Abbotts Lookout
Date: 12th October 2019 – Summit 1106m
Summit cairn, Abbotts Lookout. Photo Credit: With thanks Lynnda Coffey.
Barely scraping in for height, this small scrubby peak found in the Maydena Range is the least mountain-like Abel I have visited to date. Second only to Mount Wellington, the stroll to its official summit takes just moments. In fact the stroll from the bus drop off point to the summit of Abbotts Lookout is even shorter than that of Mount Wellington. At least you climb rocks to the summit I guess, not pavers like Mount Wellington. It is always a little strange walking past a power point to a summit though! One redeeming factor about this underwhelming mountain is that a short stroll down its board walk will bring you to a man-made look out with spectacular views. This isn't so much a trip report, as a mention of how to get a bus...
To climb Abbotts Lookout since the inception of the Maydena MTB Park, one need only step onto a bus. Literally. Buy a ticket, get on the bus, get off the bus, walk 10 meters - Abel bagged. Harsh but true! We best explain....
The old route to this mountain relied upon being able to access Roberts Road not far from the township of Maydena. The Maydena MTB Park now controls access to this road and the road is closed with a boom gate. Whilst in the past, energetic walkers could hike the roughly 8km uphill gravel road to the summit, now that is strongly discouraged by the bike park! Instead access to this Abel (and so Marriotts Lookout also) is via bus from the Bike Park.
For the very worthwhile fee of $20 one can buy a seat on the shuttle bus that ferries keen MTB riders and their bikes to the top of the trails. It is then a matter of stepping off the bus, walking less than 10 meters towards the landing platform and summiting the Abel through a small - and we mean tiny - section of scrub just prior to the structure on your right. Abel bagged - well done! Right, now let's go and bushwalk properly...
From here, we walked approximately 200-300m down the road to a junction that leads up a short track to a communications shed and the start of the vastly more challenging Marriotts Lookout...
The stats.
Doesn’t need any! Get off the bus and walk about 20m!
Doesn’t need one! But you can see the very short detour from the bus drop off point to the summit. Map also contains the route to Marriots lookout.