13/3 Report

 MT EGERTON Bushwalk, 13 March 2025.

 

15 people met at the Mt Egerton Recreation Reserve to commence this 7.9km circuit walk. The sky was overcast and a light breeze was blowing, making this a very pleasant walking day. We walked along a rough bush track until we came to a corrugated iron shed which housed the Mt Egerton State Gold Battery. This battery was established in 1912 on the site of a former battery, and was supplied by the government to crush quartz for the smaller gold mining operations in the area. It was used until fairly recent times and can be visited once a month for those interested in seeing it in operation.

 

We continued on along the roads and back lanes of Mt Egerton, admiring the houses and occasionally coming across a beautiful distant rural outlook. A sign on the gate of one house perfectly described two of our bushwalkers – check the photos! Despite the recent dry weather, the countryside appeared much greener than Ballarat. We stopped at the Mt Egerton Cemetery (gazetted 1872) for a morning tea break, with a few people wandering around to read the gravestones.

 

After morning tea break, we set off along some bush tracks with a bit of up and downhill involved until we reached the summit of Mt Egerton. The view from the top was restricted by bush and there was a distressing amount of rusty old wire and corrugated iron lying around an old mine shaft on the summit. After the summit we wandered back down (and sometimes up again) until we arrived back at the cars, for lunch together at the Reserve. It was a very pleasant walk with its combination of bush and quiet rural roads. Thanks to Tim & Helen for leading the walk.

 

Anne