Hard to believe it has been a week since the Bogong run. We arrived in Adelaide onFriday after a week of driving through inland Victoria including a visit to Mt Buffalo, the Grampians and Mt Arapiles. As the Hammer and I were staying at a house in the hills near the Belair National Park we decided to set off on Sunday morning to run from Brownhill Creek reserve to see if we could reach Eagle on the Hill – a famous Adelaide landmark I recalled from my time living here.
As it turned out we were running on the Yurebilla Track which is the location of a 56km trail race later in the year. The race is organised by the South Australian Road Runners, a club I was a member of way back in 1994.The trail from Brownhill Creek rises steeply, past a few houses before undulating through a series of gullies in a nature reserve.
Bush regeneration work in one gully had controlled the wild olive trees which we saw were prominent and dense in the next gully. It was incredible to see the problem that olive trees are creating in the bushland here. The trail was mostly in grassland and wide enough to run for the most part but in section a short spiky bush serrated my lower legs as I ran past.
Before reaching Eagle on the Hill the trail passed through private property with grazing cattle stopping to have a look at us. Reaching Eagle on the Hill was a bit disappointing as the trail here is along the Old Princes Highway which used to be the main road into the Adelaide hills before the motorway was built. But even more disappointing was the fact that the Eagle on the Hill Hotel which had stunning views over Adelaide is now a private residence. 
We turned around here and retraced our steps to Brownhill Creek. I had a great run on the return leg, no hamstring pain and it was cool with intermittent rain. 
Great weather for running – most unusual for Adelaide in January. I have a lot of work to do if I am to have any hope of lining up for Six Foot Track Marathon in eight weeks time.
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