A couple of weeks ago when I was feeling particularly energetic, I made the silly decision to suggest we climb Mt Coolum. For those who don’t know much about Mt Coolum it’s well known on the Sunshine Coast, renowned for amazing 360 degree views at the summit. From the official Coolum website:

Mount Coolum is an isolated volcanic dome, 208 metres in height, roughly circular in outline, covering a plan area of approximately 1 square kilometre. Even ignoring the technical excellence of Mount Coolum as a place of interest, it still provides an unparalleled opportunity to enjoy those age old delights of escaping from the hurly-burly of contemporary life, looking at beautiful and spectacular scenery and taking a dose of practical, non-regimented exercise all at the same time. It goes without saying that the view from the summit is truly magnificent; a 360 degree overview of the Sunshine Coast can be had by simply turning around; coastline and beaches extending from Moreton Island to Double Island Point, the cane fields and wetland areas of the Maroochy River Valley, as well as the main areas of the Coast, plus more; for the photography buff, there is a seemingly endless supply of material just waiting to be captured.

We had originally planned to climb it last weekend, but there was a bit of rain in the morning. Not wanting to take chances of the track being slippery I called the trip off. Thus, early this weekend on Saturday morning, after having breakfast with friends at the local surf club, we headed off to Coolum.

The mountain in the distance

We arrived, and I promptly put on sunscreen and insect repellant. The boys decided to be tough and go without, although each of us was armed with a waterbottle (and I with my iPhone). We began walking along the track, where upon two guys in front of us pointed out a rough area they’d just seen a green & yellow tree snake. We waited a minute to see if we could see any movement (curiosity dictated that we had to have a look for ourselves), but nothing happened so we continued on.

Soon enough we happened upon an extremely rocky section that looked quite steep. The path was well worn however, and rocks jutted out so you had places to put your feet. Given there were both people on the larger side, and elderly people making their way down, we figured it was something we could (or should) be able to handle. Bugger letting anyone show us up! We started climbing up, occasionally have to put our hands down to aid in reaching particular rocks without falling, but it was relatively easy enough. Well, easy to climb, not easy on the ol’ cardio system. We were huffing and puffing like the big bad wolf so stopped for our first break.

After we had caught our breath and had some water we continued up. At one point we were overtaken by an extremely fit young girl wearing a tight singlet and short shorts, and funnily enough it was around this time that the boys decided they had a lot of energy and started climbing very quickly. I can’t imagine why!

Eventually we found ourselves on a nice little cliff face about 15 – 20m wide. Here we found parents with their children and the aforementioned fit young woman all sitting down taking breaks. It seemed the climb at Mt Coolum was a lot busier than we expected. After the small flat section of the cliff, there was one more sharp section before it “flattened out” in a sense. It was still a decent incline but it wasn’t so jagged with rocks, and you were back to more of a walk than a climb. This bit felt like it went for longer than the rest but I suspect it was because the summit was so close. Every time you thought you would surely be reaching the top there was just that little bit more to go!

But what a reward when we reached the top! 360 views of the Sunshine Coast, and we had timed it perfectly since it was such a stunning day. I immediately dropped on the ground and had a drink while the boys walked around a little bit, then we headed over to one side where it had a great big clearing. We sat here for a minute or two and took the mandatory group shot, then suddenly the boys were ready to leave! What happened to just sitting there and enjoying the view?

Who doesn't want to sit and enjoy this view?

So we headed back down. I was a little bit shocked they wanted to go so fast, but rather than sook I just accepted it and started following them again. I was a little bit worried about how my knee would go since I would have to rely on one leg to lower me down until the other leg reached the next rock. I’ve been doing my strength exercises a LOT recently though, and I think it definitely showed. I felt in control the whole way, like having two good legs again. It was great. Downhill was definitely a lot easier on the lungs as well.

While we were making our way down we were shocked to see a guy almost sprinting past us running up the hill. Amazingly, we were still descending when he ran past us on his way back down! I wouldn’t be shocked if he did the entire thing in less than 20mins, he was charging! Mat yelled out that he must’ve done this a few times, and when the guy replied “yeah, quite a few” he didn’t even sound puffed. Insane. Sensing a challenge, Nick decided to try running downhill just to see what it was like. He barely lasted 5 seconds before he had a minor slip, and needless to say he stopped running. But the race was on, and Mat and Nick both kept trying to overtake each other at any given opportunity just so they could be the first down. Party pooper mature me just continued down in my own time, knowing that I had the car keys securely in my pocket so they’d be waiting for me regardless *grin*

Finally we reached the bottom, gave each other a high 5, then jumped in the car. We felt really good, not tired, and we had a few friends who were regretting the fact they couldn’t join us on the day. I’m pretty sure we’ll be doing it again, but I’ll be ensuring we take a bag with us filled with drinks and snacks so we can sit up there and enjoy the views longer than 2 mins. The boys will just have to wait!

We did it!!

After having done the track I think saying it’s moderate to easy is about right. You can’t go into climbing a mountain thinking you’re not going to even break a sweat unless you’re some kind of super human (like the guy running it). The number of people following the track proves it; the youngest we saw looked about 4, the oldest about 70. It’s great for families, and while it might take up to an hour to get to the top depending on the fitness level, rest assured it’s definitely worth it. Perhaps this is something I’ll have to start working on convincing my sister to do one weekend. When are we going Amy?

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