Thursday, 7 August 2025
This morning it was a little cloudier than the last couple of days but still fine. After letting the truck do all the work yesterday, today a hike was planned. Bernie wanted to do the hike up Rawnsley Bluff. I questioned the fact that it is rated DIFFICULT and at 12.6 kilometres takes around five hours to complete. Oh, it will be fine, I was told. I watched this thing on YouTube and it says that the beginning and the end of the ascent are easy, it’s just a bit steep in the middle. Ahem, why do I always believe Bernie when he says things like this???
Sure enough the track started out easily enough following the creek bed for nearly a kilometre before we began to climb the rocky Bonney Sandstone foothills of the main range. The trail gradually started to steepen but it was pretty smooth and easy going. Until it wasn’t. Somehow, the group leader took us off piste and had me clambering over rocks. Are you sure this is right? Yes, yes, this is the steep bit in the middle, we’ll soon reach the first lookout and then it will be easy the rest of the way. But there don’t seem to be any markers I said, are you sure this is right? Yes, yes, look, it’s smoothed out again this must be the path. Show me a marker and maybe I’ll believe you.
Despite my misgivings that we were not on the marked path, this happened a couple more times with us reaching dead ends and back tracking, before the group leader finally agreed that yes, maybe we are not on the path!!! It was decided that we needed to make our way across the face of the rocky slope to try to find the path again. After much slithering around on my backside and rock hopping across the slope, the group leader announced that he had found the track. Show me a marker, I said. There are two, I was told and, sure enough, I eventually manoeuvered my way across and there WERE markers. PS( I think I took a short cut)
The fact that there were markers was the good news, the bad news was that it was STILL steep and rocky, even on the designated track. Groan! Still, we persevered but with me now keeping an eagle eye out for the yellow and white painted swatches that marked the path. Twice more Bernie missed these markers and I had to steer us onto the correct route! At last we reached Lone Pine Lookout. The guide said that ‘from here, the worst of the climb is over and the trail becomes less steep as you approach the summit’.
This turned out to be (mostly) truthful. We passed the turn off for the Wilpena Pound Lookout (only 600 metres from the fork in the path) with me saying that if we did not keep going straight out to Ranwnsley Bluff that I might not be capable of doing it after the Wilpena Pound Lookout. So, we slogged our way out to the end of the Rawnsley Bluff trail for an amazing view south-east over the Chace Range where we were yesterday. Yes, the view was good BUT taking a lunch break was even better! So good to sit down – even if it was on a rock! – and replenish my energy reserves.
Now we just had to get down again. It was fairly easy returning to the fork in the trail where I now had to make a decision about walking out to the Wilpena Pound Lookout and back again. Hmmn, that’s adding another 1.2 kilometres to the walk. Damn, might never pass this way again, we’ll do it. This trail started out deceptively easy … again … and then became much rockier and more difficult towards the end. On the plus side, the view looking the other way into Wilpena Pound (compared with from Wangara Lookout on Tuesday) was even more impressive. It was also a relief that the last 200 metres didn’t seem like 200 metres. We passed a marker saying it was still 0.20 to go and then … we just seemed to be at the end of the trail. Bonus! And I did enjoy the acacias coming into bloom on this section of the trail. Silver linings, right?!
The downward journey started in earnest now. We took it very slowly because I really wanted to make it back to the truck without an injury! Clambering back down the steep, rocky section was torturous, even without taking a diversion off the official track. I was concentrating too hard on getting down to the ‘easy’ lower section to notice or try to work out where things went so horribly wrong this morning.
Eventually, we made it through the worst of the downward climb and the trail did flatten out again … somewhat. It certainly seemed steeper going down the hill than it had seemed walking up this morning. I guess I was just feeling chipper this morning and the gradual uphill gradient didn’t phase me?? However, my knees and ankles felt every single step going down the mountain.
I was very, very pleased to come to the flat section alongside the creek and even more delighted to reach the car park … despite the stench of a rotting kangaroo carcass beside the gate!! I was disappointed when Bernie didn’t even offer to lift me into the truck. I had to clamber into the ISUZU all by myself, even though that was a much bigger ask than usual. Bernie said he was proud of me for completing this challenging hike. I, on the other hand, think that I might be certifiably insane for attempting it!! I’m not sure if I’ll be able to walk tomorrow?
Bernie drove us back to our cabin where I collapsed on the bed with my book. With only 30 minutes left to go in my current murder mystery, I was keen to finish. I surprised myself that I managed to stay awake until the end. We were booked in late for our meal tonight and not due over at the Woolshed Restaurant until a quarter to eight. Plenty of time to rest and then have a shower in an attempt to feel somewhat refreshed in time for dinner. Yay, the chicken was back on the menu tonight so we were able to have an alternative to red meat.
Steps: 19,957 (13.00kms)
