Although it got to 37 degrees today, I went for a walk with Shewey and Janet up Mt St Leonard, a mountain in the Yarra Ranges near Healesville. Mt St Leonard is a little over 1,000 metres high, and the walk up ascends around 800 metres. On a hot day, that’s a good work out! I’m sure it wasn’t 37 at the top. At the summit is a fire and communications tower, and a decent view over the Yarra Valley.
The walk starts at Donnelly’s Weir, a few kilometres from Healesville, accessed by a dusty gravel road and requires crossing a ford (which 2WDs can manage easily). The track ascends a ridge, following a mix of fire break and 4WD track. There are some very steep sections, which give the calf muscles a good run on the ascent. It took around 3 hours up, and a bit less on the way down.
We came across an echidna (see video below) and some lyre birds in the forest. There is a viewing deck next to the fire tower, although today was a bit hazy in the heat.
Two-thirds of the way up the hill, we came across an echidna with its beak snuffling out ants or something from under a rock. We tried to stay quiet and see if it would wander away, but it was as timid as every other echidna I’ve ever met. An uneventful video, but here it is.
1 comment
Comments are closed.