Mt. Leura or Bust !

I had set a mini milestone challenge on Saturday just gone to pop over to Camperdown and spend a couple of hours at Mount. Leura.  Now for those that don't know, south-west Victoria is spotted with dormant volcanos.   Mount. Leura is not overly large by mountainous standards, but it would provide a great morning's work out.  Right next to Mount Leura is Mount Sugarloaf, which is quite cone shaped.  The whole area is so well looked after, great walking tracks all round it.

I put the call out to our wonderful Warrnie crew and I had a couple of takers who were free and would join me on my quest.   I think the plan originally was to see how many times we could run up and down it, but with all the tracks available we ran, walked and laughed our way up, around, over, down, across and every which way for two hours.  Hooray to my friends Floss, Debbie and Janelle.  Oh and the two K9's there who met for the first time and fell in love.  Ahhhhh.

The view from somewhere up Mount Leura looking across to Mount Sugarloaf.

Made it to the top!  Pretty pleased with myself.

No sooner at the top of Leura, then we headed over to Sugarloaf.

Hmmm cool how I look thin in my shadow!

A bit of discussion, which way should we go.  Debbie says "straight up" !! 

I'm not kidding you.  The sugarloaf walk loops round and round the cone a number of times, much like how sheep go up a mountain, you can see it in the map above.  Eh!  That's for amateurs.  Debbie ran in a direct line straight up, so that she could do a great "THE HILLS ARE ALIVE!!" Julie Andrews impersonation.  Janelle and I were not going anywhere near that long grass, no way, it may have been crisp but it was sunny and we were betting snakes.

So after looping around and over Sugarloaf we headed down, just to come back up again.

It doesn't look steep but it was, and slippery.  Here Floss and Debbie are pelting down the 

side of Leura.  

More finger pointing.  "I reckon we should go down and then come back up again"

Floss (la la la) I can't hear you!!

I'm in hysterics, or was it exhaustion taking over.

Lordy Lord I must work on my core!!

Coming back down for the last time, Janelle and I took the road down.

Our feet were frozen by this stage, my runners were wet through from all the damp grass.

But it was a great feeling knowing we'd just about gone two hours of activity.

Great view on the way down.

Met up again with Floss coming back up the other way, so a quick selfie.

We still had big smiles happening.

It was a really great morning, and it made me wonder why I hadn't driven over there before, I mean it's not that far away from where I live.  I know I've been up there twice, many many years ago, by car.  I had no idea of all the walking tracks up there, and so well kept also, they obviously have a great management team looking after the reserve.  

So mini milestone challenge - completed !!  :-)