The issue that has brought us together is our fear of being locked out of the places that mean so much to us. The mountain summits inparticular represent so much to so many of us.

The Kiwi mountaineer, Sir Edmund Hillary who, along with the Nepalese Sherpa, Tenzing Norgay, were the first people to summit Mount Everest, famously said, “it is not the mountain we conquer but ourselves”. Until I first climbed Mount Beerwah in Queensland’s Glasshouse Mountain region, this quote didn’t mean anything to me. I had a lifelong debilitating fear of heights… but the day I first summited Mount Beerwah, this controlling fear evaporated, never to return.

Since that day, just four short years ago, climbing these mountains has been a figurative (and I dare say literal) life saver for me. This is my personal experience, but it is by no means unique to me. We have countless people who will testify to the same: the experience we gain in climbing these mountains is literally priceless, and its benefit to our emotional, physical, mental and spiritual health surpasses any amount of therapy. This is the therapy that money simply cannot buy! And the fear of losing this is what has brought us together today.

There is historical, current, and increasing pressure on our Governments and National Parks Services for the closure of numerous places of natural beauty across our nation, including many mountains.

The push for closure comes with various rationales including, but not limited to:

- Being places of cultural significance to Traditional Owners;

- Ecological issues;

- Safety issues.

As these places (and especially the mountain summits) hold such special value to this community of hikers and climbers, we would like to be represented by having a place at the table as an equal stakeholder when these matters are being debated.

Mount Warning in Northern NSW is a recent closure we are trying to have re-opened. Also, Mt Beerwah in the Glasshouse Mountains has a temporary closure that we believe may become permanent. These are just two examples of many. These mountain summits have contributed greatly to the physical, emotional, mental and spiritual health of 10’s of thousands of people.

We will be petitioning for:

- Continued, ongoing and permanent access to mountain summits throughout Australia.

- Equality for all Australians, with equal consideration of our views and needs.

- Evidence of safety concerns so we can assess their validity and input accordingly.

- Consultation and input on ecological issues.

- Protection of our National Parks from the small minority of people who litter and/or vandalise these places of such natural beauty. We will be calling for harsh consequences for, for example, the person responsible for the recent vandalism of Mount Beerwah in the Glasshouse Mountains. We stand together, united in solidarity with our Indigenous brothers and sisters in strongly denouncing this despicable act.

Mount Beerwah in particular has been closed for extended periods of time in the past for safety reasons.

However, this current closure is because an ignorant, disrespectful and uninformed person decided to use a grinder to grind graffiti into the base of the mountain.

The mountain was closed by QPWS in consultation with the traditional custodians to allow the Jinabara People a time of cultural healing.

We stand in complete unity with our indigenous brothers & sisters in strongly denouncing this blatant act of vandalism.

We are concerned however, that having already been extended, this rolling ‘temporary’ closure could become a pathway to a permanent closure as this has long been the stated agenda of the traditional custodians.

Craig Evens, SOS president 2003

Ben Heaton, SOS executive 2003