AS dawn broke, Mount Barney lit up with an orange glow even though our campsite was still in darkness. There wasn’t a cloud in the sky and the last of the stars were fading leaving only a full moon to set behind the mountain. Being right in the path of the south-east maritime trade winds causes the mountain to create its own weather. Moisture laden winds are deflected to higher and colder altitudes, so weather windows are infrequent and have to be seized when presented.
At 1359m Mount Barney is the second highest peak in South-East Queensland and not one to be taken lightly. That means not climbing in adverse weather, so a blue-sky day was a gift for hikers. Only trouble was, I wasn’t climbing it that day. I was climbing the next day, as that was when my daughter could make it and having made the ascent five times already, she was to be my guide. So, I had to listen to all the hikers leaving their tents at 5am while I had to bide my time and hope the weather Gods stayed favourable.
Clear skies
Next day, I expectantly crawled
