Grand High Tops – A Hiking Highlight in the Warrumbungle National Park – Coonabarabran, Western NSW

The Grand High Tops trail is probably the most well-known and most popular hike in the whole Warrumbungle National Park. If you see any sort of promotional material for this park, it will probably include imagery of the expansive views you enjoy once you have clambered up high and especially of a huge slice of rock known as the Breadknife.

We couldn’t head home and leave this trail unwalked, so we wriggled out of our sleeping bags extra early, shook the condensation off the tents and hit the trail in the early morning cool. Ahh, the best time of day to walk.

Grab your hat and water bottle, and let’s go…

Trail Name: Breadknife and Grand High Tops – via Dagda shortcut

Planned Distance: 12.5km            Actual Distance: 11.5km

Ascent: 493m                                  Descent: 511m

Time: 3h12m

Rating: Grade 3 – Moderate

Terrain: This trail is positively manicured and where it’s not perfectly formed, they are working on it! That doesn’t mean it’s easy and there are plenty of steps, stairs and rocks to remind you to breathe. 😊

General Comments:

• It was yet another gorgeous morning to be out in Nature. The body was a little stiff and sore after taking a bit of a tumble on some rocks yesterday. Yes, my two left feet got in the road again. I probably have never mentioned that when I finished primary school, the teachers gave me the “Tanglefoot” Award as I was always tripping and falling over! Nearly 50years later this leopard has not changed her spots. 😊 I am nothing if not consistent!
• (And as I type this, I am nursing two skinned knees and two skinned palms! I took another tumble this morning when I was out for a jog. Thank goodness it was very early, and there was no one around to see my face-plant! At least my pride wasn’t hurt…much)
• But onto the walk…

• We started out again from Pincham carpark (even busier because of the start of school holidays) and this time took a few minutes to read the information signs. We learned that Mr Pincham was the original grazing lessee of this area before kindly giving up his lease rights to allow the formation of the Warrumbungle National Park. Visionary.
• Again, it was a beautiful start to the walk with the path hugging the edge of a shallow creek and taking us through, and under towering eucalypt trees.

• Rarely have I walked on such a well-groomed path which just shows how popular this trail is. It was wide, clear, at times on hard-packed granite sand and then as we started to ascend it changed to paving! Pavers, of all things?! Out in the bush?! I had memories of 45years ago, scrabbling over sharp rocks, on single file, barely visible dirt tracks. How things have changed!?
• As well as the main path, the trail has a few optional side trails, diversions and loops which take you to various lookouts. There is certainly a lot to see in this area.

• While you can’t see much when you are still down low in the gully, as you climb you start to get an idea of the breathtaking beauty that is up ahead. Belougery Spire looms in the gaps between the tree tops and then there is the first sighting of the Breadknife. How awe-inspiring is Mother Nature?
• On the western side of the trail the views are not quite as impressive, but Bress Peak and Bluff Mountain make their presence felt.

• As the ascent continues, the pavers give way to a complex network of sturdy steel stairs, making the final steep section slightly easier to manage. Thankfully they also included small platforms between the sets of stairs to rest on and enjoy the views.
• Again, I was reaching back into my dim memory, recalling that the old path hugged the base of the Breadknife. Now the path is located a safer distance away to minimise the impact of any falling rocks. In my day 😊 you could climb the Breadknife, but now it is off limits and deemed too dangerous as the rock formation is less than stable. Good thinking.

• After getting through a goat traffic jam – they weren’t in any hurry to get out of our way – we were stunned to arrive at Lugh’s Throne (960m) and dazzled by the outstanding 360° views.
• Wherever you looked there was a beautiful vista, including back towards Siding Spring Observatory. What an amazing perspective altitude gives you!?

• With out back against some rocks and tucked out of the wind, we enjoyed another snack break (we ‘do’ snacks very well 😊) and simply gawped at the view. What can I say? It was amazing!
• Even though it was very pleasant up high, we knew it was going to be getting very hot very quickly and we beat a hasty retreat down the rocks and back onto the trail again, choosing the Dagda shortcut to loop back onto the main trail. After such stupendous views we were on a real high and there was a new spring in our step.

Top Tips for this Trail:

• Camps: Similar to the Mt Exmouth trail, there are various campsites in the area. Balor Hut is the only one with a water tank and toilets, and you can book to sleep in the hut too if you don’t fancy carrying a tent etc.
• Signage: This trail is really well signposted and it would be difficult to get lost. I did carry a paper map although that was just to check the names of the surrounding bluffs, tors and spires.
• Sunrise: If you started very early or camped along the trail, it would be magical to see the sunrise from Grand High Tops. They have even installed reflective markers across the rocky top, so you don’t misstep.

• Circuit: For a longer hike, consider returning via West Spirey Track. It will add about 2km to your walk. Or you could do an even longer loop to include Mt Exmouth and back down the Burbie Fire trail.
• Temperature: We passed many people just starting out on their hike as we were returning to the car and it was hot. I don’t think this is a safe thing to do, but each to their own. Make sure you carry plenty of water and sun protection.

Walking back into Pincham carpark, it was a bit sad to realise that our little walking adventure in the Warrumbungles was over so quickly. For now, we had ticked off the big name walks and were definitely not disappointed.

Hopefully it won’t be another 45years until I return again. Well, if I do, they had better have those trails upgraded even more and set up for wheelchairs! 😊

Happy hiking to you.

P.S. This would be another marvellous walk to do on a Monday with Jo…that’s if Jo was in Australia. 😊

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