Two Sundays ago I joined a walk along an out-of-the-way stretch of the Sevens Creek on the Strathbogie Tableland. And what a spectacular day – 20 degrees, sunny and still, with good company to boot. Organized by the Strathbogie Ranges CMN, this was the last walk in the current series of very popular creek walks – official report and images here.

First leg: Watkins Rd to Ankers rd/Creek Junction

Our walk began on Watkins Rd and followed the Seven Creeks downstream. This part of the Tableland is pretty flat and there is plenty of groundwater seeping out of the adjacent slopes to create extensive reedy/marshy wetlands. Water moves slowly through this landscape, creating plentiful habitat for frogs, water birds and a great variety of water plants like the Common Reed (Phragmites australis) and Soft Twig-rush (Machaerina rubiginosa). These excel in this waterlogged environment – in many places, it’s too wet for anything else to grow! The only tree that grows in these wet areas, mainly around the margins or only slightly higher ground, is the Mountain Swamp Gum (Eucalyptus camphora). You can read more about Strathbogie’s remarkable wetlands here.

Remember, much of this leg of the walk is on private property, so is only accessible with permission from the landholder.

  • Neil Phillips providing an overview of the region’s geology.
  • Pampas Grass forage.
  • Once wall-to-wall forest, paddock trees & linear strips are all that remain.
  • Wetlands of various types were the dominant vegetation type.
  • Trees usually indicate slightly higher, less water-logged ground.
  • When it’s too wet for trees, sedges, reeds and rushes dominate.
  • Mountain Swamp Gums line the creeks and wetlands of the Tableland.
  • The floodplain is surprisingly wide in places.
  • Here the course of the Seven Creeks is diverted by a low hill of granite.
  • The meandering stream appears perfect habitat for Platypus and Rakali.
  • Happy wanderers.

Second leg: Ankers Rd/Creek Junction to Creek Junction Rd

The second half of the walk is entirely in the Seven Creeks Nature Reserve – no hunting or fishing is allowed and all native plants and animals are protected. Parts of this leg are exceptionally beautiful (particularly on a sunny day!). Take time to sit and watch the stream flow slowly by. There are Rakali (Hydromys chrysogaster, the native water rat – I saw one the following day) here and likely Platypus.

Even though the stream banks are quite weedy in places and understory vegetation is sparse, there is much to appreciate about this reserve. Most of the landholders have fenced off the creek from stock and many have planted trees and shrubs to replace what was historically cleared. Thankfully, blackberries, ivy and other woody weeds, so common along Tableland roadsides and streams, are rare along this part of the Sevens.

This part of our walk, entirely on public land, is a delight. Just remember to respect fences and private property.

  • One of the few sites (above Polly’s) where the channel traverses exposed granite bedrock.
  • Large, deep pools downstream of Creek Junction.
  • Old growth Mountain Swamp Gum (DBH 1 m), full of hollows.
  • Hemp Bush growing on the stream bank.
  • Hemp Bush leaves.
  • Many of the stream’s reaches are characterized by a deep channel with steep sides, especially on the outside bend of the meander.
  • Mountain Swamp Gum with huge, ancient lignotuber.
  • From the other side, this swamp gum resembles a multi-stemmed mallee.
  • Walking this section of the stream was just a delight.
  • The circuitous meanders of the channel illustrate how flat this part of the Tableland is.
The walk followed the Seven Creeks through this largely agricultural landscape, where native vegetation is confined to stream & wetlands, road-sides and rocky hills. The two halves of the walk were roughly of equal length.

For comparison, below is the 1948 version of the above image. It’s a photo-mosaic, so not all the bits line up exactly, but you can clearly see there hasn’t been much change in tree cover, in this district, for more than 70 years. If anything, at least along the Seven Creeks, the tree cover appears to have increased since 1948, particularly in and around the wetland areas.

1948 aerial photo-mosaic of the Boho South, Toorour and Creek Junction districts of the Strathbogie Tableland.
The first part of the walk was largely on private property. Not until we neared Creek Junction itself did we enter public land frontage along the stream. The second leg of the walk was entirely along the Seven Creeks Nature Conservation Reserve (green polygon along the creek).

Thanks to Alastair, Justus and the Strathbogie Ranges CMN for organizing this fantastic walk.