A Walk Around Gaffa
With a day where the temperature was predicted to be in the 40s we considered ourselves very lucky to have eight people for our on-track bushwalk around the land called Gaffa. Derek Lucas had kindly guided Fran and me on the route the weekend before so, with map at the ready showing the different coloured ribbons for the different walks, we led our plucky eight on a wonderful excursion through at least four different natural environments - and the weather turned out to be mild with a gentle breeze.
Gaffa and Sennen are private property and there are definitely no dogs allowed as wildlife is protected there, so this was a one-off chance to see this part of the Valley. Fran told us all about the history of the purchase as we started our trek.
In total it was probably only about six kilometres, but the rough terrain in some parts near the brush-tailed rock wallaby habitat and the fact that we sometimes lost sight of the coloured ribbons, meant that the walk was slower than usual.
There is something quite pre-historic about walking through land where the burrawang palms are thickly growing and at this time of the year they are also sprouting their large elongated seedpods.
The caves and rocky cliffs created another world of wonder, while the lookouts over the edge of the escarpment leant a certain grandeur to our cold-water drink stops. Morning tea was beside the river on a grassy verge and lunch was back in the sophistication of an insect-screened porch at "The Cottage". Derek then took us to his special spot overlooking the Kangaroo River from high on the hillside, a perfect farewell to a lovely morning's walk through the Valley bushland. How lucky it was that our walk coincided with Charlie's visit from England and we could show her more than just village life. Remember that everyone is welcome to come with us on our walks; we always grade them to give you an idea of the level of difficulty.
