Porongurup to the Stirling Range 1993

Porongurup to the Stirling Range, day 2, Thursday 21 October 1993. It had rained most of the night and was still drizzling in the morning. Grey clouds tumbled down the Porongurup Range and a cold wind blew from the ENE. When the hills were visible and the sky had brightened and the rain eased to a few spots I decided to get going, which I did at 8:05. The rain increased in intensity after a few minutes and kept going, though the sky seemed to be clearing, for an hour.

I had decided to take a short cut through ‘Spring Road’ a muddy gravel track, saving about 3km of the journey, though I don’t know if it was worth it. I was soaked by the time I took my first rest, at 27396. I stopped briefly at the Kamballup roadhouse (27399) and, with the supplies I had with me and what I expected to be able to get at Stirling Range Caravan Park, I decided just to buy a packet of barley sugars to suck while riding.

The road had been downhill for a while after leaving Porongurup but began to rise steadily as the Stirlings came closer. At one point about halfway between the two ranges I reached the top of a rise and could see both the Porongurups and Stirlings. This happened just as the radio was playing the part in the pilgrims’ chorus from ‘Tannhauser’ (an opera by the German composer Richard Wagner) where the chorus sings “Alle-luia! Alle-luia!” It seemed appropriate.

The headwind was steady and difficult but not impossible. I took another rest at 27412 on the scrubby plain at the base of the range, and after a lot of hard climbing, the last break in the picnic spot below Toll Peak and Mount Trio, facing Yungermere Peak. Before reaching Stirling Range Caravan Park, it was clear that the highest point in Chester Pass Road had been passed and I was now riding more easily with some downhill runs, actually leaving the Stirlings before having reached my main objective.

I arrived at Stirling Range Caravan Park at 27434, 12:05. There is a rather pompous gateway leading off the main road to a gravel track, after a few hundred metres of which you find the caravans, office, shower block and ‘phone, then the cabins another 300m north. I eventually got booked in and found that there was no chance of getting accommodation for Friday night. I should have booked weeks ahead instead of waiting till I got to Albany. I could always have cancelled had things not worked out.

So there was no choice but to do Bluff Knoll that very afternoon. I’d had this in mind at Karribank, and had wanted to leave earlier, but the rain prevented me.

As it was I dumped everything in the cabin (of which more later) that wasn’t essential, and set off without a rest at 12:48, 27436, along the road to Bluff Knoll. This was mostly uphill, about half so uphill that the bike had to be walked, my low gear that has got me up Greenmount, Bindoon and Hester’s hills couldn’t manage this. But it was only 8km, and I arrived at the carpark at 1:36, 27444. The car park is on top of one of the substantial foothills of Bluff Knoll, you can see it from a long way off, it looks daunting to a cyclist. The approaching country was rich in flowers and birds.

I secured my bike, read the sign about boots, water and warm clothing and began my climb at 1:45. I had only a shirt and a light raincoat and bikeshorts, and 250mL of Daily Juice, but the Adidas were OK. The wildflowers were of such quantity, variety and newness to me that I won’t try to describe them, not having taken notes.

Bluff Knoll from this side rises very steeply to a sheer cliff. I did not know which way the path took to the top, and thought I could see people way up on the steep part. I did not know if you could really reach the summit without special climbing gear. In fact the path goes round the mountain and approaches the summit from the south.

After a dip and an easy walk the path began to climb. I have great respect for those who built it, all the way to the top. I met a number of other people, coming down or going up. I passed one elderly foursome who were starting to feel the strain. They told me of a rumour that there was a seat and drinking water about a third of the way up. I passed them and found the drinking water, a little waterfall trickling down beside the path. It was fresh clear water and I had a good drink of it.

The impressive foothills were now far below, the carpark was a miniature and I could see the 8km approach road snaking all the way back to Chester Pass Road. There was a commanding view to the north and north-west, and cloud hung over the peaks of neighbouring mountains.

The path became steeper. I was feeling good, but my pulse was racing. I tried to rest for a while but it didn’t slow down. But I was excited that I was actually on the way to achieving the goal of this ride, and had plenty of time. With a different attitude I might have felt more pain and given up.

The cloud that swirled around Bluff Knoll was now not far above my head, and before long I was inside it. Visibility dropped to a few metres, it became darker, very cold with steady rain being blown in the icy wind. It was like suddenly being in a different country. Each time I thought I was near the summit a higher lump of rock loomed out of the mist.

I met a German who said I had about a quarter of the way to go and it became easier nearer the top. The terrain was rocky, with blasted shrubs. The path became difficult to find and stakes with red flags had been placed to mark it. Just as well, or you could lose your way down and end up in a dark valley far from help. Signs appeared saying “Take care! Near the edge.” I approached the Edge and looked down into white nothingness. It was like being on a lump of rock orbiting in a void.

At last, the summit, marked by a sign “Bluff Knoll Summit. 1073m above sea level.” Only one eighth as high as Mount Everest. It was 3:15. I found the very highest rock and stood on it, then sat with my back to a rock on a sandy ledge to shelter from the wind. The ledge looked down on a sheer drop. Someone had thrown paint down and there were red and blue splashes going way down. Here I had my drink and a smoke and shivered.

The climb down, begun at 3:25, was harder in a way because of the different stress on feet and legs involved in going down. It was strange to come down out of the freezing wet cloud into the same clear, mild day that I had left below earlier, though in fact it had been raining a bit at ground level too. I had to stand still if I wanted to look at the view, because it was possible to fall badly on broken sections of path.

I arrived back in the car park at 4:45, having taken exactly 3 hours for the round trip. A group of people in the car park offered me a share of their coffee and admired my effort in riding that far and climbing the mountain all in one day.

The ride back to Stirling Range Caravan Park, begun at 5:01, was tricky to start off with as my bike slithered down the first steep winding hill with the brakes full on, but after that I just went as fast as possible, with a downhill run and the wind behind me. I arrived back at Stirling Range Caravan Park at 5:21.

The cabin was of rammed earth with a high timber roof. There was a stove, a microwave oven, fridge, radiator, dishes pots and cutlery and toaster and kettle but no soap, towels, sheets or blankets or TV. You are supposed to bring all your food and other things with you. There was limited food at the office, so I bought a loaf of bread, milk, a can of spaghetti sauce and a packet of dried pasta chicken curry, and borrowed a rug. I know it is a national park but if they are going to have all the power, water and sewage coming in anyway they might as well have a proper motel and a shop and roadhouse.

I cooked the food, arranged the washing and wet things over chairs in front of the radiator and took an early night. The bunks were two-level – I didn’t know whether to sleep in the top one and risk having one of those dreams where I fall out of bed, or sleep in the bottom one and risk having a dream where I sit up suddenly, which would risk a fractured skull. I took a Panquil and took the bottom bunk.

Reading at end of day: 27452. Day’s ride: 72. Aggregate: 136. km/FRD: 63. Average speed from Karribank to Stirling Range Caravan Park: 13.5 kph.

Charles A. Pierce

Other Days on this Tour:

1. Perth to the Stirling Range - The Stirlings Ride 1993
2. Perth to Albany Coach Ride 1993
3. Albany to Prorongurup 1993
4. Porongurup to the Stirling Range 1993 (This post)
5. Stirling Range to Gnowangerup 1993
6. Gnowangerup to Katanning 1993
7. Katanning to Wagin 1993
8. Wagin to Narrogin 1993
9. Narrogin to Brookton 1993
10. Brookton to York 1993
11. York to Mundaring 1993
12. Mundaring to Cottesloe 1993

Places Mentioned in this Post:

Related posts:

1. Perth to the Stirling Range – The Stirlings Ride 1993
2. Stirling Range to Gnowangerup 1993
3. Stirling Range
4. Porongurup Range
5. Porongurup

Tags: Bluff Knoll, Porongurup, Stirling Range