Mt Barney - East Peak - Up Logan's - Down South

The original route taken by Captain Patrick Logan & Allan Cunningham. AC actually gave up leaving Logan to climb on alone. It's the steepest, sharpest most direct route up to East Peak short of needing ropes, harnesses and belays etc. The views are spectacular. Rock scrambling experience, sound navigational skills and a good head for heights are an absolute must for this walk. NEVER climb it alone. There have been dozens of rescues off this ridge, don't be next. Extensive signage recently installed at Yellow Pinch do not mention Logan's Ridge, for good reason.

Lookouts

Scrambling or Climbing

Navigation Required

Rainforest

Eucalypt Forest

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Getting there

From Yellow Pinch, walk back along the gravel road over the causeway following the fence line until you reach a cattle grid and a fork. Mt Barney Lodge is to the right, Lower Portals to the left. The walk begins from the fire trail which should be clearly visible.

Maps

Maroon or Lindsay 1:25000 will cover it. Maps are available at K2 Fortitude Valley or digitally. Robert Rankin - Secrets of the Scenic Rim is an outstanding guide book, written by arguably the godfather of Mt Barney. This is also available for sale at K2.

Route/Trail notes

Walk straight up the fire trail passing through 3 cattle gates until you reach the national park boundary. This is private land so be respectful. This is a very hard slog. A sign outlining Logan's Ridge signals the beginning of ridge proper. Follow a well established footpad until you reach the first granite slabs. You are now on the ridge.

Very important - stay on top of the ridge at all times and NEVER attempt a left hand traverse. I can't stress this enough. It is extremely difficult to get back on top and highly dangerous. Loose unstable rocks, steep drop offs and not much to hold onto. This will also chew through your daylight, your energy, and your water.

There are several variations where you can right hand traverse certain sections of Logan's Ridge and they are best outlined in the Rankin text described above. Some of these a rope is essential to carry packs and for general protection. In my view the easiest ascent is the original ridge line staying directly on top the entire climb.

Carry at least 4 litres of water per person. There is usually good water supply in the saddle, but that's another 45 minutes from the summit. Unless you've done the climb before, don't begin any later than 10am.

Descending Logan's Ridge isn't recommended as it's just too steep. Climb down into the saddle from East Peak, find Old Hut Site, continue through to Rum Jungle then descend via South Ridge.

Important tip: When leaving Rum Jungle, follow the triangular markers to reach South Ridge. You will need to climb up over a small knoll first. Do not climb down at the first T junction, this is NOT south ridge, you are now on Egan Creek which is a thick scrub bash back down to the forestry track. Not fun at all.

Permits/Costs

Do you need any permits? What's the cost?

Other References

How can I find more info? Any guide books?

GPS Tracks

No GPS available for this walk yet.

Comments

Went up Logans Ridge and came down SE ridge for a 72nd birthday present with 5 members of the family in almost perfect conditions. Recent fires and rains have caused a few changes since I last did the walk but basically stay as close to the top of the ridge as possible and you can't go too far wrong, Coming down, the S E Ridge seems to have been affected more than Logans by the weather, particularly on the lower section where invasive weeds have taken over large swathes of the understory and even the trees. Unless something is done to eradicate it, I can imagine a good wet summer would allow it to completely cover the track and make it nearly impossible to find. The best route up in my opinion as long as you don't mind a good scramble and walking next to big drop offs.
jgmansell on 30 May, 2021

Had no idea what we were getting into as our friend who’d been on Logan’s a few times only told us we were doing Mt Barney. Let’s just say this route is not for faint hearted! Do not attempt if you are afraid of heights or exposure. There are many times where you’ll need some composure to pull yourself around a high ledge to keep moving. It also got to the point where it would have just been too steep to go down so the only way was up. Luckily our friend knew the route. I would not recommend doing it unless you had someone to guide you who has done Logan’s before. You could easily take the wrong way and end up in a hairy position. All up it took us about 3.5hrs from the carpark at Yellow Pinch to reach the summit from Logan’s, including some rest breaks. About another 3.5hrs down via SE route. We did loose the trail going down a few times which is super easy to do! You’ll need some rock scrambling experience and a good sense of direction and our trail map to complete this! Good luck!
wheres_wally on 16 Aug, 2020

Straightforward ascent up Logans, with a group of 3. Easily stuck to the ridge, nothing overly difficult. Few exposed sections needed a bit of care. Carried 3L of water and drank the lot just before the summit. There is still fresh water in the saddle but it's pretty dry. Need a few more good storms. Back down via Egans Creek, very dry and not that interesting. With decent rainfall Egan's however is quite stunning.
iano on 29 Sep, 2018