Mt Warning - NPWS REPORT - Chain replacement could be funded by gold coin donations

NPWS commissioned an engineering consultancy to provide costings for various options to restore access to the summit of Mt Warning. I obtained a copy through a GIPA (Freedom of Information) request. A link to the full report is provided below.

GHD Wollumbin risk and engineering assessment report 2021

I'll add a number of comments on the report, but it essentially concurs with my assessment that a new chain could be installed at a very small cost. In fact it could be easily redeemed through a gold coin donation from walkers in the first six months of operation.

Key findings of the report are outlined in the table below:

Comments

The number of incidents on the track (44 in 10 years or around 5 a year) is similar to other Grade 5 walks in the state. The risk context at 1 in 50000 for an incident requiring rescue is very low - 2 per year. The Great North Walk near Sydney gets dozens of rescues each year (I have been personally involved in some of them as an RFS member). Some parts of the GNW have similar shorter rock scrambles to Mt Warning - there is no indication the Great Walk North will be closed for either safety or due to covid - NPWS just looking for excuses.
Due to the high level of traffic there is little loose rock on the chain section and the risk of being struck by a falling rock are very low.
One option not considered is the option to do nothing - reopen the summit track without the chain. It was installed in the 1970s/1980s. Climbers prior to that had no major issues with climbing without the chain. When the park was opened in 1929 over 200 managed the feat including many school kids without the assistance of a chain. The track was so good people rode horses up to the level area below the rock scramble. What happened to allowing individuals to make up their own minds the level of risk they are willing to accept?
The suggested built structures and stairways are overkill, exorbitant, not required and will diminish the summit experience.
"Replacing the chain essentially as it was, would return the overall risk to public safety to previous levels". No! it would improve the risk. If constructed similar to the chain system at Angels Landing, Zion NP in Utah, the risk would improve significantly. Stainless steel components anchored directly into the rock rather than bolted like the previous system would be a major improvement. This is well within a $30k budget.
Re-route the track - There is absolutely no need to re-route the track!
The costs outlined are excessive but likely close to reality and sadly go to show how much bureaucracy and red tape has inflated the cost of construction in Australia.

Comments

Mount Warning: Aboriginal claims about summit climb are contested

"How can the public experience the spiritual significance of this land if they do not climb the summit and witness creation." Ngaraakwal Elder Marlene Boyd RIP NSW NPWS have the following description about Aboriginal attitudes to people climbing to the summit of Mt Warning on their webpage about the walking track: Wollumbin, which means ‘cloud catcher’ to some Aboriginal People, is a traditional place of cultural law, initiation and spiritual education for the people of the Bundjalung Nation. Under Bundjalung law, only certain people can climb the summit. Out of respect for their law and culture, consider not climbing the summit. These claims, including the very name applied to the mountain, are contested and it seems there is another story that NSW NPWS have not properly acknowledged and have long kept from public attention. We came across this article from the Daily News February 24 2007 about Ngaraakwal Elder Marlene Boyd that makes for interesting reading. It seems

Mt Warning - Summit signing, time capsule

A Mt Warning Visit, summit signing Drove up the long road from Sydney, leaving early to grab a beer at the Mt Warning Hotel at Uki in the afternoon. There's a nice view of the summit from the smoker's deck. The tip of the mountain was catching clouds and then letting them go. I met Roger, a one-legged ex- navy seal and former security guard to Gloria Estafan. He was an interesting bloke, sucking a large Cuban cigar and slamming spiced rum on ice. He had one eye, apparently, he had lost the other blue pearl in a firefight with Somali terrorists in the Persian Gulf. We had a brief discussion of current affairs and the insanity of public parks being closed for no good reason, and vandalism of the tourism industry by a woke broken Bureaucracy - just light conversation. I mentioned I had a mission that might suit him and he agreed to join in. We headed to the Mt Warning Rainforest Caravan Park. Mt Warning from the Mt Warning Hotel Roads around the area are still not repaired from la

Chain and post removed at Mount Warning Summit Walk

The current situation is a disgrace and an insult to Park users and all Australians. The Minister must instigate an independent audit and review of NSW NPWS management of the Park and develop a brighter vision of the Park's future. The walk to the summit of Mt Warning in northern NSW is an iconic experience of the natural world. Views from the summit on a clear day provide an unrivaled vista over the Tweed River Valley, lush rainforests, eroded volcanic landscape and beaches on the coast. They fill visitors with a sense of awe and wonder. From a geological perspective, it is arguably the best-preserved erosion caldera in the world. The 4.4km (8.8km return) track was completed in 1909 but the hike was firmly established as a popular tourist attraction in 1929 with the declaration of the area around the mountain as a National Park. The opening ceremony was attended at the summit by 200 people, some rode horses up the trail. The standard of the early track construction is extreme

Right to Climb

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