Pelverata Falls

 

October 7, 2007

 

So we finally decided to go on another bushwalk organized by Neil Davidson. He’s been organizing them every Sunday, and most have been much more serious than Cape Huay! We loved that walk, but were pretty tired at the end. When Neil describes something as “steep”, I know it’s probably too much for me! But this walk to Pelverata Falls was advertised as an easy, short walk to some spectacular falls. And it turned out to be just that!

 

We decided to go even though I was leaving for Canberra the next day for a week. We hadn’t been seeing as much of the countryside around us, and the walk sounded lovely and easy.  Unfortunately, the day of the walk, Rama was feeling sick, and so had to stay home. Annapurna also stayed home, since she is not much of a bushwalker. So it was just Eileen and I. Neil organizes the caravan of cars to start from the Plant Science parking lot, and they drove over and picked us up. We were a pretty international crowd that day – a French graduate student working with Jim as a part of a collaboration, Benedicte, came along, as well as two Danes, Lasse and Jane, who just started in the department as graduate students. Eileen and I rounded things out as the Americans, and the rest were Aussies: Neil and his three children and a family friend, Dot.

 

It was a lovely drive behind Mt. Wellington, with views back to the Wellington range. The waterfall drops off the western edge of Snug Tiers – the same piece of rock that the Snug waterfall drops off of.

 

We got off to a good start, but Eileen had sprained her arm a few days ago at school (on the playground equipment) and she unfortunately slipped in the mud and fell on the same wrist. Not only did this hurt (even though her arm was wrapped), she was now muddy. This was only about 15 minutes into the walk, and she wanted to go home. Since I had not brought a car, this was going to be difficult. Dot and I had been chatting, and she stayed back with us. Eventually (after much back and forthing) Eileen and I went forward. I suggested Dot go on ahead of us because I still wasn’t sure if we would continue, and figured Eileen would like a little time with just her and me for a bit. 

 

We kept going, unsure of how far it was (I figure I need to multiply Neil’s estimate by 2 in order to see how long it takes me!). The track rose and eventually got extremely rocky. The path was really just piles of loose rock. At that point, we saw Dot walking back along the path towards us. It turns out we were almost there! The walk was surprisingly short – less than an hour. The track ended in a viewing platform which was really the best place to view the falls.

 

Wow! Pelverata Falls is over 100 meters tall – and spectacular!

 

There at last!

 

Everyone else had clambered down to some flat rocks below the viewing platforms to eat lunch. Dot figured we wouldn’t do that because of Eileen’s arm, but once Eileen saw we were that close, she was game!

 

It was quite a scramble down the rocks to the water!

 

Dot and Eileen going through a cut in the rocks.

 

The same cut viewed from below.

 

We ate our lunch on a large rock below the viewing platform next to the water. (From left to right: Eileen, Dot, Lasse, Jane and Benedicte.)

 

If you look up, you could see the falls right behind us.

 

The area around where we were sitting was lovely.

 

The water rushed right past the rock we were sitting on.

 

A gnarled tree across the water.

By the time Eileen and Dot and I got down to the rocks, Neil and his children (13, 15, and 18) had gone off to explore the pool at the foot at the falls. They had to clamber over giant, slippery rocks to make it to the pool, and the wind was blowing the water off the falls in curtains.

 

Neil, returning from the base of the falls.

 

Neil, Claire and Matthew fording the stream.

 

After lunch, we clambered back up to the path and headed down the trail.

 

Just before you get to Pelverata falls, you can see another waterfall coming off Snug Tiers on the other side of the valley. We didn’t notice it clearly on the way in, so we stopped to look at it on the way back.

 

The second waterfall.

 

The walk back to the cars was uneventful, except for some mountain bikers racing down the trail without warning. It rained lightly for part of the walk back, and for the end of lunch, but it wasn’t too bad.

 

We ended up at Neil’s house for tea. Neil’s wife Sandra is working part time in the pea group in the Plant Science department, filling in for Claire, who left on maternity leave a couple of weeks after I started. They have a beautiful house on a hill in Kingston, overlooking the bay. Sandra works mornings at the hospital lab, so she can’t join the bushwalks.

 

The view from their living room.

 

Teatime!

 

Teatime was fun – then Sandra drove us back home, while Neil drove the others back to the Uni. What a lovely day!