Bindo Creek or Millionth Acre? The choice was easy

We managed to dodge the rain with this one - a short camp but quite productive and enjoyable. Dave and I teamed up to spend a night at the Millionth Acre Campground on Jenolan Caves Road at the turn off to the central western town of Oberon. During winter, Oberon is arguably the coldest place in the Blue Mountains, being around 1,300 metres above sea level and has a reputation for being touched by snow first when snow does hit.

We got fortunate and there didn't end up being rain or snow this weekend and the weather ended up being quite sunny. On Saturday, we were actually still deciding on where to pitch the tents and we shortlisted a place where my car ultimately could not go. An attempt to get down to a place called Bindo Creek the week before proved fruitless due to the rough track and I wasn't about to repeat what happened on the last camp, where a serious bog resulted in some minor underbelly damage, which I still need to get repaired.

The day was getting on a bit and it was time to get the camp set up for the night and then do a hunt for firewood. Outside the border of the Kanangra-Boyd National Park I did find a good supply near the famous Six Foot Track - a 42km hiking track that runs from Katoomba to the Jenolan Caves. I cut up enough to get us through what was ultimately a cold night then headed back to camp.

It was thence time for tea and I cooked up a hamburger with egg and bacon - and believe me, we ate so much that afternoon that I was glad I only cooked one. After the evening meal was done, it was time to sit by the newly lit fire and sip on a few glasses of port. Dave broke open a few craft beers left over from a previous camp at Adaminaby - purchased in nearby Tumut.

As can be seen in the second photo, Dave has purchased a new LED light bar for his camp, mounted on the side door of his canopy, it provides no shortage of much needed light. The trusty outrigger light fittings that I have been using for a year or two also provide enough light and the battery banks in both vehicles are well up to the task of going all night if needed.

The next morning we did have a sleep in and by around 08:30 it was time for brekky and then the task of breaking camp came by. The amount of dew that fell through the night meant that the tents needed drying with towels. The pack ended up being a deliberately slow one. Following this, about ten minutes in the sun meant that everything was dry enough to pack away. We then headed back to Bindo Creek for the afternoon. Dave got his fishing gear out whilst I put the drone in the air and gave the Canon 5D a bit of a workout.



The day trip to Bindo Creek was quite intentional, mainly to assist us with avoiding the need to spend time in traffic that forms on the Great Western Highway at the end of school holiday breaks. We managed to time things reasonably well and by the time we got back to Blackheath, where we purchased tea, the traffic was gone. A 15 minute stop in the rest area at the eastern end of Blackheath to eat our grub was followed by the trip back to Sydney, and there it was, another camp done and dusted.

Written at 20:58 on 6 May 2024 by Brad.

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