Pretty Plains Walk

Pretty Plains Walk

Activity: – Bush Walk and Camping

Date: – Good Friday 19th to Easter Sunday 21 April 2019.

Leader: – Frank Bakker

We met at Meeting Point: – Mt Gladstone turn off at just after 07:15 and drove to Tooma Dam.  Driving time was  2 hrs with a short rest stop at Tumut Pond.

The walk commenced at Tooma Dam and we travelled approx. 10 km passing by Patons Hut, along Dargal’s Fire Trail and Hell Hole Creek Fire Trail to the junction of Tooma River and Bull’s Head Creek .

After the junction it was approx. 3 kilometers off track walking up the Pretty Valley to our improvised campsite which turned out to be a bit bumpy, but otherwise comfortable.

On our second day we walked the remaining 4km to Pretty Plains Hut, which is well worth the effort to get there. And after an early lunch we had the leisurely return trip to camp with time to spare to rest, collect firewood, and set up fire and eat our dinner well before dark. A few hardier souls stayed up later to watch the moon rise and stars begin to rotate around us.

On Easter Sunday which was also our leader’s birthday we returned via the same route to the junction of Hell Hole Creek trail and Dargals Fire trail, and commenced our side trip  visiting Toolong diggings area and Wheeler’s Hut and returned on Wheeler’s hut fire trail to the Dargals Fire trail; so the last day, by some calculations was 18km.

This turned out to be a Hard but satisfying walk on well-formed fire trail half of the way and approximately half off track across button grass plains and through bush. We had great daytime weather and cool but not too cold nights. The group of seven was also just right – not too many nor too few so a great time was had.