Mount Beerwah is the highest of the ten

volcanic plug A volcanic plug, also called a volcanic neck or lava neck, is a volcanic object created when magma hardens within a vent on an active volcano. When present, a plug can cause an extreme build-up of high gas pressure if rising volatile-charged mag ...

s in the

Glass House Mountains The Glass House Mountains are a cluster of thirteen hills that rise abruptly from the coastal plain on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia. The highest hill is Mount Beerwah at 556 metres above sea level, but the most identifiable of al ...

range, 22 km north of

Caboolture Caboolture () is a town and suburb in Moreton Bay Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the suburb of Caboolture had a population of 26,433 people. It is located on the north side of the Caboolture River, which separates the town from Morayfi ...

South East Queensland South East Queensland (SEQ) is a bio-geographical, metropolitan, political and administrative region of the state of Queensland in Australia, with a population of approximately 3.8 million people out of the state's population of 5.1 million. T ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. It was formed 26 million years ago during the

Oligocene The Oligocene ( ) is a geologic epoch of the Paleogene Period and extends from about 33.9 million to 23 million years before the present ( to ). As with other older geologic periods, the rock beds that define the epoch are well identified but the ...

Epoch of the

Paleogene The Paleogene ( ; British English, also spelled Palaeogene or Palæogene; informally Lower Tertiary or Early Tertiary) is a geologic period, geologic period and system that spans 43 million years from the end of the Cretaceous Period million yea ...

Period. Geologists estimate it may be only a third of its original height due to intense erosion. Mount Beerwah has two peaks, the taller of which is high. It is one of the most visually prominent mountains in south-east

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

. The first European settlers to ascend the peak were

Andrew Petrie Andrew Petrie (1798 - 20 February 1872) was a pioneer, architect and builder in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. Early life Andrew Petrie was born in Fife, Scotland. He trained as a builder in Edinburgh. He married Mary Cuthbertson in 1821. C ...

with his son

John Petrie John Petrie (15 January 1822 – 8 December 1892) was a Scottish-born politician, architect, stonemason and building contractor in Brisbane who became the city's first Mayor. Private life John Petrie was born 15 January 1822Toowong Cemetery ...

. Its name comes from the words "birra, or "sky," and "wandum," "climbing up." In the traditional Aboriginal story of the region, Mount Beerwah is the pregnant mother and Mount Tibrogargan the father of all the other mountains in the area. Local Aboriginal people consider the mountains sacred. The mountain is composed almost entirely of

trachyte Trachyte () is an extrusive igneous rock composed mostly of alkali feldspar. It is usually light-colored and aphanitic (fine-grained), with minor amounts of mafic minerals, and is formed by the rapid cooling of lava enriched with silica and al ...

. One side features a dramatic, inward leaning cliff face known as the Organ Pipes. At its base are a number of small caves.

Public access

Mount Beerwah summit trail was controversially closed to climbing from 2009 - 2016, due to rock instability from bush fire. The

Sunshine Coast Regional Council The Sunshine Coast Region is a local government area located in the Sunshine Coast district of South East Queensland, Australia. It was created by the amalgamation in 2008 of the City of Caloundra and the Shires of Maroochy and Noosa. It cont ...

spent $400,000 on removing dangerous rocks and improving warning signs. As at 2019, Mount Beerwah along with Mount Tibrogargan, Ngungun and the rest of the mountains with tracks remain open with maintained walking trails with the exception of Mount Coonowrin (which was permanently closed to public access in March 1999 due to the high risk of rock falls that had previously killed and injured climbers). The views from the summit of Mount Beerwah are very rewarding. There is a 2.6 km trail up from a state government maintained parking lot. The start of the trail is a "level 5 difficulty" walk that turns into a climb that can be done without equipment. Even experienced hikers should not attempt this trail unless they have at least three hours of daylight and there is no chance of rain. Depending on fitness, climbers should plan on taking two to three litres of water per person.

References

External links

Photos of Mount Beerwah, Glass House Mountains
{{DEFAULTSORT:Beerwah, Mount Glass House Mountains (Queensland) Mountains of South East Queensland Glass House Mountains, Queensland

Public access

See also

References

External links