From Lofty Heights

Day: 351

Towns / Cities Visited: 250

Countries Visited: 31

Steps Taken Today: 19,420

Steps Taken Around the World: 5,539,290

It seemed a luxury to be able to sleep until my brain felt so inclined as to wake up. Well, of course, it would have been if that was what had happened. Alas, I was awoken by the squawking of kids on school camp and the seemingly incessant buzz of incoming and outgoing planes overhead. You know, because our campsite was under the local flight path.

Still, we were determined to enjoy our day and so we ventured out soon enough in search of our main adventure: Waterfall Gully Hike. Winding our way through the forested hills, we eventually pulled into the car park, the reason for its fullness becoming abundantly clear as we looked to our left to see a spectacular waterfall cascading just a short walk away.

Grabbing our jackets and the backpack with our provisions, we set off towards it. The waterfall might be all natural, but the pool at the bottom has been prettied up a little by human hands, a second wide lip providing a supplementary cascade to enjoy. Unfortunately, the tranquil nature of it was somewhat dampened by the drone of leafblowers being wielded by four park staff. Honestly, those things are the bane of the world and an atrocious waste of petrol and time. If you really must get leaves off the path, use a broom.

Now, we weren’t just here to ogle a waterfall, we were here to trek up to Mount Lofty Summit, and this involved us engaging in the 4km grade 4 trail that leads up there. Of course, the grade 4 rating meant we had some idea that it would be a challenging path, but this is not because it is rocky, or slippery, or otherwise obstacle filled. In fact, the entire track is sealed, which was a first for us. No, its difficulty is purely due to 75% of it being on such a steep gradient that your body ends up hating you within the first twenty steps or so.

Sufficed to say, there was much groaning and huffing to be had along the way, my calves demanding we turn back more than once. That being…