one of the best hikes

Totally quenched my inner fire. And I'm a happy girl ready to take on the world again XD This 6hrs hike is probably the biggest challenge I've faced in a while and it's totally wicked sick!

2hrs drive south of Brisbane lies a certain Mt. Barney. The area around the lower and upper portals is where all the excitement unfolds ^_^

The hike reminds me so much of the one down Wallaman Falls with Ally and Surein, I was even basking in the joy of the memory ^_^ The first part of the hikes were quite similar, where the ground is clad with open eucalyptus forest typical to this region. Then it came to the never ending uphill downhill uphill downhill bit. After a few creak crossing, we arrived at the lower portals of Mt. Barney after about 1hr15min. Then, it was time to get wet, and we found a shallow place at around knee hight to wade thru the rather rapid stream.

We then continued to hike thru a particularly high hill to get to the upper portal. And then the fun, or terror, whichever way you want to look at it, beggins ^_^

The picture shows a part of the valley at the upper portal, with Mt. Barney itself as background. Walking, sliding, dropping, climbing, lizarding up and down the rocks, was the only way to traverse the valley. To be honest, wearing a pair of running shoes, I couldn't have done the lizarding parts without the attention of the seasoned rock climbers.

A small drama to add some effects:
We departed Brisbane at 6am and I got dropped off home at around 6.30pm. The hike is finished at an effective 40degC heat. Two of our group of 15 got heat stroke and needed a small rescue team to bring in water and electrolytes. Fortunately both recovered after taking the electrolytes and were able to walk again. In the end they even came to the pub for a beer with us :) Similar incident happened in the same hike the year before, and I'm just glad that everyone turned out OK. Lesson learnt: always bring your first aid kit to a hike!

Bad sleep at the backpackers last nite, and it's been a long day. Seeking my bed soon, nites :)

late PS: signed up for this coming Sunday's hike at Binna Burra, Lamington National Park ^_^