Abseiling Adventure - in our own backyard

This morning we had an adventure in our backyard, well the back of the property, which is kind of our backyard. There is a gorge that lies about an hour out, by 4WD. The track to get there is steep and rocky and overgrown. You really need to know where you are going and what you are looking for or you'll never find it. At times the road sits high on the ridgeline, with sharp drops on each side. Grace and I were in the back seat of the 4WD, holding onto the door handle, trying not to slide into the door, or each other, but our butts were squished together as we fought gravity and the forbie fought the road. A couple of false trips on side roads that didn't exist and we finally found it, a valley with a creek running through the base, that tumbles into the gorge, all hidden in trees. Sheer cliffs camouflaged.

It was a beautiful sunny morning for an abseil, we hiked to the edge of the cliff for a look out at the view. We could easily see to Laidley and wondered if the open fields at the end of the range were Bubbling Spings - our house and paddocks. The electricity poles certainly said that the view was our backyard. Eerie, to be so high up and far away and realise we were standing on the open exposed saddle of the range that we can see from our lounge room.

We geared up and one of the guides went down first. All we could hear was the clattering of loose rocks falling to the ground, smashing like plates at a Greek wedding. It was a scary thought that we'd soon be standing down where those rocks fell. Grace went next, then me. I thought it would be easy to go over the edge, given my climbing adventures, but I'd underestimated how hard it was to stand out on an edge and gradually go over the lip and stand sideways, especially in boots and not climbing shoes. The belay was totally different and my balance was off, with the control of tension below my body instead of above. I got stuck in a crack when the rope swung out from the rock where there was a roof and where my feet could not touch. I ran into a fern and my shoulder hugged the sides of the crack and was glad when I got to the ground. Anyway, it was a fabulous feeling afterward, being in that wild secret place surrounded by trees and vines and sheer cliffs, a place that no one would find unless they knew where to look.

We climbed out through a narrow chimney that water had carved through the rock, leaving natural 'steps' that led up to the creek and we could easily get back to the top.

For me the best part was knowing that I had done it, when for so long now I've felt there were so many things I could not do. I would do it again, but I think it would be more fun to climb than abseil, there is something more challenging and satisfying about conquering a rock from the ground up and discovering the view after, not the other way round.

More pictures to follow once I get them from the guide. By the way, the sign here that directs travellers to Mulgowie Pub is approx 45 minutes into the property and at least an hour hard drive from the back gate. If the traveller is counting on a nice beer at the end of the track, they really deserve it after this drive