Tom Road campsite to Donnelly River

Mileage: 10.1 miles/16.2 km

Sectional total: 66.7 miles/106.8 km

I had a really good night’s sleep last night. The bush was pretty quiet as were the school group and the only thing to disturb my sleep was the waning moon rising later in the night and shining straight into the tent.

We had a good chat with the teachers and kids in the morning at the campsite. A lot of the kids had never stayed overnight in the wilds before and it was a big experience for them. It was great to speak to the teachers and it was clear the kids just needed some positive words of encouragement speaking into their lives. One of them asked us if we were professional hikers to which I responded ‘We wish!….’.

We got going around 8 AM for the hike into Donnelly River. The terrain was pretty flat the whole way with only a few small climbs en route. The day started with a long flat section along an easy section which meant we were able to cruise along at a decent clip and we racked up the kilometres pretty quickly. The morning was cold which also helped increase the pace to keep warm.

There were some nice views along the way into the karri forest. The views are often obscured in the karri as there are plenty of trees which block the views but occasionally we got some nice views across the valley.  It was a little misty out and threatened to rain a little but the raindrops stayed away as the mist hung in the air.

Karri trees grow directly from seed. Each seed is so small that 550,000 are needed to weigh one kilogram and 100 seeds are needed just to cover a 5 cent coin. Hard to believe that something so tall and mighty grows from something so small.

Karri flowering occurs every four to six years with the seed developing in small capsules amongst the leaves. Apparently, a large proportion of the capsules (approximately 90%) are lost before the seed inside reaches maturity with insect and bird attacks and strong winds being the reasons.

Karri’s formal name is Eucalyptus Diversicolor which is just such a great name. Karri occurs only within parts of the south west of Western Australia and now covers only 20% of its original extent.

As we headed closer to Donnelly River, the forest switched continually between stands of karri and jarrah forest.

Jarrah forest is typical of the northern stretches of the Bibbulmun Track closer to Perth and the conditions are noticeably different in jarrah forests compared to karri forests. In jarrah, the canopy is relatively open so plenty of sunlight penetrates to the forest floor. The trees thrive in laterite soils whereas karri prefer clay soils. The open canopy of the jarrah forest makes it noticeably hotter when hiking through compared to the cooler environment of the karri forests.

This section of the track is a transitional zone between the karri forests of the south and the jarrah forests of the north. It was surprising to see species that are typically far more common around the northern sections such as the banksia trees below. Banksia are named after Joseph Banks, the botanist on Cook’s Endeavour expedition who first collected specimens.

After a few more kms in the jarrah, we approached the outskirts of Donnelly River Village. The place is an old timber milling village which grew up around a timber mill which was operational until the late 1970s. The houses are rented out and maintained in their original condition and, given there is no wi-fi or internet available, is a great place to escape for a few days.

A few hundred metres later and we were at the DRV general store which is where we were finishing our section hike. Our wives and kids were coming down to DRV for the weekend so, after a pricey but tasty lunch at the store, it was time to go grab a shower and relax a little.

Overall, the section from Pemberton to Donnelly River is a great part of the Bibbulmun Track and could be completed a lot quicker for those on a time constraint.

Given the fact the section is so beautiful, however, why would you want to? It is really a great section to take your time, enjoy the solitude, peace and quiet that comes from being out in the wilderness.