Glass House Mountains

Go back to Southeastern Australia Roadtrip.

Mount Coonowrin.

We arrived in Brisbane on a Sunday evening and were in our hotel near to the Glass House Mountains after 11pm. Our plans to get an early start the next morning were overly optimistic and so we got to the Mount Tibrogargan trailhead by about 8am. Even at that hour the temperature was already in the low 30s Celsius. A 45 minute hike and some searching around finally put us at the base of our chosen route on the Northeast Buttress of the mountain. Though this may seem like a less than an ideal aspect, fact is that at those latitudes and at that time of the year there are no shady faces if you decide to sleep in. We started up Blabbermouth (7 pitch, Australian 16). After one pitch we were baking; two pitches up we were starting to hallucinate. And so we threw in the towel and bailed. By the time we got back to the car the thermometer was showing 43C and temperature was rising. Next day, we woke up a touch earlier and were at the base of the route by 6am: Remains Of The Day (5 pitch, 17) once again on Mount Tibro which really has the longest and best looking multi-pitch lines of the area. That day turned out to be partly cloudy and so the temps never broke 30C during our morning climb. What little climbing we did there was fun: face routes on volcanic rock with a mix of bolts supplemented by a piece here and there and on surprisingly solid rock. Though we would not go out of our way to go back, we’d definitely stop by for another climb or two were we in the neighborhood. After a quick lunch, we hit the road and headed for our next destination: Warrumbungles National Park in New South Wales some 8 hours away.

Photos

Glasshouse Mountains Ecolodge (Dec. 2019).

Glasshouse Mountains Ecolodge breakfast in a railcar. Our first morning of the trip (Dec. 2019).

Glasshouse Mountains Ecolodge – welcome to Australia (Dec. 2019).

Starting the short but already plenty hot approach to Mount Tibrogargan (Dec. 2019).

A bit jet lagged as well (Dec. 2019).

Starting up Blabbermouth (this is actually Blabbermouth VS or the direct start) in what were positively scorching conditions (Dec. 2019).

Shirley starting up pitch 1 (Dec. 2019).

Delirious Shirley arriving at the pitch 1 belay (Dec. 2019).

Starting the lead of pitch 2 (Dec. 2019).

Looking back at Shirley from the start of pitch 2 of Blabbermouth (Dec. 2019).

Higher on the scorching pitch 2 (Dec. 2019).

Shirley starting up pitch 2 of Blabbermouth (Dec. 2019).

Nearing the top of pitch 2 of Blabbermouth (Dec. 2019).

Mount Coonowrin (right) from Blabbermouth on Mount Tibro. Unfortunately closed to all activities (Dec. 2019).

Arriving at the second belay on Blabbermouth (Dec. 2019).

A close-up of Mount Coonowrin (Dec. 2019).

Bailing off pitch 2 with mild heat strokes (Dec. 2019).

Shirley delirious with heat at the base of Blabbermouth (Dec. 2019).

Hiking down in some oppressive heat (Dec. 2019).

Resting “in the shadow” of Mount Tibrogargan (Dec. 2019).

That white streak is the hiker’s route to Mount Tibro’s summit (Dec. 2019).

It was hot (Dec. 2019).

Glass House Mountains overlook. Mount Tibrogargan is on the right, Mount Coonowrin is on the left (closed to all use; Dec. 2019).

Shirley and Mount Coonowrin (Dec. 2019).

Mount Tibrogargan from the west (Dec. 2019).

Mount Coonowrin from an overlook point (Dec. 2019).

Cooling off in the car (Dec. 2019).

Mount Tibro from the west (Dec. 2019).

Mount Tibrogargan from the southwest (Dec. 2019).

Mount Coonowrin (Dec. 2019).

Stocking up for the next few days of the trip (Dec. 2019).

Second time on approach to Mount Tibro – a much easier and a much cooler hike (Dec. 2019).

Starting up pitch 1 of Remains Of The Day on Tibro’s Carborundum Wall (Dec. 2019).

Shirley on pitch 1 of Remains Of The Day (Dec. 2019).

Nice fun climbing on this pitch (Dec. 2019).

We were quite grateful for the overcast that morning (Dec. 2019).

Shirley arriving at the first belay (Dec. 2019).

Moving the belay to the start of pitch 1 (Dec. 2019).

Leading pitch 2 (Dec. 2019).

Shirley starting up pitch 2 (Dec. 2019).

Glass House Mountains is a National Park but a bit of an oddity: patches of protected land (around the volcanic plugs) are separated by swaths of farmland (Dec. 2019).