Flag waving ‘Eukatroids’ scale Munibung Hill
It all started with walks in the bush 50 years ago to now being a vocal supporter for the protection and conservation of natural areas. Munibung Hill occupies a special place in the formation of Grant Sheldon’s social ethic.
GRANT SHELDON grew up in the Warners Bay / Speers Point area. The family home was firstly at Warners Bay, then in The Esplanade, Speers Point, near Nord Street, before a move to Alley Street, Speers Point directly under Munibung Hill – ‘you couldn’t get much closer’, says Grant. There was no mistaking its presence, looming larger than life within the mind of a small boy who had a sense of adventure for the unknown – albeit with some trepidation, as we learn more about Grant’s exploits.
“I first got to explore Munibung Hill when I was about 11 years old, back in the days when the Hawkins family owned a large portion of the hill,” recalls Grant as we settle into a conversation, a series of anecdotes that tell a fascinating story. There were three quarries that ‘exposed’ the hill, two of them operated by the Hawkins.
He grew up with the television program Skippy the Bush Kangaroo, that aired on TCN 9 each afternoon.
“We thought the show portrayed Aboriginal people in a very spiritual and knowledgeable way, and we wanted to be part of that,” said Grant. “I always had this love, today we’d say a ‘call of the bush’, but there were cattle up there and I was scared of them.
Imagine if Munibung Hill wasn’t there and all we had was a
clear view and flat land. We’d have another thousand houses
all crammed together and no green open space. No birds,
no squirrel gliders, no native orchids, no rainforested areas.
“We always went up from the end of Quarry Road. The gravel quarry was not operating by this time, but trail bikes were a big thing in the 70s, with young fellas tearing around making a hell of a racket and stirring up dust as they do.”
“But the two quarries operated by the Hawkins family were still in full swing.”
“I learnt to sail at about this same time, when I was ten years old, and from the very beginning Munibung Hill was a very prominent presence, looking back from the lake.”
“The feature that sticks in my mind right from the start, is the cliff face, when we’d walk to the end of Quarry Road. I mean how could you miss it? Towering over your head as a ten or eleven year old. But even now it stands out as a sentinel, guarding the area.
“I’ve got to tell you this story. When I lived at Nord Street, my mate Garry came over one day and said, “Let’s go up Munibung Hill.” Now my Mum was in a play at the time and they had these red flags with the letter E printed on them. Well, we imagined ourselves to be ‘Eukatroids’. It was a word we invented to describe us going to explore Eukatroid – Munibung Hill. We just made it up, kids pretending we were going to conquer the mountain, waving our flags to keep us safe I guess,” Grant says. “The gravel quarries were still operating, it was long before any thoughts of there being housing developments, before the telecom towers were installed.”
“For a couple of kids, this was going bush big time. The walk was from the top end of Alley Street that took us up to the main ridge at the northern end.
“From there we walked right along the ridge down to a track that ran out to Quarry Road, where we came back down. I clearly remember it was a cold sunny winter’s day blowing a strong westerly. This was a big deal for a couple of kids our age,” recalls Grant.
“The whole time we were there I was scared of being either chased by a bull or confronted by one of the Hawkins family, telling us to clear out off their farm.”
“We had heaps of trips onto Munibung Hill and Quarry Road became the regular access or staging point for our adventures.”
Grant was into billy carts in those days. Home made from bits and pieces the boys would scrounge from around the neighbourhood. Wheels from old lawn mowers were a popular part.
“There was a road that veered off to the left at the end of Quarry Road. It went up to a make shift car park and then a formed track around a couple of bends, before a rocky incline up to the spur across from the main ridge.”
It was from the bottom of the rocky section that Grant and his mates launched themselves on these DIY billy carts.
“We’d drag them up and ride ‘em down,” says Grant. “After a few spills trying to negotiate the sharp bends, we came up with a modification to make them more stable so they wouldn’t tip over so easily. What we did was widen the piece of wood that the front axle was attached to. Image a roadster, with us leaning into the curves as we hurtled down the hill. There were no crash helmets in those days. Lot of thrills and spills and probably a few skinned knees and elbows but no serious damage done except to the billy carts – they took a pounding.”
“Back in my school days, Lakelands didn’t exist. I used to walk from Warners Bay High School back home along Thompson Road to Speers Point.”
“The bushland area on the south-western side along the creek valley should be protected at all costs. It was one last stand that didn’t seem to have been touched.
We need to treasure Munibung Hill as a gift from deep geological time.
Clever as we might think we are, you couldn’t artificially make anything like it.
There’s no substitute.
“I think when you go up to Munibung Hill it’s got a feeling about it – it’s a place where you can connect, and even though someone else might own it, it somehow ‘belongs’ with all of us. There’s a spiritual feeling up there. I mean, we’re only here for a short time, Munibung Hill has been here for eons, and will be long into the future.”
“If there’s a strong westerly blowing you feel as if you could be a bird and take off – it’s got that elation.”
“It’s one of those things for me. We were born here and we feel like we belong, like Munibung Hill belongs with us – we’re one, if you know what I mean. Everyone should be made feel welcome up there. People should be encouraged to experience all the diversity, all the different aspects, because there are so many all in the one place – up one ridge, down into a valley, along a creek. I mean you don’t get that walking along a suburban footpath, or around the cement paths around the lake,” said Grant.
“There wasn’t as much lantana there in my time – at least not as much as there is today. It’s made some places impossible to get through.”
Back in those early days, you could drive up some of the tracks, but thank goodness that is no longer the case.
“We’ve become disconnected from nature; we want nature to fit in with our worldview. Here’s a story to illustrate what I’m talking about.”
“I do a lot of sailing, have done ever since I I was a kid. It was my Summer sport when I was at school. We’re out on the lake as part of a regatta and you hear other sailors saying that the north-eastern end of Munibung Hill makes it difficult to sail, because it blocks out wind. But that’s only because they have no idea of the wind shifts that we’ve grown up with. “Give us a break! You just like a ‘cleaner’ breeze and that’s not what nature gives us. We need to be up for the challenge and work with it. It’s all part of learning about the shifting winds. It’s what makes sailing exciting,” Grant says.
“Image if Munibung Hill wasn’t there and all we had was a clear view and flat land. We’d have another thousand houses all crammed together and no green open space. No birds, no squirrel gliders, no native orchids, no rainforested areas. We need to treasure Munibung Hill as a gift from deep geological time. Clever as we might think we are, you couldn’t artificially make anything like it. There’s no substitute, so let’s protect and conserve Munibung Hill as an essential part of the urban landscape.”
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Postscript
The Open Boat, 2 May 2022
Scenes from the Australian Historical 10-Footers 2022 Championship Race 4. Race and series winner was RAMONA II (Grant Sheldon, NSW), with the red outline triangle insignia. Raced out of Teralba Amateur Sailing Club, Lake Macquarie – watch on Facebook.com – 3m 31 sec.
Australian Historical Skiffs, 2 May 2023 – scroll down to the May date to watch the event
All done and dusted! Grant Sheldon in RAMONA II has successfully defended his Australian title winning all 4 heats of the Historical 10-Footers Skiffs Australian Championship on the Brisbane River – watch on Facebook
Aussie Historic Skiffs, 8 May 2024 – scroll down to the May 2024 date to catch the event. Note the prominence of Munibung Hill in the background. Grant was in this event.
… From MMM Issue #48, Feb-Mar 2025