Uncategorized – Liz Jakimow Photography

Ancient rainforests to soothe the stress away…

Monga National Park, located between Braidwood and the Clyde Mountain, is filled with ancient rainforests, peaceful picnic spots and calming rivers. As my partner and I had both been stressed lately, this was exactly what we needed.

I was still recovering from a broken toe, so unfortunately a walk on the Corn Trail was out of the question. However, I did manage a nice easy (and wheelchair accessible) walk at Penance Grove. Penance Grove is filled with moss-covered stumps and tree trunks, and it feels like you’re walking in a fairytale. I half expected a giant to come walking through the trees, although a nice little gnome kept us company through signs along the way.

Afterwards, we stopped for a picnic at Mongarlowe River picnic area, then finished up looking at the river at Dalrymple Rest Area. Surrounded by greenery and the call of birds, my worries seemed to just fall away and I left feeling a lot more relaxed than I had when the morning again.

I will definitely return once my toe is better and I can manage a bit more walking.

To find out more about Monga National Park, check out the NSW National Parks Website.

The first thing I noticed when I got to the Sugar Pine Walk was not the trees, but how many people were there. I thought, what’s the big attraction? They’re only trees.

Yes, they’re only trees. But they’re gigantic, majestic trees. While the walk itself may be short, when you look upwards, it feels like those trees go right on up to heaven. It’s the kind of place where nature makes you feel really small – in a good way.

Walking through the trees is a bit like walking through a fairy-tale. I half expected a giant to come lumbering through at any moment.

This was definitely one of my favourite places to take photographs. While I ended up with quite a lot of photographs that looked fairly similar, I could have continued to take photos there all there. I particularly enjoyed laying down on the carpet of pine-needles and pointing my camera upwards.

Definitely worth the visit!

Sugar Pine Walk is at Bago State Forest near Laurel Hill, between Tumut and Tumburumba. The Arboretum nearby is a nice place to have a picnic afterwards.