Bushwalking (Hiking)
What we we mean when we talk about bushwalking?
Bushwalking is what we locally call “hiking” in Australia, it refers to recreational walking in natural Australian landscapes.
A bushwalk might simply be a walk along a trail through urban parks or forest near where you live, or it could be a full day walk in a national park or reserve. For more experienced bushwalkers, it can also be a multi-day expedition where you are self-sufficient carrying a tent and food.
In Australia, we use the Australian Walking Track Grading System (AWTGS). Where Grade 1 can be accessible to those with disability or wheelchair assistance, and Grade 5 may also require some degree of scrambling and map and compass navigation ability.
There are a lot of opportunities for walking in the Armidale and surrounding area, here is a list of suggestion within 30 minutes of town.
Scrambling
Rock Scrambling, or simply Scrambling, is when you are hiking in a rough and rocky area that requires you to use your hands and feet to navigate the terrain safely. Scrambling more resembles crawling than walking, as you’re using your hands, elbows and knees for balance. Scrambling often occurs on steeper terrain than you would usually walk and you may combine hiking with scrambling as the terrain changes.
There are also different levels of scrambling from easy to difficult. Scrambling can be more dangerous than hiking, so more difficult scrambles are only recommended for experienced scramblers.
How is scrambling different to rock climbing? Scrambling is the middle ground between hiking and climbing. Where scrambling mostly requires your hands for balance and stability, climbing requires your arms for strength and pulling yourself up.
Canyoning
Canyoning, also known as canyoneering, is the act of navigating down a fast flowing mountain stream in a gorge using a variety of techniques including abseiling, climbing, sliding and jumping. Canyoning involves a number of outdoor skills, including hiking, climbing, swimming, abseiling, sliding, stemming, chimneying and rappelling. It is designed for exploring hard-to-reach areas of the natural landscape by following water routes and navigating the different streams, pools and waterfalls.
Mountaineering
Mountaineering is the set of outdoor activities that involves ascending tall mountains. There is no one set definition of what counts as mountaineering. Generally, it combines climbing and hiking on regular terrain, rocky areas, and ice or snow slopes, it merges a series of techniques and requires a highly technical approach.
Multi-day Hiking
Multi-day hiking varies in length from overnight hiking to weeks of hiking. It involves walking multiple days without going back to a base camp each day. It usually requires you to bring everything you need in a backpack, including food, water, safety and sleeping gear (though some established walks may provide drinkable water or shelter along the route) and longer hikes may require planned restocking points.
Multi-day hiking combines hiking and camping skills. It requires a good degree of mobility and fitness and limits a person to only the items they can carry. It can occur on well worn tracks or via off-track map navigation through thick vegetation.
It is recommended that you are an experienced bushwalker and camper before attempting and investing in multi-day hiking. Many of the skills from these ensure that you have a safe and enjoyable adventure, and required backpacking gear can be quite expensive. The UNEOAC club does organise multi-day hikes for beginner, overnight hikers and can supply some basic equipment so you can learn more about it before investing in new gear.