Mt Abrupt
Mt Abrupt lies at the southern end of the Grampians and I have
probably been up this mountain more timesthan any other in the
Grampians. I've competed in two Mt Abrupt Fun Runs (I came 11th and
5th) which followed the more direct route up the south side of the
mountain. The run started and finished at the race track in Dunkeld
and was quite a challenge considering the gradient of the track and
the numerous obstacles along the way.
![[ gramp048 ]](images/gramp048.jpg) But
the main inspiration to climb Mt Abrupt was a sketch by Major Sir
Thomas Mitchell who climbed the mountain in 1836 while exploring
this region of Victoria. It's a view that just had to be
photographed, and with the east facing cliffs, it just had to be
done at dawn. And so, armed with a tent, sleeping bag and 4X5 camera
I spent my first cold night on top of the mountain. Bringing a tent
was a stupid idea as there is nowhere to pitch one and I slept under
a boulder near the peak. The night was clear and the puddle on top
of my rock had frozen over but a few hours before sunrise the clouds
rolled in.
With no direct sun the shot was always going to be blue but then
again Mt William was origianlly named Mt Blue by Mitchell. This is
never the less one of the greast views in the Grampians.
![[ gramp015 ]](images/gramp015.jpg) Undeterred
I have made many more trips up the mountain, taking the easier but
longer northern approach, but every trip has so far been met by low
cloud and bad weather. The northern approach is so much easier to
navigate than the southern approach that I now climb up in the dark
rather than spend the night at the peak (I actually find it easier
to follow the track at night than during the day, especially through
the low scrub on top of the mountain). It's still a shot that I'm
waiting to get and one day..... |
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