Western Victoria's Grampians mountains have long been a favoured destination for hikers and climbers attracted to its jagged peaks, rugged tracks and pretty scenery.
But now the peaks of Gariwerd, to give them their Indigenous name, are attracting a new type of super-fit adventurer — the ultra-distance runners.
Last weekend, Australia's top ultra-distance athletes braved torrential rain and a lightning storm to compete over 160 kilometres in the range, that lies north of Dunkeld.
The Grampians Peaks Trail 100 Miler is the first race of its kind in Australia: a unique combination of mountain ascents, enormous distance and spectacular backdrops.
Organisers and runners hope it will cement Australia's place on the global trail running calendar
"The GPT 100 will be the most spectacular race in Australia," race director Joseph Dorph said.
"I said I'd never run a 100 mile race in Australia after running the UTMB (in Mont Blanc) a couple of times but this is the one exception," Melbourne runner Kellie Angel said.
One hundred runners attempted the race, with several hundred more tackling shorter distances and a relay event.
Just over half of them had finished when the finish line closed after two days.
West Australian runner Michael Dunstan won just after noon on his 28th birthday with a time of 24 hours and one minute, only stopping for 15 minutes due to lightning danger overnight.
Kellie Emmerson won the women's open in 28 hours and 18 minutes.
Reinventing the Grampians
The race follows the Grampians Peaks Trail which traces the entire mountain range from Mount Zero to Dunkeld and opened in late 2021.
"It's a $34 million federal and state investment in a national park asset and it was almost built for this amazing event," Grampians Tourism CEO Marc Sleeman said.
Mr Dorph said Parks Victoria sought expressions of interest for an organiser to host a major running event on the trail.
"Parks Victoria have always been very supportive to have a race in the area. There was always a promise that it would go through," he added.
However, the enthusiastic support for the trail and the race has left a bitter taste for rock climbers who frequented the park for decades, before many of its most iconic cliffs were closed for cultural heritage assessments.
The Grampians National Park is home to about 80 per cent of the Indigenous art in south-east Australia and many areas remain unsurveyed after being closed to visitors in 2019.
"It seems to me that [Parks Victoria has] picked one or two iconic legacy projects such as the Peaks Trail," Natimuk climber Kevin Lindorff said.
"They've basically ignored us and are pushing this particular thing so they can puff their chest out and say, 'Hey we've got this iconic walk, aren't we amazing?'"
'Three tenths of bugger all'
Parks Victoria said more assessments would begin in the first half of 2024 and that "more than 100 areas for climbing are open to all visitors and we will continue to work with Traditional Owners to protect our park's cultural heritage".
The Grampians (Gariwerd) Landscape Management Plan, published by Parks Victoria, acknowledges "within Grampians (Gariwerd) National Park during 2019, 125 climbing areas were inspected.
"The survey resulted in 37 previously undocumented cultural places being identified.
"A further 12 rediscoveries (ten quarries and two rock shelters) were made within climbing areas as part of assessments conducted in November 2020 and April 2021."
But Mr Lindorff said that after the original tranche of assessments "they've done three tenths of bugger all".
Traditional owner representation of the mountain range is split between three Aboriginal corporations.
Paul Kelly, a Djab Wurrung man and representative of Eastern Maar Aboriginal Corporation, opened both the Peaks Trail and the 100 Miler race with a Welcome to Country.
"The areas have been occupied for thousands of years. It definitely doesn't take a few years [to assess]," he said.
"There are so many places that have been modified and protected by our ancestors for a long time."
Running on Country
Mr Kelly described Indigenous travellers' process of traversing the mountain range as slow, deliberate and social.
"Every time we reach a certain cultural checkpoint we'll do a welcome and exchange," he said.
"Sit down and have a yarn and a trade – it's like a passport."
Mr Kelly was quick to point out the differences between the historical approach, marathoners' unrelenting pace and climbers' complicated ascents.
"It seems like there's a lot of passports being handed out!" he joked.
Mr Kelly also expressed the need for care in managing the rapid growth of the Grampians National Park as an adventure tourism destination, fuelled in part by the 100 Miler race.
"Ultimately, my people would like the landscape to be untouched and managed but we're welcoming as well," he said.
The head of Grampians Tourism echoed the need for careful management of park resources but was eager to promote the 100 Miler and the sport of trail running.
"We intend to leverage the growth of the popularity of trail running to help showcase the Grampians Peaks Trail and also our region to both a domestic and international audience," Mr Sleeman said.
"We know that more visitors are coming. They're spending a longer time here and spending more money."
The race director agreed that the race and the region is prime for growth.
"I have no doubt Halls Gap in ten years time is going to be a trail running mecca," Mr Dorph said.