Hucks Lookout 19 May 2006

Set out for a 16 km hike along the St Marys Peak Trail in the Pound. St Marys is the highest mountain in SA at 1610m. The next closest range is the ABC range named for its 26 peaks! The geology of this area is remarkable. Wilpena Pound is a natural amphitheatre that was formed about 500 million years ago, through the erosion of a mountain chain. The trail started off OK and we bumped into lots of kangaroos and emus. However once it met the ranges, it turned into a mountain climb with near vertical clamber of rocks (Like Hang Dog!) We were exhausted by the time we reached the top, but were rewarded with 360deg views of the various mountain ranges, as well as looking down into Wilpena Pound. We didn’t feel too bad after we meet a group of young back packers on a whirlwind bus trip (with a guide herding them up the mountain), who looked worse than us. The first German fellow flew past and then along came the rest who referred to him as Amazon Man. The last two Irish girls were extremely red cheeked. We passed them (as we were going down) and smiled. Showered, had a cup of tea and drove off late and settled at Hucks Lookout with a fantastic 360deg view yet again. Woke up to a brilliant colourful sunrise.