South Australia
Mount Lofty: The Trendiest Exercise and Brunch Excuse in Adelaide
When I was eighteen I went through my first real heartbreak – my teenage sweetheart of the time had run away to Europe and in the midst of a cold June I was left alone, cold and getting a whole lot less exercise…
I became a gym jukie. A 100% gym-shoe instagrammin’, protein-shaking junkie. I would wake up at ungodly hours and eat oatmeal; I would drink green tea over coffee; I attempted to cook with kale… Basically: I was 100% insane.
There is one place in Adelaide that attracts lunatic 18-year-old (and much older and obsessive) health fanatics like me, and that is Mount Lofty. The petty 4km peak that looks over the city requires some uphill movement and thigh burning to reach, (often rewarded with cacao powder based smoothies or avocado toast afterwards).
During this tragic (but toned) stage in my life I was a Lofty regular, and embraced everything that came with it – from the stinging thighs to the artistic Instagram brunches that followed your standard ‘Lofty session’.
But Mount Lofty is not just a burn. It is a tourist attraction. There are even kangaroos and koalas. Tourists love kangaroos and koalas. On TripAdvisor it is even the #4 thing to do in the Adelaide Hills!!! (Beaten, of course, by Cleland National Park obviously just because they have more koalas and kangaroos).
Let me share with you some of the all-time greatest TripAdvisor reviews to tantalise you in anticipation for the hike you know you are dying to do…
“The view would have been fantastic if it hadn’t been misty! We thought because it was sunny
and cold we would get a view – yea we did but it wasn’t clear.”
“My favourite punishment is hiking mount lofty!”
“Wind, rain, cold on my face, all the senses together make for a wonderful memory!”
“It’s fascinating how you can see towards the sea from so high!”
“It’s a pity about the parking costs.”
“The skeletal outlines of the trees quite haunting-had hoped for some snow-bitterly cold.”
“I know it’s part of a National Park but I DO NOT like paying for a park here.”
“Got to see a koala on route very cute!”
“Didn’t pay for parking! Quickly parked the car, looked around for ticket inspectors, didn’t see any recognisable, thought f*** it! And walked quickly to the viewing platform! Was there for about 5 mins and got away with it! 3$ isn’t much I know, but if you can get away with it, good on Ya! View was good! However, I personally thought the view driving up was better, was much closer to city and could see closer of Adelaide! Thin windy road. Don’t get stuck behind some idiot!”
So there you have it. It pretty much sells itself. Punish yourself with a hike, stand in the rain, look at some koalas and kangaroos (because if you’re a tourist you’ll be right into those two) and if you are lazy and want to drive to the top: ‘think f*** it it, don’t pay for parking and avoid getting stuck behind some idiot. Enjoy!
PS You only get to go out for brunch and Instagram it after if you do the hike. It is an unspoken Adelaide fitspo social rule. And you don’t want to break the unspoken Adelaide fitspo social rules. You might end up being harassed by a gang of bikini-bodied #BBGsisters…
#Lofty #Loftysesh #brunch #RADelaide
(But in all seriousness, it is a pretty hike and there is nothing wrong with a good excuse for brunch now is there…)
Walk Details
