. This time I managed to follow the old vehicle track, which deteriorates into a footpad, along to cross the first map-marked drainage line. From there, a little W of N to cross Roberts Creek.

Across to the left bank, the creek provided a handrail to enjoy the pleasantly misty open forest as we gained height. A useful route, somewhere between the teatree of the creek line and the higher granite. Morning tea was called right on the dot of 9.30am (surprising even me), 5km and 2hrs from the cars.

Next, heading towards the vegetated lead I'd seen on 13 Sep 11, I made the only poor navigation choice of the day, turning N-ish too soon and ending up in impenetrable granite. A back track to the S then bend to the W fixed that and we enjoyed a very manageable approach to the top. (Tales of difficult/unsafe scrambling on the granite tors if the approach is up the spine from the top of Roberts Creek.)

We arrived on the ridge at 10.20am and worked our way NW-ish to the top. A little scrambling got us to the log book, the weather-proof container bolted to the granite below the final boulder. Not a thing could be seen. We retreated out of the cool slight breeze and enjoyed lunch.

Coming off the top to the SE for a couple of hundred metres, we then headed generally E-ish to the pig trap at the end of a minor vehicle track on the S bend of Groggy Creek, which we'd been to on 17 May 11. This was an extremely pleasant and easy exit leg. It would be a perfect way to gain Tinderry Peak (discounting the 200m climb up the East Tinderry Fire Trail). There were even a few pink tapes from around 300m out from the pig trap.

So all that remained was the 6km in 1hr 25mins stroll home via fire trail.

We regrouped at the Michelago General Store for tea/coffee/milk shakes. The milk shake was the best I've had since I was 10 years old - and that's over 50 years ago! Great to hear that young Sophie is home and winning.

Great little walk, thanks Barrie R, Cas L + Edward and Alex, Chris F, David D, Pam R and Stephen M.

Distance: 14.3km Climb: 700m. Time: 7.30am - 1.45pm (6hrs 15mins), with 40mis of stops.
Grading: L/R,ptX; H(12)

KMZ file for Google Earth/Maps: Tinderry Peak

Back to Walks Index

This page last updated 28Aug22