Mt Rufus Campsites.

[Mechanic-AL]

Just wondering if anyone knows of any ok tent sites in the vicinity of Mt Rufus? I would like to do the circuit but would like to take my time and possibly take in a sunset or sunrise from the summit.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers
AL.

[north-north-west]

Near Gingerbread, or west of the track near the sandstone knobs. I was eyeing that area off a couple of weeks ago, thinking what a great spot it would be for a camp. Just be prepared to shift if the weather blows up.

[Ginja Ninja]

There is camping at Shadow Lake....it makes a really nice camp site and a good base to do both Mt Rufus and Little Hugel.

[GPSGuided]

There is camping at Shadow Lake....it makes a really nice camp site and a good base to do both Mt Rufus and Little Hugel.

Scheduling to camp there later this month. Any additional information on this area? Where's the ideal site to go for around this lake? Tips?

Back to the OP's question. Given his desire to shoot sunrise and sunset, suspect the 1+hrs walk from Shadow Lake may not quite suit the purpose. Gingerbread Hut area makes sense.

[Son of a Beach]

There is camping at Shadow Lake....it makes a really nice camp site and a good base to do both Mt Rufus and Little Hugel.

Scheduling to camp there later this month. Any additional information on this area? Where's the ideal site to go for around this lake? Tips?

Back to the OP's question. Given his desire to shoot sunrise and sunset, suspect the 1+hrs walk from Shadow Lake may not quite suit the purpose. Gingerbread Hut area makes sense.

There's a bunch of camp sites along the south eastern part of Shadow Lake between the track and the lake. They are hard dirt with some rocks (no grass or such like) but excellent location. There are also some sites along the north eastern part of lake on the other side of the track to the lake which are a little nicer (in my opinion) but are somewhat further off the Rufus route (but better for the Little Hugel route).

Little Hugel is well worth the climb and fairly small as far as Mountains go. Great views of Mt Olympus close by. The track is easy to follow except for it being a little vague over the rocky/scree bits.

There's also some nice camping to be had between Shadow Lake and Mt Rufus near the Hugel River. But you've got to keep your eye's peeled to find suitable spaces between the low shrubs.

I've camped in all three locations on various walks, and they are all good camping areas.

Last edited by Son of a Beach on Mon 01 Dec, 2014 12:37 pm, edited 3 times in total.

[GPSGuided]

Thanks SOaB! Looking forward to hunting one down soon. It's not a big lake, will certainly explore the NE side.

[Don R]

Worse case scenario if you really need to camp on Rufus, due to darkness or bad weather, there was a flattened clear patch just off the track about ten minutes below the summit on the way towardMt Huegel in Seot last year (but above the first pagodas to the side of the track).Rangers seemed to have made the space for track work.

[pazzar]

There is some nice camping just off the track in the basin that sits just under the summit ridge. Nice grassy sites amongst the trees just up the back behind a field of scoparia. Beautiful when it was in flower too. It is probably only 30-45 minutes to the summit from here, and it has good shelter from the west.

[GPSGuided]

As in this location?

[pazzar]

Yep - I camped right on the other side up near the slopes, there is some lovely grass to camp on up there. There is a little bit of padded scoparia to wade through to get there though.

[GPSGuided]

Pretty open area but some shelter and private pads could be found. Cold...

[pazzar]

I think we are looking at different spots. I camped where the orange dot is - shelter from the west from the ridge, and camped among trees. It snowed and was windy when I was there, but it was fine.

[Mechanic-AL]

I ended up camping in amongst the sandstone formations just below the summit on the Mt Huegill side as suggested by NNWest. Would have been a perfect spot to take in the sunrise/sunset if the weather had co-operated. I was really tempted to camp in the beautiful little pandani grove just below the Mt Huegill/Rufus saddle but it all looked so fragile and unspoilt so I figured it was best left alone. It felt so special to be sitting on top of Mt Rufus taking in the views long after the last day tripper had scurried down the track.

AL

[GPSGuided]

Piazzas, if that's the case, then yes. The photo location was on the south side of the circuit, before climbing onto the ridge. Lots of options I guess.