#95 of 100 trips for 100 years - Nicols Creek to Pineapple Point by night 28 September 2023

The trip tonight was a change from our usual day trip as 12 people gathered at the Nicols Falls car park at 7.30pm for a moonlight walk.  We headed up the wide Nicols Falls track for about 7 minutes to the gorge  which is popular for glow worm viewing.  The damp air from the creek and the narrow, fern covered walls of the gorge are a haven for glow worms.  Sadly we were a little early as it was still too light for the glow worms so we ventured into the gorge further, keeping dry feet as we crossed the creek and spent 15 minutes eagerly watching the gorge walls, waiting for the mysterious glow worms to reveal themselves in the gathering gloom.  From the gorge we retraced our steps a few metres back down the track before turning off onto the track that wound it's way up hill, through the bush to Pineapple Point

Those that had the foresight to bring head torches turned them on and up the hill we continued, stopping every so often to keep the party together and ensure that no one wandered off at any of the track junctions that we passed.  On up the hill we went, through a grassy clearing and back into the bush, scaring a pig happily rooting in the undergrowth until we came along and off along the track it raced, disappearing into the dark once it reached the end of the light from our torches.  After about an hour of magical walking by torchlight where our focus was as far as our torches would light or, for those without a torch,  the pair of feet directly in front of us, we emerged out of the bush onto the Pineapple Track and made the short detour to Pineapple Point where we were rewarded with wonderful views of the city by night.  The lookout at Pineapple Point is the perfect place to lookout with the lights of the city strung out before us and the full moon overhead.  

We spent some time here, admiring the view before the cold wind drove us down the Pineapple Track into the shelter of the trees.  Not wanting the night to end too quickly, we took the McGouns Track, continuing our walk through the bush, lit only by our head torches.  Once back to the road, it was an easy 1km road walk back to the cars.  Everyone agreed that it had been a fun 2 hour, 6.5km walk in the moonlight and one they would happily repeat.