Pigeon House Mountain

THEN AND NOW

Three years ago I took Jack to Pigeon House for his first hike. He did a great job, but we didnt quite make it to the top. So this year we decided it is time we gave it another try.

On a beautiful summers morning, we set off south shortly after 8am. It was Australia Day weekend, but we were surprised that there was little traffic on the road. We made it safely to the base of the great monolith shortly after 10am.

After we explained to Sarah that the '500m' we needed to travel was in elevation, and not distance travelled, we set off up the first steep section. The climb is pretty simple with a well marked track and National Park steps to help you up the really steep sections.

At the end of the first steep section, there is a great spot to lookout over the valley bellow, which we did. We also took on some much needed water and food before heading along the next easy ridge line section. With this behind us, it was the final push to the summit!

The final push includes another 300m of elevation which starts out pretty tought, but the National Parks guys have installed some great ladders at the top which means we dont have to pull out the ropes!

Once at the top, we were blown away by the amazing views. You can clearly see Byangee Walls, The Castle, The Clyde River Valley and everything else in the Budawangs region. Around on the eastern side of the mountain top, we sat for a while looking out over the ocean before starting the walk back down to the car park.

Although easier, the walk down still took a quick toll on the legs! Starting early was a benefit since it was nice and quite for us at the top. On the way down we were passed by many people heading up!

Once back at the car park we settled back to recover from our ordeal. Jack and Sarah took in the shade of the hikers hut while I cooked up some sausages for a late lunch.

The score is now Pigeon House 1, The Heathcotes 1!!