I was sitting here working on the blog when I started to hear an alarm go off. Jacob got up to investigate and it was a fire alarm in the hallway. The elevators were stopped and the fire doors had closed. He said we needed to head downstairs and that he could hear other alarms. The alarm in our room wasn’t going off so I thought that was odd. For some reason I decided to call reception. When they answered I could hear alarms going off down there too, I said, “Should we evacuate?” He said, they were investigating and that there would be an update from the building manager. We both got our shoes on and I gathered our important items. As of now, no alarms are going off. The elevators are working again and a staff member came through and opened all the fire doors back up.

So.. I think we are in the clear but I’m still worked up. Jacob has removed his shoes and is ready for bed. I’ll keep my shoes on for a few more minutes…

The title of the blog today is inspired by father Hust. I told him we were going to Mount Lofty and he replied, “high hopes.” 🙂

This morning we woke up and walked downstairs to get our free breakfast. We filled up on bacon, sausage, toast, yogurt and fruit. Jacob got some eggs and I got a coffee.

From there we were ready to head out to Mount Lofty. This summit has panoramic views of the city and you can drive right up to the top. The road to the summit was very narrow and twisty. On the drive up I saw two koalas sleeping in the trees.

We arrived and first took in the panoramic views. Unfortunately, there was some smoke haze in the distance due to the Kangaroo Island fire. However, our air quality here in Adelaide has been good.

We then started on our walk around Mount Lofty. First, we saw a sleeping koala in a tree in the parking lot so we snapped a few photos. We then headed down the main waterfall gully trail which began with a steep descent and continued with a steep descent. I began to realize with each step I took down the hill, I’d have to take these steps back up the hill. I asked Jacob if he knew it would be so steep. He said he didn’t, but I don’t know if I believe him.

I was keeping my eyes peeled for koalas in the trees, looking this way and that, and up and down and everywhere. When suddenly we almost ran right into one. It was in a tree just to the left of the trail. Can you spot it in the photo below?

Right in the split of the branches, half-way up.

We watched the koala for a little bit and then it suddenly stirred, itched itself and climbed the branch to a shadier spot to nap. As we were watching the koala, a local guy came up behind us and said, “Amazing, isn’t it?!” Yes!

Here’s a close-up.

There was a waterfall, so we stopped to check in out and get some photos. We also reapplied sunscreen. I was determined to not burn my burns. While we were here Jacob saw a bandicoot scurry across the trail.

There was a small cafe at the end of the trail and we stopped there for lunch. The server was very friendly and visited with us a bit. She asked about our hike and where we traveled from. Jacob ordered a strawberry iced drink and they accidentally made two so I got to enjoy one too. It was delicious! After fueling up, we were ready to tackle the steep incline back to the top.

Look how much fun Jacob was having!

After just a short bit we came across a sign explaining the different trails. There was a man looking at the sign when we got there. I asked if the harder trail was shorter and the guy at the sign said no it was even longer. He then asked if we had ever walked this trail before and we said no. I could hear his American accent and was just about to ask where he was from when he asked us. I said, “Washington state!” and he said, “Minnesota.” After a little more small talk, he wished us a good hike and continued on his way. We decided to take the more difficult “Adventure Trail” because it looked less busy and I was hoping that meant we’d see more wildlife.

Shortly into our hike we came across a young woman and a small child, probably 3 or 4. The woman asked us if there was any water in the waterfalls. Jacob told her yes, that higher up the creek was dry but the lower falls both have water flowing. She thanked him and said she didn’t want to come all this way and then be disappointed. She wished us a good rest of our day and continued on.

Though I diligently looked, I did not see any more koalas on our hike. However, we had a wonderful time. You could smell the eucalyptus trees. The sun was shining but there was a cool breeze. It was the perfect weather for a hike through the bush.

The difficult adventure trail ended up not being too challenging at all and got us back to where we started.

The same koala that was in the tree in the parking lot was still there. I went over to say hi to it again and it stirred, reared its head back and started grunting. Jacob said I must have gotten too close and agitated it. However, after some YouTube research I learned it was doing a mating call!

After that thrilling experience we were back in the car headed down the curving narrow road. Jacob stopped at a gas station to fill up the car and then we went back to the hotel. We have to return our car tomorrow morning. It’s one of many reminders that our trip is quickly coming to an end.

We had dinner at the hotel and then went back to our room to get organized. After a bit, I suggested we should get some ice cream so we headed back out. Unfortunately, it was a bit cooler than we thought it would be but the skies were still blue. We were amazed at how empty the streets were considering that they were totally full yesterday evening. All the shops along the way had already closed up and it was just after 7:30 p.m. The restaurants were full, but we still wondered where all the people were. We decided they must have all gone to see the Australian basketball game this evening.

Tomorrow we turn in the car, check out of the hotel, ask the hotel nicely to store our bags for five hours, explore Adelaide some more and then head to the airport. We are flying to Sydney tomorrow evening.

The weather is supposed to be hot and sunny, so we plan to explore the botanic gardens before heading to the airport.

Until then!