16th Oct- 17th Oct
Monday morning began with excitement once again. It is the so called weekend time for us and we are off south to the Gold Coast and the Hinterlands. Only a mere 2 hours drive from Brisbane, so nothing too much to worry about. We fill up our Hyundai Getz with all the essential, clothes, wine, eskiy full of food and the most important thing which is the camera. On route we pick up a tent and some sleeping equipment after all it is easier and more fun to camp than to sleep in a small car and we speak from experience here.
On the motorway I take a liitle nap, while my choeffeur brings me to paradise. Surfers Paradise to be exact. As we step of onto the beach, the golden sand, the strong waves, the high winds that is all part of the experience. The strange thing about this beach is that it is lined with skyscrapers as far as the eye can see. While there we hear screaming, shouting, and a lot of excitement for a Monday afternoon. We check it out and find about 50 school students all running into the sea with their uniforms on while the lifeguards have extra work on hands, we enjoy this by taking a few quick snaps before hitting the Coffee Club for a milkshake. Surfers Paradise looks like a happening spot for night life and one of those drinking towns full of beach bums etc.
Back on the road to our nightly destination and to the edge of the humongous Mt. Warning (Wollumbin-fighting chief of the mountains). As we enter the holiday park we are greeted by a bloodshot eyed lady who checks us in. She already looks like she had a few beers, but she makes us feel at home none the less. We pitch the tent beside a running river. The night brings many peaceful sounds of the wild, and we snuggle into our two man tent. Tomorrow, the climb to the summit of Mt. Warning.
David
Is loving our new tent!
Our alarms go off at 4 am, as advised by the people. Its the time to get up there for the sunrise, however we could not open our eyes. So we slept in, I'm afraid. But not too long, just until 6 am. Then breakfast and to get the energy levels up for the climb. Standing at the base of this huge 22 million year old extinct volcano, we get scared. We seriously doubt that we can make it all the way up, the terrain is rough. The path is windy, the climb is steep. We huff, we puff, but we keep going. We motivate ourself with goals like a peach at the top. We are close now, just another few hundred metres. But the last part is a vertical climb, a scrammble up the rock face. The wind picks up, the cool air. WOW. We made it to the top (1157m above sea level). The views are spectacular of the valley below. We can see all the way to the coast, the green valley below with its lakes and creeks. We deserve a break and our reward, a juicy peach and some water to wash it all down. It was worth every step.
Can you see the highest peak?
That's mountain we're going to climb, ALL the way up!
David found a caterpillar hanging from a tree.
Good thing we didn't touch it as we found out later that they can make you itch!!
Angela
This is abut 40 min after we started.
I'm soaked in sweat, and yes it is a fake smile!
This is what i call a walking stick.
Some people call them stick insect....what a weird name for a stick that can walk!
(Walking stick)
David, so close to the top
It was a killer i can tell you!
David
It was SO worth it!
Who wouldn't walk 5 hours to see this??
David
Angela
Now its time to get down again, ha, you thought it was gonna be easy. Well its not. We begin, the descent back down, which takes us less time than the climb. We are wet, hungry but satisfied with the days work. Are muscles are in jelly form right now. We still need to drive back to Brisbane though, so we do that. We make a stop on Palm beach to cool off from the days events, and get back on the road before the thunderstorm hits. Grabbed a bite to eat with Glen (my work friend) and watch lightning touch down every couple of minutes. The heavens open and rain lashes down, but we are home and sleeping in no time. What a great two days, which was our anniversary celebration.
Angela
on her way down, and it's not easy!
Angela & David
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