Mt Yulludunida Walk, Mt Kaputar National Park - December 2021

The track climbs steeply, however there are some big views along the way.

This walk was the second stroll on my Christmas 2021 Covid Roadtrip and this one was really a Covid special. This walk wasn't even on my radar when I'd left work and set off for Queensland a day earlier, it was only as I was getting closer and closer to the Queensland border that I started to think about this walk. You see I was now approaching the border and my negative PCR test hadn't yet come through yet which I needed to obtain within 72 hours before crossing into Queensland, which meant that with less than 6 hours of my 72 hours left I still couldn't apply for the border pass that would get me into Queensland - checkmate!... so I started thinking of a plan B and that's how I found myself pulling into the small carpark and picnic area at Green Camp in Mt Kaputar National Park just before 6pm on a stinking hot afternoon.

There is plenty of parking at the trail head - although apart from a small picnic shelter there are no other facilities.

Grabbing my pack and pulling on my shoes I didn't muck around as I set off tonight, and the track up to Mt Yulludunida didn't muck around either. Yep, pretty well from the get go I was climbing very solidly and I was suffering. Initially the track climbed up a gully before eventually breaking out and climbing fairly close to the edge of the escarpment, the good news for me was that once I was climbing up the cliff edges there was plenty of reasons to stop and take everything in. By the time I reached the final bare rocky scramble to the summit I was totally cooked though, down to walking 50 metres at a time before stopping to recharge - yes, two years of lockdowns, constant work and bugger all walking has seriously affected my stamina - well, that and the fact that I'm a lot closer to 60 than 50 now!

The track starts off steep - and doesn't really ease off.

It doesn't look that hot however the temperature when I set off was in the high 30˚.

I passed through a saddle to the left of the volcanic plug.

This is where the track finished and the scrambling began - unfortunately I didn't get much further tonight.

It was about now that serendipity struck. Just as I was looking up at the bare rock scramble to the summit and really starting to question whether I had it in me, my phone pinged. Now normally I'd have my phone on mute when I'm on a walk however with Sam already up in Queensland and me sweating on my PCR test result I'd left it on tonight and what do you know...yep, it was my negative result. So now any thoughts of finishing the climb were gone, dropping back down to the ute as quickly as my cramping muscles would allow I was now mentally planning out what I'd need to do to get across the border before midnight.

When my negative test result bounced through it was time to get to the border - this is as high as I got tonight.

I stopped a couple of times on the way back down - mainly to give my cramping quads a break!

The ute has just come into view.

It was around 7pm by the time I got back to the ute, a little over half an hour later I was back down in Narrabri utilising the 4g signal to get my border permit organised. After sorting the paperwork out I set off for the border with less than 4 hours to go. After a quick 220 kilometre dash up the Newell Highway I managed to cross into Queensland with a couple of hours of my 72 hours still left - yep, no worries! Originally I'd hoped to be in Bundaberg tonight so I could be with Sam and her parents for Christmas Day (Covid lockdowns have meant that we haven't been able to get to Queensland to see her elderly parents for 3 years), however there was no chance now. So instead of Christmas Eve with family in Bundy I settled for a cheap motel just over the Queensland border in Goondiwindi, before cruising the last 7 hours up to Bundaberg on Christmas Day.

Heading off on my night time dash to get across the border.

There was no mucking around now as I  headed for the border.

The Dirt.

According to my GPS I walked 4.4 kilometres and climbed 226 metres on what I'd call an easy-medium grade stroll. The walk is a mixture of track walking and then rocky scrambling, although I really didn't get in much of the rocky scramble before I had to retreat tonight unfortunately. This walk has been written up by a few people over the years and there are both hard copies and on-line notes around. While the walk is fairly short it's also fairly steep and there is scrambling involved on the upper rocky section. The road up to the trail head is unsealed, narrow and fairly steep in spots so be aware of that - it is suitable for 2wd vehicles although you'd want to take it easy. This is a very nice walk / scramble and it's definitely one that I want to go back and complete one day. 

Relevant Posts.

Grand High Tops Walk, The Warrumbungle National Park, 1999.

Hey, hey...I made it! Christmas Day morning on my own in a cheap motel just over the border in Queensland - all was pretty good in my Feral world really!

The hard work was done when I got over the border however I still had another 600 kilometres to go before I'd be reunited with Sam and her parents.