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Mount Maroon, one of the Scenic Rims most interesting mountains with many alternate routes up and wildlife like i've never seen before.
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For me ever since I first heard there were caves on Mount Maroon, I wanted to find them. My initial exploration attempt was unsuccessful but after some additional research and a chance conversation, I was lucky enough to get there eventually.
“For me ever since I first heard there were caves on Mount Maroon, I wanted to find them. My initial exploration attempt was unsuccessful but after some additional research and a chance conversation, I was lucky enough to get there eventually. .”
The Adventure
Mt Maroon is a beautiful mountain, from the drive out to the Scenic Rim through the gorgeous countryside of Rathdowney, to the stunning views of Barney from the peak, its one of South East Queensland most popular mountain hikes.
Knowing how incredible the views are we decided to set off before sunrise so as to capture the Scenic Rim in all its golden beauty and nature did not let us down.
We began the hike on the tourist track but quickly veered off to the right and began to head towards the mountain. The path we followed was non existent, or at least it appeared so in the predawn light we were hiking in, and there was no trail markers to show us we were on the right track so we had to trust in our topographical maps that we were on the right path.
The trek itself to the first cave didn't take too long and after crossing a small creek we continued upwards for another 30 minutes before we eventually hit the cliffs at the rock base and made our way right before finding the route upwards to the caves.
We made it just in time to watch the golden dawn light illuminate the valley and surrounding mountains.
The walls looked like honeycomb and were made of soft limestone type rock making it difficult to climb but fun to play in!
After spending some time celebrating our success and watching the valley slowly brighten under the morning sun, we left the first cave to continue upwards to the summit.
After pushing our way through the bush we were surprised to find another cave, this one was extremely sandy and the views weren't as good but it was a bonus we didn't expect to come across!
The hike to the peak was one of the most fun treks I have been on to date, mainly because we had no path to follow so were really just enjoying the exploration. Filled with larger boulders to scramble up, the holds were not always obvious making it a more thoughtful hike then most and the views along the way were spectacular at every turn.
If you weren't comfortable with off track hiking I would recommend returning back the way you came and going up the traditional tourist track.
I managed to lose another pair of sunglasses so if you happen to find them up there send me a message!
Namaste,
Lia
“Lost is a state of mind, I prefer to think of it as exploring” - Lia Skye
What to Expect
A very non existent trail with lots of spiders, bush bashing and lots of fun scrambles!
How to get there
Put Cotswold Rd into your GPS and follow along until the carpark at the end or click here for Google Maps
Equipment
Water – I took 3L on this hike as I new there was the possibility of it taking longer than expected, if you're planning on going off track adventure make sure to take extra water and snacks.
Take Gaiters!! For some reason I decided to leave the Gaiters behind on this hike, not my smartest move. The hike to the caves really doesn't follow a trail so make sure if you have them, pack them!
Snacks
Knowing we could be up the mountain for quite a few hours we prepared some delicious salad wraps, Clif Bars and some of my fave Primal Vegan Jerky
As always make sure to take all your rubbish and packaging with you!
Further Reading (for all the technical deets)
You can read all about Mount Maroon and the traditional tourist trail hike here by clicking here
The seemingly endless photo gallery...
