Profile for Vonsnrub - Aussie Bushwalking

This Year

Number of Walks Ticked

284.3km

Total Distance Ticked

All Time

191

Number of Walks Ticked

1,808.4km

Total Distance Ticked

Ticks

Name	Date	Difficulty	Distance/Duration
Battleship Spur (Carnarvon National Park)	15 Sep, 2021	Hard	30km 12 hrs
We left the carpark at 7:30am and got back at 4:30pm. The track is well marked the entire way, there was no point where I was concerned I had lost the track. In saying that I did accidentally walk to Big Bend instead of turning off to Boowinda Gorge, but it was a nice short diversion so it was fairly inconsequential. Boowinda Gorge is amazing and probably my favorite part of the walk. Eventually you reach a boulder with a small rock cairns and an arrow pointing to a well disguised steep track leading out of the gorge. After exiting the gorge you will intercept a walking track that will take you all the way to the top. It can be quite physically demanding in parts with quite a few steep sections but nothing overly difficult. If I had to compare it to another walk I would say it's quite similar to Mt Greville. The view from the top is unreal, totally worth the 30km walk. Met a lot of people who had camped at Big Bend before attempting this walk, however I felt doing the whole walk in a day was very achievable.
Boolimba Bluff (Carnarvon National Park)	14 Sep, 2021	Hard	7.1km return 3 hrs
Very straight forward walk. From the main track take the signed path to the Boolimba Bluff. The track is excellent and easy to follow. There is a short section which is quite steep but for the most part it is a pretty gradual ascent. The view is great, definitely a worthwhile side trip!
Mt Cook (Magnetic Island National Park)	29 Jul, 2021	Very Hard	4km return 7 hrs
Well this walk was a lot more difficult than I initially expected. We originally intended on going via the Duck Creek route however on arrival at Magnetic Island our AirBnb host advised us not to go this way. There was also the issue of a) No bus goes to the start of the duck creek route b) Taxis aren't allowed on W Point Road c) it's a 5km walk to get to Duck Creek from Picnic Bay. Neither of us were keen for an extra 10km walk so we took our hosts advice and went via Nelly Bay. The walk is very direct, but despite only covering a short distance, it takes a ridiciulously long time to make very small progress. We spent a lot of time referring to the GPS, backtracking when the boulders were too large to negotiate, and squeezing through sections of thick scrunge. We had hoped the view at the top would make it all worthwhile but unfortunately the thick vegetation prevented any excellent photo opportunities. Have included our GPS track for this route. We attempted to take the path of least resistance staying as true to the cairns as possible, but there is no way of avoiding the reality that this is a tricky route devoid of any real track. Was kind of cool watching the military planes take off because the island is right underneath the jetpath and the helipad has views right out to Townsville Airport.
Mt Halifax (Paluma Range National Park)	28 Jul, 2021	Hard	11.3km return 6 hrs
This walk involved more creek rock hopping than any mountain I have done before. You follow the creek a good portion of the way so your speed will be determined by how fast you can hop between boulders. I really enjoyed it, the steep sections were quite managable thanks to whoever fixed the ropes along the track. It is pretty relentless, climbing 1000 meters vertical over a short horizontal distance. There are a few obstructed views along the way but the summit has the most unobstructed view of the whole walk. We unfortunately had no view from the summit due to the cloud closing in but it was still a nice accomplishment to have made it. The descent was a lot faster because we rocketed down the steep sections. The waterfall made for a nice cool off point on the way back!
Devils Thumb (Far North Queensland)	22 Jul, 2021	Very Hard	10.6km return 8 hrs
This was an amazing adventure, so glad I did it! If I had to compare it to anything I would say it was very similar to Mt Bartle Frere. Lots and lots of uphill on the way there, and lots and lots of downhill on the way down, so prepare your knees for a hard day. I made it to the top in 3hrs but I didn't take any breaks. Whilst it was steep, it was pretty consistent so you could get in a bit of a groove. I found it to be very well marked so didn't have any issues losing the track. The climbing section at the top was fun, nothing overly difficult. Saw a few people out and about but nowhere near as many as I saw on Mt Sorrow, or Walsh's Pyramid. Met the land owner on the way down, he was a really nice guy! Said he is happy for people to cross his property to visit the Devils Thumb so long as they don't rock up and start treating his backyard like a public park, kicking a football around and going for a swim in his dam (which has happened). So yeah, don't be that person.
Mt Sorrow Ridge Walk (Daintree National Park)	21 Jul, 2021	Hard	8.5km return 5.5 hrs
Really nice walk through sensational rainforest up to the viewing platform. The walk up has some pretty steep sections but it's not any harder than Mt Cougal. Would definitely be a lot trickier after rain because the whole track would turn into a mud pit. Like others have said don't stop at the viewing platform, go an extra 300 meters to arrive at a rocky outcrop with the best views. I wanted to say I made it to the summit so I kept going. From the rocky outcrop the track becomes a lot more faint but there are a lot of ribbons marking the way. Unfortunately these ribbons take you towards Mt Pieter Botte, as far as I could see there is no track to the actual geographical summit of Mt Sorrow (780m). I felt a bit underwhelmed so I walked west along the track until I got to the highest high point (830m) before Mt Pieter Botte (980m), which is the boundary of the Daintree National Park. No view or anything of interest there so I turned around and went back the same way. Gave a couple of people sitting at the rocky outcrop a fright when I emerged from the bushes behind them.
Walsh's Pyramid (Wooroonooran National Park)	20 Jul, 2021	Very Hard	6.2km return 7 hrs
Reminded me a lot of Mt Barney actually, similar gradient and similar terrain, just not quite as big. The view from the top is amazing! Its shape really allows you to have an excellent perspective of the surrounding region. Was lucky to meet a lot of good people along the way, mountain has a way of attracting similar minded people. Would definitely recommend bringing a decent amount of water because it gets hot and humid, especially being that you are in direct sunlight for a lot of it. Track is really good, although I still somehow managed to go off it at one point on the descent, so pay more attention than I did.
Saddle Mountain (Far North Queensland)	19 Jul, 2021	Hard	9.3km return 4 hrs
Enjoyable walk, was steeper than I expected it to be. The firetrail was pretty draining but its the section after that is the most exhausting. A tree had falled over the track when I went which required me to crawl on my stomach to get under it (as the vegetation was too thick to go over or around it). Besides that the track was really well maintained. Nice views from the top, although a little annoying you have to skirt around the radar station fence to get to them. Not really any views on the way up until you get to the summit.
Mt Huntley (Main Range National Park)	14 Jul, 2021	Very Hard	12km return 6 hrs
Has been on my to do list for quite some time but I've been putting it off after hearing how difficult it was. In reality it wasn't as bas as I was expecting, very similar to Mt Castle except probably a bit easier. The track can be challenging to follow, but not any harder than Mt Doubletop, or Spicers Peak. I would definitely recommend a GPS though. The scrambling part up the first cliffline was a little tricky, but moreso because it was wet the day I did it. I have included a photo of it - essentially what you want to do is get over the rock bulging out from the wall and proceed into the bushes on the left where you can pull yourself up the rest of the way. I would highly recommend leaving some markers for yourself for the way back down, you DO NOT want to miss this rock wall, because it is the only easy way off the cliff. Aside from that there really isn't anything technical to be worried about. I felt a little uneasy hopping the gate at the beginning, however I have been led to believe that the road can be walked because it leads to National Park, so long as you dont leave the track and trespass on the land owners property. I actually met the land owner when I climbed Mt Doubletop - really friendly, nice guy! He offered to let us drive to the end of the road to check out the river the runs beside the road. That being said if anyone is under a different impression concerning access please edit the walk description.
Mt Roberts + Lizard Point (Main Range National Park)	27 Jun, 2021	Hard	12.2km return 8 hrs
Was surprised how well marked the track is the entire way. There were a few ocassions we lost it but never took very long to find it again. Mt Roberts has no views (apart from one of the Steamers part way up). Lizard Point definitely makes up for it, probably the best lookout in SEQ in my opinion. The track was pretty muddy which made coming back down a bit time consuming given the steepness. Few sections of very minor scrambling. Can definitely be done as a day walk, we did this in 6.5 hours including the time spent enjoying the view at Lizard Point - mind you we didn't really take any breaks along the way.
Mt Peachester (Bellthorpe National Park)	20 Jun, 2021	Easy	2.5km return 30 mins
Nice easy walk through through some beautiful countryside. Not a bad view from the top but it is fairly obstructed. From the Wikiloc page in the description it appears that there are views of the Glasshouse Mountains elsewhere however I was a bit strapped for time so didn't get to do too much exploring. Quite a quick walk but was nice to do while I was in the area.
Bluff Mountain (Warrumbungle National Park)	12 Jun, 2021	Hard	17km return 7 hrs
Great full day walk with heaps of variety! We did the full circuit including the sidetrack up to the summit of Bluff Mountain. We were't as lucky as we had been the previous day and a blanket of cloud engulfed the mountain soon after we started. The top was completely covered in snow which made up for the lack of view. The Grand High Tops walk is the most iconic walk in the park and being a Saturday there were tonnes of people out and about, although very few bother to make the trip up to the top of Bluff Mountain. Looks very imposing from a disance but rest assure it is a fairly easy hike to the summit (no climbing).
Mt Exmouth (Warrumbungle National Park)	11 Jun, 2021	Medium	17km return 6 hrs
Excellent, straight forward hike up to the summit of Mt Exmouth. The path is very easy to follow with frequent signs along the way. Nothing complicated or precarious, just a nice walk. We were fortunate enough to go right after a polar blast so we saw a heap of snow after getting above Danu campsite. The clouds parted as we arrived at the summit giving us a fantastic view of the Warrumbungles. On the way back down we saw a bunch of mountain goats chilling near the path.
Belougery Split Rock (Warrumbungle National Park)	11 Jun, 2021	Hard	4.6km return 3.5 hrs
We did this right after Mt Exmouth (it is on the way back to the carpark). Really fun, highly recommend it!! It starts off as a steep hike until you get to a small gate attached to a staircase. From here there is a well marked scramble up to the summit. The scramble isn't overly difficult, even though it was wet when we were there it was still very grippy. If you have done Tibrogargan rest assure, this is quite a bit easier with very minimal exposure. The summit view gives a really central perspective of the Warrumbungles and the observatory in the distance.
Mowburra Peak (Mt Barney National Park)	18 May, 2021	Hard	12km return 8 hrs
Started from the Waterfall Creek Reserve Camping area, followed the track to the Upper Portals until the creek. Crossed the creek, followed the road until Grace's Hut and then headed up the mountain along an overgrown 4wd road. Eventually we skirted up the ridge through thick scrunge and long grass (very physically demanding ascent). Once at the top we intercepted a semi-decent track that led all the way to the summit. Great views at the top in both directions!! We were going to continue on to Monseratt but there is 0, and I mean 0 track, so we ended up coming back the way we came up.
Mt Bangalore (Main Range National Park)	10 May, 2021	Hard	14km return 7 hrs
This was a very draining walk (for both me and my GPS battery). Would definitely only recommend it for people who are expert navigators or alternatively, people like me who bought a GPS to make up for the fact they aren't expert navigators. There is nothing overly technical about this walk, although climbing up the steep grassy incline was pretty tough, lot of opportunities to lose your footing and slide back down. In saying that there wasn't any real exposure. The views at the top of the saddle were quite nice, I wish I spent more time there, I thought the summit would have the premium views but I was disappointed to find I was mistaken. The dry river bed on the way back down was really cool, never seen anything like it on any of my mountain walks, wouldn't like to be on it during a flash flood, would be like a really long and really scary waterslide. Saw lots of Kangaroos and fortunately no snakes (being that I spent a LOT of time walking through high grass). Overall I would really only recommend this to dedicated peak baggers. I posted it up to assist anyone like me who wants to get as much info as possible prior to attempting a seldom climbed mountain.
Toolona Creek and Mount Wanungra (Lamington National Park)	26 Apr, 2021	Medium	19.73km 6 hrs
A nice scenic circuit with heaps of waterfalls and a few opportunities to get some nice views. It is extremely similar to the Coomera Circuit/Mt Merino although probably not quite as good. Unlike Mt Merino where you get an exceptional view out to the south standing on the edge of a sheer cliff, the Toolona Creek circuit views are a little obstructed by vegetation. You don't quite get to the summit of Mt Wanungra (the summit is just thick rainforest so the lookout is as close as you need to get). You do get to the summit of Mt Bithongabel, however it is also thick rainforest marked with a cairn honoring the people who first ventured out there. The waterfalls are fantastic, plenty of excellent photo opportunities! Great introductory hike, easy to follow track , heaps to see and no steep parts. Really pleasant way to spend a day if you are out that way!
Mt Rooper/ Swamp Bay (Mackay, Isaac and Whitsunday)	16 Apr, 2021	Medium	7km 2.3 hrs
Did this walk for the sunset as it doesn't take too long to get to the top - around 30 minutes. The view is great, certainly not as great the honeyeater lookout, but still a nice rewards for making it to the top. The track is very well maintained and ascends quite gradually.
Passage Peak (Mackay, Isaac and Whitsunday)	16 Apr, 2021	Medium	5km return 2 hrs
A nice easy walk along a very well maintainted track with lots of little lookouts and picnic areas along the way. It is quite a gradual ascent with some stairs and no scrambling sections. The view at the top is absolutely fantastic, possibly even better than Whitsunday Peak because you can see out in every direction. It is a very popular hike so expect to see a lot of people.
Mt Dalrymple (Mackay, Isaac and Whitsunday)	15 Apr, 2021	Hard	10.8km return 7 hrs
This walk was very reminiscent of Mt Bartle Frere, similiar duration, similar intensity, similar weather, and similar number of leeches (i.e. HEAPS). I was expecting it to be a bit easier considering the elevation gain from start to finish isn't really that crazy, however you spend most of the walk climbing then descending over and over again. The rainforest was spectacular and the river crossings were fantastic, was never bored during this walk. The only animal we ran into was a massive wild boar, fortunately he ran in the opposite direction. I would say overall the track was quite well marked, however there were a few times we had to refer to the GPS, so would probably recommend taking one if you have one.