Trig #16 - Mount Majura

Holy Moley!

After doing this for 5 months, it’s not often that I think seriously about giving up on a walk, but today I came close. Perhaps it was a combination of 2 really big and busy weeks at work, the closeness to the end of term and the fact that I’d done a workout in the morning that involved lots of holding in a squat position (and bloody burpees!)...but I found Mount Majura HARD! 

I set off after work once again, which of course meant that some of the walk was completed in semi-darkness (when will I learn?!).

I parked on Mackenzie Street in Hackett and right from the start I liked the walk. Right from the start it was on a well maintained track with a true bush feel. 

In terms of things to catch your eye and scenery I think it was one of the most enjoyable walks I’ve done (outside the Newcastle one of course!), as the walk was just as lovely as the view from the top. The Summit Walk trail winds its way through a beautiful grassy woodland, full of big old red and yellow box gums and tiny little wildflowers (they could very well have been weeds, but hey, they were pretty!). 

There is also plenty of wildlife. I saw kangaroos, lots of rosellas and plenty of other birds. So pretty!

There is a gradual incline right from the start. You know it’s getting serious when you take a zig-zag path up and up and up. But it’s ok, because the zig-zag cuts back on a bit of the steepness.

There are some very lovely views along the way: to the west across the airport and to the ranges, and then to the east across Belconnen and Gungahlin.

My legs were sore from the start but stubborn old me kept plodding along, eventually getting into a rhythm where I thought: this isn’t too bad.

Then, I got to a bit of a crossroads where a wider fire trail took over, and it got steep. And it kept going. For almost a kilometre it was up-up-up, including a pretty steep section where I just about gave it away.

But, eventually I got there. It took me much longer than I thought it would, but the view was nice, and it was another to cross off the list. 

Unfortunately I couldn’t linger as it was nearly sunset, so I turned around and went back down. By the time I got to the bottom it was pretty dark,  it not as much as last week!

This is definitely one I’ll put on the list to try again, even just for some nice walking around the bottom. 😁

Mount Majura
Elevation gain - 890m
Time to trig - about 50 minutes
Difficulty - medium-hard. It’s steep! Especially the last bit.
Best part - the beautiful bush along the way.