Chinaman’s Cave

Chinaman’s Cave Blue Mountains Trip Report 18/5/2014 It was good to get out tramping again after all the wet weather and trip cancellation. Nine of us met at the car park and we met two more at Hampden. The forecast was for fine weather in the morning and then a southwest change and a few showers in the afternoon. We headed up Duncan Rd in three 4WDs to park just below the microwave tower. We started hiking down an old track and then crossed a fence and sidle around the top of a gully till we reached the 4WD track that goes down to pigeon bush. As we walked down the track the birds were full of song in the bush. Half way down we turned off and headed up another track in a southwest direction. We walked along the hill tops before dropping down and crossing the top end of trotters creek which someone had made a sign and called it Christmas creek. It was then up again and we then got a view of the Lime Works on the hills opposite us. It was not long after that we came to the wee valley we had to go down to the cave. As we came down we crossed over a lot of pig rooting, they had, had a really good go. The creek where the cave is was soon reached and then it was a scramble around the rock look for the cave. I seen a worn track headed up the rocks to some bush, so I followed it and soon the cave was found. We all explore the cave for about 10 minutes, signed a visitors’ book and then it was back down to creek below the cave for lunch. After lunch we headed off along the valley floor below the lime works in a northwest direction for about 3km, past a wool shed till we came to the valley that headed northeast towards the microwave tower. We followed a 4WD track along this valley past some nice bush where the birds were busy in song again till we come to the 300m climb. After about 40 minutes we were back up on top, where we pasted the microwave tower and back along to the vehicles. Us we got back to the vehicles the first shower of rain came though so we timed it just right. The whole trip took about 5 hours. Some of the tracks we have hiked before along Duncan Rd are starting to get over grown with gorse which is a bit of a shame. Also they are going to do a 1080 drop in that area in the next few weeks. It was back down the road to Hampden for the usual ice-cream stop. Thank for the great company, Dave, Linda, Bill, Jane, John, Jo, Ross, Bess and Jane & Sara on their first day out with the club. Neville