Onkaparinga in April

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Introduction

We were up early so we committed to a big walk today - Onkaparinga. This is a long and tough walk, and as it turned out it was the toughest and scariest walk we have had for some time.

What happened

We started off well on the Sundews track, making our way down into the gorge. Instead of turning left, we turned right and rock hopped down the creek for about an hour. We had some seen some interesting sites - herons fishing, a canoe tree and bull rushes. As we rock-hopped, we looked around for the path that would take us up to the lookout at the top of a hill - but it became clear that we had missed it. As we were eating our sandwiches we looked up to the hill we had just passed and there in the sunlight we could see the shiny surface of the lookout that we normally would walk up to.

At this point it was suggested that we return along the creek, looking for the up track more carefully - but this was ignored and the group was forced to scale the side of the hill. Without ropes or footings we climbed the sheer cliff face. It had been very dry that the rocks easily dislodged and plummeted towards the climber below. One wrong step and the climber (and anyone below) would fall to the bottom of the gorge. It was horrific. There was much prayer. We clung onto any available tree and we were all scratched by the time we made it to the top. Never again.

After surviving the climb, the rest of the walk, with its ultra steep decents and hills, seemed simple.

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Photos

Canoe tree
Perhaps previous locals used this bark to raft down the Onkaparinga

Roos on the track
A pair of kangaroos were disturbed as we started the walk into the gorge

Regeneration
A part of the park had burnt during summer - but now it is springing back to life

Rock markers
Small cairns on a series of rocks - very arty

Heading upstream
Rock hopping

Muddy feet
We came across a heron fishing ground

Top view
Hard to believed we scrambled up that hill - clinging on for dear life on any trees and rocks that would hold us - very very scary

Sundews
This is why it is called the Sundews track - little white sundews bursting through at the top of the hill.