If you are looking for a hike that’s a quiet commune with nature, time for some space and self-reflection, and a little naval gazing, this isn’t it. The Pinnacle is the grand central station of Grampian bushwalks, and it ran the gamut in the type of clientele wandering the trail. An old man, defs in his 80’s, being hand-helped down rock stairs (bushwalking goals), men dressed in office attire with button downs and leather work shoes, families with small, weary children, atop Dad’s shoulders, peeps jogging up and others schlepping down. It’s ranked as a Grade 3 trail (personally, I would have given it at least another half star), mostly on rocks and boulders.
Listed as the number one trail of a plethora of Grampian walks, expectations were high. We hit the track later in the afternoon, around 2.30, and the Wonderland Car Park was chockers, with cars parked up to 800m down the road. Rush hour at the Pinnacle (sigh). The sign at the car park said 2.1k’s each way, and the walk was listed as 2-2.5 hours. Yep, can do. The first part of the trail was a rock hop with very little vegetation, past the Grand Canyon, which was closed due to engineering issues with the staircase (and not really very grand) and then into rocky woodland.
The serenity was pierced with the shrill screams of kids who had found caves and wanted to hear their voices echo, a dude who blasted Bollywood beats on his pill, tiny people crying because they were tired and emotional. But, you know, none of that mattered. It was such a beautiful, interesting, diverse, and unusual hike that everything else became white noise.
The walk to the Pinnacle Lookout is mostly up, and just when you get to the part where you think you are almost there, there’s a rock seat that has painted on it “half way seat” (dang). There’s a magnificent section of the trail called Silent Street, which nobody adhered to. A long, narrow, single-lane, high-walled canyon slot with a series of rocks that act as stepping stones, you often had to hug the rock wall for others to go by or wait in a “passing bay” until the coast was clear. It culminated in a skinny, wooden, vertical stairway that spits you out just minutes from the lookout.
We arrived at the lookout at around 3.30, take a number and wait for the piece de résistance! The pinnacle of the pinnacle is protected by a barrier to stop you falling into the abyss, however, there are plenty of other chasms to fall into, so insta safely peeps!
The Pinnacle Lookout was a Jack & Rose “King of the World” kind of moment, the safety barrier the shape of a ship’s bow. You had to wait your turn to get to the front of the ship, and it was totally worth it. The panoramic view that took in Lake Bellfield and the Mount William Range was a peek through heavens window!
Don’t forget your walking stick (I did and my knees were not happy), tissues (for some reason, it is a super snot-filled altitude up there), and a Sherpa who could carry 65kg might have been handy, but not imperative.
We spent a long weekend at the Grampians, and it most definitely was not enough. If you are short on time and only want to see magnificence, do the Pinnacle!
