Davies

Davies Canyoneering Canyoning Caving

Rating:	Log in to rateLog in to rateLog in to rateLog in to rateLog in to rate 3.0 (2 ratings)
‌	Difficulty:‌4C (v4a3 III) Swift water Raps:‌12, max ↨180ft Metric Overall: No Red Tape:‌No permit required Shuttle:‌ Vehicle:Passenger
Start:	-33.9259, 150.1100
Parking:	-33.9450, 150.0651
Condition Reports:	18 Jan 2025 "Good canyon. Some spectacular waterfalls. Stayed in a new campsite RL above 20+55 abseils.
Weather:
Best season:	Oct-Apr (avg for this region) winter spring summer fall Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov
Regions:	Pacific Australia New South Wales  Kanangra

https://www.facebook.com/groups/australiancanyoners/permalink/1677938649599816|,https://youtu.be/WZ942yAM2bA

-33.9259, 150.1100-33.9450, 150.0651https://ropewiki.com/images/c/cf/Davies.kmlwtopo

GPS data automatically extracted from [], please visit their site for more detailed information.

Automatic GPS data extraction NOT allowed, please visit [] to download GPX.

Download: KML / GPX | Open in CalTopo | Printable Map

Extract KML / GPX | Open in CalTopo | Printable Map

Extract KML / GPX | Open in CalTopo | Printable Map

Upload new version

Introduction

Davies is a remote wilderness canyon, usually done as an overnight trip. The canyon has some spectacular waterfalls. A trip through Davies is more about the wilderness experience of a remote Kanangra canyon, than a sporty ropework adventure.

The canyon is largely bolted, with some remaining natural anchors. Bring some tape, just in case, and carry out anything that you replace. The final slot remains to be opened, with the usual route bypassing the slot.

Water Levels

• Of the canyons flowing east into Kanangra Creek (K Main, Danae, Thurat Rift, Carrabeanga, Davies), Davies gets the most water.

• The catchment is 17 km². The catchment area is on a forested plateau and takes time to drain. Flow rates are particularly affected by the soil moisture in the catchment: the wetter the soil, the more will run off and raise the river. Be aware of recent rainfall conditions.

Use the river gauge 212260 Kowmung River @ Cedar Ford. (Hints: Try the site twice to go straight to the gauge readings; On a phone, use landscape orientation to see the graph.)

• <250 ML/d: Fun levels
• 250-400 ML/d: A3-A4. Progress becomes slow as large areas of the river are wet and very slippery.
• >500 ML/d: Not really advisable as the going is too hard, and some of the waterfalls are really thumping.

Approach

It is a good idea to drop generous amounts of water and snacks (in animal-proof containers) at the "turn off" into Davies from the ridge, to have on the way out. This will save carrying it up from the river for about 880m of vertical gain.

Park on the Kanangra Walls road at the start of the King Pin firetrail. Follow the firetrail to Mt Thurat. Follow the GPX trail exactly as far as the Thurat Rift "turn off" (not the path from OSM, not the fading on-the-ground footpad), as it entirely avoids bushy patches. From the Thurat Rift "turn off" follow the OSM path to the marked waypoint to turn west off the ridge.

Descend down to Sally Camp Creek. About half way down the slope pick up the water course to descend to the river at the marked waypoint. Do not try to enter lower downstream as there are cliffs river right.

Descent

Number	Where	Length (metres)	Notes
1	RR	30	Bolts. Into pool. With some extra rope length can pull from other side.
2	RR	35	Bolts at spillover. Into pool. With some extra rope length can pull from other side
			Creek Walk 250m
3	RR	50	From tree RR 10m back from spillover, find natural anchor on tree. Use to create traverse line to spillover and bolts. Lots of steps in the waterfall, throw the rope out hard, or abseil out the bag. In higher water the abseiler can create a natural diversion on a rock protrusion just to the left of the main flow, which avoids being hammered.
			At boulder stack, go RL hard against wall, find an easy passage against the cliff. Bypass a small 4m waterfall on RL and return directly to river, cross to RR.
4	RR	25	At cascades, look for tree RR above a gulley, a bit covered with greenery. Abseil down a gully. Traverse out RR on a shelf below a block onto a rock platform to bolts.
5	RR	20	Bolts.
6	RR	5	Bolts
7	RR	20	Bolts up high above head, back from waterfall.
			Creek walking. "The Hilton" campsite for 5-6 people RR on flattish ground.
8	RL	10	At falls, sling on tree.
9	RR	50	At long slabs, traverse through trees RL to bypass 5m cascade. Return to river, cross river, and find bolts RR at edge of slabs.
			Small campsite 3-4 people up RL just before next abseil. Good place to stay if planning to exit after slot bypass (see below).
10	RL	20	At falls, climb out left, about 20m from river, sling on tree.
11	RL	55	Bolts directly after previous abseil. Abseil beside waterfall into pool
			Creek drops into slot without anchors, walk RL in trees/scrub and traverse for quite a way. Note that there are no campsites on this section, the slope is too steep. One day someone will open the slot.
12	RL	20	Abseil to drop off traverse back into the river (not a river abseil). Find the point exactly on the map/GPS. Scramble slightly down a nose, look for an anchor on a tree, or a rather old handline. Rejoin river just below 6m waterfall.
	RR		Good exit immediately on right, up side stream

After the confluence with Whalania Creek, find or make a campsite a bit downriver RR

Exit

There are a few ways to exit:

• Immediately after the abseil after the slot, below the waterfall, look for an obvious side stream RR. Go up the side stream, almost immediately go onto scree RR (left going up), traverse out left, then go directly up the slope to the ridge line. Straightforward, and cuts out the creek walking. Walk up to Mt Paralyser.
• If camping below the confluence with Whalania Gorge, proceed up ridge to Mt Paralyser summit
• Can reverse Whalania Gorge, climbing around the falls. This route does not go back to the above water drop.

From the Mt Paralyser summit, follow the ridges and summits back to the water drop point. Note that on some of the summits be careful to pick up the correct descending ridge, rather than heading off on ridges into Cyclops Pit and Carrabeanga.

Trip reports and media

(Click through the picture)

18/1/25, 350 ML. Waterfalls were thumping.

• YouTube.com : Richard Pattison, Davies Canyon movie. Note that this was made some time ago, and does not match the notes above.