If you’ve walked every single Mt Coot-tha trail so many times that you could practically draw a map of the whole mountain, you’ll be happy to hear that there’s now a brand new hiking path to the summit.
Starting at the Mt Coot-tha Botanic Gardens and traversing all the way to the summit lookout, the new Spotted Gum Trail is a 2.4km stroll through previously inaccessible forest—so you definitely won’t see any all-too-familiar landmarks along the way. There’s 250 steps involved to get that heart rate up, but once you’ve taken in the views at the top and made your way back down, you can reward yourself with a picnic and a nice long nap on the grass in a shady spot amongst the Botanical Gardens gorgeous flower beds.
For those worried about the environmental impact, the new trail was designed to connect existing informal paths through the area wherever possible, with no significant trees removed to make way for the track. One of the bridges along the way was even helicoptered in to avoid damage to the steep hillsides.
If you’re in need of a new walk to help you stay fit in lockdown (despite all the extra wine drinking), this could be it. Find a map of the trail here.
In the meantime, check out Brisbane’s best urban walks here.
Image credit: Javier Qiroga