Giant trees and wallabies featured heavily in our impromptu long weekend as we ventured 3 hours north west of Brisbane to the South Burnett Regional Council area.
But of course we didn’t know what we’d find as we loaded ourselves and a few bags into the 4WD on Friday morning. We had taken a well earned day off work and we planned to make the most of our “parkrun adventure” by visiting as many National Parks and small towns as possible.
Friday was a leisurely day as we meandered our way through Fernvale, Esk, Toogoolawah, Blackbutt and Yaraman. After a quick lunch break (and checking out the local op shops!) we continued onto The Palms National Park - a tiny chunk of rainforest with HUGE trees and so many Flying Foxes you cannot possibly miss them.
The swinging bridge! Is at Cooyar.
Saturday = parkrunrunday and we were at yet another new 5 km parkrun for us. At Nanango.
24:06 for me on pretty fast out and back path.
Caroline trying to not push it too hard as she finished alongside Tim - a local ultra runner and founder of the inaugural Dead Cow Gully ultra marathon lap race.
After a coffee at one of the two local cafes it was time for another gentle walk. Caroline’s calf was holding up okay, though she definitely felt it anytime we came across stairs! We opted for the “Scenic Loop” since it was a manageable 4km without too much elevation and took us to waterfalls (without water!) and lookouts over the mountain range. Like The Palms National Park, the Bunyas is mainly rainforest and, as the location name implies, it’s full of Bunya pines! These HUGE beauties were a food source for Indigenous Australians right up until the year 1900 and no doubt many enterprising people still eat them now. We just stood in awe at their size and uniqueness!
