Epic Hikes of the World ( PDFDrive )

© Robin Barton
deep in the woods of Lamington National Park
Lamington’s altitude has another effect: no matter how steamy it is on the Gold
Coast, it will be 50% cooler in the mountains, which makes for comfortable walking
conditions in Australia’s late summer. Pulling on my boots outside O’Reilly’s
Rainforest Retreat at the trailhead (you can walk from east to west instead, but
you’d be going uphill for most of the way), the sun had yet to warm the chilly
mountain air. Filaments of mist filter through the vines and around the buttressed
tree roots; if it seems primeval, that’s because it is. The forests date back hundreds
of millions of years and were part of the ancient continent of Gondwana, before
Australia broke apart from Antartica and South America, and ancient species such
as cycads (which can be 500 years old), Antarctic beech and hoop pine were once
dinosaur food.
On day one we follow the Border Track from the Green Mountains side of
Lamington to Binna Burra, where another lodge has cabins and space for camping.
This 13-mile (21km) section is the highest stage of the walk, with views to Mt
Warning, the first place in Australia to get sunlight every morning.
My first wildlife encounter on leaving O’Reilly’s is with a gaggle of unperturbed
brush-turkeys. But unless you have sharp eyes or the patience to stand silently, your