Mt Peel trek worth the effort
REGULAR readers of The Chronicle would have noticed my reports over the last 16 years about my horseriding exploits in the Snowy Mountains with my Uncle John (Dickie).
Sadly, on April 3 this year he left me with special memories and took his last ride skywards. He was 96.
It appears Marcus Osborne, one of nature’s true gentlemen, is also a The Chronicle reader and he approached me once or twice to take a ride with him to a place I’d never heard of, Mount Peel.
Now Marcus is a true horseman with many accomplishments to his credit, however he inadvertently interpreted my sitting on a horse as an extension of me trotting, cantering or galloping a horse – wrong.
Nonetheless on a certain recent Saturday I set off to the lovely suburb of Drayton to catch up with Marcus and his friend David Drummond with one thing in mind, the ascent of Mt Peel.
The mountain is just across the highway from Drayton and I was unaware it existed despite having driven past it countless times over the past half-century.
Marcus did everything including saddle-up my mount Prattle a strong, grey, twentytwo year old gelding.
I felt a tad like jockey Kevin Langby aboard Gunsynd in the 1972 Melbourne Cup.
I thought crossing the busy highway to Mt Peel Bushland Park would be a challenge but Marcus has done it so many times it’s become a breeze.
In a day where local councils and councillors are fair game for critics it was refreshing that Marcus’ take home message was that Toowoomba Region Council was to be congratulated for bestowing this beautiful place on the community.
The park stretches across 123.5ha and contains an impressive network of purposebuilt bushwalking and mountain bike trails with views aplenty across the immediate Toowoomba area.
Access is either by Darling, Westminster or Boundary streets and Anzac Ave.
It has three carparks, five lookouts, picnic tables and benches.
And talking about the Osbornes, another friend of mine John Osborne OAM and his colleague Lindsay Jones were chiefly responsible for the creation of the park.
They were both Aldermen on the Toowoomba City Council in the 1970s and worked together on the Health, Recreation and Gardens Committee.
It was their insistence to have the park added to council’s inventory of parks and open spaces so that it could be used by ratepayers for bushwalking, horse riding and picnicking.
Thank you John.
I survived the day and concluded it was far safer ascending the mountain on horseback than descending.
Mount Peel Bushland Park is a beautiful place and a credit to council.
When you get a chance try it for yourself, get all the information at www.tr.qld.gov.au/facilities-recreation/parks-gardens/parks-by-location/drayton-mount-peel1