Tag Archives: Hiking

Continuing the Journey: Grampians National Park

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In “real time” and since I last posted, I’ve worked many hours and traveled many miles, some for civic causes and some for fun, including a first ever trip to  Las Vegas (I cannot wait to work through those photos!).  In “blog time” though, I’m still in Australia.

After leaving the Great Ocean Road (see posts about my two days driving the road here and here), I drove to Grampians National Park (Gariwerd).  Gariwerd is the Australian Aboriginal name for the park, which is a nature reserve in Victoria, Australia. It is known for its sandstone mountains, which rise out of surrounding farmland.  The first views of those mountains required a stop for photos.

After checking into my motel, and knowing that I’d only have 3 hours or so before dark, I made the decison to hike the Pinnacle Trail.  Thinking “how hard can a 2.1k (one way) trail be?”, I hit the trail head guided by this sign.

Some times the trail was obvious, although challenging.

 

Other times, the trail was not as obvious, and I was thankful for the trail markers (which were also hard to find at times).  If you have a moment, click on the images to check out just how challenging that trail was.

 

As you can tell, the hike to the Pinnacle was straight up most of the time.  The view at the top was well worth the effort.

The wind was blowing hard all around me, and pushing me a bit, too, and I swear, when I sat down to eat my snack, I felt that mountain move!

The views were incredible and I dearly wish I’d been able to spend more time in this 413,000 acre park.  Soon enough, though, it was time to head on down,  and find that post hike beer.  After that, I sat on my little porch, watched the Kangaroos, and planned the next day’s route to Adelaide.

 

 

Three months after returning home, I only have one more day to share from my Feb / March trip to NZ / Australia.  Believe it or not, I have saved all of the notifications about your posts and dearly hope to visit soon!

Hiking and Jetboating in Queenstown

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It was with mixed emotions that the Wanaka Crew began to disperse Thursday morning, with all of us checked out of our gorgeous temporary home on Friday.  What an incredible journey blogging has been for all of us!  Who knew that when we all published our first posts, for me back  in June of 2012, we would meet and make such great friends.  The benefits to blogging are many and without a doubt, the best part is the worldwide connections that are made.

This image nipped from Alys’ FB page: Boomdee, Alys, Danella (daughter of Pauline), Pauline, Steve (partner of Joanna), me, Joanna (daughter of Pauline), and Mike (Alys’ husband).

After one last lunch with Pauline, Danella, Boomdee, and Siddy, with this view as the backdrop, I was dropped at my Queenstown Hotel.  It was time to start my solo adventure.

Queenstown is known as the adventure capital of the world, and with just one and a half days to spend there, I had many choices.  Ultimately, I decided to hike Queenstown Hill and, on the advice of Danella, to take a jet boat ride on Lake Wakatipu.

After walking by this gorgeous tree, I began my morning with the now customary Flat White.  I was thrilled to see this Giant Sequoia since I’ve not seen them in California yet.

They Call it a “Hill”

Queenstown Hill is a popular hike for locals and visitors alike despite the moderate to difficult rating.  While only 3k from the trail head and back, it was another 3k on foot to get to the trailhead.  It’s 500m to the summit, straight up hill all the way.  Click on each image in the gallery to get an idea of the steep climb, both on the street and the trail.

The road to the trailhead
Looking back down at the town
Steps to the trailhead
Still climbing
Looking back; it was an easy walk down

Soon enough I entered a magical area of stacked rocks.  I was capitavated and spent a good 15 minutes in peace and quiet, and then added my own rock.  The photography is poor as it was quite dark and I just didn’t capture the stacks well.

Adding my own rock to an existing stack
This tiny house reminded me of those seen in Atlanta on the Tiny House trail. In this one, hikers have left messages for other hikers. Charming!

I knew that I was near the summit when I arrived at the Basket of Dreams.  Sculptor Caroline Robinson created this piece in 2000 for the Queenstown Millenium project which has  transformed the existing walk into a heritage and art trail.  The ‘Basket’ is near the top of the hill and “is built to lie inside of, eat your sandwich, and imagine. It provides a meeting place, a resting place, a dreaming spaceIts a place to be with others and with the magic of the Wakatipu landscape”.

I began what I thought were the final steps (the basket is right in the middle of this next image).  It is so tiny as seen here.  Then I turned around and saw that I had several more steps to go (see the second image).  Can you see the people on the summit?

Finally! I arrived on the summit and the view is indescribable, at least for me.  I mean, how many more times can a person say “incredible, gorgeous, stunning”?

Another view of The Remarkables
Another Rock Stack
#mysawyerbracelet
#mysawyerbracelet
View of Lake Wakatipu
I will miss seeing The Remarkables

I sat in complete contentment for a long while.  A woman came up and asked if she could take my photo as I looked so quiet and peaceful.  What a thoughtful gesture as I would not have been able to manage a selfie.

It was difficult to leave this place.  Thankfully, a celebratory beverage and a jetboat ride awaited me.  I enjoyed my Monteith’s Black as I looked back up to the summit.  Can you see it, peaking through the trees?

And then I looked towards the lake.

It was a specatacular day for a jetboat ride!

Geared up and ready to go!
This company offered a 60 minute ride
Our jetboat driver, Nick
360 Degree Spins / 43kmph
View from the jetboat
The water at times was only inches deep
The stunning scenary

What a thrill, and even though 60 minutes, not long enough!  My time in New Zealand came to an end all too quickly, despite being there almost 2 weeks.   What a remarkable country!

Now though, it was almost time to get on that plane, and fly to Melbourne.

A”maze”ing Channels

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We knew that we’d have a great hike and incredible views when we visited The Channels Natural Area Preserve, and we even knew that there would be some interesting sandstone formations to explore.  What we didn’t know was just how very cool those formations would be.  We simply could not help ourselves and kept exclaiming out loud with every turn.  As Karen said, the place brought out the inner child in all of us.

According to several online sources, the sandstone outcroppings were formed 400 million years ago.

Geologists conclude that the Channels were likely formed while the high elevation sandstone cap was under the influence of permafrost and ice wedging during the last ice age.

 The expanding ice fractured the sandstone and water slowly spread and smoothed the breaks over millions of years.

“What is left is a labyrinth of slots and crevices through the rocks. The pathways range from 20 to nearly 40 feet deep and wind their way through damp, moss-covered walls of stone” (https://virginiatrailguide.com/2016/10/23/great-channels).

Aren’t the colors incredible?

Check out the way these tree roots are stretching for moisture,

and the ferns growing amidst the cracks in the rocks.

We laughed and exclaimed and explored and were utterly happy with the experience.

For more information about The Channels, visit the previous two posts.

The Channels

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If you’ve visited  The Unassuming Hiker this week, you have already been introduced to The Channels, a gorgeous, 721 acre natural preserve in Southwest Virginia.  The Channels Natural Area Preserve is part of a 4,836 acre State Forest that was purchased by the Department of Forestry from The Nature Conservancy in March 2008.  The preserve name is derived from the maze-like system of sandstone crevices and boulders that occur near the 4208ft. summit of Middle Knob on Clinch mountain.

With good friends along for the ride, the 2 hour drive to the trailhead was over before we knew it.  The last 30 minutes will offer an excellent ride when next I return on the bike.  Lots of curves and twisties to thrill a bikers heart!

The 3 mile hike to the top was through a lush, green forest that offered plenty of shade on this sunny, breezy day.

Once on the top, we had views that stretched for miles!  We just could not stop exclaiming about how fortunate we were to be there.

I swear, I want to be a hawk (well, except for their diet).  I want to soar!

Even though it is only early September, the color change has begun.

We were 4 very happy women: Fresh air, exercise, incredible views, and lots of places to explore.

Big thanks to Karen for offering weekend hikes for those who can’t make it during the week.

As you might guess, I took a zillion photos.  The next post will show images of the fire tower (which, or course, I wanted to climb), and the one after that will be about the sandstone channels that, when we explored them, brought out the kid in all of us.

Hiking Surprised Me

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My friend Karen has joined WordPress! Karen was present at the blogger gathering last April, so a few of you will remember meeting her. Karen will be sharing her hiking adventures in a new blog called The Unassuming Hiker. Pay her a visit if you have a moment to spare.

The Unassuming Hiker

I used to avoid the outdoors at all costs.  I don’t like bugs and crawly things and was not too crazy about walking in the woods.  Also, having knee issues, I doubted that I could actually climb mountains.  When I had my 59th birthday, I decided to try something new. First I had to lose some weight to take pressure off my knee and then I was motivated to try hiking after looking at pictures of my husband and daughter on top of McAfee’s Knob – probably the most photographed spot on the Appalachian Trail.

That first hike hurt.  My entire body was exhausted after the almost 8 mile adventure. But the feeling I got when I finally dragged myself to the top of that mountain was worth the pain.  I did it!

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McAfee’s Knob

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It was amazing!  Since then, I have become a regular hiker and I love every new adventure.

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