Coolangubra

On the last weekend of September 1989, I answered the call to protect the ancient forests of south east New South Wales from being logged into wood chip. Our protests over that weekend were along a road which was being constructed into the Coolangubra near Myanba Creek.

In spite of newspaper advertisements inviting the public to visit these forests, when our large peaceful assembly and protest songs were detected (“rip rip wood chip, turn it into paper”), the Coolangubra was quickly declared closed and we were arrested. Of course this was claimed as victory by the authorities, but after a long legal battle we were found not guilty.

Driving over the Monaro and its treeless tablelands, which has practically been made arid by indiscriminate clearing and weed invasion, it is a joy to arrive today in South East Forests National Park. The tall stands of the Coolangubra still remain, and where we once protested on Kanoona Rd, there is now nearby a National Park lookout where Myanba Creek drops off the tablelands over a massive granite batholith into the gorge below.

On another occasion when there were no tracks or roads, we climbed down the waterfalls into the gorge, hopping rock to rock along Myanba Creek until we reached Rocky Hall far down in the valley below. How I would love to be able to descend into the gorge once more!

The Monaro

Occasional plowings

Coolangubra

Waratah Creek

Myanba Creek Gorge

Photos taken using my Chamonix 045F1 View Camera, with Nikkor-SW 90mm f/8 and Rodenstock Apo-Sironar-S 150mm lenses. The first four photos were taken on Fuji Pro160C and developed in the Unicolor C41 kit, and the last on Fomapan 100 and developed in a mix of Xtol+Adonal.