Mt Beau Brummel

Mt Beau Brummel

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Posted 2021-10-06 by Roz Glazebrookfollow


We were supposed to climb in August but that trip was postponed because of a COVID lockdown. I finally got to do it recently. The weather forecast was very hot and I almost withdrew from the walk, but I am glad I didn't pull out.



is a prominent mountain in the Little Liverpool Range southwest of Ipswich. The 667m mountain is part of a Conservation Park, East of Thornton.



It is on private property and you do need special permission to climb the mountain from Ipswich City Council and the Queensland Trust for Nature. Thornton is a mountainous area bounded to the west by the ridge of the Mistake Mountains range and to the east by the ridge of the Little Liverpool Range. Laidley Creek passes through the valley from south to north between the two mountain ranges.



The Queensland Trust for Nature works across Queensland's diverse bioregions with targeted strategies for effective conservation and improved biodiversity. Queensland has 13 bioregions, from coast to desert and tropics to cool southern highlands. The organisation focuses on ecologically significant spaces, species and wildlife corridors across these bioregions for maximum impact working on private, public, QTFN owned and Traditional Owners' land.



The future of natural habitat in the Little Liverpool Range has been assured through a collaborative partnership between key landowners including the Turner Family to create the Little Liverpool Range Initiative. The Initiative has been built on a strong partnership between the Turner Family Foundation, Queensland Trust for Nature and the Ipswich City Council with the common goal of conservation.



This partnership delivers natural connectivity between Mount Grandchester Conservation Estate, Hidden Vale Nature Refuge and Mount Beau Brummell Conservation Park.

Little Liverpool Range provides a link between Main Range National Park and the Great Eastern Ranges. The range has been identified as an important wildlife corridor, heavily vegetated and home to significant animal species including the Glossy Black-Cockatoo, Powerful Owl, Brush-tailed Rock-Wallaby and Little Pied Bat.



Our bushwalking group had to sign individual indemnity forms before being able to enter the area.

I'm not sure how the mountain got its name but Beau Brummell was an important figure in Regency England famous for men's fashion. I think I read somewhere that it was named by explorer Alan Cunningham, but that may be wrong. The mountain has twin peaks with outstanding views in all directions.



There were ten of us on the walk. The first part of the walk involved walking up a dirt road. It was very hot and dry. After a few hills, the track led off up the side of a ridge towards the summit of the mountain. We had a few breaks along the way. There were wonderful views as we climbed higher and the terrain was very interesting as we walked through lots of grass trees.

There were lots of insects on the mountaintop all over the plants. I managed to get some photos and posted them on an Australian insect identification page and found out they were soldier beetles (Chauliognathus lugubris). We saw lots of kangaroos, but no other wildlife.





The beetles were very pretty but some gardeners consider them to be pests. Their common names are plague soldier beetle, green soldier beetle or banana bugs. They are native to Australia.



There were some interesting old structures on the mountaintop. I'm not sure what they were. Some readers may know. They could have been weather radars?



After walking down the side of the mountain, we came to a beautiful gully full of flowering giant spear lilies. I had only seen them once before on Mt Cordeaux in the Main Range at Cunningham Gap.



After a lunch break on the way down, we got back to the cars around 2pm and headed off to Porters Plainland Hotel, which is an icon on the Warrego Highway for drinks and snacks.



It was a great day out. Our walk was only 9.27 kilometres long with 513 elevation gain, but it felt longer. There was one area where we had to bush bash through some lantana and wait a while so we got some scratches. Luckily, I didn't see any Gympie stinging trees.





#environment
#grandchester
#health_fitness
#lockyer_valley
#nature
#outdoor
#walks
%wnbrisbane
139827 - 2023-06-13 16:01:49

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