As Autumn approaches, when the temperature is starting to get cooler and the leaves start to change colour, it is the perfect season to visit the Granite Belt.
The region is located near the Queensland and NSW border, and its national parks are perfect examples of the working magic of time and nature, which has sparked the interest for my first visit, and my return thereafter.
If you are thinking about visiting, I would recommend you stay nearby overnight, as it is a 3 hour drive (one way) to get to Girraween National Park from Brisbane, and about another hour to get to Bald Rock National Park. I did The Pyramid Track in Girraween National Park and Bald Rock Track in Bald Rock National Park in one day. But if you are staying for a short period in the Granite Belt region, there are plenty of interesting walking tracks that you can choose.
I stayed in Boonah due to the lack of local knowledge and it's close proximity to Brisbane. However, I would recommend you to stay in Tenterfield. Don't get me wrong, Boonah is a picturesque town, but Tenterfield would be a lot better given that it is closer to both parks.You can even enjoy a afternoon stroll while submerged in the Autumn scenery and rich history of this little NSW town.
What is amazing about these places is, its profound rock formation. Not just the rocky peaks, but also along the way. I mentioned the magic of nature and time before, the combination of the two has made the rock formation look like it's been dropped on earth from another planet. The balancing rock at the top of the first Pyramid Rock is an excellent example of that, as it is wide and thick towards the top and narrow and thin at the bottom. It appears that with one tiny push, someone can easily tip the rock over.
Volcanic activity gave birth to these places and with time, erosion has shaped these places into the beauty that exist in front of us today. This has got me thinking about myself. Parents have given me life, and social connections and experiences shapes/changes my personality. So why do we sometimes feel so cynical and become very conservative with change? Is it because that the process is too painful for us to handle?
If Bald Rock in Bald Rock National Park is the second largest monolith (rock mountain) in Australia after Uluru, I would say that one of the rock peaks in Girraween National Park is the third largest one. Even though they are not red, they have their own uniqueness. Besides the big rocky peaks, you can find and identify differently shaped rock giants along the walking track, for example, the heart shaped rock, the oven mitten or boxing glove rock, the rock shaped like a sea seal with a big smile and of course, the Granite Arch, which is a rocky doorway formed by three huge rocks.
There are many walking tracks in Girraween National Park fitting a variety of individuals, with the Granite Arch being one of them. The two more known ones are The Pyramid Rocks and the Castle's Rock trail. They are of course the most challenging ones, where you would need some rock scrambling on the huge rack face to the peak. For these tracks, the safest and ideal walking trail is marked by white dotted lines. For me, it is an experience outside of my comfort zone, it is also a test for me to discover just how much tension I can hold and how it feels to be testing the comfort of my boundaries. I can tell you, it is all in the head, that is you always imagine the worst case scenario (Yes, that's a scary thought). If you want more challenge, you can climb the second Pyramid which would require rock climbing experience.
The Pyramid Rocks and Bald Rock are short trails to take, so it is less time consuming. If you do plan to go on longer walks, such as the Castle's Rock and the Sphinx, I would recommend to start your day really early. I would avoid the rock walk during rainfall or shortly after that as it is slippery and exposed to cliff edge.
The Bald Rock trail is a lot easier compared to the Pyramid. You can either choose to do the intensive 700m walk up the rock face to the submit, or the slightly over 2km gradual walk through the forest. Once you are at the top, make your walk through to the second rock where you will get a panoramic view of the surrounding mountain ranges and rock formations. The rock face climb is also marked by these round white dots, which in some sections turns into white squares for some unknown reason. Maybe the person has gotten tired of drawing circles and wanted a change.
On the way down through the longer walking track, you will experience lots of smaller rock forms up close. I kept seeing little rock piles, and at first I thought they are left by the people who has been here, but then I saw something (rock piles) which made me realise that it has been intentionally put there at those specific spot. I'm still not sure the prupose of it, but it is a sight to be remembered.
I arrived at the park around 2, maybe 3pm, which is pretty late in the afternoon given the shorten daytime in Autumn (sun down at around 5pm), I wanted to get to the submit as quickly as possible because I wasn't sure about the distance or the difficulty of the hike, and I was not prepared for a descend in the dark, so I went up from the 700m rock face walk and came down from the 2km stroll. The whole track took me about 1 to 1.5 hours (with picture snapping and taking in the astonishing scenery) which is a lot shorter than I originally thought. On top of that, the setting sun has put a layer of redness to the surrounding ridges, which made my trip wholesome.
At last, a side note, please leave nothing but your footsteps behind as these are delicate environments and we want to pass them on, for our next few generations to experience.
You only live once, so enjoy every minute of it! YOLOHiking!
