Newnes Industrial Relics and Mystery Mountain
Geoff led a great walk yesterday with a small group consisting of Tracie, Jenny, Angela, Geoff and Ross.
We started with an easy wander through the industrial ruins at Newnes. After following the ruins track and being amazed by the scale of the shale mining and refining operation, we crossed the Wolgan River.
Following the river for a short distance, Tracie began an exploratory search for the No. 1 mine shaft, which is shown on the map but lies off the track. After some scrambling up the hillside from the river, we found the old road, located the mine entrance and alerted the others.
We had crossed back over the river and finished lunch by 1.30 pm, leaving plenty of time to climb Mystery Mountain.
The start of the track is marked by a cairn. It is a good climb with a little scrambling involved. The views from the top are well worth the effort, with the campgrounds below and the Wolgan Valley stretching away in both directions.
We carefully made our way back down before finishing the day with a look at the old school. All that remains of the building are two large chimneys.
A fantastic day out!