Mt Greville from Moogerah Dam
I last climbed Mt Greville four years ago. I went up Palm Gorge and down South East Ridge. I found that walk pretty tough as it was a fast walk and I wasn't very fit. I wrote about that walk
here.
There is some interesting history in that article about the first night climb of the mountain and information about who the mountain was named after. Mount Greville is a cone-shaped and deeply fissured mountain in South East Queensland. The mountain rises 720 m above sea level and is part of the Moogerah Peaks National Park. The distance is about 6 kilometres, although people have measured it to be up to 8 kilometres return.
Heading up South East Ridge
It lies approximately 100 km south west of Brisbane, just outside the town of Boonah. This walk was listed as one for first-timers to climb the mountain, so I signed up for it thinking it would be slower than the first time I did it.
South East Ridge
We drove out through Aratula towards Cunningham's Gap. We turned off at the Spicers Gap Road and followed it for about 8 kilometres, then turned into Mt Greville Road.
Mt Greville Cliffs
South East Ridge
Nine of us set off up the mountain on the South East Ridge track on a recent cold winter Sunday morning It was the first time for seven walkers and two of us had done it before. Our leader had done the walk many times previously.
On way to Slabs
I must have been fitter than last time because I found going up much easier, even though it was steep and slippery in places. We also had more stops on the way up than on my last trip. There were beautiful views looking back over the mountains of the scenic rim.
Top of Mt Greville
I did have one slip and landed on my inner arm and thigh which both turned a nice purple colour over the next couple of days. It was a nice cool sunny day, which was good for climbing up with a blue sky and lovely views.
Handy trees to hold onto
We had a break for morning tea at the top of the gorge before heading up to the mountain top. After admiring the views from side tracks near the top, we headed down to the slabs for lunch. We got a bit off track a few times and had to do some bush bashing, but easily got back on track using GPS.
Heading down to slabs for lunch
After lunch admiring the gorgeous views over Lake Moogerah, we set off down Waterfall Gorge. It was a bit challenging because some of the rocks were damp and slippery. A couple of our walkers had incidents. One woman twisted her ankle and one man fell and hurt his elbow.
Lake Moogerah from slabs
This slowed us down a bit, but we eventually reached the end and found the route out of the gorge back to the carpark.
Interesting coffin shaped rock
One man discovered a tick in his armpit on the way down. One of the other walkers froze it to kill it before removing it. It is a good idea to be prepared for ticks. Don't be like me and end up with a mammalian meat allergy from a
tick bite.
Looking into the gorge
One woman in front of me was leaping over the wet rocks and powering ahead. She hadn't been on many walks with the club before and I asked her if she had done a lot of bushwalking. She said she grew up in the bush and had done lots of these types of walks before.
Heading down
We only saw four other people heading up Waterfall gorge. They were young and heading up fairly late in the afternoon. The two girls didn't even have packs. I hope they made it up and back before dark.
Waterfall Gorge
Palm trees in Waterfall Gorge
We did see some rock climbers in the gorge. They were climbing up the sheer cliffs.
Rope for rock climbers in Waterfall Gorge
You do need to go with someone who has climbed the mountain before unless you are experienced at navigation. You need to wear appropriate shoes or boots with good grip, especially if it has been wet and the rocks are slippery. There aren't many signs, just some rock cairns and some orange triangles on some of the rock slabs. A lot of people get lost on this mountain, so you do need to take it seriously.
Into Waterfall Gorge
We were lucky to have an ecologist with us on the walk who pointed out lots of birds and plants. I have now been up to or down all three routes on the mountain, including Palm Gorge, Waterfall Gorge and South East Ridge. I look forward to going back again. It is such an interesting, challenging mountain with lots of surprises and different environments.
Waterfall Gorge
It took us longer than expected to finish the walk due to going slow because of injuries. It is a wonderful mountain and I loved every bit of the walk. I was a bit stiff and sore for a couple of days after, but was on a high for days.
Looking into Waterfall Gorge
