Canyon Guidebooks
David Noble
I tried to understand some of the points that Geoff at dot something or
other, made in his last posting but could not.
Some people have been newly coming in on this discussion. The whole
issue of sketch maps and route guides to the Blue Mts has been around
for a long time.
Here is some background:
Rick Jamieson's first guide was a small book called "Outdoor Senior
Scouting near Sydney". This was published in 1968. It contained chapters
on bushwalking, caving (including maps of caves such as Colong caves),
rock climbing and canyoning. The canyoning section included route
information to canyons such as Claustral and Thunder, Wollangambe, and
many of the Kanangra Canyons. I seem to recall a gestetnered version of
the canyon notes which may have been a precursor to this section. Rick
Jamieson was a member of SUBW in the early 60's. The club logbooks of
the time indicate that he was not particularly active in a great period
of canyon exploration that led to the discovery of the Carmarthen
Canyons and those in the Wollangambe - Dumbano - Bungleboori area and
some near Glen Davis/Newnes. This was largely through the actions of
walkers such as Col Oloman, Gerry O'Byrne, Ric Higgins and John Paynter.
Rick Jamieson may have been more active at that time in the Sydney Uni
Rover Crew (SURC) which had many members in common with SUBW.
A little later, the SURC, published the Gundungura Guide. This was a
project originally conceived by Geoff Ford (SUBW & SURC) to complete a
map of part of the Southern Blue Mts that was (then) missing from Myles
Dunphys series - namely the middle Kowmung. The map was finished by
Geoff Ford and others in the early 60's after a lot of exploratory
walks. Others in SURC, I think mainly Athol Abrahams, who was very
active in SUBW as a walker and canyoner), worked on the associated
guidebook and it was eventually published in 1970. It contained many
interesting notes on the geology and early history of the Kanangra -
Kowmung - Yerranderie area as well as walking notes and notes to the
major Kanangra Canyons.
I remember a discussion in the mid 70's with a SUBW walker associated
with SURC who told me that the members had gone out to do some trips in
view of updating the Gundungura Guide for a new edition. It seems they
had wisely decided that the it was better from an environmental point of
view that the guide not be reprinted. One of its original aims had been
to alert people to the beauty and ruggedness of the area that was
threatened by mining at Colong Caves. This had been done and the area
had been saved.
A little later, I think around 1976-77, Greg Hutchison, a bushwalker
associated with the NPA publicised a proposal to publish a set of sketch
maps of the whole Northern Blue Mts. They were supposed to be similar to
the one already published of the Colo River compiled by Bob Buck and
Geoff Daley. Greg sought information from bushwalkers in the various
bushwalking clubs. The maps would show the location of passess, canyons
and other scenic features. The proposal was considered by the
conservation committee of the Federation of Bushwalking Clubs and after
much discussion it was decided that the proposed maps not be endorsed.
Even in those days, when few visited the Northern Blue Mts it was
thought that much of the area was too fragile (eg delicate rock
formations etc) to withstand the sort of usage the maps would bring to
particular spots. Another factor in the decision was that it was felt
that the this was a big relatively unknown area and that it was better
and more challenging if it remain that way. Greg Hutchison considered
this and without any ill feeling abandoned the proposal. About the same
time, bushwalkers started removing some logbooks such as the one that
had been placed on the remote peak of Mt Mistake, deep in the
Wollangambe Wilderness, and also removing all cairns (from passes and
summits).
Meanwhile, exploration continued of the Northern Blue Mts by bushwalkers
and this led to the publication of a submission to the Premier to
declare the area a National Park. Copies of the submission were sold in
bushwalking shops. Whist it contained information about canyons, it did
not have any route information.
At the time, I was a member of a group searching for canyons in the
South Wolgan area and on one trip we came accross lots of drilling
activity in the vicinity of Heart Attack and Surefire Canyons. Coal
mining was planned for the area. We feared the worst. Coal mines mean
cliff collapse - which would mean the end of these canyons. As a result
I publicised the canyons in the Kameruka Bushwalking Club magazine and
the NPA journal (again without specific route information).
Not long later, mainly through the foresight of Premier Wran and
Environment Minister Paul Landa (and his advisors) we had Wollemi
National Park.
In the early 80's, I was asked by Wild magazine to publish some track
notes to the Blue Mts canyons. This required a lot of soul searching.
The threat of mining had been removed. Most canyons were in National
Parks. But I was keen on others to enjoy the sport of canyoning. When I
look back on what I wrote, some of it I regret. I only wrote about
canyons that were well known to bushwalking clubs and I varied the
descriptions. Canyons like Wollangambe and Claustral, which do attract
beginners, I gave more detailed notes, but for many of the others I gave
only general indications of the location of passes and exit routes.
These notes were re-printed twice by Wild - and in the process, they
became even less specific in their information and I deliberately
removed some canyons (such as Contradiction) and did not include any new
canyons in Wilderness locations. In my last guide (published in Wild in
1993) - I stated that I had deliberately not given details of canyons in
more remote locations in order not to spoil the pleasure and challenge
of others in searching for them for themselves and I included a plea for
others not to publish details of canyons remote in the Wollangambe or
further north.
During the eighties and nineties, I have continued exploratory canyoning
in the Blue Mts. So have others. The people active in this area have not
published a thing. Unfortunately, Rick Jamieson has.
There has never been any conspiracy of silence amongst bushwalking club
members. Clubs don't have "secret" canyons. Most clubs have canyoning
trips detailed on their club walks programs. The only thing that has
arisen is the worry that some canyons they know about will end up having
published descriptions. Having seen this happen, and then the inevitable
track to the canyon, bolts, rock formation damage etc causes one to be
reticent.
A lot of people do their first canyon with a bushwalking club. Clubs do
encourage people to take up this sport. Some in bushwalking clubs (and
outside bushwalking clubs) do exploratory canyoning. What I would hope
is that this be allowed to continue. There will be none of this local
exploratory canyoning if all the canyons in the Blue Mts have published
descriptions. The Northen Blue Mts contains NSW's largest and best
wilderness area. It still has that aura of mystery and remoteness- a
vast unknown area that all good wilderness areas should have.
I think it would be a great shame if this quality vanished.
David W Noble (SUBW) (middle initial put in to distinuish me from the
other Dave!)
--
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David Noble
email: dno...@ozemail.com.au
http://www.ozemail.com.au/~dnoble/
Mike McBain
The situation with canyons is mirrored with caves. If a new cave is
discovered, particularly if it is a 'good' one, any publicity soon
leads to it being damaged. People feel the need to 'see it before it's
gone' and end up loving it to death.
The natural propensity among cave explorers now is to keep cave locations
very secret indeed. This has been a hard-won lesson for many.
Vigorous debate has arisen in the caving community about the acceptance
of sacrifice caves, just letting the known ones 'go to the dogs' and keeping
the identity of others remain hidden. After all, what is the difference
in experience between hauling your muddy boots through mainly-trashed Cave A
and hauling them just as ineptly through pristine Cave B?
Unfortunately, as with canyons, there is no real way to control who does i
what. All it needs is someone to think that a 'guidebook' would be a good
idea and the work of hundreds of people in exploring, mapping and documenting
a natural wonder can be destroyed in a couple of trips.
It's the 'Tragedy of the Commons' all over again.
--
Mike McBain Faculty of Business & Economics
m...@silas.cc.monash.edu.au Monash University - Caulfield
+61 3 9903 2646 Australia 3145
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