Keith had organised a trip to Hat Hill Canyon at Blackheath. I had last been down this canyon only a few weeks before. Keith was on that trip too, but this time he wanted to show some others what the creek was now like after the Sewerage Treatment Works had closed down.
On the trip, as well as Keith and myself, was Ian, Peter and Wolter.
We wanted to also take some photos of the creek and the canyon – so we only visited the lower constriction. So we set off down the ridge past Hat Hill and then left the track and scrambled down the easy pass at the top of the lower constriction.
Rain was forecast on the day, but as it turned out we only had a few spots. It was overcast however and this made things nice for canyon photography. The light was very soft.
We walked – clambered – waded through the nice section of canyon. This canyon is not technical – so it is quite easy to visit. It is also extremely beautiful with plenty of green moss and ferns clinging onto the walls. There is a fair bit of debris on the floor of the canyon – mainly logs.
At the ned of the constriction, we continued on to the Grose Valley Cliffs and had lunch at a nice lookout. The we headed back upstream to the bottom of the constricted section where a side canyon comes in on the east. We climbed up this creek to a waterfall that features a double arch and then doubled back under the cliffs to find the lower exit pass. After some easy scrambling we were on top of the cliffs and able to enjoy some more great views of hat Hill Creek and the Grose Valley.
We then walked back along the ridge, over Hat Hill to the cars. After that we finished the trip off in the traditional way by stopping for refreshments at Blackheath.
More photos are on my website here.