Mount Beckworth Scenic Reserve - Lollipops, Gumdrops and Hemlock

A few weeks ago I joined the Ballarat Bushwalking and Outdoor Club on my first group walk to the summit of Mount Beckworth. This was a relatively stress-free experience as we pretty much went straight to the summit and back again without too much hassle, save for my walking buddy struggling to breath half way up the mountain. Today I decided to try and replicate this experience with a small addition, I decided that I would walk to Cork Oaks. This turned out to be far less stress-free than the original walk. Anyway, I shall start from the beginning of the walk.

The Dam as it looked before my ascent

I started out around four pm from The Dam, giving me around four and a half hours of sunlight to get to the summit and back. This should have been plenty of time to get to the summit, have a drink and a rest, wander my way down to Cork Oaks and then make my way back to The Dam. This of course didn't turn out to be the case due to my idiocy curiosity.

  I made my way from the dam to the first pit stop, a large, open patch of grass and weeds known only as The Oval. It was a very steep ascent and my legs felt every step. I had decided on this trip to travel very light, so I only had a small backpack with me, though it felt like it weighed a tonne at that point.

The view of The Dam from The Oval

  Since there was really nowhere shady to stop at The Oval, I pushed on across the relatively flat and plain spans of bush land. I had come out to The Oval around this time last year and it was almost completely bare, with hardly a weed to be seen. In this instance it was almost completely covered, save for two very well worn tracks that were clearly used by both hikers and Park's management vehicles alike.

The fork in the road at The Oval

  The terrain then promptly changed from flat bush land, to very steep, rocky tracks. This took a lot of concentration to traverse safely and once again was a testament to how crucial a good quality pair of hiking boots can be. Without my boots, I would have been constantly slipping, I would have been without ankle support and I would have been much more uncomfortable than I already was at that point.

The junction at the end of The Oval

  There a lot of birds, though I primarily saw magpies and cockatoos. As is usually the case in any Australian bush, the entire reserve was covered in gum trees and one more particular plant that I saw far too much of for comfort; hemlock. I was unsure what it was at first and picked a leave to eat, but as soon as I began to put it into my mouth it began to numb my lips and I spat it back out again. On closer inspection, the red stems and green leaves were a dead give away. Thankfully I had the forethought to spit it out or may not be here to write this.

  As you could imagine, the ascent was largely uphill and very exhausting, and every now and then I would come across a glimmer of hope that the summit was near. As tired as I was, these signs do wonders for morale and at times can be enough encouragement to push on when you just want to quit.

This sign gave hope and seeming encouragement when all I wanted was to turn back.

  It was not far again until I came across the last large hill for the evening, the hill right before the Lollipop Tree on the summit. This gave a feeling of huge relief as I was already so tired at that point and I was desperate for a chance to sit down and catch my breathe. I was startled at the halfway point by a group of kangaroos who had seen me and were in the process of scurrying off, but otherwise i made it up the well-worn hill without any trouble.

It's worth mentioning that The Lollipop Tree at the summit of Mount Beckworth is on Victoria's register of significant trees

  I sat at the top for a few minutes, collected my thoughts, had a drink and pushed on to Cork Oaks. It was just after five pm that I decided to leave the summit, leaving me plenty of time to get back to my car; or so I thought. I found out some time later that Ballarat was to be expecting a large hail storm, and this hail storm was supposed to be passing through Clunes, which is the nearest township to Mount Beckworth. 

My small pack was a simple twenty litre pack. Aside from my water, I only took a basic emergency kit, my shemagh and my kukri.

  At this point, I decided to take the path of least resistance, which meant that I decided to take the less beaten track. Unfortunately, I would then find out that it was the road less travelled for a reason. The same rocky, uneven and slippery tracks that I had trouble traversing on the way up were even worse on the way down. I had many tumbles on loose rocks and spent a good few minutes on my back, though thankfully I knew to tuck my chin on the way down and let my back and shoulders take the brunt of the fall. 

The rocky outcroppings certainly made for an amazing photo, though.

  I eventually made it to the bottom of the mountain, near Cork Oaks. Luckily for me, I knew the area so I knew where I was and was able to make my way towards Cork Oaks without any hassle. Whilst I was still quite a distance away from my car at The Dam, I was able to orientate myself, take a quick rest and assess my wounds before the walk back to my car.

This was such a relief to see.

  The walk back to my car was relatively uneventful, though I will admit that due to my expectation of an imminent hail storm, I was moving at quite a fast pace in order to not get caught in it. When I got home I checked the weather and it looked like the storm was not even close to Ballarat, which meant that I had nothing to worry about. I ended up taking the car tracks around the mountain, rather than taking another pass up and through The Oval, since I figured that it would be faster. I'm not sure if it was faster, though my legs were certainly grateful for the flat and even ground.

  For the most part, the trip was very much a success. I made it to the summit, I made it back to Cork Oaks, I avoided being poisoned by hemlock and made it back home. Next time, however, I will stick to the tracks and pay attention to the signs around me. It might save myself some cuts and bruises by sticking more to the better known areas, or at least using a map.