Lake Catani Walk, Mt Buffalo National Park - November 2020

Lake Catani from the old Grossmans Mill Site.

I did this little walk late on the same day that I'd done a big circuit around Mt Buffalo National Park. The day had been pretty warm, although just before arriving back at the ute after my 19 kilometre long walk I'd been caught in a thunder storm. The storm not only rinsing the days accumulated sweat off me but also cooling me down a bit. Arriving back at the ute I had considered just making a mile for home and not stopping at Lake Catani, although the thought of checking out somewhere that I'd never visited before eventually tempted me to stop and check things out.

I set off on my circumnavigation from below the Lake Catani Camping Ground.

Parking the ute just below the big campsite I set off this afternoon under and very grey and threatening looking sky... at least it wasn't cold. Leaving the ute I headed off on my Lake Catani circumnavigation in an clockwise direction, initially following the gravel access road back below the camp before picking up the grassy walking track as it skirted the southern end of the small lake. It was about now that the rain started again too - yes, any thoughts that I'd been having about a refreshing swim in the lake were now well and truly on the back burner. After passing through a small copse of trees (which gave me a modicum of protection from the rain) I emerged onto the saturated Mt Buffalo Tourist Road to skirt my way around the western edge of the lake.

Setting off I followed the gravel access road between the lake and the camp.

Big Rocks... a Mt Buffalo National Park standard really.

For the most part this is a well signposted walk.

The trees gave me a little shelter from the rain... which was getting a little more persistent now.

Lake Catani, Mt Buffalo National Park.

Now walking the sealed road doesn't sound optimal however it's only a few hundred metres and I was able to stop and check out the historical Grossmans Mill site along the way. Spying some duck boards crossing a damp section of grass I picked up the continuation of the Lakeside Walk. I now headed a little further away from any of the surrounding roads and tracks as I firstly meandered across the grassy flats before a walking track benched into the slopes above the northern shoreline of the lake. The good news now was that the rain had pretty well stopped and I was seeing a few patches of blue above me, maybe that swim was back on? Arriving at the lake retaining wall I dropped down to cross Eurobin Creek (it drains Lake Catani) on a good bridge below the spillway.

The Lakeside Walk follows the Mt Buffalo Tourist Road for a few minutes.

This concrete slab is about all that's left over now from the historical Grossmans Mill.

Spying the duck boards leading away from the road I continued on my Lakeside Walk.

This was a nice section of the walk.

I followed the good benched track along the northern shoreline of the lake.

Picking up the good track on the south side of Eurobin Creek I passed by a tiny hydro electric set up that was making some power from the cascading water. I was now basically completing my circuit and heading back to the ute, although before arriving back I had one more thing to do...yep, it was finally time for a swim. There are a few options for a swim at Lake Catani although by far the easiest is at the Lake Catani Day Visitor Area. After stripping off I eased myself down the wooden steps into the surprisingly pleasant water. I'd been expecting that the water temperature in this alpine lake would of been frigid, at best, however the temperature was warm enough that I was able to pretty well float in the water as long as I wanted to without having to worry about hypothermia setting in. All good things come to an end eventually though and with some reluctance I dried myself off and walked the last few metres back to the ute before setting off for home after what had been a big day out.

The Lake Catani spillway.

I crossed Eurobin Creek below the spillway. The little green shed is housing a small hydro system.

The track heading up towards the day use area is a good one... it might even be suitable for wheelchairs.

Lake Catani. Suns coming out again.... it must be time for a swim!

The swimming here is very civilised... there are even steps to allow old buggers like me to access the water with some dignity intact!

I guess that I'd walked more than 20 kilometres today along with a lot of climbing, soaking in the lake at the back end of what had been a warm day was very pleasant.

The Lake Catani Day Use Area... with my sweaty clothes draped all over the bench!

In my natural habitat below the surface of Lake Catani.

The Dirt.

According to my GPS I walked around 3.3 kilometres and climbed 43 metres on this very easy stroll. I probably wouldn't travel up to Mt Buffalo National Park just to do this walk however if anyone is up here camping or doing some of the other walks then this little stroll is definitely worth considering... especially if you fancy a swim. Speaking of swimming the best spot is at the day use area although there are other water access possibilities around the length of the walk. As far as I know this walk hasn't been featured in any published walking guide books (although I haven't done any extensive research on that) however it's really just a matter of keeping Lake Catani on your right (or left if heading around anti - clockwise). I used my GPS topo maps along with the park notes and that got me around safely.

Relevant Posts.

Mt Buffalo Circuit Walk, Mt Buffalo National Park, 2020.

It looks a bit dodgy but really it was a pretty nice afternoon up here.

All was good in my Feral world... time to head for home.

I'm about to complete my little Lake Catani circumnavigation.