On to the Grampians

Today we planned to head to the Grampians.  We stopped along the way in Horsham to pick up a few groceries and check out the Wimmera River (aka toilet break!).  We carried on to Dadswell Bridge where the Giant Koala is located.  We had lunch here and then continued driving to the Grampians.

We set up camp at a National Park located very close to the Grampians, called Plantation.  It was very quiet, a beautiful bush camp.  Chad and Brenton spotted the fire pits but there was a 'Total Fire Ban' that day due to high temperatures so a fire was out of the question.  Didn't stop them hinting though!

After a few hours of school work we went for a drive to check out a few of the walks available. It was quite late in the day though so we decided not to start any but head back to camp for dinner.

The following day we planned to hike to the Pinnacle of the Grampians. It was approximately 4.5kms return trip and the more difficult walk but we were looking forward to it.

Mars wore Axel in the carrier and carried Rowan through the tricky steps at the beginning (just to speed things along a bit!).  The first part involved more rock climbing whereas the second part had more trails with flatter parts to enjoy.

We were amazed by all the kids.  Chad and Brenton chose not to conserve any energy and ran on ahead to climb higher and bigger rocks.  Karli alternated between trying to keep up with them and walking with Mars and I and Rowan and Axel.  Rowan was a trooper and soldiered on most of the way on his own 2 legs!

We came to a sign that showed 700m to Pinnacle or an alternate route of 2.2km to the Pinnacle.  Although it went against the opinion of our tired legs we chose the longer route and were so glad we did! It alternated between steps and then a stretch of flat path and was a more enjoyable walk.  Chad and Brenton had started to complain by this stage but they eventually got over it.  Regular stops for sugar fixes seemed to help.

We reached the Pinnacle just as it started to drizzle so we started bringing out the jackets. We took the obligatory photo at the lookout but I'm not a fan of those sort of heights. I was having conniptions just looking at Chad and Brenton going within 2 metres of the edge! We had a quick bite to eat and then took the shorter route back.

That's when we realised how fortunate we had been to take the longer route.  The 700m may have been shorter but it was definitely harder, even going down the stairs! Some of them were very steep!

Climbing down the stairs backwards!

Chad and Brenton chose to run ahead again, their energy magically re-appeared! Rowan set his own pace and I was happy not to have to carry him. 

When we finally made it back to the car we sat down for a few snacks.  The walk had taken 3.5 hours.

From there it was quicker and easier to keep driving up the mountain to Mackenzie Falls. Naturally we chose to go down the steps to the bottom of the waterfall.

A LONG way down!

 

The legs were a little shaky as we headed down but the view was worthwhile when we got to the bottom of the falls!  The boys were making regular trips across the stepping stones across the river  and then turned their attention to 'leaf races' down the river.

After a short break to enjoy the falls we started to ascend the steps. Wow that was hard work and a long trek up on tired legs!  It was a 2km return trip.

When we all made it back to the top we saw an emu casually walking past! On the drive back down we saw an echidna! We drove into Halls Gap (the town located at the bottom of the mountain) and bought some chips to settle the hunger pangs. We ate in the park surrounded by a huge flock of white cockatoos, then headed back to our camp for pizza for dinner around the campfire! Happy kids!

Pretty sure we all slept well that night!!!