Overview
- Features: Walking tracks leading to spectacular lookouts with views of volcanic peaks and cones
- Opening Times: 24 hours
- Best Time to Visit: Spring (September to November)
- Duration: Half to full day
- Transport Options: Car
- Cost: Free
- Address: Glass House Mountains National Park, Glass House Mountains, Queensland, Australia
- Type: National Park
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Summary
Fancy a trip to the Glass House Mountains? Of course, you do. With stunning scenery, great walking tracks and abundant wildlife, it’s one of the top places to visit in the Sunshine Coast. Read this article for interesting tidbits about the Glass House Mountains, best walking tracks, accommodation options and more.
Best Glass House Mountains Walks
Interesting Facts About the Glass House Mountains
- The Glass House Mountains are made up of 16 volcanic plugs that sit amongst subtropical plains
- In Dreamtime legend the highest of these 16 peaks, Mount Beerwah, is the mother of this family of mountain spirits
- The peaks are reached by a series of sealed and unsealed roads known as Forest Dr, which heads inland from Steve Irwin Way
- It’s worth diverting off the Bruce Hwy onto the slower Steve Irwin Way to snake your way through dense pine forests and green pastureland for a close-up view of these spectacular volcanic plugs
- Plenty of wildlife exist in the rainforest including pademelons and brush turkeys which you might be able to spot
- With only basic accommodation available, the Glass House Mountains are best visited as a day trip
Glass House Mountains Names
The Glass House Mountains are made up of 16 volcanic plugs, 12 of which are named below.
- Mount Beerwah (556m)
- Mount Coonowrin (aka ‘crook-neck’) (377m)
- Mount Tibrogargan (364m)
- Mount Tunbubudla (aka ‘The Twins’) (312m & 293m)
- Mount Beerburrum (276m)
- Mount Ngungun (253m)
- Mount Coochin (235m)
- Mount Tibberoowuccum (220m)
- Mount Miketeebumulgrai (199m)
- Mount Elimbah (aka ‘The Saddleback’) (129m)
- Wild Horse Mountain (123m)
- Round Mountain
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How were the Glass House Mountains formed?
The Glass House Mountains are the cores of extinct volcanoes that formed 26 million to 27 million years ago.
Why are the Glass House Mountains called that?
The Glass House Mountains were named by Captain James Cook as he sailed past on the fine morning of 18 May 1770. Due to their domed, conical structure, he thought they resembled glass kilns and foundries (glasshouses) similar to the ones he saw in his native town of Yorkshire.
Where are the Glass House Mountains located?
The Glass House Mountains are located in the Sunshine Coast, 20km northwest of Caboolture, Queensland, Australia.
Glass House Mountains Map
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Glass House Mountains Attractions
The most popular attractions in the Glass House Mountains are the walking tracks and lookouts. If you have time to spare, you must undertake one of the fine walking tracks mentioned below.
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Glass House Mountains Walks
If you visit the Glass House Mountains you must hike one or more of the walking tracks in the national park. A number of these signposted walking tracks reach several of the peaks but be prepared for some steep and rocky trails. The most popular of these mountain walks are Mount Beerwah (556m), Ngungun (253m) and Tibrogargan (364m) which have walking tracks to the summit.
Unfortunately, public access to the Mount Beerwah tourist track has been restricted since 2009. Mount Coonowrin (aka ‘crook-neck’), the most dramatic of the volcanic plugs, has been closed to the public since 1999 due to the danger of trachyte rock instability.
For more information visit NPRSR.
1. Mount Beerburrum Walking Track
Distance: 1.4km return
Time: 1 hr
Grade: 4
Access to the Mount Beerburrum walking track is close to Beerburrum township. Travelling south on Beerburrum Road, the turnoff is about 500m on the right after the railway line overpass. Travelling north the turnoff is the first road on the left after the Beerburrum-Woodford Road junction. Look for directional signs.
Travel about 1km on a gravel road to the carpark. From the car park a steep paved walking track leads you to a fire tower which offers great views. Mount Beerburrum’s fire tower is used to detect and manage fires throughout the surrounding parks and forests. Mount Beerburrum is 280m above sea level.
2. Mount Ngungun Walking Track
Distance: 2.8km return
Time: 2 hrs
Grade: 4
Mount Ngungun is about 3km from the Glass House Mountains township via Coonowrin and Fullertons Roads.
The track begins in open forest with a fern understory. Part way up the mountain there is a great view of Mount Tibrogargan and the track passes a small rock overhang. The summit provides spectacular close-up views of nearby Mount Tibrogargan, Mount Coonowrin and Mount Beerwah.
3. Mount Tibrogargan, Tibrogargan Walking Circuit
Distance: 800m to the Mountain View lookout; 3.2km for the complete circuit
Time: 10mins for Mountain View lookout; 1hr 30mins for the circuit
Grade: 3
Mount Tibrogargan is probably the best climb with a challenging scramble and several amazing lookouts from the flat summit. Mount Tibrogargan is located between the Beerburrum and Glass House Mountains townships, off Marshs and Barrs Roads.
The walk begins from the northern end of the Mount Tibrogargan car park. A short walk leads up to the Mountain View lookout with views over Mount Beerwah, Mount Coonowrin, Mount Tibberoowuccum and Mount Tunbubudla. Keep following the walking track around the base of Mount Tibrogargan through casuarina groves, open eucalypt and melaleuca forests. The track provides some great views of Mount Tibrogargan. Peregrine falcons are often seen soaring above this area.
4. Mount Tibrogargan, Trachyte Walking Circuit
Distance: 6km return
Time: 2-3 hrs
Grade: 4
From the Mount Tibrogargan car park, this circuit leads through open woodland and heathland linking Mount Tibrogargan and Mount Tibberoowuccum. Interpretive signs along the track provide details of the area’s special features. The Jack Ferris lookout, on Trachyte Ridge, allows for good views of the surrounding peaks. This ridge owes its name to a type of volcanic rock which forms many of the Glass House Mountains peaks.
5. Mount Tibrogargan Summit Route
Distance: 3km return
Time: 3-4 hrs
Grade: 5
The climb to the summit of Mount Tibrogargan starts from the Mountain View lookout and continues for 300m up the western slope of the mountain. The first section of summit route has very loose and unstable rock until you reach the ‘No waiting zone’. The route then continues up a near vertical rockface to the summit, 364m above sea level.
Glass House Mountains Lookouts
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There’s no better way to see the beautiful landscape of Glass House Mountains than on one of its fine walks. However, if you’re in a hurry, there are a couple of lookouts along the way that will provide you with some great views of Glass House Mountains.
The best viewing points for the Glass House Mountains are from Mary Cairncross Park near Maleny or from the spectacular Wild Horse Lookout off the Bruce Highway, with free bush shuttle trips every hour from Moby Vic’s Mobil service station on the highway for those without their own transport.
If you have an hour to spare, consider visiting the Glass House Mountains Lookout. Located within the national park, it provides a fine view of the peaks and the distant beaches. The lookout circuit (800m) is a short and steep walking track that leads through open scribbly-gum forest and down a wet gully before circling back.
Glass House Mountains Accommodation Options
Unfortunately, the accommodation options at Glass House Mountains are limited to only basic accommodation. For this reason, the Glass House Mountains are best visited on a day trip.
Glass House Mountains Camping
There are no camping grounds in Glass House Mountains National Park. The Glasshouse Mountains Log Cabin Caravan Park is probably the best accommodation option available in the area. The park has comfortable, self-contained cabins, pretty powered and unpowered sites and spectacular mountain views. Facilities include barbecues, a tennis court and a small café.
Glass House Mountains Tavern
Part kit home, part old country tavern, Glass House Mountains Tavern is a welcoming pub that cooks up good pub nosh. The open fire keeps things cosy during winter and a peppering of outdoor seating is great for a midday middy on sunny days. Located at 10 Reed Street, Glass House Mountains Tavern is open daily for lunch and dinner.
Tell us what you think. Are you planning a visit to the Glass House Mountains? If you’ve been here before, what did you do and what did you like the most about it.
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