We have ventured to this part a couple of times now and still find it a challenge worth doing.
Nothing massively hard in the climb to the top except when we last did the climb and indeed every time before that we were carrying way too much weight.
We followed the old track up from Governors Chair lookout for about 3.5km until seeing a clearing on the left hand side of the road.
From there we left the road to find the bigger of the the spurs that lead to the main ridge. The climb up the spur did get a bit steep towards the ridge and was quite soft dirt under foot so takes a bit of time to get through. We like to do things the hard way ...(:
Once on the ridge the route does get a bit easier for a while with a gental climb for a couple of hundred meters.
From there it gets steeper and rockier with some minor obstacles and scrambling.
Camping before reaching the overgrown part on a grassy outcrop, we have an awesome view of the Darling Downs district and the sun set.
As much as like new places, this mountain keeps me coming back for more.
Maybe it's because it's not as popular as other walks near by.
We did this as a day walk, starting at Yellow Pinch carpark around 7AM and arriving at Lower Portals about 4PM. We were told by a professional guide we bumped into at Yellow Pinch carpark that we wouldn't be able to complete our planned route in 1 day. We completed it easily in about 9 hours and taking plenty of stops, but we're experienced hikers and you need to hold a good pace. Most people would probably prefer to break it up into a 2-day walk.
A couple things you need to know first up:
1. This route starts at Yellow Pinch Carpark but finishes at Lower Portals Carpark, so you either need to pre-arrange a way to get back to your car or you have an extra walk at the end from Lower Portals back to Yellow Pinch.
2. A rope is needed to descend a couple short sections of the couloir on the western side of Leaning Peak. This is a very steep scramble through thick grass and over a few small cliffs, so only attempt if you are comfortable with doing this, as once you pass the first cliff you're pretty much committed to continuing the descent because it's difficult to get back up.
Ancient rainforest, cascading waterfalls, crystal clear creeks, tall open forest and expansive views.