To The Pinnacle and Beyond...

From the Wonderland Car Park we set out on the popular Pinnacle walk. 

After crossing the creek we entered the much smaller cousin of the US Grand Canyon, the Grampians very own Grand Canyon. Towering rocks and boulders some looking very precarious as if they could tumble at any moment. While others rushed past us… we meandered slowly – taking in the grandeur and splendour of our surroundings. It is certainly about the journey not just the destination in the case of hiking to the Pinnacle!

We paused at Cool Chamber – a cave / rock overhang, then again at the trickling Bridal Veil Falls where the kids posed behind the ‘wall’ of water. Not exactly a raging torrent despite recent rain.

Silent Street was where we tried to convince the kids that it wasn’t a name, but an instruction, but we didn’t manage to stay silent as we walked along this very narrow canyon and ascended the steep stairs at the other end.

From Silent Street it was a short walk across the rocky path to The Pinnacle. There we found an assortment of tourists, a magnificent looking jet black crow. His feathers glistened, his eyes were big. So much more majestic than the city crows! Small birds, possibly finches or wrens hopped around on rocks, looking for scraps dropped by the many human visitors.

We enjoyed the views, taking it all in over morning tea. With the sun out and after our 2.1 km uphill hike we had all ditched a layer or two.

Even though it is winter, there were still some of the famed wild flowers to be seen on our walk today. Here’s a couple of examples:

We decided to do a loop circuit, back along part of the Sundial Track which added another couple of km’s to our journey back to the Wonderland Car Park. This allowed us to collect a couple of geocaches on the way, including one that took us off the main tracks and scrambling to the top of one of the countless boulders.

Back at Wonderland Car Park, we decided what was another 700 metres to Splitters Falls? Well, it turned out, it was a longer 700 m than we had expected as it took us down, then up and down some stairs, through the lower section of the Grand Canyon, over the creek then up again around several more corners, over another bridge before back tracking to the falls…. Was worth it though!

I anticipate we walked around 8 kms today – which sounds easy enough, but considering the climbing and descending, the stairs, rocks and ladders, then I think we did very well! So well, that despite it being the middle of winter, we decided to join the crowds at one of the two ice cream shops in Halls Gap.

Back at the caravan, we enjoyed a campfire, eating dinner around it before toasting the obligatory marshmallows.