Canberra Centenary Trail

 I came across the 145 kms Canberra Centenary Trail (2013) quite by chance and it ticked boxes for a winter section hike with good transport access. As a big loop around Canberra it seemed an interesting idea with lots of bush, several hills, rivers and lakes, and (inevitably) some suburban streets. I could have a base and use buses to get to and from the trail each day; it worked out best to have a base for the southern part and a different one for the north.

June 13 The way I had planned to do the trail meant that a short walk from my car today would help with the section distances and bus access; I parked by Lake Burley Griffin with my starting point a coffee van by the Carillon. I caught the 4 o’clock chimes. Bonus: I have coffee to look forward to when I finish. Heading south to do the trail clockwise I walked across the lake on the Kings Ave bridge and went along the water’s edge before going inland for Old Parliament House and the current one. There were a lot of cockatoos around. 

From here the trail took an unexpected turn and went into a patch of native bush sandwiched between Parliament House and roads, Surveyors Park, using a dirt track. Weird. I was surprised to see the trail was signed but the signs were not at all junctions so not very useful. I emerged in suburbia and stopped when I reached the trail’s closest point to my hotel in Forrest. (I returned to the car on a more direct route.) 8 kms

June 14 I walked back to where I’d left the trail and headed for Red Hill. The climb was quite steep and it was nice at the top with a view over central Canberra and surrounding hills, some of the tops in cloud. (Although I passed several hills today this was the only one I went over.) I stayed on a ridge for a while then descended to suburbia, and within an hour of starting out I saw my first kangaroo, quite near houses. I went into another section of bush, more extensive, and wilder, with lots of green parrots, passing Mugga Mugga Hill, although I could hear traffic the whole time. It was a real wintry day, heavy grey sky and very cold, in fact it seemed to be getting colder. There were a few other people out walking.

After skirting woodland hills (Waniassa Hills) and pine forest below Isaacs Ridge I came to an area that was more rural, lots of kangaroos about and very boggy.

The last ten kms were along paved bike paths following a drainage channel, with intermittent patches of bush and clusters of houses nearby. I was really cold and in great need of coffee so I was happy when I got my first sight of Tuggeranong Lake (with swans and ducks) and knew it wasn’t far to go. I went straight to Maccas, which has a great view over the lake, and it was warm inside. Then I toured the even warmer shopping centre and got two buses back to Forrest. 24 kms

June 15 An even colder morning, lots of frost, blue sky and one degree in Tuggeranong. I set out on frosty trails in woodland

and immediately saw a cluster of parrots oblivious to the cold. I was surprised after yesterday’s bike paths to have genuine bushwalking, and the temperature seemed to have kept everyone else away despite pleasant sunshine. I undulated beside the Murrumbidgee River and descended to the Red Rocks gorge which was short but impressive with rock walls and bushy hills above.

The trail stayed on the hills, then when it turned away I detoured down to Kambah Pool on the river: sandy beach, greenish water and good reflections and a name I remember from my cycling days. It wasn’t so cold near the river. From here the route turns north.

I had four kms beside a road and the next feature was Arawang Hill; I chose to go up and over rather than around the edge. At the summit I had a great view including Tuggeranong Lake, a sliver of Cotter Dam, the Tidbinbilla Range and the Brindabellas, Mount Gingera in the background covered with snow, Black Mtn, a tiny bit of Lake Burley Griffin. Looking west there was no sign of the city at all.

The trail went along Cooleman Ridge with continuing views until I descended back to the suburbs, where I walked beside a street that was clearly the outer edge of Canberra, opposite a farm. I went on a bit further, not sure where to call it a day and finished in a suburb called Wright near Stromlo Forest. It took me three buses to get home. 24 kms

June 16 Only two buses to get back. Quite a grey day and I had a long walk through urban parkland to the Molonglo River. After I crossed it I went into pine forest; with a choice of routes I thought I had picked the more interesting one through bush but unfortunately I had to walk through a muddy construction site on the hillside. The trail has been quite well marked until now but not on this section. The compensation was a view over Lake BG, from Scrivener Dam to the Carillon, and I saw that I was now on the north side of the lake. 

I ended up at the National Arboretum, where the hillsides are covered with blocks of different species of trees, and I was excited to find a cafe there and went inside for a coffee. Then I went up Dairy Farmers Hill for the view, similar to what I’d seen earlier. The descent from the Arboretum was on a funny zigzag track which my garmin straightened out! 

After a walk through a cork pines plantation I came to the Aranda Bushland which was a nice area of grassland and then gum forest; the Black Mountain tower nearby was going in and out of cloud. I spent a long time in Black Mountain nature reserve among the woodland before starting the climb. I was undecided whether to go up the observation tower due to the dullness of the day; when I got to the summit the tower was closed so I couldn’t go up. The trail down wound around the slopes with various views. At the bottom I walked on to find a bus stop and ended up in O’Connor. There are plenty of buses in Canberra and almost always empty. 23 kms

June 17 Foggy. I switched hotels to Dickson and returned to yesterday’s end point. A bit of bush then I went through the grounds of the AIS and on to Gossan Hill Reserve. This was full of stringybarks and peaceful (no view due to the fog) until I descended to built up Belconnen. 

I walked along Lake Ginnindera now in sunshine. There were ducks, swamp hens and I saw a darter sitting on the grass with wings outstretched. Part way along I came to a guy pushing his sister in a wheelchair and he asked where I was going, then chided me for not doing the whole trail in one day! This seemed to be based on his having done a couple of Trailwalkers. We walked together for a bit and he talked about camino trails he had walked in Europe.

I continued to the end of the lake; the top end had a really rural feel with reeds, grassland and no houses in sight. But then I had to walk past roadworks. I was able to reach a bike path for a while, then had the worst part of the whole trail: the official route required walking right beside the Barton highway. I stopped at Gold Creek Village, a busy complex of shops and attractions; I had always wondered what was there when zipping past in the car. This was a short day because there are no bus stops near the trail for the next twenty kms. 15 kms 

June 18 A beautiful day and really nice walk. From Gold Creek village I went to Hall, a small place that is separate from Canberra, and then started the climb towards One Tree Hill. This was a gentle climb an grassy slopes although the view from the top was disappointing, looking down on new suburban development and Canberra spread out in a huge sprawl. The route turns south near here.

The trail stayed in woodland, sometimes thick forest of stringybarks, and many grassy hills. One Tree Hill didn’t look all that significant but remained in view behind me for a long time.

I startled a bunch of kangaroos. For a while the built up areas were out of sight until I walked along a ridge with a view beyond the urban sprawl to the southern mountains. I was right on the ACT border. I came to the Northern campsite, a grassy clearing, the only campsite on the trail.

Shortly after a runner came up behind me and we walked together for about an hour chatting about endurance events. We parted company at the bottom of the range in Forde and I walked on a little, but I realised I was again approaching a stretch of the trail without buses. I had a hard time finding a bus and this was my worst bus experience. 25 kms

June 19 If was much easier getting back. I had a lovely walk across wooded Mulligans Flat, frosty at first, passing lots of ponds and going back to the ACT border fence.

Parrots. Coming out of the peacefulness there it was a let down to walk along the Federal highway, and I had a rest at the drivers’ rest stop which was by a shooting range. Noisy.

More walking near the highway, at least in bush, and I reached the lower slopes of Mt Majura. This part was great: totally in forest and quiet. As I climbed I had a few window views, and the views from the summit were obscured by trees but I could see a lot of forest to the east, the snow on Mt Gingera south and a smidge of Lake BG. I’ve been on Mt Majura many times but never to the top. As I came down I was waiting to reach somewhere I would recognise from the Bush Capital marathon and finally at the bottom of the mountain I came to the site of a drink station. 

I continued towards Mt Ainslie, getting to do a little bit of the marathon course that I remember very well. I took the gradual trail up this mountain among casuarinas and had a long break with the view over central Canberra and the mountains beyond.

(Mt Majura is the highest peak on the trail and One Tree Hill the second highest but the only high point where I may have got a view of my whole route was the Black Mountain tower.)

Not far now. I descended on a paved path, walked through the War Memorial grounds and down Anzac Parade. Then I just had a km along the lake to the Carillon. The coffee cart was closed; it didn’t look like it had been open at all since I last saw it. 30 kms