Mount Warning

Mount Warning National park is one of the smallest NP's around, however it also stands out the most. This mountain peak is on the other side of the volcanic formation from Springbrook Plateau and Mount Tamborine which we visited previously. You can actually see Mount Warning in a lot of our photos from these 2 days as you look across the valley.

We thought that it looked like a good challenge to take a walk up it and join the 60,000 people each year who make the 9km round trip to the top and back.








Mt Warning is known to the Bundjalung people as Wollumbin, meaning ‘cloud catcher’, ‘fighting chief of the mountain’ and ‘weather maker’. Although everyone does it, under Bundjalung law, only specifically chosen people are allowed to climb the mountain and consequently they ask you not to go, out of respect. We only found this out afterwards and didn't think it was very well advertised. However it turns out that I have a photo of the sign that we clearly didn't pay attention to!!

The mountain got the name Mount Warning after Captain Cooks visit in 1770 where his ship almost crashed into rocks at Point Danger near Tweed Heads and he named it to warn fellow sea travellers.

The ascent to the top is steep and the last 400 metres involves an almost vertical scramble up the rocks where you need to hold onto a chain to pull yourself up. It takes around 4 hours for a round trip which is far better than the 3 and a half days it took the first ascenders of the mountain to just reach the top.

The peak is the first part of mainland Australia to be touched by sunlight each day in the winter time.

The walk was a good challenge and the views from the top were not too bad, however I think we preferred the views when you are looking onto this particular mountain rather than being on top of it looking down.