This time we headed to the Border Ranges Nat Park - less than 100 klms away from us, but still far enough for it to be a complete change of environment.
So, we set off mid-morning on Thursday and headed for Beaudesert and Rathdowney and then the Lions Road over the ranges. That road was a bit of an interesting one as it twists and turns and we came across quite a few uphill sections that were rated as a 19% incline. The turbo in the Pajero was working overtime on those!
When we got through the border and into NSW we found similar declines ahead of us that gave the brakes something to think about, and just before we reached the Nat Park we saw a sign (for people heading north) indicating that the Lions road was not suitable for caravans or trailers - a shame we didn't have a similar sign on the QLD side!
We finally arrived to find a wet, muddy and dismally dark camp site with nothing but clouds above us. On the positive side, the place was well laid out and the facilities and all fire pits were clean and ready for use.
We set up and then went for a walk along the Rosewood Loop. It was wet and slippery and constantly dripping so we cut the walk short at the Palm Forest Walk, checking out the creek and the spot where the old cedar getters carved their names into the rock that they used as a loading platform for the cedar logs.
It was not the most pleasant walk although that was down to the weather and not the place, so we retired back to the van, lit a fire and cracked the first beer/wine of the day.
The next day, after a leisurely start, we decided to take a drive along the road through the Park and check out some of the sights.
We drove upwards, ever upwards, and soon found ourselves driving through the cloud on a surprisingly grippy and well maintained dirt road, It's a dense forest with walls of tress either side that occasionally break open for a view, and the first one we checked out was the Pinnacle.
After a gentle uphill walk of about 200 metres we popped out at what is a stunning view, Well it would be if you could see anything - the cloud we drove through, mirrored by clouds above us sandwiching us in mist, just covered everything most of the time. Occasionally a hole might open up to allow us to see something below, but mostly it was just like we were floating in the clouds.
The view to the left
The view to the right
And a panoramic shot of a few tree tops and clouds.
The paths were all pretty good (slippery tree roots prevailed in some areas though) and this gives you an idea of what they looked like and the denseness of the forest.
So we drove on to the Blackbutt Lookout hoping to have better luck there.
and the answer was no - if anything it was even mistier and muddier.
I'm not sure what the lasting impression might have been, but it wasn't of the view!
We thought then that we would try for something even higher to see if we could get above ALL the couds and we headed towards the Border Loop. This walk is right on the QLD/NSW border and is as high as you can get around here. The air had cleared of cloud/mist and. although the sky was still concrete coloured, we headed off on a walk. We got maybe 100 metres when it started to rain and then it got heavier so we returned to the Pajero as quickly as we could and only just got inside before it seemed like the air was mostly water and the wind whipped it around.
We gave up on the walk.
Somewhat disheartened we drove to the nearest town, Kyogle, to check out the pubs and enjoy a couple of drinks out of the mist before heading home to watch a movie while it drizzled outside before stepped out (as the rain stopped) to light another fire, cook dinner over the fire and relax.
The weather forecast we had seen before we left had Saturday as an even more miserable day so it was a pleasant surprise to find that it was sunny and nice so we headed out to do a few more of the walks around the Park.
The first of them was called the Red Cedar Loop so we trundled off. It may have been sunnier outside the forest, but it was still wet and muddy inside it, but the occasional shafts of sunlight lifted our spirits and we walked on happily.
We found the tree which is estimated to be over 1,000 years old and it is pretty impressive. Check out the pics below:
One thing that a rainforest always has in abundance are fungi and this was one of the most unusual.
From the Red Cedar Loop we continued round to the Brindle Creek walk to see the stands of Antarctic Beech trees.
The walk itself was not especially exciting (more dense rainforest), but the creek was a magical place.
That was enough for the day and we went "home" to relax and chat.
Sunday was another gorgeous day and we decided to repeat the walks of the Friday, but this time without the clouds and the pictures below sow what it looks like when the sun is shining.
The above is the view from the top of the camp site.
Yep - this is the Pinnacle Lookout and you can see the whole of the volcano's caldera with views across to Mt Warning (the original centre of the volcano) and beyond that to the Pacific Ocean.
The Blackbutts Lookout gave a similar view, but from a lower perspective - doesn't the top pic of Mt Warning look like a sleeping person's head?
So what else to do but head off to Kyogle (via a different track than before) and celebrate the sunshine and the success of our walks with a beer/wine.
On the way we came across the sign below outside the township of Wiangaree - it seems that the local aboriginal people are the "Gullibul" mob.
Monday morning and we packed up and headed home. It's been a nice break.
