Do you dare? More ghostly roads haunting the capital

Long before there was an ACT, this road, which purposefully sits just above the floodplains of the Molonglo below, linked Queanbeyan to Hall and beyond to Yass. In fact one of the reasons the Duntroon Dairy was built at its chosen site was apparently due to its proximity to this road as it meant not only passing buyers for milk and cheese, but also ready access to the local settlement.

According to an ACT Heritage sign erected about half-way along the 750-metre-long road, after the establishment of the Royal Military College (RMC) Duntroon in 1911, many troops also travelled this road, especially during the advent of World War 1.

Unfortunately Lavarack Road has long been closed to vehicular traffic and is partially overgrown by blackberry bushes and anyone thinking of walking along the road will be met by imposing 'Trespassing is Prohibited' signs.

A spokesperson for the RMC Duntroon confirms that the road "is not open to the public" and only used by authorised officials walking between Duntroon and the adjoining Defence precinct in Russell.

One way members of the public can temporarily access the road is to attend official events such as the upcoming Duntroon Dairy and Duntroon Heritage Walk, hosted by the National Trust (ACT) and led by architect Eric Martin. This one-off event, which will follow Lavarack Road into Duntroon and feature the RMCs Parade Ground, Changi Chapel, Duntroon House and the original gate house, is scheduled for April 28 (9.30am–11.30am) and is part of the upcoming Canberra & Region Heritage Festival. Cost: $10. Bookings essential via: events@nationaltrustact.org.au or Ph: 6230 0533.

By far the most commonly reported ''ghost road'' in my mailbag this week is the cutting immediately west of, and parallel to, the Tuggeranong Parkway, and which runs for almost the entire five-kilometre stretch between Sulwood Drive and Heysen Street, Weston.

"I was wondering if this was to be the original alignment of the Tuggeranong Parkway until somebody realised it was in the wrong place," says Colin Whittaker of Torrens, who advises curious Canberrans "can access this 'road to nowhere' from the track off the end of Daplyn Close, Weston".

Rob Nelson of Kambah provides a possible clue to this unfinished highway. "As a long-time Canberra resident I remember the Tuggeranong Parkway being built, and it was originally meant to be a far grander carriageway than what we have now," reports Nelson.

Meanwhile Philip Nugent, also of Kambah, has dug up a 1975 map of the Tuggeranong valley's proposed suburbs "which shows original plans for the Tuggeranong Parkway were for it to run to the west of Kambah".

Nugent believes the map which features proposed development on both sides of the Murrumbidgee River may explain some of the road oddities in his suburb, "such as very wide verges and some excavations along Kambah Pool Road".

It turns out your akubra-clad columnist isn't the only compiler of ghost roads; the good folk out at ArchivesACT have also delved in Canberra's lost roads and even published a 'Find of the Month' in January 2015 which throws the spotlight on the original alignment of several of Canberra's early roads, including old Tharwa Road.

"Some of those hidden remains are short sections of rural roads, some of which have origins dating back to the 1830s," reports the archives. "These rural roads form an interesting component of the early settlement of Canberra that is still present to explore".

Often all signs of these roads disappear during the construction of new suburbs, but the archives reveal that "by looking at old maps, you can sometimes locate and track down what remains of these roads".

While much of the current-day Tharwa Drive follows the same route taken by the old Tharwa Road, a short section of the original road remains tucked away in a corner of Calwell and has been repurposed as part of the bicycle path connecting Calwell and Gordon.

While Henry Halloran's 1920s vision for Environa, an exclusive estate near Hume, continues to bemuse many who stumble upon its grand street plans, it isn't the only location around the ACT where Halloran's ghostly streets appear as feint lines on online maps if you zoom in sufficiently.

Luke Wensing reports, "Halloran also planned the northern 'gates' of Canberra, namely Gunning, Majura and Gundaroo, with a similar network of roads.

"Gunning Gate is at the edge of the ACT border near Mulligans Flat, while 'Gundaroo Gate' can be found by zooming in on Poppet Rd close to Wamboin," reports Wensing.

One of the more perplexing phantom roads in Canberra is at the end of Binns Place in Fraser.

"There's a perfectly good loop with street lights, curbs, but not one single house," reports one ACT government insider. "It's a mystery as to why it remains empty."

According to Sean Coggan of Torrens, a self-confessed "closet ghost-road researcher and map geek", Binns Street "is just one of over a dozen ghostly streets hidden in our suburbs".

One of the other puzzling streets which features on his list, which is far too comprehensive to replicate here, is Wienholt Street in Gowrie which appears on maps to lead off Bugden Avenue between the pedestrian underpass and Conway Place.

"This is a 'paper street', existing only on some road maps as a copyright trap," reports Coggan. "Except the ghost of this road also exists in Google Maps and even ACTMapi [a web-based tool for viewing maps and geographic information about Canberra and the ACT].

"There are even traces of the street in the 'real world', a short section of Bugden Avenue has no kerb, right where Wienholt Street should be," explains Coggan who would like to know "how long the ghost street was incorrectly gazetted when Gowrie was planned or if it's proposed for a future development''.

"I know you appreciate a good rock-masquerading-as-a-critter snap," writes Stephen Roxburgh of Weston who on a recent holiday across the Tasman snapped this photo "of a giant floppy-eared rabbit lurking in southern New Zealand near Poolburn".

"Those familiar with the Lord of the Rings movies, may be aware Poolburn was the site of the village of Rohan," reports Roxburgh, adding, "maybe the Orcs left this beast behind."

However, Roxburgh explains the bunny is unlikely to be well-known as it's an isolated location and he suspects "it's sudden 'appearance' was a lucky combination of the viewing angle and the light".

Meanwhile, closer to home, Mark Jekabsons photographed this over-sized rabbit in  Gudgenby Valley in Namadgi National Park.

On the subject of rabbits, on a recent stroll up Mt Ainslie I noticed more rabbits than I have for a long time. Are there more rabbits appearing in the bush near your place?

Clue: Is this our city's most famous zig-zag?

Degree of difficulty: Hard

Last week:

Congratulations to Tam Le of Franklin as the first reader to correctly identify last week's photo (viewed from an airborne balloon) as Toad Hall, a student residence at ANU located at 30 Kingsley Street in Acton. The triumphant Tam just beat Craig Dingwall of Ngunnawal, Judith McArthur of Hughes and Roxanne Missingham to the prize. Roxanne was one of the first residents of Toad Hall back in 1974. "Toad [Hall] was a major innovation [with] rooms for student focused around central kitchens," reports Roxanne. "We formed strong communities and shared cooking, stories and supported each other through our study."

The clue related to the student hall's location amongst willow trees on the banks of Sullivan's Creek which led to it being named after the fictional home of Mr Toad, a lead character in Kenneth Grahame's popular 1908 children's novel The Wind in the Willows.

Special note to Rohan Goyne who reports "the creek was named after my great grandparents William and Anastasia Sullivan who farmed at the Springbank property," adding "Springbank Island [on Lake Burley Griffin] is named after their property and was the site of the homestead prior to the lake being flooded."

Don't forget: The Canberra Balloon Spectacular continues this week until March 17. Weather-permitting, every morning during the festival at 6.15am, about 30 balloons from around the globe will inflate on the lawns in front of Old Parliament House.

How to enter: Email your guess along with your name and address to timtheyowieman@bigpond.com. The first email sent after 10am, Saturday March 9, 2019 will win a double pass to Dendy - The Home of Quality Cinema.