Upper Falls - Hastings River - Werrikimbe National Park

At 4:30am, half dozing, I listen to the continuing rain on the tent. It is like sleeping inside a drum; each drop amplified and resonating as it hits the taught roof and walls. It has been going all night and beneath the rainforest canopy the drips filter down to us as fat, heavy notes with no rhythm. Then suddenly, above the drumbeats, comes a loud, long and tortured scream. In the treetops, a woman is being murdered. Twice she screeches out and we are both instantly wide awake. It is pitch black. I sit up, listen and wait. It comes again, slightly further off, one final drawn out scream then all is quiet.

Mt Maroon - Mount Barney National Park

It is rewarding, uplifting, and spectacular, to stand on the highest mountain and enjoy its view. Sometimes it is equally beautiful climbing the mountain beside it. 

In south-east Queensland Mt Barney is the mountain of choice for adventurous walkers and climbers. However, its smaller neighbour, Mt Maroon, is still a challenging day out and the views from the top are all the more dramatic with the looming, rocky peaks of Mt Barney dominating much of the scene. From Mt Maroon you can look across and stare Barney in the face: read its weathered lines and admire its grandness in the surrounding landscape. And yet, Mt Maroon also cuts a rugged and dramatic silhouette. It is broken by deep gullies and rocky cliffs and boasts a wind-swept summit that has a wildness of its own.