Toolbrunup Peak Trail

Hard

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4km return scramble trail to the summit of Mount Toolbrunup (847m), the second-highest peak in the range and widely rated the best day hike in the Stirlings.

☰ Trail details

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Distance

3.84 km

Est. time

3 hr 6 min

Elevation gain

550 m

Route type

Out & back

Steepest stretch: +159m over ~300m (around the 1.5km mark)

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In an emergency

Call 000 for police, fire or ambulance — Australia's emergency number works even with a weak signal, and without a SIM if any carrier has coverage.

You're in Stirling Range National Park, Stirling Range, near Albany, WA. Mobile reception in this area is not guaranteed — this is exactly why the offline map and GPS position on this page work without signal.

Tell someone your plan and expected return time before you set off. A PLB is the most reliable backup where there's no reception at all.

Tracks & plans

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In-depth guide

Toolbrunup Peak Trail: Complete Guide (Stirling Range)

Widely rated the best day hike in the Stirlings — a genuine scramble with 90% steep terrain, endemic wildflowers and critically endangered cockatoos.

Species to look for on this trail

Ancient trees and rare flora confirmed in this park. Spot one? Add it as a sighting pin below.

Fringed Mountain Bell

Darwinia squarrosa

Stirling Range endemic▾

Stirling Range endemic

A pendent-flowered mountain bell found only on the rocky slopes of the eastern peaks of the Stirling Range. Listed Vulnerable under the EPBC Act and as Declared Rare Flora in Western Australia.

How to spot it

Erect, straggly shrub 0.2-1m tall; red to pink fringed bracts hang in a bell shape around the true flowers, blooming August to November. Look on the rocky upper slopes of the eastern Stirling Range peaks.

Family Myrtaceae · Source: Wikipedia — Darwinia squarrosa

Photo: Melburnian (CC BY-SA 3.0) via Wikimedia Commons

Wildlife you might see on this trail

Animals confirmed in this park. Spot one? Add it as a sighting pin below.

Western Grey Kangaroo

Macropus fuliginosus

IUCN Least Concern▾

IUCN Least Concern

A large, common kangaroo of southern Australia, ranging from south of Shark Bay across coastal Western Australia and South Australia into western Victoria and the Murray-Darling basin; it does not occur in Tasmania or far north Queensland.

How to spot it

Distinguished from the eastern grey kangaroo by darker grey-brown fur, darker colouration around the head, and sometimes a blackish patch near the elbow. Males can be up to twice the size of females; look for them grazing in open woodland, coastal heath and farmland edges across the southern mainland.

Family Macropodidae · Source: Wikipedia

Photo: Charles J. Sharp (CC BY-SA 4.0) via Wikimedia Commons

Carnaby's Black-Cockatoo

Zanda latirostris

IUCN Endangered; EPBC-listed Endangered▾

IUCN Endangered; EPBC-listed Endangered

Endemic to south-western Australia's Wheatbelt and coastal plain, Carnaby's black-cockatoo has declined by more than 50% over the past 45 years due to widespread clearing of the eucalypt woodland and kwongan heath it depends on for nesting and feeding. Large flocks are a familiar sight over Perth's pine plantations and banksia woodlands outside the breeding season.

How to spot it

53-58cm, mostly greyish-black with fine pale scalloping, a short crest and a prominent white/off-white cheek patch and white tail band. The bill is comparatively short and stubby (compare to the longer-billed Baudin's black-cockatoo, which overlaps only at the eastern edge of its range). Call is a loud, wailing two-note 'wy-lah'. Look for them feeding on Banksia, Hakea and Grevillea seed pods, or flying over in noisy flocks at dusk heading to roost.

Family Cacatuidae · Source: Wikipedia; IUCN Red List

Photo: Paul Weber, paulweberphoto.com (CC BY 4.0) via Wikimedia Commons

Baudin's Black-Cockatoo

Zanda baudinii

IUCN Critically Endangered (2021)▾

IUCN Critically Endangered (2021)

Baudin's black-cockatoo is confined to the tall karri and marri forests of far south-western Australia, where it relies on old-growth hollows for nesting and marri seed capsules for food. It is easily confused with the more common Carnaby's black-cockatoo but has a distinctly longer, narrower bill adapted for extracting marri seeds.

How to spot it

About 56cm, dark grey-black with fine pale scalloping, white cheek patches and a white-banded tail - near-identical to Carnaby's black-cockatoo except for its longer, narrower upper mandible. Best told apart by habitat: Baudin's sticks to tall karri/marri forest rather than Wheatbelt woodland. Its wailing call is softer and higher-pitched than Carnaby's.

Family Cacatuidae · Source: Wikipedia; IUCN Red List

Photo: Paul Weber, paulweberphoto.com (CC BY 4.0) via Wikimedia Commons