The top ACT - Bimberi Wilderness Yaouk, Australian Capital Territory, Australia
By mtbikeroz on 11-May-02. Waypoint GC5895

Over the last six years or so, for new year's we seem to have formed a novo tradition of climbing a mountain. We've climbed the tallest 4 or 5 peaks in Vic, and the tallest 2 or 3 peaks in NSW ...so this year we decided it was time to start tackling some of the peaks in the ACT... so why not start at the top! We've been planning this Bimberi trip for about 6 months and have centred a 6-day camping trip around it so it was nice to finally make it out to Namadgi today and with such favourable weather as well!The drive up past the Tantangara Dam, north of Adaminaby, along Pocket Saddle Road was slow going but an awesome and picturesque drive, where we saw a number of roos and brumbies - made lady novo's day already and we haven't even started hiking! Drove all the way up to the locked gate, just past the Old Snowy Campground, and set off on foot around mid morning. This first leg to the Hut had a few long steep sections to warm us up. Oldfields Hut is in pristine condition today with lawns recently mowed even - picture perfect spot on this glorious day for our first break! We could see both Bimberi and Murray from the hut, looking very imposing.After planting some water for the trip back, we continued along Murray Gap Trail into the valley where we begun to cross some streams and pass some more locked gates. The trail starts getting very faint now to the point where there was now just two faint wheel tracks to follow thru the plains as we approached the final section of MG Trail before hitting the border. Nice part of the day's walking thru here. We hadn't seen another soul yet but I could see fresh footprints ahead. Once we crossed the border we reached Murrays Gap which is basically a big marshland. Navigating our way thru the plain, it was difficult not to get our shoes wet with all the rain this area had recently experienced. We wondered how we'd go continuing through to the foot of Bimberi as I was expecting a very faint trail. Well, we found the "turnoff" to Bimberi Peak and could have well missed it if we had blinked because it is a super faint trail heading into the really marshy bit of the plain! Once we got to the other side of it we pulled up onto a rock for lunch under some shade and enjoyed the incredible solitude of the valley between the two big peaks. This location was effectively at the start of the Bimberi climb and was around 3hrs since setting off from the locked gate.Then it was into the 2.6km /350m elev-gain trek which was tricky as it weaves around rock formations and fallen trees. We often lost the trail but were able to generally find our way back on thanks to cairn and pink ribbon spotting. We even created the odd new cairn once or twice! The navigating and wriggly stick spotting was mentally draining, plus the GPS for some reason was annoyingly loosing the blue line intermittently, making it difficult to project from the topo map I had brought along as our navigational backup, plus I was going to rely on that blue line coming back! The slow climb was pretty taxing by the time we were navigating the steepest part of it (around the 1750-1800m mark) but we were soon rewarded with the views that Bimberi would offer. The final plateau part of the climb was a bit easier to follow and climb, with a fairly definite change of direction to the north-west now. The trig was soon in sight and we rounded the peak at just on the 5hr mark. Not long after arriving, a solo hiker arrived behind us, asking if it was our car they saw at the gate! She had left her family at Oldfields lol. Then, two more parties arrived; one with 5 CBR hikers who were on day 4 or 5 of their hiking through the north of the wilderness. They had just come from Rolleys Flats and were headed for Cotter Flats for camp. It's a crowd up here!We enjoyed some time up top but had to get moving to make it back to the car before dark. On the way down we encountered a couple of Copperheads - could be mistaken for Red-Bellies but at this altitude I wouldn't expect to see the latter. We actually enjoyed a wildlife-rich day of birds, small dragons, a Bluetongue, a baby owl on the way up (who was still in the same spot when we passed coming back hours later!), lots of roos, more wild horses, the snakes, wombats, and a fox. We arrived back at the car just on dusk where cold drinks and snacks awaited!We knew today would be a tough day and so we are getting better now at knowing our capabilities, as well as getting better with our kit. Day after next we plan on a hike of the Yarrabi Track ~20kms to the SE of here - looking forward to that. Can't wait to come back out here again some time though for more of this! FP added of course. TFTC and awesome adventure, mtbikeroz. Not sure how you got your mountain bike up here!#1734

Top spotsadly its whiteout nowbut Im camping overnight to hopefully it clears up!

**This cache**A stunning location particularly on the top half of Bimberi where there are rockeries with low lying shrubs, flowers, orchids, low trees, fat lizards darting from every rock you pass, and plenty of bush flies. Views are brilliant and this mountain is certainly far easier to climb than most as it has a 'defined path' that is mostly still there. Quick find of the cache at GZ after we enjoyed the views and surrounding rock formations. TFTC mtbikeroz.**Our Adventure**This week the Dream Team packed for a four day adventure to Mt Namadgi and beyond. However, the weather Gods had other plans bringing heavy rains to that area. Plan B - Mt Bimberi was put into action.Tuesday afternoon we arrived at the locked gate on Pocket Saddle Road over the Gurrangorambla Creek, a gorgeous high-country setting. The three cachers cycled, and the two mountaineers hiked, (3.4km) to Oldfields Hut for the night. The hut setting is magnificent with views over Mt Bimberi and Mt Murray. The basic hut facilities are clean and sufficiently appointed to make camping that much easier and enjoyable.Wednesday morning we left camp (7:15am) along the Murray Gap Trail to Murrays Gap (3.8km). The track is open, damaged in parts by fallen trees, trampled by brumbies where the water flows over etc.. but still a decent track. The ground everywhere is very wet and sodden, and the Murrays Gap itself is a swamp. From here we hiked up to Mt. Murray (one way - 1.2km direct, 1.5km, 370+m ascent, 1:30hrs) and to GZ. Bush bashing was required two thirds of the way as the regrowth is coming on thick and strong in the lower parts since the 2020 fires. From the top of Mt Murray (10:20am) we headed down the other side to Bonus Surprise (one way - 2.2km direct, 2.8km, 260+m descent, 1:55hrs). With so much rain over the previous days water trickled down the slopes, and the swamps we crossed were full however the general openness, and treelessness, of the location otherwise made for relatively easy hike. To avoid trampling on the vast sphagnum moss areas we repeatedly took a slightly longer path which was tiring. After spending 'too long around GZ we refuelled for the return journey. Each time the clouds parted the heat of the direct sun was searing with zero shade the whole way to and from GZ. On return to Murrays Gap we were just 60m from the Mt Murray cache again.Once back down at Murrays Gap (2.00pm) time was on our side and Mt Bimberi was beckoning (one way - 2.6km direct, 3.5km, 400+m ascent - undulating in parts, 1:30hrs). Two thirds of this track is covered with fallen trees and branches. The GPS map-trail makes it very easy to keep reconnecting with the path and far quicker than bush bashing on the lower slopes. We reached the TRIG (3:30pm) for stunning views of the ranges and Corin Dam. Then we found the cache. We looked back at Mt. Murray (3.5km direct) and it looked so, so far away.We then headed for Bonus Surprise II that also had views over Corin Dam and from where we could see the Mt Bimberi Trig. We found the cache in the open and replaced it with rocks. We then headed back (4:10pm) reaching Murrays Gap locked gate at 5:40pm, and from there headed back to Oldfields Hut. We unanimously agreed to head back to the cars and home given we had achieved both Mt Murray and Mt Bimberi on the same day.We cycled out and reached the cars at 7:15pm then headed home for Canberra tired but very happy with the our latest adventure. In total we cycled 14.5km (350+m ascent), and hiked for 9.5 hours over 16km (1200+m ascent) including breaks and photo opportunities. BTW: phone reception is brilliant up top of both mountains.Many thanks to the Dream Team for your wonderful, fun company, and flexibility on the week/day given the ever changing weather conditions. We are now looking forward to our 'Mt Namdgi and beyond' adventure when we get 4 clear days - no rain, low winds, low temperatures! **Highlights:**- Dirt roads in very good condition re: Pocket Saddle Road & Murray Gap Trail to Oldfields Hut - Kangaroos around Oldfields Hut - Cherry trees in the Oldfield Hut Orchard, & beautiful large trees nearby- Water in plenty supply HOWEVER a number are very dirty due to brumby activity- Wedge-tailed Eagle eating carrion (kangaroo) - magnificent- Red-bellied black snake in my path (Mt Bimberi trail near Murray Gap)- Rock wallabies in their dozens on the Pocket Saddle Road- NO rain except overnight**Disappointments:**- Brumbies everywhere and the visible large scale damage along streams & to native vegetation - Rabbits, rabbits and more rabbits and a really cute baby fox crossing our path.

For more background to this walk, see my entry in [The Third ACT - Mt. Murray](https://coord.info/GC4YDK2) and then [Bonus Surprise](https://coord.info/GC4Z4M1).Fortunately, a breeze had come up that helped alleviate the hot sun and very high humidity as we started the trek up Mt Bimberi from Murray Gap. The trail to the top was welcome after the previous bush bashing, even if a little challenging to find at times.The trail starts off relatively flat and gradually gets steeper, then very gentle near the top. It changes from grassy, to log-hoping and a longish stretch of unstable rocks as you journey up. Fortunately, there as cairns and other markers to assist. The trail shown on the geocaching app was spot on, so it you lose sight of the trail it isn't difficult to find it again. With several large fallen trees, the trail has become disjointed. On the way up, I saw a pale green snake or legless lizard about 40cm long (any ideas what it is?). On the way back a red-belly black snake.Fortunately, there is no sign of damage from the brumbies on the highest peaks. The waterways, however, are being damaged and polluted.Once at the top, make sure you visit the trig for fantastic views, particularly down the length of Corin dam. Then onto the cache, which was an easy find if looking at the right angle . Although tied from the day's effort it was worth it. Now on to [Bonus Surprise](https://coord.info/GC4Z4M1) to finish the the caching before hiking back to Oldfields hut via Murray Gap.TFTC

It's been just over 10 years since I was last at Murrays Gap, having walked in from the carpark on Pockets Saddle Rd. On that trip I only had the time and energy to climb Bimberi (which was still awesome!) - Mt Murray was a mountain too far. Back again with a mix of cachers and (non-caching) walkers (and eMTBs which made ingress so much faster) we covered a lot more ground than I had done all those years ago. Mt Murray still looks steep and imposing from Murrays Gap (and it is a steep climb!), but great to finally make it to the top relatively early in the day. Interesting views from here but I prefer the sweeping vista from the long plateau here on top of Bimberi which was our other main target today. The caches were generally located without issue (StarsAlign has noted specifics for each find in her log). An exceptional area to ride, walk and cache in. A favourite from me - so great to be back!Thanks, mtbikeroz.

Wow, great to find this cache. It was worth the route finding through the bush to get here to the top of Bimberi, see the great views and then find the cache. TFTC

Lucked out by getting the right angle while walking toward the cache, so it was a quick find. Love an ammo box at/near a summit! Looks like a whole lot of green paint was used. TFTC!

TFTC

This was the main target of the day! Having completed Mount Murray, the slope to the saddle looked pretty ok, so I made my way through the regrowth and popped out at the Murray's Gap sign. Although the map showed a clear trail across the swamp, it wasn't particularly obvious to day the least. Somehow hopped across and kept my shoes fairly dry despite the holes in them! Up the cairned trail, and to the swamp where the trail vanished! So I wandered up the hill eventually getting back on track to make it up the plateau. But what a view! Just a bit higher than the surounds and there's nowhere you can't see! The snowgums up here were pretty impressive, fairly well preserved from fires all things considered. Worked my way to the top slowly, zig zagging across the ridge, checking out the views. Made it to the top and found a sheltered spot away from the wind in the shadow of the trig. Pulled out a distinctly NSW beer (are there any beers from the land of the public servant or do they only drink it on campaigns??) with some lunch.

Went for a wander down the the other multi, some great wild flowers on an elevated plain above the valley. A few words from a certain musical set in the European Alps may have been hummed... Ok sung... Some awesome snowgums up on the return, honestly one of the best stands left in the country after the last 20 years of devastation. From here is was the long way back over the hills to Yaoul hut.

TFTC!!!!!

Found on a lovely but very windy day. Walked in via Cotter Flats. Found with Hermergeddon and Katieandwild.

Thanks for the cache!!

A windy but beautiful day at the top of the ACT. Stunning, and a great temporary home for the trackable turtle we carried up

Found while on a Scout hike yesterday.

Did this cache while on a Scout hike. Great views. Beautiful day. TFTC.

A massive day of driving (six hours) and walking (eight hours, with minimal breaks) to travel from Canberra to summit Bimberi Peak and return. A fabulous day, despite the misty (and occasional more than misty) rain, led for the Canberra Bushwalking Club by the fabulous JohnnyBoyACT.

Many thanks to John for his friendship and leadership and helping me find this cache. I knew we had very little time at the summit, so was in a mild panic looking for the cache while making sure I didn't leave the muggles waiting in the moist cold air, which always makes it harder. But with John's help the cache was found - I wasn't keen on getting to this point after all the work (and a good couple of years of waiting for the opportunity to get up here) and not finding it.

Just enough time for a couple of photos and half a bite of lunch before the long walk back. TFTC

Brad, Brad, Brad and Brad & Brad trecked up as the magnificent five Brads to the peak of Mt. Bimberi.
After watching an amazing sunset we stayed up late talking and singing away.
The morning after we awoke for the sun rise.
As the sun shone signifying the new day we saw that we were above the clouds!

This one had been on the list for a while. For me in fact since I moved to the ACT. How can you live somewhere and not climb it's highest peak?! For the group we had been discussing it for a couple of years. However various things got in the way. Most recently a predicted downpour on the day we planned.

This time things seemed to be going smoothly as the weekend approached. All team members solid and well, no work or family disasters demanding a drop out, weather looked to be on our side with a nice max of 23 degrees.

We camped at Old Snowy Flats campground and on the way there laughed at the weather report about the possibility of snow overnight. This was January after all. By 10 pm we weren't laughing. In fact we were shivering and wet. Even two decent single malts couldn't warm us and we retired early. Not much sleep was had any any as the wind howled, the tents blew, the temperature dropped and more than one of us was inundated by water.

Considering how little sleep we had had, how cold it was the next morning, and the fact some had had wet feet all night it was a cheerful posse that set off the next day. First stop Oldfields Hut and our first clear look at mount bimberi from this angle.

The ascent went exactly to plan. It was a cold and clear day. Despite the nice steep climb jackets remained on all day.

The views from the top were splendiferous and left us wondering where in the world could be better. Too cold to linger long though so the cache was found, signing duties done and home we went. Happy and tired and satisfied to have been the highest folk in the ACT at least momentarily.

Thanks MBO for the cache. Thanks Mosaic1212, Bruce's Run and Sammy for the company and fun.

Visited, cache in good condition.

We only got here by the skin of our teeth but happy to say this adventure was a success! Loki had planned a 3 day walk to tackle Bimberi with a friend so we had set out the previous day to camp overnight at Cotter flat. And then the rain came in... A wet Sunday afternoon and soggy clothes meant we were thinking about heading back to town on Monday instead of making the ascent. What point is going to the peak of the ACT if there are no views??! But the rain eased up during the night and we emerged from our tent to find.... a valley totally encased in cloud. Again, we questioned going any further, especially considering the bush would be sopping wet from the rain... But we decided it was at least worth heading up to Murray's gap. Good thing we did too, since about half way up the sun came out and it turned into the perfect morning! The ground underfoot was still very soggy and we ended up with wet feet but made Murray's gap and then hit the footpad up to Bimberi. The trail was pretty clear the whole way up and in not too long, we found ourselves at the trig. By this time, there were definite black clouds coming in from the west and the breeze was chilly... But found the cache at the top, took photos for the trig and headed over to the multi and hunkered down for lunch at the top before beginning our descent. The rest of Monday remained clear but the early hours of Tuesday the rain started again and didn't let up until we were back at Orroral. A very soggy trip in the end but glad to have made it up Bimberi anyway. Thanks mtbikeroz

Whew....
Now just 3 more ACT extremeties to find.
Cache contents all good. Tftc. Tnln. HOTA

Lovely day at the top with 5 others. Camped last night at Oldfield hut and rode bikes as far as the saddle. TFTC

Made the trek up to Bimberi today. Camped overnight at Cotter Flat which made for an easy ascent, (bit painful for me, I had new-boot issues...sigh).

Murray's gap was quite cool and windy, but as we wandered to GZ the sun came out and made for beaut hiking conditions. I was really surprised at how easy the climb was from Murray's.

Summit was windy but sunny, of course fantastic views. Find was quick, noticed Cankid was here last night.

Cache is in good order. Thanks MBO, gets a fave.

The third and final find of the day. I have always wanted to pay a visit to the top of Canberra, even prior to starting Geocaching. I suggested a few weeks back to my mate that we should give it a crack on the Canberra Day long weekend but that was the extent of our planning. So off we set at 8am and, with a small side trip thrown in, arrived at the trailhead for the Murray Gap FT at 1:30pm to begin the ascent. Boy, that was steep in some parts! I was already a bit tired from the day's walk so that made the climb harder. Eventually, we made it to Murray Gap and then came the nice climb up to the summit through the alpine woodlands on a beautiful footpad!

As we climbed up, we passed two people on the way and two on the way down. Once at the summit, there were another 4 people who had come up from Leura Gap, including one of my old teachers from school! Busy day on Bimberi Peak! We camped overnight at the summit, on what was a particularly blustery night. Saw a brumby too! I'm sure I will be back here one day, maybe not straight away though [B)].

After admiring the views for a bit and taking a couple of pictures, I headed down the last few metres to GZ. Once there, I located the cache quickly. Log signed, I read through the logbook before replacing the cache. TFTC mtbikeroz!

Grabbed it on 28/12/16 with @GeoLeo. Will it shock you to learn it was windy up top? At least we were almost out of the wind when picking up cache and replacing it. Sort of . TFTC!

All in excellent condition. Great place. Nice to be back here after 10 years, although it was a lot easier when I didn't have a dodgy knee! Tftc!

My 4th annual summit of Bimberi. This time with jmanjezza and tikvanz. We hiked into Oldfields hut last night and camped. This morning we left the camp site just before 6 and made the summit at 8 a.m. As usual it was very breezy and cool at the top.

#5658 @0815
Last night we (jmanjezza and Noikmeister) parked at the locked gate on Pockets Saddle Road, and walked in to Oldfields Hut. Up at 6 this morning to climb up here, arriving at 8. We sat and admired the views, then found the cache and admired the view some more. Spent an hour up here before heading down again. TFTC.

After a hard slog up the ridge we finally made it to the top on a perfect day. Wonder if you could see kozi from here on a good day?

Bagged this cache after passing through the area from Pockets Saddle to Leura Gap. The cache is in good condition and dry. I missed it last year when up on Mt Bimberi as the wind was howling and we scampered down towards Mt Murray for shelter. TFTC.

#460#
WOW!!! What a great view! Found with a school camping group on our hike from Oldfeilds Hut to here, and the hike was most definatley worth it! Our group stopped for lunch up at the summit, so a couple of my friends and I decided to go and find the geocache. Wrote the names of our entire camp group into the log book, and headed back to our camp site soon after.
Thankyou mtbikeroz for this great cache with incredible views, and I will certainly be coming back up to the top of the ACT again!

Found with JohnnyBoyACT whilst camping @ Murrays. Beautiful weather for once TFTC!

A Canberra Bushwalking Club trip to Bimberi, camping at Murrays Gap. Trip report at http://www.johnevans.id.au/wp/23-24-may-2015-bimberi-peak-from-the-west/ . Sorry I didn’t have a cassette player with me. Great views. TFTC.

#1617 - On of the best views on Australia's Alpine region. Found immediately accompanied with muggle friends Alan and Karen after they met us at Murray's Gap and we cycled and walked in from the eastern approach. The weather threatened and got us as we descended the lower section. Track needs a bit of clearing work. tftc

Found whilst walking the Australian Alpine Walking Track, Walhalla to Tharwa. Spent some of the spare time looking for caches on the way. TFTC.

My third annual summit of Bimberi. This time done from Orroral Valley as part of a 3-day hike with JmanJezza. It was brezzy and cool up here at 9am.

This entry was edited by noikmeister on Sunday, 23 November 2014 at 11:01:29 UTC.

Got to the Summit under very foggy and windy conditions after coming in from Cotter Flats where we had camped overnight. The Walk up Bimberi from Murray's Gap seemed a walk in the park compared to the walk up the Murray's Gap Fire Trail to the Helipad/Turning Circle. GPS data showed a gradient of 35% at parts of that climb. Next time I come up here I'll come from Oldfields!

The Fog seemed to be playing about the GPS as i was struggling to get an accurate reading, but some exploring of likely spots lead to the find despite the technological limitations. Within minutes of finding the cache, the fog blew over and the views opened up.

Well worth the hike up and the trip to the Highest point in the ACT.

Thanks for putting this one up there.

Well I finally got there! Saw that the Canberra Bushwalking club had this walk on and knew that I had to complete something on my bucketlist off. I had wanted to come up here for 20 years. We all met at 6am and then had a 4 hour drive down to the lock gate. We got to the trig about 1pm and while the others had lunch I went and found the cache. Happy it was a easy find. I stood and looked at the 360 degree view, it was magical. We watched a storm forming and knew we had to get down. It hit us halfway down and we actually got hailed on. Loved this one TFTC

Out for a 4 day hike with Nickoff2 who was to achieve one of his goals, the highest peak in ACT. Stinking hot day meant a hard slog up, was more than worth the effort, great 360deg views, magic. SL found travel slug 'dreaming' of the coast, like most Canberrians this time of year. Lenng

found after hiking in from Orroral Valley and camping at Murray's Gap in extremely hot conditions; ample water, flowers and wildlife a great find. TFTC

For anyone thinking of coming up here, I highly recommend it. I managed to follow the footpad to the summit this time and so am providing a link to a GPX here is you want to follow it. The hike took us 7:15 and we spent about 40 minutes at the summit and 20 minutes at Oldfield's Hut on the return leg.
Link to GPX of route http://members.iinet.net.au/~fourjaysgsps/mtbimberi.gpx

Thanks for that! - I was missing that gpx from my collection!

Worked out how unfit I really am by doing this walk. Perfect day with great company. The first few KM's were hard yaka for me. Enjoyed a short break at Oldfield's then On towards Murray's gap. Briefly fooled by the fake Murray's gap on the way up but another couple of hills and we were soon at the base of the Mt Bimberi. A long slow walkt to teh top but once there the trip was certainly worth the effort. What a fantastic view. I can totally understand why Noikmeister wants to come here every year.

Back again, 1 year on. Took 3:19 from the gate. Left Canberra this morning at 7:15. I am logging this from the summit.

This entry was edited by noikmeister on Monday, 09 December 2013 at 08:37:50 UTC.

What an awesome walk! Easy find too. TFTC mtbikeroz.
Made it in 8 hours total (west side). Including nice break for lunch and few short stops on the way.

Yep, cache container replaced, even thought he plastic Decor container was still sealed, fully flexible, not cracked or damaged in any way despite 10 yrs up there, quite exposed too where I placed it, and still there 10 yrs later.
Also, map of track taken for the day, and route between Bimberi - Leura Gap walk. (Thanks NoikMeister for the pic)

OK, ok, so I'm logging this a week late.

I'd been meaning to visit Bimberi (cache or not) for years, and when Noikmeister organised the trip, I jumped at the chance.
We camped overnight, so that we could get an early start on the the Sunday morning.
Our party consisted of Noikmeister, BatgirlandCo, Geo_Junkies (and muggle, soon-to-be-cacher, friend) and Mtbkieroz, the CO (who decided to come along for some cache maintenance, just in case.)

We started the day fairly early, hitting the trail at about 7:30. Earlier that morning we'd also had brumbies (wild horse) walking through the camp. I was too warm in my sleeping bag to get up and see them, but definitely heard them. During the day we saw a lot of their droppings, and actually spotted a couple of the horses in the distance.

The day started out nice and warm, although fairly cool at the top. This was walk was surprisingly easy, although long (we did a 31km loop), as Namadgi caches go. There was only a couple of km of bush-bashing, which made a nice change! We also took the opportunity to pick up another cache in the area, which extended the walk.

The views from the top are amazing, although a little hazy on the day.

I'd also recommend being prepared for all weather conditions, but the time we'd got back to the car, the temperature had dropped to about 10C, and the fog was moving in.

TFTC MBO!

Top of the ACT had actually been on my ¨to-do¨ list since...well... before I knew about caching to be honest, but life always seemed to get busy with other things and in reality such endeavours are best carried out with a bunch of mates. So when the invite went out and it even happened to coincide with a free weekend that I could actually make an overnight trip for it was as if the planets had aligned. So a late start on Saturday afternoon saw us all meeting at the campground in the Tantangara region near the suggested parking in time for a good dinner and chin-wag. Not to mention star gazing and happy snapping whilst watching the local male roo´s take on one another rather seriously. Boy they´re loud when they fight!

Our team consisted of Mtbikeroz, Noikmeister, Doppelfrog, Mr GeoJunkies and ...either new to caching friend Dante....or now ex-friend of Geo-Junkies....hopefully he is the former and we have not had too disasterous impact of his impression of mad Aussies.
Anyway we had a leisurely start to the morning over brekky and getting the camp packed down and hit the trail just before 7.30am. The first leg was fairly easy and layers were peeled off as we started the climb and made good time through Oldfields Hut and to what I mistook for Dead Horse Gap but as there were absolutely no dead horses it must have been Murrays Gap. But hang on - we didn't see anyone called Murray either - yet I am assured by those that know Namadgi and surrounds rather a lot better than I that it was in fact Murray's Gap despite there being no Murray. From there the footpad was marked on and off. Occasionally the óff´portions had us fanning out search-party-style until someone spotted something. Generally however, as long as you head ´upwards´you shouldn´t have any troubles. Towards the top the vegetation got sparser and the trail became more obvious again. We made the top well before noon with plenty of time for photo-taking, a couple of well-earned dinosours (of the late gelatinous period I believe) and some lunch all to the backdrop of a host of hills, some conquered, some still on that ´to-do´list.

From there the next portion of the leg was quite a bit harder, taking us off-piste and onto some terrain that had appeared a whole lot flatter on the toppo map. Overall not too bad and the hard bits were interspersed with some easy bits in a very un-Namadgi-like experience. But I need to do some more work before I can write about that bit...

Oh yes....btw we found a cache... was so wrapped up in the great walk, good mates, boxing kangaroos, awesome views and even a wild brumby or two that I nearly forgot that bit.

This entry was edited by BatGirlandCo on Wednesday, 12 December 2012 at 09:31:50 UTC.

This cache has been on my to do list ever since I discovered the joys of caching in Namadgi - and it did not disappoint.

The outing was organised by Noikmeister and we had orgainsed to meet at old snowy camp, where we would stay the night before. About 5 minutes after my 'was muggle friend - now cacher' and I arrived, Noikmeister arrived with Batgirlandco (minus the co), Doppelfrog and mtbikeroz arrived. Once the camp was set up we had some dinner and sat around the camp fire enjoying a chat. As we admired the night sky, Doppelfrog pulled out his smartphone and loaded google sky - we all crowded around and used the device to identify the main features on the sky for a bit - its great being in the bush away from technology! Following that we heard some interesting noises from the bush so we pointed our headlamps across to find two young male kangaroos in a full on boxing match.

Following turning in for the evening I lay awake for a while listening to all sorts of animal sounds and wished that I could sleep. I think I was a little anxious about the planned walk for the next day. Once completely exhausted, I finally fell to sleep.

In the early hours of the morning as the sun was just high enough to filter into the camp ground, I heard some horses cantering in. As I peeled back the flap on my swag I admired 2 brumby's about 20m from me checking out the camp site. In total awe of these feral yet still magnificent animals I climbed from by bed and sat watching for a bit. After a while they decided to move on.

The morning was still and a little cool which was perfect for the walk we had planned. After having some breakfast, we drove to the parking coordinates and began walking. About 2-2.5 hours in we arrived in murrays gap and had a bit of a rest before commencing the main ascent to Bimberi peak. While we rested MBO pointed out to me the trail markers that we would follow to the top. They were basically a few rocks piled on each other at various intervals along the way. I think Macca Pakka may have marked out the track!

As we made our way up I noted just how quickly the vegetation changed with the altitude. On the way up we lost the trail a few times due to the vegetation and fanned out to try to find it again - this was repeated a few times on the way to the summit.

As I summitted, I saw that Noikmeister, Batgirl, MBO and Doppelfrog who were a little ahead were already at the trig. Noikmeister had removed his shirt and hung it on the trig to air. As this was the first time I had cached with this particular group, I was pleased once it was confirmed that he was only airing his shirt, not taking part of some nude up at the trig ritual. Looking around taking in the views I felt a little emotional about being at the highest peak in the ACT.

After sitting for a bit I turned on my mobile to find I had reception and SMS'd the rest of the Geo_Junkie clan to advise that we had made it up. While my phone was turned on I had a tradesman ring to see if he could come and quote on some work at my home in 30 mins. I don't think he understood the significance when I said no because I was standing on the summit of Bimberi - after all he was not there experiencing what I was!

After having a bite to eat and signing the log, we made our way down the other side of the mountain towards dead horse gap enroute to Brumby Trail. TBC in Brumby Trail log!

Thanks MBO for the reason to climb bimberi. And thanks to all in the caching party for the company.

This entry was edited by Geo_Junkies on Tuesday, 11 December 2012 at 10:35:36 UTC.

This cache has been on my "Noiky's most wanted" list since 2009 when I started caching and then got a taste for these remote challenges. At one stage I had planned to do this cache and Canberra's lowest altitude cache in a single day. Back then I baulked a bit at a 23km walk, but now I think it is definitely doable.

Today I had finally managed to get together a decent party to attempt this cache and then the intervening three peaks to Leura Gap and back along the fire trail. And so it was that BatGirl, Doppelfrog and mtbikeroz met up with Geo_Junkies and muggle Dante at Old Snowy Horse camp, just 1km from the parking coordinates for an overnight camp to make an early-ish start the next day.

We were a little late getting going and after packing up the camp site we managed to get on the trail at 7:20 on a sunny, but coolish morning (12 degrees). The sun certainly had some bite though. We made good time and after a short photo stop at Oldfield's Hut mtbikeroz and I made it to Murray Gap and waited for everyone to arrive. 2 hours for this leg, which was exactly on my time budget.

We followed the footpad, which is quite well developed, for the first 1.5 km to the summit, but after that we lost it for about 1km, but I suspect a lot of people do at this point. We had fanned out in an effort to find it and when I found some trail marking tape we all converged, but it didn't seem to be much of a path. With about 500 metres to go we found some more cairns and eventually a well worn trail near the summit proper.

We arrive at the summit at 11:05, a mere 3:45 from the start and as usual the views from a Namadgi summit were magnificent! A bit hazy to see all that is possible on a clear day, but sunny and not too cold. There is a new log book at the trig, which was completely soaked and unusable, but some extra paper allowed us to do those signing duties before I headed off to find the cache, which was visible from about 3 metres away.

Mtbikeroz had lugged an ammo can all the way up here to replace the container, but there was no need. It is amazing that a plastic container that has been here for over 10 years in such harsh conditions was still in such good nick! Not even brittle, but it was also a lot lighter than the ammo can so they got exchanged .

Then it was off towards Leura Gap, but not before coming across what looked like a brumby trap just behind the summit (see photo) complete with video surveillance. This would have taken several helicopter trips to bring up here, so I would be interested to know its purpose. Anyone know?

I really enjoyed this walk. Apart from the long drive, this is a walk I would do again. Compared to some other, tougher peaks I had climbed in Namadgi this was quite a bit easier and really enjoyable.

Dropped off a couple of coins for what may be a longish stay...

MBO (and Agima): Thanks for your help! Hopefully there'll be a 'Found it' log in the next couple of weeks

Route 3. From Canberra, drive to Cooma, turn towards Adaminaby, go through Ad., before you get to the Portal at Lake Eucembene, there is a road on the right (Heading Nth) signposted to Tantangara reservoir. Proceed 20++km to said reservoir, loop around the bottom of the dam wall, up the hill (keep heading Nthish) 10+++ km or so, to the gate at the given coords.

(Don't rely on the Boboyan rd - it may be closed due to snow, water damage, flooded bridges, and currently is very very rough, not a pleasant road at the moment)

Time = 3hrs from Sth Canberra.

NOTE #1 - The road beyond Tantangara is CLOSED (locked gate) at the dam wall from June long weekend to October long weekend - inclusive.

NOTE # 2 - This Tantangara road may be closed due to water, water damage, snow etc anytime - Check with Kosciuszko NP AND SMC AND Cooma visitors centre. Be prepared for conflicting answers. (Sigh).

NOTE # 3 - a normal car sedan can do the Tantangara road - with care - due to rough surface, erosion ruts etc, especially near the dam. (no section is too steep).

NOTE # 4 - there are LOTS of Kangaroos & Wallabies on this T road, LOTS.

NOTE # 5 - Have a great time. (That's an order)

mtbikeroz (/ anyone watching this cache who has the answer): I'm planning on tackling this some time in the near future, via route 3. What's the best way to drive in from Canberra, and how long does the drive take?

Left Oldfield's Hut before sunrise on a very cold morning. Arrived at Murray's Gap just after sunrise to find the icicle covered grass dancing in refracted specks of rainbow light.
After expecting another heavy duty Namadgi bush bash I was delighted to find a clear track covered in carins marking the way. A magnificent and seemingly Herculean effort.
Sat at the trig and had lunch before heading a short distance down hill to find the cache. Arrived at the cache slightly gob-smacked to see a helicopter sitting on the plain below.
Either lazy cachers or very devious muggles I thought to myself. On closer inspection it was just an innocent ranger baiting a brumbie trap.
A helicopter sure would make these remote Namadgi caches a tad easier. Will post photos sometime.
Took Sol De Lune pathtag left Lego man. TFTC!

Great hike!! well worth the effort!!
I was heading up the mountain anyway, just a bonus to find a cache up there.
Cheers.
TNLN
TFTC.

2000 - MM , Two Thousand , 11111010000 , ..--- ----- ----- -----

Sol has desecribed our trip to The top ACT - Bimberi Wilderness - a great day which we'll never forget. The longest walk by far for a cache - at least so far !!

It also happened to be find number 2000 for me - a memorable cache for a memorable milestone.

Thanks MBO for this and many other great caches. We certainly enjoyed doing both A Long Way to the Top and The top ACT - Bimberi Wilderness in the one week ! Now for Smokin !!

TNLN - TFTC !!

Cheers....

What an adventure.............probably the longest caching walk I've done.

Fitzy and I set off from the locked gate on Pocket Saddle Rd around 8.15am. We arrived at Oldfields Hut just after 9.00, had a look around, took photo's of it.........and our destination, before heading off for Murrays Gap. The vegetation changed as we headed ever upward, and with all the streams/creeks flowing quite well, it was a very pleasant walk.

Arriving at Murrays Gap, we stopped in the shade near the sign for another 15 minutes or so before we began the final climb. Following the cairns of rocks proved to be a little difficult in some areas and there was more than one occasion where we lost the trail and had to either back track or take a 90 degree turn to link up with it again. Finally though, a little over 2.5 hours after leaving the gap, we made it to the trig/summit. No prizes for the speed we made up the hill, but to get here and look over everything that lay below, was certainly worth the effort.

After finding the cache, we sat up at the trig for 45 mintues, taking photo's and having lunch, before packing up and heading back down. Our plan for the day included heading off to grab the Brumby Trail cache as well, but we figured it could wait for another day......it will still be there waiting for us I'm sure..........

The trip back to the gap was easier, as we only lost the trail on one or two occasions, and from the gap it was a leisurely walk to the hut and then back to the car, arrivng just after 5.00pm......but let me say, the last little hill out from the hut, took a little while.

Thanks MBO for showing us this part of the ACT........I know it's been said before, but without caching, there would be no way I would have come out here.

And just for interest, I wore a pedometer for the day.........37498 steps, or 11.2 k's. A great day.

[This entry was edited by Sol de lune on Friday, January 08, 2010 at 5:14:28 PM.]

I started at Pockets Saddle Road and walked to Murrays Gap. From there, made my way up the mountain. A fairly hard walk, but well worth it once at the top. Startled a few brumbies and pigs along the way. It was strange to look down instead of up at Telstra tower. TFTC!

So that's your pic?!!!

It went missing for 2 yrs (early 2000's), there was a note on the door for that time begging/imploring for the photo to return, and it did.

And as you can see from my pic, I was there too with a fair bit of snow! It took me 3 hrs to get out, those snow drifts on the roads out were amazing.!

In a previous life, (ie before geocaching was invented) I had done a long daywalk to Bimberi from Orroral, but with a cache up there now, the urge to return is strong

I was on a winter 4 day walk through the area - day 3 was a planned overnight stop at Oldfields hut. Planning was such that should conditions allow, the day had enough slack in it for an assault on Bimberi, however a good dump of snow a couple of days earlier soon put that idea to rest - maybe next year...

Took a couple of shots of the mountain under moonlight (see photos attached to this log)

It had been about 13 years since I had visited Oldfields hut, but was quite pleased to see that a photo I took of the hut covered in snow in 1990 was still attached to the back of the door

My girlfriend Sarah and I decided to tackle Mt Bimberi over the Easter long weekend. Drove down to almost the end of Pocket Saddle Road on Friday and set up camp at the nearby Old Snowy Horse camp.

Had an early breakfast and departed at 7:30am. Little bit of fog about which soon cleared. After a bit of a slog up the hill before Oldfield's hut arrived at the hut around 8:15am. Found it occupied by several people camping there for the whole weekend, all rooms in use plus a few tents in front, quite popular.

Continued on the Murrays Gap fire trail. Had an enjoyable morning tea at Murrays Gap, nice in the sunshine. Climbed up the nearby ridgeline, occasionally running across piles of rocks so was on an old trail of sorts, fairly overgrown.

Got to the "false" summit, saw the trig about 1km away...Got to the actual trig at 12:30pm. Great 360 degree views of the surrounding mountains, unfortunately could also see rain heading our way across Corin Dam so quickly found the cache and departed.

Had a quick lunch at the Southern end of Bimberi and departed down after a hailstorm hit. Stopped then turned to rain. Rained most of the way down until getting to Murrays Gap at 3:30pm, then stopped.

Walked back to Oldfields Hut, found it even more crowded than before, about 6 or so tents around it now as well as all the rooms occupied. Very crowded place at Easter.

Walked back to the camp and finished around 5pm. Thanks.

[This entry was edited by Canberra_bushwalker on Monday, April 13, 2009 at 6:53:46 PM.]

Found with SecretSquirrel-BJC.

Well this was another fine MBO Namadgi adventure cache. The plan to tackle Mt Bimberi was only hatched after we found the lost German Tourist last Saturday. It is really difficult to stay away from this beautiful area for too long, so back we came.

We departed from home in Canberra at around 3:30am which gave us plenty of time to tackle Bimberi and then get across to Leura gap for the other cache in the area.

The first part of the walk in past Oldfield's hut was really nice, and some kangas, rabbits, hares and a lyrebird decided to share parts of our journey. After a photo opportunity at the hut we headed up to Murrays gap - fully expecting to enjoy the lovely fine weather that was forecast and the anticipated views from the top. By the time we reached the gap the weather had obviously made other plans and heavy black storm clouds were fast approaching from the west. However, not to be put off we continued up into the scrub and made good progress along the line of rock cairns. It seems there are numerous paths up the ridgeline which are all marked with cairns. At one point we could see at least 3 markers across the hillside - all marking different paths. It would be pretty hard to get lost on this approach.

A short distance up the ridgeline the wind and rain started and although the rain was only light it became quite unpleasant, made more so by the strong cold winds. There was even a patch of light hail. Rugged up, we continued to the top and made some quick scratchings in the cache log sheet and the muggle hiker's book and headed for the more sheltered lee side of the mountain and our cross country trek to Brumby Trail cache.

Incidentally, the views from Bimberi, although intermittent, were fantastic and well worth the time to come up here. Log continues in "Brumby Trail".

1153+12=1165 with Captain Tomato

"Top of the ACT" is certainly one of the most enjoyable Namadgi caches that I have done - especially when done as a double shot with "Brumby Trail".

We left CT's at 3:30am and were on the trail by 6:45am, arriving at the trig at 10:15. Half an hour later, we started our 2.5 hr cross country walk to Brumby Trail - finally arriving back at the car at 4:45pm.

The country side was so green on the drive in. A huge lyrebird ran/jumped/flew over the road as we approached Tantangara Dam - that also being very beautiful, scenic and interesting. A beautiful full river was nice to drive by. Oldfields Hut was so rustic - we had to have a big photo opportunity here. We crossed so many pristine gorgeous creeks and streams as we made our way up to Murray's Gap which was a lovely grassy kangaroo paddock - I reckon there might even be a few frogs up here.

On the way up, kookaburras laughed at us - they knew Nature was about to play a practical joke on us!

We managed to follow the cairns all the way to the top but the forest is so open, they weren't really necessary. "Fine, mainly sunny" in Canberra and Cooma with 20% chance of rain - isolated showers in the far south of the Southern Tablelands. Hah! They were isolated over us. Heavy drizzle, light rain and sleet accompanied us up the slopes trying, and Failing, to dampen our enthusiasm and our enjoyment. The wind was bitterly cold so luckily we were prepared for any eventuality. The views were magnificent even if obscured by heavy dark clouds. We could even see Corin Dam!, and all our favourite peaks/caches.

We signed the logbooks in the Muggle cache and mtbikeroz's cache and took a few "evidence" photos. As we left here, light hail started hitting us horizontally and then it abated after a while back to drizzle.

Based on Craig D.'s log, we had good advice on how to approach Brumby Trail. An excellent walk where we were treated to three more grassy hilltops and grassy "gaps". Yes there was some thicker stuff when we deviated from his advice. Others would call it heavy but I am getting so immune to it, that I even really enjoy it - one step at a time. We went more slowly than Craig due to the very wet rocks and grass - we couldn't risk a fall on slippery surfaces. We only took a couple of slips.

Thanks mtbikeroz for enticing us to come out to this magnificent location - it was thoroughly enjoyable and beautiful. It is sad though that so many of those stunted gnarled trees on top are now dead because of the big bushfires a few years ago. It will take a very very long time for trees to re-grow here. It must have been even more spectacular up here before the fires.

Brilliant, awesome.

Rated: for Overall Experience

Having found A Long Way To The Top earlier in the morning, it was time to tackle its taller brother! After pitching my tent at Leura Gap, I set off at 3pm under a dark and gloomy sky. Having experienced a bit of Namadgi scrub in the past, I opted to stick right on the crest of the range, up hill and down dale, as contouring around seems to result in unnecessary hardship in the form of dense (and often prickly) vegetation.

So along the crest I went, finding a few hidden treasures along the way in the form of survey marks left from almost 100 years ago. Passed through many grassy gaps, before commencing the final ascent up to the summit. Near the top I surprised a mob of brumbies, and also spotted a wedgetailed eagle.

After a bit of plodding, the trig station was reached, and I paused briefly to take in the view. This was my third time on the top of the ACT, and also the shortest trip in here! My first time up here was towards the end of the Australian Alps Walking Track, taking over 50 days to reach here from Walhalla in Victoria. The second time was a bit easier, at the end of a 6 day loop incorporating Mts Morgan, Scabby, Kelly, Namadgi and Murray. It was only a few short months after completing the second trip that I began geocaching, and it soon became apparent that a third trip was necessary! Noticed a slight change at the summit though; park workers have left a logbook at the trig in a form of 'Muggle-Cache'. Certainly looks rather sturdy, and has been attached to the trig station, so it looks like it is here for the long haul. You don't realise how many visitors a peak like this receives until you see the names building up in the logbook!

Having paid homage to the highest point in the territory, I followed my GPS for a short walk to GZ, where the cache was soon located. Signed the log at 5:30pm. I bounced through a Bushwalking geocoin and Winglen's He-Man TB, but opted not to leave them here due to the remote nature of the cache.

Almost immediately after returning the cache to its hide, the skies started to drop a bit of moisture, and so I whipped out the trusty waterproof jacket prior to departing at 6:00pm. Eventually got back to camp at 7:50pm (still in daylight, thank heavens!), found Brumby Trail and went off to bed. The next day I headed down to the Goodradigbee, and along the river to Harry's Spur, before returning to my car at Mt Ginini the following day.

Thanks mtbikeroz for bringing me back to this majestic summit. This was another worthy find for The Well Rounded Cacher competition.

Yes, from the cache description 'the ultimate wilderness experience'. Yesterday a FTF at Leura Gap nearby, today one of the most superb walks and caches I have ever done. Back at home, at my computer after hours of walking and driving, but my head and heart are still out there on that stunning mountain top. It's an overused word, but this was truly AWESOME!

McPhan and I made plans to tackle this cache a couple of months ago, waiting patiently until the locked gate to this end of KNP would open. Last night we walked in to Oldfields Hut, arriving in the late afternoon, and fortunately for us, about 40 minutes later significant rain set in. By then we had our tents set up and were cooking dinner on the vernandah with the place to ourselves (apart from the resident possum who is the size of a domestic dog!!)

Setting out this morning for Bimberi, we encountered the first of several streams with a good flow of water. Lovely to see these pretty mountains streams loooking so healthy, probably due to significant snowfalls over winter, still soaking down off the mountain and through the soil. There was water everywhere! We are poorly matched walking partners in some respects, he so tall and me so short. Where McPhan jumped across the stream I took off my boots and waded through. At least after the first stream I found ways of leaping over or climbing across on rocks. It's not elegant, but more efficient than peeling off boots and socks every time

What a truly memorable walk. Beautiful bushland, grevillea lanigera coming out along the trail in so many places, wallabies, a flame robin, and two wedgetails gliding on the air currents above the mountain. After leaving the main trail we headed up the mountain, following those little cairns as much as possible. The trail is easy to lose in the fire regrowth, and sometimes a single rock on a log counts for a cairn, but we moved steadily upward to the summit without any problems.

I've wanted to climb Bimberi for about twenty years and today was the day. Once we got onto the final flatter stretch where the trail winds through snow grass, lovely rocky outcrops and snowgum survivors, I was almost overwhelmed. Elation. Such expansive views, such a large almost flat top to this mountain - covered in snow grass with daisies in summer, while so many other ACT peaks are rocky with little vegetation. The tallest of the ACT peaks, and doesn't it feel like it once you're up there! Found the cache, patted ourselves on the metaphorical back, and then enjoyed some lunch in a protected spot out of the wind, and admired the views some more. Phoned Mr Winglen too, to let him know of our achievement, then reluctantly turned for home.

Mtbikeroz, this is easily one of the most rewarding caches I've done, and possibly the most effort. It requires planning and stamina to get here, but the Top ACT is really really something. Thank you for luring me up here at last, and thank you very much to McPhan for your very welcome company over the weekend. Thanks also to Mr Winglen for staying home to hold the family fort, while I'm off adventuring. Sheer bliss, guys. For once I'm almost lost for words (but not quite )

Edited log the next morning - too tired to write it well the night before.

[This entry was edited by winglen on Sunday, October 05, 2008 at 3:23:32 PM.]

1415. The plan after Brumby trail was to ditch the bikes and walk in to camp at Oldfield's Hut. Sound easy? Not for me. Mrs W weighs less than half of what I do and had a pack on her back twice the size of the mountain we were heading to. She skipped ahead up the steep incline while I quietly had a coronary with the wallet I was carrying. Boy was that a slog nearing the end of 30kms for the day.

The downhill was much better but it was a relief to get the packs off. Mrs W rested on the porch while I lay on the grass. Luckily before falling asleep we set up our tents, because not long after the skies opened up. This was a true highlight in a trip of many. Standing on the porch of a heritage hut listening to the pounding of rain on the roof with rivulets of water cascading from the tin roof - magic.

I kept glancing up at the mountain thinking - I hope I don't let Mrs W down, and felt a lot more confident when the mist/rain obscured the peak, it made it that much more accessible.

After a fitful sleep and a rather questionable breakfast of reconstituted baked beans and a mix of bacon hash browns and egg (I actually believed the wrapper - Cooked Breakfast. Just add water - sounds appetising, no? No.), we set off. I was still worried though.

I needed have bothered, watching Mrs W spring across raging torrents and scampering up to the peak of Bimberi the only pack we took, proved that she is Lara Croft incarnate, so I had to keep up.

Superlatives lose all meaning up here on top of the world. That feeling of exhilaration came to the fore again and we were lost in the splendour of the surroundings and the scenery. BTW there's now a very nice log book in a large cache container on the trig for visitors, so all you who've found this one, better head back and put your names in the log! My entry in this log read something like "If I die on the way out of Oldfield's the views have been worth it." And I really mean it.

Afetr taking in almost as much as a human can bear we headed back down the mound to the hut. Amazing how much energy delights like this can lend you. I discovered that last week around Sentry Box and again this weekend. Forget Red Bull, mountian tops lend you wings.

I even made it out of Oldfield's canyon with nowhere near as much pain as going in. It may have been that tube of cough syruppy energy stuff I swallowed - eurgh. I'm not sure if it's been mentioned but Mrs W did this trip on a suspect ankle and hadn't been too well earlier in the week. Kudos J. You are the Queen. Thanks for your company, knowledge, humour and faith - most appreciated.

TFTC MBO, one of the specials and most appreciated. And after 729 days (hey that's a number I know well) it's off the feeling unloved list, and I have the feeling it will have more visitors shortly.

PS a definite lyrebird sighting on the way back to civilisation.

PPS didn't make it past the couch and even though it was about 11pm that I fell asleep on it, I was up logging at 4:44am. Maybe a 3 day trip next time?

Rated: for Overall Experience

a footpad is a small unoffical tracks. not suitable for 4wd.

i am familiar with the routes around bimberi (from gingera/ginnini and orroral valley). my question is: once you get to murray's gap (which i assume is the starting point for most trecks up bimberi), how the hell do you get up? is is just a mad bush bash or is there a path that i can follow?

From the sign at Murray's gap, look towards Mt Bimberi. Heading off very slightly to the left is a track through the grass and into the trees. There used to be a well defined track thereon before the fires, but the fires have made the track LESS clear. When I've gone up there since the fires, I've lost the track quite often, so I just walked through the clearest bush there was. If on the way you come across small cairns of stones you will have found the path. Onmce you get to the "plateau" near the top, the path is obvious.

thanks for the tip. will have a crack at bimberi in the near future and will look out for the cache.

"foot pad" ?????
Pardon my ignorance, what's that!????
If you mean walking trails, the description outlines the trails. The one via Oldfield's Hut is in excellent condition up to Murray's gap, then its a bit cross-country (not bush-bash) along the ridge to the summit.
The route from the Orroral valley is likewise on good fire trails all the way to Murray's gap, see most recent logs. The other trail, from Gingera/Ginini, is likewise on good fire trail, to the climb just after McKenzies creek, when its now quite overgrown gopin up the Eastern face.
Does that help??????

question on bimberi peak: is there a foot pad from the base to the summit? if so, where exaclty does it go from and what sort of condition is it in?

Well that was tough! The teabag and I came in from the orroral carpark, riding our bikes as far as possible. Then walked up the REALLY steep slope to the gap, which was quite an effort. Then there was the summit - just made it up and back to the gap to camp before sunset.

Views were amazing (black mountain in the distance) and there was certainly an achievement in bagging the top peak in ACT - and not the easy way either! A fast exit (mostly) downhill had us back at orroral in about 5 hours.

Thanks for a great cache! Almost a year since the last log....cache in great condition. TNLN.

Whoops, got the date wrong - thanks teabag

[This entry was edited by hailtothethief on Monday, October 09, 2006 at 4:57:04 AM.]

Beautiful view and all down hill from here. My first geocache - looking forward to plenty more.

My report from my attempt on the weekend.

The drive South was as stimulating as can be expected on the Hume Highway and before too long I was unrolling my Bivy Bag and getting ready for bed under a magnificent star filled sky. Chris spent the next 40 minutes or so trying to decipher the puzzl that was his loaned tent. I kept contemplating getting up and helping, but the warmth of my sleeping bag was all too much.

The next morning dawned clear as a bell and revelled an overnight low of -5.5oC. I had been as warm as toast; however Chris revealed his sleep was less than optimal, him not having a sleeping bag that zipped up, a mattress a beanie, nor gloves!

The first few ks saw us walking along the Orroal River Valley. We then wound up and out of the valley and finally left the fire trail for some single track to take us up and over Cotter Gap. The Gap itself was coated in about 2 inches of snow, and it is only 1310m high. This it seemed was the final remnants of a not too distant snow dump. Sadly it was too cold for the camera batteries to work, so we pushed on down the other side of the Pass and into the Cotter Valley. As we walked along there were Dingoes howling on the Peaks above us; I had never heard them howl during the day before!

We reached Cotter Flats at 1200, and decided to lunch with the 'roos at the NPWS Hut. At lunch Chris revealed that his brand new boots were causing him a bit of pain, and that he thought he was getting blisters. I was not overly impressed, as I was dead keen on reaching the top of Bimberi Peak and the geocache that is hidden at its summit.

We pressed on regardless, and began climbing out of the Valley along the Murrays Gap Trail. Just as the track really started to get steep and climb up and out of the Valley, Chris admitted that his blisters were too bad and he couldn't go on.

After first having thoughts of leaving Chris to his own device and forging on solo for the top, I decided to take one for the team and turn back too. As Chris hobbled back to Cotter Flats his knew tightened up and the journey was not very fast or pleasant. A look of the map revealed that we were within about 1.5km of the Gap and a further 3km from the Peak when we retreated... So close yet so far! The geocache that I was aiming for on the Summit went begging. But alas it will still be there next time!

We returned to Cotter Flats and set up Camp for the evening. A warm fire, some JD and dinner helped lift our spirits as the temperature headed in the opposite direction. We continued to hear some howling Dingoes in the distance, but they were of no concern to us. Of a major concern to us was the fox that I caught in my head light as it lay in a pouncing position less than 2m behind Chris as he lay by the fire. Some yelling and stick waving had the fox gone for good, but we remained alert for the rest of the evening.

My night passed without incident, other than waking every few hours and checking on the shivering Chris. I lent him my beanie and he wrapped his feet in his towel and eventually he had a restless sleep.
Morning dawned and the thermometer was kind enough to reveal that the overnight low had been -15.9oC. A new personal cold record for myself! My contact lenses were frozen solid, and took some time to thaw under my armpit.

After breakfast we packed up and headed for home. Chris's blisters and knee gave him limited grief as we made the return journey in only 30 minutes longer than the trip the day before.

I stopped in at Lake George to pick up a consolation geocache, but was still bitterly disappointed about missing the main goal.

Better prepared and better equipped I've no doubt that the peak is reachable on foot in a weekend from this approach...

Cheers,
Wima-Li
1ARC

Sadly I had a fail on this cache this weekend. I headed in from the old tracking station for a solid weekend's walking. After braving the snow and ice of Cotter Pass we were almost all the way up to Murray's Pass before my geobuddy (now ex!) threw in the towel. He's new to walking and it was all too much.

Erring on the side of caution I decided to turn my head for home too, leaving the cache for another day. In truth I was shattered, so close and yet so far... Following that dissapointment we headed back to the valley and stayed warm around the fire. An interesting point of note was that the temperature dropped down to -15.9oC overnight! Now that was almost as cold as my mood to not making the cache.

I'll be back (with a more appropriate walking partner)

Cheers,
W-L
1ARC

Amazing!!!!

I did actually wear my business shoes (ecco) and started the trek after work on Friday afternoon... so technically... YES

Now this is a really hard cache to get to. I had been looking at this one for a while and figuring out the best choice of getting to it. I decided on option No.3 as that is what seemed to be commonly chosen and was also the shortest.

I managed to persuade Agima to do this one with me. Great. We decided to plan an early start to this one which ended up changing to a camp over, since there was a hut along the trail.

We did 'The Dark Side' on the way to this one, and finished it at 11:30pm. It was a long drive to the car park for this cache, late at night and in very thick fog with lots of roos and potholes. We finally arrived at the car park at 2:00am.

Next we had to ride to the hut. The first few kilometres were done easily but then the road turned and went straight up the first hill. This was very difficult for us amature mountain bike riders with lots of luggage. With many stops we managed to make it to the top of the first hill.

We jumped on our bikes and then did the next downhill leg. This section was very steep. We rode with brakes on hard and only limited vision in the dark looking for potholes and erosion channels.

We came to our first creek crossing and it was fairly deep. Too deep to ride across. We found a thin section and decided to jump and then pass the packs and bikes over. Agima threw his pack to the other side and then it proceeded to roll down the slope and into the creek. Ouch. Saved, but wet. I decided to take off my shoes, socks and the bottoms of my short/longs and try for a ride over. It was freezing standing on the icy ground in bare feet. I made it half way across the creek and then walked the rest in the freezing water.

Once we were over this creek with all our possessions, we proceeded to go up the next hill. It was then that we realised that we had missed the hut in the dark. Damn. We didn't want to have to go back over the creek and then back up the hill. It was passed 3:00am so we decided to continue to the cache without our bikes.

We made it across Murrays Gap that was a huge wet marsh and left our bags for the return journey. We then spent the next couple of hours making our way through the toughest, harshest forest I have ever seen. It was very slow going and constant uphill.

We made the top at 7:00am. It was beautiful. The air was crisp and completely still. We watched the clouds roll over the land below us. We also found the cache, too. TNLN.

The trip back was just as eventful but in reverse. We did manage to get 1/2 an hour sleep back at Murray's Gap and also Agima went head over heels on his bike in the middle of the same creek that he had wet his bag. At least now it was warm and the ice over the ground has melted.

This has been a truely wonderful caching experience. Thanks heaps, MTBikerOZ.

Don't tell me! - You did it in your business suit after work?

So where do I start on this one..... I know... You are nuking Futs.... How the hell did you get your bike up there I will never know.

I dont know if it was because Sacada and I walked all night to see the sun rise at the gap or it was because we did on the dark side before hand, or the frozen ground and icy rivers, or the fact that we missed the place we were to camp so we had to carry all of our camping equipment with us, but by god that was one of the most stupid things I have done and I have done some stupid things, let me tell you.

I must say I dont know of many people that leave work on a Friday then walk, ride and swim all night only to get to where they are going and leave 10 minutes after just to walk back... Nuts I tell you.

Now let me make this clear, if you ever decide to do one of these long arse, on top of the hill, in the middle of nowhere caches again........ Let us know so we can do it all again.... That was fantastic!!!! good job.

OH THE HUMANITY!!!!!!!!!!!

We decided to do route 3...as it's shorter on the legs...

Easy first part from the Locked gate to the turn off. Then evil climb and drop to Oldfield's Hut where we found a schoolgroup of Grammar and Radford Students who had been camping this weekend at the "Gap".

Then the long evil part....THREE river/creek crossings and then a hard climb to the "Gap"....

Morning tea/early lunch there.

Then the assault.

I didn't see a track up the side of the mountain and it was a hard climb, taking us 2 hours to do the 500m up and 2km across to the top.

But found the cache......THANK GOODNESS....

Took the travel bug.

Then rapid descent (an hour).

The muscles started to hurt, ache, ouchies and pain....

A rest at the Hut before that last evil calve killing 90m climb back up over the ridge before the final 2ish km walk back to the car.

On the way home (via Adaminaby) we missed a few kangaroos, two lambs and a grumpy wombat...

Boy am I going to hurt tomorrow....But...94 caches found.

A pleasant day for such a long walk to the summit, with a bike ride to Oldfields hut. Walked to the cache with Spindoc Bob & 2 Leg Drive - great company for the day.

This cache has totally survived the fires and is undamaged.

Left a Seaside shell TB for others to retrieve.
Cunningly, left it after fellow geocachers who did the walk with me on Saturday signed off the log book. You should see their entries soon. Can't wait to see their smile when they realise I dropped off a TB. &
Cooeeee.

They say a picture is worth a 1000 words. So this log note will be about 18000 long.
Thanks to the others who I went along with to the "top". Spindoc and a mate of mine, Doug. But I might save my thanks for MTBiker_oz (The party guide) for another time. Especially after the late and very secret placing of the travel bug. You just can't trust these mountain bikers.
Thanks all for a great day. And weekend.

Ohh BTW the cache is in great condition, considering its age and environs.

I should be writing my job application, but I know I'll get some stick from fellow geocachers if I don't post this one straightaway.

In one word GREAT. I really enjoyed the challenges that confronted me on this cache. The bike ride was beyond me - I spent more time pushing the two-wheeled contraption then riding it. [xx(] The walk was great - I must admit to sucking in a lot of air at times. The view at the top - outstanding. We could see Telstra Tower and Canberra in the distance.

It was a brilliant cache to complete and I celebrated with a cooked bowl of noodles - must remember the spoon next time.

Thank you mtbikeroz for setting the cache and coming along with us on the walk. I hope to do likewise with any future hunters wanting a geocaching buddy to walk with them along the way.

I shall now try to limit my photo essay to a few thousand words.

Hello all you geocachers watching this geocache:

Just to let you know - there will be a group assault on this cache on Saturday 17 April 2004. I'll be in it also, especially to check and/or replace cache if damaged by the Jan 2003 fires.

For further info - See Geocache "High country caching", in NSW by Spindoc Bob.

Indeed it did suffer a large BBQ. The previous weekend I inspected its sister cache at A Long Way To The Top, and found in these high alpine areas, the fire went through but was not turning everything to ash. Also, I know where & how I placed this cache - I can be fairly sure considering how its sister survived totally undamaged with not even a slight scorching, this cache will be most likely OK.
I will be going up soon anyway, but feel free to enjoy the walk & scenery in going there also.

Although I have a pilot's licence I can't afford to keep it current so when a friend with Jabaru offered to fly me out over the ACT this morning I jumped at the chance. We were planning to fly down over Namadgi to the Yankee Hat area to look for any signs of a Cessna that went down in this region years ago and has not been found. We wer hoping the fire damage might give us a better view of the ground. It did, but we didn't find the Cessna but spotted some unexpected building and car ruins. Also overflew ACT's highest peak to peek for this cache. Did not spot but noted this whole region hosted a large barbecue some time in the past.

Hmmm - the recent fires in the ACT & NSW passed through this region. Roads are still closed to the area. This cache is hidden well under & in a rock crevice facing Sth, away from the direction the fires came from, N/NW. However, I'll check on this cache as soon as I can, but this cache could have survived seeing as how it was hidden and that is was totally in a large rocky outcrop. Keep ya posted. mtbikeroz.

Update - roads are open.

[last edit: 5/12/2003 3:03:37 PM PST]

Ah, yes the big hill. With all the parks closed back in Sydney we needed to find somewhere to go for a walk and what better place then a hill down in the wilderness. Seems like everybody else had the same idea as the area was packed out with walkers. Would have been nice to able to ride the bikes but as most of the area is wilderness and you are not allowed, so we just walked in.
When we left the car all the mountains where covered with mist which is handy as you don’t know how high you have to walk. On reaching the summit the mist was still thick back towards Canberra but you could see over the plains. The visitor’s book which is stored in an old cracked leggos jar (needed some decent tupperware) had not been signed for two weeks, but we passed four groups heading up as we where heading down.
When the first group turned up we made our exit, who want’s to share such a great place with a bunch of galahs who want to ring people on their mobile phones?
When we got back to the hut there was a group of ten people setting up camp and then as we got to the top of the hill after the hut, another group appeared and we did not past the last one until we got to the bottom of the hill. Must be the safety in numbers approach.
Think all the food stuff in the cache might be past the used-by date so we swapped a brain for a lizard.

I noticed people complaining that many ACT caches are on hills, but this was ridicules! I’m never going to complain about hills again. Now that I’ve conquered the ultimate ACT hill, all others will pale to insignificance. How you managed to get your bike up I don’t know – surely you must have carried it more than you rode it! Also, today someone rode a horse up – how they got the horse over and under the fallen trees I have no idea. After having tested route1, and deciding it was hard work, I decided to try route 3 this time. It was still hard work, but not impossible.
There, I’ve finally completed all the ACT caches – well for now anyway.
Took a Johnnie Walker golf ball, and left a green lizard.
Thanks for a physically challenging but most rewarding day. I knew I was getting tired toward the end when I couldn’t jump the streams any more, I really knew when I couldn’t open the cap on my drink container. But – I must be a sucker for punishment, as immediately after completing this one, I went on to do ‘Thermal Imaging’.

P.S. Thanks for not hiding the cache too hard – it was a nice easy find, which is good when you’ve just spent 2.5 hours climbing!
P.P.S. I think I’ve done my bit for Active Australia Day today!

Decided to check this one out, just to get a feel for it. Really didn't expect to get to it today. (Left too late in the morning for starters). I decided to have a look at route 1, and found the going relatively steady (albeit seemingly infinitely far) until some while after the hut where the trail forks off to the right, and starts heading up the mountain proper. Here the 4wd track would no longer be suitable for a 4WD, or any vehicle for that matter. The path from here has been neglected for years – there are fallen trees and branches everywhere, and it’s very overgrown in places, but still recognisable. I was hoping to maybe get to the saddle, but after 50 minutes of walking up the steepish hill, I decided it was time to head back – else I wasn’t going to get back to the car before dark. I figured it would take me another 1.5-2 hours from this spot, so next time I can allow for that. That’s unless I try a different route next time…

Of course the scenery was excellent, the wallabies numerous, and the weather just right – perfectly still, sunny and about 10 degrees. I’ve marked a few spots in the GPS to look out for – where I took a wrong turn or two…