"Bushwalked" Mount Bartle Frere yesterday - Up at 4:30am to start at dawn! "Blair Witch" effect on the video not intentional! Only light was from the car headlights.
It's the highest peak in Queensland
at 1622 meters (5,321 feet) starting at 700 meters (2,296 feet) from
the "Western Approach". The climb ascends 922 meters (3,025 feet), 15km return with an average gradient of 1 in 8. This may not
sound like much but going up 3,000 feet over 7.5km with a pack is a whole other story. The other thing is that you do a fair amount of going down then back up as you near the top, so the number of feet you end up climbing is well over 3,000.
The trail is dense brush/rainforest with large boulder features that is often hard to follow and sometimes seems impassable, as well as lots of scrambling over boulders and some rock climbing! By far the most difficult "hike" I've ever done. It's also known to be quite treacherous to climb given the rough and obscurely marked trail, as well as unpredictable weather and has a reputation for getting tourists in the news. Wikipedia has a good summary and Microsoft Live Search has a neat satellite hybrid map. Other detailed information on Wooroonooran National Park available from the Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service.
There is a strong recommendation not to climb this peak alone, which the locals don't seem to think is a big deal but of course I wouldn't advocate it even though I did it. Before going I would research it well and read a couple of different trail books. Topographical maps aren't incredibly helpful given that you can't see through the trees for the much of it, but they're available at the Park Service in Atherton or the map shop in Cairns. I'd recommend taking one. There are also small visitor centers in all the local towns but they don't have very detailed maps or trail guides.
I would also suggest checking that any trails you choose to hike are actually open before you go since they can get unsafe due to weather damage etc. I found that a closure won't necessarily be clearly marked on the actual trail. You can do this via the Park Service. I would also get very specific directions to the trailhead, especially if you plan in driving in before it gets light. You can get a 2-wheel drive down to the trailhead if it's dry, but I'd forget it if it's wet.
The "official" recommendation is to take two days to complete the return journey, camping about 3/4 of the way up, with a possible 10-12 hour day hike if you're up for it. There is a stern sign at the bottom reminding you of this. Total time for me took just over 8 hours up and
back with a couple of half hour breaks. I was pretty happy with that! Given that there aren't many more daylight hours than that at the time of year, I don't see how you could safely do it in 12. It is absolutely not somewhere you want to be in the dark and the trail will get dark long before the sun goes down given the density of the rainforest. May seem obvious, but tell somebody reliable where you're going and when you'll be back. Be prepared to spend the night if needed since there's no way they're coming for you at night.
The boulder scrambling got kinda crazy with crawling through "boulder caves", scrambling over huge boulders on a path that was little more than the occasional orange marker on a tree with no visible path through thick brush and over rock faces with some stuff that was basically vertical. It's hard to get a good sense of scale from the videos, but the boulders and rocks are much larger and steeper than they look. Sorry the lighting on some of the videos isn't great.
There was an amazing rest stop on the way up to the North West Peak where you sat on top of these enourmous rocks with incredible views over the rainforest and the entire valley.
I am
seriously hurting today, aching from head to foot since I was also
carrying a hefty backpack given the unpredictable conditions, turned
out it was an absolutely beautiful day even though it can get down to 3
degress C even at this time of year at the top depending on wind chill
whereas it can be 20 degress C at the bottom. You can also checkout the whole photo gallery.
"Walkers" (how this could be called a "walk" is beyond me!) are told to allow 10-12 hours in one day with a recommendation to camp near the top and do it over two days. Of course I wanted to do it in one. These pics are actually of the trail over some major boulders and rough stuff...
