Sunday, 3 May 2026
Temp: 6.9C
Distance 12.6km
Up 457m Down 700m
Time 5:47 hrs Moving time 3:38 hrs
Wind gusts up to 83kmh
33mm rain
Shelter – Enclosed shelter, no doors
Food: Breakfast, Pick up Lunch and Dinner at Jimmy Creek

What an eventful night. The rain started again as we were having dinner at about 6.30pm and didn’t stop all night. It was torrential and we also had a very close thunderstorm, lightning and thunder very close together in the first instance and then moving slowly apart. There was apparently 33mm of rain in the last 24 hours. The wind and wind gusts were extreme (83kmh). The tent shook all night long. We slept considerably well considering the nights weather events.
We woke early but decided not to start packing up until about 7.30am as the BOM indicated rain would stop at about 9am. Which was pretty true to its word. Some of our fellow campers were freezing, as they packed up early in the rain and weren’t dressed for the very cold, wet conditions (ie tshirt, very light wind jacket, short shorts and ankle socks, she was freezing). It was very cold by the time we had packed up the tent, so we were probably happy with the short uphill climb as we left at 9.30am.

This was then followed by a long 6km downhill stretch descending about 450m elevation. We saw a pretty faced wallaby on the way down and enjoyed the most amazing views. It was a fairly easy trail, although downhill often presents its own issues. We arrived at the food pickup point at Jimmy Creek Rd water tank to find no food drop waiting for us. We waited about 20 mins then sent them a polite message to ask if the food drops were still coming today. Only a few minutes later they arrived. A tour guide had seen them in the shop and realised they hadn’t been dropped off, so he brought them straight away. This delayed us longer than we had hoped and by then it was lunch time, so we ate lunch by the water tank, filtered some water and were on our way.

The next section was straight up 300m, with a couple of ups and downs after that. Most of the day was a relatively easy trail until the last section which was a bit of a scramble with difficult rocks and lots of them. There were still some lovely views, no rain and the wind wasn’t so bad today.

We arrived at camp at 3.15pm which is the earliest so far, which was great as we had a wet tent to dry and some repairs to be done from last night’s wind. This was painstakingly slow and by the time the repairs were done I was freezing. I was lucky we had a door-less, almost enclosed shelter. I went and sat inside within my sleeping bag to warm up whilst David did the rest of the set up. I got to know our new camp buddies who had been friends since year 7 at Epping High School. Paul the family law lawyer, Murray the chiropractor and Matt the marathon runner. We enjoyed some good company whilst having dinner and then went to bed about 8.30pm hoping the wind forecast of gusts building up to 74kmh during the night would not arrive. Fingers crossed our tent repairs survive, otherwise we may have to abort the walk tomorrow. It is a lot colder as well tonight.

National Parks notes
Day 9: (C5) Durd Durd Hike-in Campground – Yarram Hike-in Campground
Start: Durd Durd Hike-in Campground  
Distance: 11.9km 
Grade: 4/5
Key elevation points:  Durd Durd 1,167m, Durd Durd Hike-in Campground 855m
Elevation: 510m up, 740m down
Names and meanings: Durd Durd = ‘Durt Durt’: stars. Yarram = ‘Yarram’: big.
Highlights: Wildflowers, landscape views to the east and west.
A new landscape unfolds as you descend from the highest mountain peaks down into sheltered woodland valleys. Passing through previously untracked areas of the lower Mt William range, it offers up some of the most rugged ridgeline rock walking and jagged Serra Range views. This section is fantastic for late winter and spring wildflowers. Watch for the red “spider flowers” of Flame Grevillia, typically in bloom between April and November. To the east is the area’s farmland and scattered lakes and wetlands – important habitat to wildlife, including threatened species such as Australia’s largest flying bird, the Brolga.
Important safety information:
– Rainwater tanks at Durd Durd and Yarram Hike-in Campgrounds
– Serviced water tanks at Jimmy Creek Rd Crossing and Jimmy Creek Campground