Mt Lofty Summit

Bring water! This is a hard hike. Saw a lot of very fit athletes running up & and down the trail. Didn’t see any children on this hike trip. Trails are very well groomed. Every steep hill has a sitting area to recuperate. There are 2 waterfalls. Saw a wild kangaroo chilling & eating. Gorgeous view throughout the 2−½ hike.

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…
How much do I not love thee? Let me count the ways…
To climb, or not to climb? That is the question.
Mt Lofty Summit is one of Adelaide’s best and worst features. Sitting only a 20 minute drive from Adelaide, a disproportionate number of locals decide to bypass the easy drive and instead make the «I swear I’m gonna die» trek from Waterfall Gully up to the summit and back again.
I’m not even going to comment on the showoffs who run the damn thing, or the ladies who lunch who stroll with coffees up to the top without breaking a sweat or the people who start at the top and go downhill first (that’s just torture). Instead this review is for the commoners, yes you, the ones who get motivated every 6 months to get fit and so take a punt at climbing Mt Lofty.
Here are my tips for surviving the best workout of your life:
— Bring a bottle of water and expect to fill up in the toilets the summit (there is no drink fountains along this trail you newb).
— Go an hour before dusk or during a weekday. Avoid mornings and anytime on the weekends as that’s lycra peak hour.
— Pace yourself and prepare for hell at the top. Once you’ve gone past fern gully and the flat area you will be uphill on a 20−30% incline all the way to the top.
— Use an excuse of «taking in the scenery» to let the power walkers/​runners pass. It is actually a beautiful little bush sanctuary up there.
— If you are of reasonable fitness it will take you 1.5 to 2 hours to complete
Even better is to wuss out completely, visit the first and second fall from Waterfall Gully and enjoy an afternoon tea at Utopia laughing at the beetroots returning from their hard slog.

Start at the top or at the bottom and work your way in the opposite direction, then rinse and repeat.
This is one of my favourite walks, it’s probably a 17%+ incline in places and gets your heart rate up in no time. Up and back is just over 7.5kms and takes a little over and hour at a good pace. The track is mostly sealed and if not sealed, miss well graded and easy to walk on.
Early morning is the best (quietest) time I’ve found and it’s also when the kangaroos are out and about on the track. If you don’t mind a few crowds and slow walkers, head there on the weekend. Whenever you go, there’s a café at the top and bottom which make the perfect places to stop and recover before heading back.