Our plan for the day was to climb Bluff Knoll, the highest
mountain in WA, so even though it wasn’t going to be a scorching hot day the
early we started the cooler it was going to be. We rolled through wheat field
after wheat fields until a huge mountain range loomed in the distance. I looked
from a far thinking that they are pretty bloody big, and I wondered how they
were going to a road a decent way up them so that we didn’t have to walk/climb
to far!
 |
| Bluff Knoll - I was wondering where the carpark was going to be so we didn't have to walk that fay |
As we turned onto the road to Bluff Knoll I was happy to see
that there was a big No Caravans sign meaning that it was going to be pretty
steep...yeah it will get us pretty close. We could see this MASSIVE granite
topped mountain looming over the plains. It’s actual size is exaggerated by the
fact that it has a sheer cliff for the top 150 or 200m. The road wound up a
small hell and then, all of a sudden we were in a car park, nowhere near the
top!
 |
| Apparently we were climbing to the top of THAT. |
Undaunted we grabbed our water bottles and some munchies and headed off on
what the sign said was a 3.1km each way walk that you can expect to take 3 – 4
hours. My calculations were a bit confused as I managed to run 42kms in 4 ½
hours and now they are giving us about the same time to do 6.2kms...Looking up
I didn’t have to wonder why!
The funniest thing is that the first 300m is a paved path,
the next 300m is a nice wide cleared dirt path and then it turns for another
400m into a steep path with lots of wooden sleepers making steps with rocks
here and there. However from 1km through to about 2.8kms it was completely
different. Think of steps that are pretty close to the angle of a step ladder,
except the steps are rocks at all different angles, some steps only 10cm tall
some 50 or 60cm. Poor Sam, some of the big steps were up to his hips and he was
having to literally climb over them or I pulled him over them. It wasn’t long
into the tough section before we started to have breaks every 10 minutes to
catch our breath.
On the way up there was some great scenery but nothing was
compared with the view we had 1 ½ hrs later, at the top. Being the tallest
mountain you really do get a 360 degree view but the most amazing part was the
view to the north looking over the sheer cliff. Even writing this a few days
later I can feel my heart fluttering at the nervousness you feel when you know
one slip means certain death! We were the highest people in WA!
 |
| Yep...thats the car park where we started and where we now had to get back to! |
After about half an hour we stared down. Right at the top
Jack spotted a cracking Goanna and we saw 2 more big ones on the way down. We
thought the hard part was over but the reality was it had only just begun.
It
wasn’t long before the thighs, and De’s shins, started to let us know that we
were doing something that it didn’t like. Gradually they became wobblier and
wobblier until it was getting into the painful area and I started to understand
why they made the ‘first’ part of the path smooth dirt and paved, to make sure
unfit buggers like me can make it back!
We paused at the bottom and looked back up and it was hard
to believe that just over an hour ago we were standing on top of the peak in
front of us. I hope the boys felt the same sense of accomplishment, I was proud
of them and De as it was anything but an easy walk!
We were keen to get into a caravan park and have a cool
relaxing shower. We drove to Porongerup and after an afternoon rest we took the
boys into the town small shop, had ice creams and then we headed to one of the
local wineries “Dukes” as a treat for mum and dad! Duke was a wonderful old
bloke who got the boys out playing with the dog and picking apples from their
orchard while De and I tasted. The wines were pretty good and we really enjoyed
chatting with with him.
It didn’t take very long to hit the hay and we all slept the
sleep of the dead after a big day!
 |
| Somehow I wish I could emphasise the trip up Bluff Knoll! |
No comments:
Post a Comment