It’s a 35 degree, Sunday afternoon in the Grampians, the perfect time to put your feet up, turn on Channel 9 for the cricket with the air con on full and have a summer siesta. This was not the case today.
Peter, Stephen’s dad, is a local of the Grampians and was excited to take us for a hike up Mt Sturgeon. A few years back, Pete packed up his city lifestyle and headed for the slower paced life in Hamilton, Victoria. As a family, we have been on multiple day hikes in the area and try to get out on the trails as much as we can when visiting.
As you drive through Dunkeld, Mount Sturgeon towers over the little country town, jutting out of the earth like a shark fin. We had driven passed it many times, but until now, hadn’t considered climbing it.
Location: The trailhead starts at the intersection of Grampians Tourist Road and Victoria Valley Road, Grampians National Park
Length: 7km
Walk duration: 3 hours
Trail conditions: Rocky and can be slippery
Permits: None
Grade: Hard
The trailhead starts at the intersection of Grampians Tourist Road and Victoria Valley Road. This hike requires some stamina and fitness as it involves multiple rock steps and fairly steep ascent up the mountain. Pete was keen to take us up to this mountain as it had been closed due to upgrades.
The rock steps are a new addition to the trail since September 2017. Local stone has been used to strengthen the track. Throughout the walk, there are multiple lookouts that are great to stop and grab some photos.
Once reaching the summit, we got to soak in the panoramic views of the Grampians as well as the volcanic plains in the distance.
The views are rewarding and well worth the sweat and blisters.
Ok, I got blisters breaking in my new boots. I thought today was a great opportunity to test out my new Danner boots that I purchased on my recent trip to Portland, Oregon. The Danner Light Cascade boots are heavier than my regular hiking shoes but I fell in love with them for the design aspects and heavy duty feel. These boots started off nice and snug for the first 1 hour until the shoes starting rubbing against my thin socks and probably sweat. I did end up with some blisters on my heels but other than that I felt that my ankles were not going to roll and felt confident with leaps and multiple stepping movements.
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