Nature Club - Hike Guide; Pigeon House Mountain, Morton National Park, NSW, Australia
Compared to the last frightening hike I did, this was a real success. I went with two new friends and it was such an enjoyable experience. I hadn’t hiked in 17 months, and I’m also 7 months post Achilles rupture injury, so I was dubious as to how I would fare being drastically out of condition and all. Knowing I was hiking with friends alleviated any anxiety though, as I knew I had support if something went wrong. A friend organised the hike which was also a nice change for me, as sometimes choosing the hike and doing the research feels laborious. But this time all I had to do was pack, get picked up and voila!
The hike is literally up a huge, steep mountain, with incredible views at the top. There are virtually no flat sections, maybe just less steep gradients at the bottom. So if you don’t like walking up or downhill then rethink this hike. My calves the next day were sore. Having walking poles this time helped, especially coming down. Even though it was challenging, it was manageable, with some sections where the heart rate was up, it made me really appreciate getting to the top. The section at the top involves climbing vertical ladders that are bolted into the rock faces. I haven’t done any hikes like this before, and I'm not usually afraid of heights, but I really had to concentrate on these ladders and grip tightly to the hand rails. Very doable, but there was less chit chat and more focus on these sections!
Going in Spring was wonderful, as the wild flowers were out in full force. I was devastated that my film camera jammed at the beginning of the hike and I couldn’t use it (#fail), as the flowers would have danced lovingly across the analogue film. However I was reminded of a quote from a favourite book of mine, the ‘The Lion Trackers Guide to Life’ by Boyd Varty;
“The natural world, like a great zen roshi, is profoundly impartial. It meets life as it is without judgements or assumptions or wishes for something different. It is at one with itself.”
The flowers just needed to be in their own beautiful presence. Whether I was there to capture that beauty was insignificant.
The views from the top were truly spectacular, however we couldn’t stay up there too long as it was incredibly windy. We scaled back down a bit and found a nice little protected rock area for a snack though, and it’s always my favourite part of hiking… resting (as counter intuitive as that sounds). Feeling the aches start to creep into the body, finding some stillness in the vast, powerful surrounding nature, and mustering up some strength to continue on.
I would do this hike again for sure, however I must admit, the meanderer in me does love a flat route sometimes.
Hike Details
Hike Name - Pigeon House Mountain Didthul walking track
Trail Orientation - Up and down same way
Where - Morton National Park, in South Coast, Country NSW
Length - 7.1km return, took us 3.5 hours with a 20min snack break at the top
Difficulty - Challenging but not too hard. It’s graded as 4 out of 5 difficulty. The hard part is the steepness, there are hardly any flats sections.
When - Mid September, started walking at 8:30am. It was a two hour drive to get there so that’s the earliest we could manage and was a great time of day to walk.
Temp / Climate - Wind was cool on arrival, but the temp that day got up to 27 degrees. I wouldn't want to walk any later in the hotter parts of the day. I wore shorts, t-shirt and jumper which I took on and off, glad I had it (almost didn’t take it as the forecast looked hot, but mountains are always their own climate!)
Gear - Got it pretty right this time! I took a back pack with 2 litres of water which I drank, snacks, a first aid kit, and a camera. I wore my husbands shorts (note to self buy a pair), they were fine as it was dry, long woolen socks and sneakers did the job. I had walking poles which really helped on the way down as it was so steep. I tried out my Hikerkind Midlayer 01 Polartec Powerair, and loved how it felt moving, how lightweight it was and the warmth it gave me, and of course the pockets! I’m a sucker for a good pocket.
Crowds - We passed about 12 other groups/solo people. Busy enough to feel safe but definitely not overcrowded, we were walking with no one around us most of the time.
Wins;
Finishing injury free!
Packing everything I needed (not over or under packing)
Doing the walk with new friends, my cup was full afterwards
New favourite snack courtesy of Gemma - Pitted dates with cottage cheese and salt. YUM.
Fails;
Not reloading my film camera before we set off. And not testing it, as it was jammed and I couldn’t use it. But it’s heavy and I had to carry it the whole way, so it was a pointless exercise.. note to self, always double check equipment prior to setting off.
