Have you ever experienced the magical moment of walking through a misty rainforest, where the remnants of sunlight beams through the rare tree void leaving a glaze on everything it touches? In which all of a sudden, you feel as though you are in the centre of a warp where lights have solidified and formed golden streaks? We've had the fortunate opportunity to observe this moment towards the end of our day hike back from the Mount Hobwee track. That was a good day that I will always remember, where the tired and achy body the day after was so worth it!
The track starts at the main entrance in front of the Cafe. Once you've parked your car, you will find the information board with all the tracks details under a hut, this is also the track starting point. Toilet facility is right next to the information board, there are no other toilet facilities once you are on the track, so take the opportunity while you can (^.^). As always, remember to wear insect repellent even if it's during winter months, and I would recommend to wear long sleeve shirts and full length pants (watch out for leeches).
Start the track by following along the Border Track all the way til the end, and then follow the sign towards Mount Hobwee. This track has several lookouts along the way, I would highly recommend taking the detour to Orchid Bower Lookout and Araucacia Lookout. Counting in the side tracks and lookouts, the total distance we walked on the day was about 23km, about 8 hours of medium paced walking time. The track grade is (I would say) Class 3 maybe 4, however, most of the track incline is gradual which makes the walking a lot easier. I would recommend 2-3L of water at least, purely because of the long walking distance. There are several small camp sites at one of the lookouts which can be booked through Binna Burra Lodge, be wary that it can get quite cold especially under windy conditions, however, it is secluded and the views are great. If you are walking the track during winter months where the daytime is significantly shorter, I would suggest a start time no later 7AM as the rainforest gets dark a lot earlier compared to the outside.
You will be walking deep in the rainforest, and some section of the track is a bit overgrown due to the lack of traffic, however, there should be nothing too difficult. The entire track is well sign-posted, so it should be straight forward in terms of navigation. The day we went, it was showering and quite foggy, however, almost all of the lookouts that we walked to had a clear view like someone timed it perfectly for us. You will pass through patches of Antarctic Beech Tree Forest because of its unique level of moisture, altitude and temperature. I've heard that It's becoming much more rare for batch growth of these forests in Australia because of our dry conditions, so we are very lucky to have a unique eco-system in Lamington National Park which Binna Burra is a part of.
You will also find things that may interest you along the track, like these...
Or interesting fungi....
Or wild orchid and moss covered rocks...
There are much much more awaiting for your discovery! Hope you would enjoy this track as much as I did.
