In The Footsteps of Hume & Hovell

100km. Three strangers. One epic trail.

If the idea of hitting hiking trails for a multi-day walk appeals but you can’t spare months on the trail, inspiration awaits. Follow We Are Explorers’ Eva Davis-Boermans, content creator Paul Lojszczyk and photographer Daygin Prescott (all strangers before this adventure) as they tackle a six-day journey from Burrinjuck Waters to the Tumut River, offering a snapshot of Australia’s diverse landscapes—from rolling farmland to remote bushland. Together, they set out following in the footsteps of explorers Hume and Hovell in the hope of capturing the essence of this historic trail.

But what exactly is the Hume & Hovell? Stretching from Yass in the north to Albury at the southern end, the 426km historic Hume & Hovell Track follows in the epic journey taken by Hamilton Hume and William Hovell between 1824-25.

The two men set off from Hume’s family farm in Appin with six convicts, five bullocks, three horses and two carts, on a mission from the NSW Governor to find suitable farming land for a growing ‘free settler’ population. The 1900km round trip from Appin to Geelong took them through country previously uncharted by white Europeans, between Yass and the south coast of Victoria.

The group faced wild landscapes, raging rivers, impassable mountain ranges, conflict over leadership and near starvation. All eight men survived to tell the tale.

Let’s Take a Hike

Day 1 – Arrive at Burrinjuck

After meeting on the side of the road near Tumut, we pile into Daygin’s car and head to our starting point at Reflections Burrinjuck campground. We’re welcomed to the park by fabulous hosts, a delightful sunset view across the glassy lake, and some very cute and inquisitive resident kangaroos!

We could have set up camp on one of the grassy lakeview spots, but given the night time chill in the air, we felt zero guilt about booking into a cabin for a final night of hot showers and comfy beds. We needed all the rest we could get before our big journey through the bush!

During the evening, our gear spread far and wide across the living room in inevitable pre-hike chaos and last-minute checks. How many lunches and snacks do we have? Is my pack too heavy? Are you bringing a rain jacket? How cold do you think it’s gonna get?

While we fluffed around with gear, getting to know each other, we made the most of the fully stocked kitchen and cooked up the only feast you could ever want before a hike: Spaghetti Bolognese.

Finally sorted, we bid each other goodnight.

Day 2 – Burrinjuck to Billy Grace Reserve

Distance: 20km (6km boat, 14km walk) | Duration: 7 hours

After a refreshing morning swim, we bid our blessed cabin goodbye and embark on our first mission – crossing the lake…

At this point in the Hume & Hovell Track, the trail actually runs right through the middle of the lake! Usually, hikers grab a lift with Reflections staff in their boat to the other side of the lake where the track starts up again, but as luck would have it, we were there the week their boat was being serviced!

Thankfully, Wendy at the front desk was a total legend who knew every camper staying and directed us to a fisherman called Craig who kindly agreed to take us across to the trailhead.

We paid him with a bit of cash and light entertainment when Daygin jumped out of the boat directly into ankle-deep mud. We waved goodbye and, praising the existence of kind strangers and spare socks, finally set off on the hike.

14km of walking gravel and bitumen road through open farmland lent itself well to chatting side by side on the trail. It didn’t take long to figure out I’m a bird nerd, Daygin loves an extreme climbing adventure, and this was Paul’s first multi-day hike! It also came out that we’re all born in different decades – cue one million jokes about me being a millennial, Paul being old, and Daygin being a child.

We eventually arrived at the sanctuary of Billy Grace Reserve at Reflections Wee Jasper. Our sore feet and tired bodies were grateful for the hot showers, snacks for sale, and our kind camp hosts kindly delivering us a fire bucket and firewood.

Day 3 – Billy Grace Reserve to Log Bridge Creek Campsite

Distance: 13km | Duration: 6 hours

If you’ve ever done a multiday hike, you know the body feels the worst on day two. That was also the day we had to climb 800m elevation onto a plateau, and I discovered overnight that my sleeping mat had a mysterious leak. Fun times! At least I wasn’t alone, and we were all battling our way up the hill together.

As we began our achy climb, we kept ourselves sane by imagining what Hume and Hovell must have experienced when they walked 1900km from Appin to Geelong and back in 1824-25. No fancy hiking boots or ultralight tents, and definitely no chippies and ice cream from the kiosk. Thinking about them sleeping under a tarp, eating only tea and damper for days, while negotiating these steep climbs made me grateful for my thermal mattress, regardless of its slow leak.

We swapped stories about the worst (i.e best) experiences we’ve had outdoors. Tales of sandy tents, big storms, sleepless nights and muddy trails kept us entertained until we arrived, wrecked but triumphant, at our camp under the light of our headtorches.

Day 4 – Log Bridge Creek to Micalong Creek Campground

Distance: 12.5km | Duration: 5 hours

Sunrise finally showed us how gorgeous our campground was! Perfect flat grassy sites with a small open cabin, toilet, tables and a running creek. Heaven.

This was the day of our shortest walk at only 7km, but it was my favourite scenery by far. We meandered through dreamy fern-filled gullies and paused by tranquil waterfalls, and all the while, the trickling of Micalong Creek kept us company. Shady old trees watched over us as we walked, so in return, we provided them with the occasional hug or pat.

Day 5 – Micalong Creek to Bossawa Campsite

Distance: 6.5km | Duration: 3.5 hours

By now, we’d firmly decided that the highlight of the walk was the campsites! All grassy, flat, creek-side oases in the wilderness.

We started before dawn for day five, our longest hiking day. The trail meandered through magical Micalong Swamp, into stunning eucalypt forest, and through lyrebird-riddled rainforest before descending a whopping 1100m back down to the Goobagandra River.

Despite the length of the day, and still finishing in the dark thanks to some stunning sunlight that just HAD to be photographed, we managed to stay hyped throughout the process by sharing outdoor adventure stories, gear chat and plenty of inside jokes.

We arrived just before dark at another perfect campground and snuck in a round of Monopoly Deal before settling down to dinner by the fire.

Day 6 – Bossawa Campsite to Thomas Boyd Trackhead

Distance: 24.5km | Duration: 9.5 hours

A big day ahead meant we woke before dawn to get started. It was jarring to hear trucks on the nearby highway after seeing no other people or cars for three full days.

The first stretch of track was through the stunning Micalong Swamp Flora Reserve. Golden mist hung in the early morning air, and we could picture this place with emus running around as Hume and Hovell observed 200 years ago.

It had a really special feel to it, and the info signs told us the Wiradjuri and Wolgalu peoples maintain a strong connection to the area.

The afternoon took us into classic Aussie eucalypt scenes full of towering scribbly gums and blankets of peeling bark on the ground.

The first phone reception in days was a shock as we slowly climbed down off the edge of the mountains towards the Goobagandra River.

Even though we started early, we still finished in the dark. One final uphill slog with the headtorches had us busting out the emergency snacks and hyping each other up to get through it, but we made it to camp in the end!

Day 7 – Thomas Boyd Trailhead to Wermatong

Distance: 20km | Duration: 8 hours

We dubbed this day ‘cool bridge day’ and were firmly back in farm country, waving to sheep and cows.

First, we crossed the Goobagandra River on an impressive suspension bridge and couldn’t resist swimming in the tumbling granite-filled water below.

Our second bridge was an epic (and a bit scary) narrow suspension footbridge, that you could see all the way through to the river below. One at a time, we inched our way across, I a little more white-knuckled than the others!

We cleaned up the final bits of our food for lunch, then tackled one last brutal uphill climb through farm paddocks towards a golden sunset across the hills.

Our final push was once again completed in the dark with the eyes of cows glowing eerily and the lights of town twinkling at us in welcome.

We jumped in the car we’d left at the trackside at Wermatong on the Snowy Mountains Highway and drove the last 10km along the highway into Tumut, where we spent our final night in total luxury in a riverside cabin at Reflections Tumut River. We soaked in the delightful hot showers and relished the feeling of doing something really simple but indulgent after such a long hike in the elements.

Day 8 – Tumut to Burrinjuck (by car)

We finally got to see the park in the daylight and enjoyed a relaxed morning coffee overlooking the tumbling river, lit up by the gentle morning light filtering through the golden autumn leaves.

Over a well-deserved big breakfast, we shared what we were grateful for - the outdoors, good friends, an amazing life and last but not least, a mattress that doesn’t deflate twice a night. Cheers to that!

Ready to hit the trail?

Wow, what a journey! If you are keen to hit the Hume & Hovell trail, checkout:

• What to pack for the Hume & Hovell Trail
• More about the Hume & Hovell Trail
• Maps of the Hume & Hovell Trail