251 .....

..... years ago today Captain James Cook named this peak Mt Warning. As he sailed up the east coast of the continent that would later be named Australia he was troubled by a line of breakers ahead which extended well out to sea. The breakers indicated a hidden underwater reef. He named the nearby prominent peak Mt Warning as an indication to future navigators to be careful.

At that time, in 1770, the peak already had a name. The First Nations people of the area, the Bandjalung, called it Wollumbin. They had done so for countless thousands of years before Cook. And still do. The Bandjalung name is increasingly being used today.

The mountain we see today is a remnant of a large volcano that last erupted about 25 million years ago. Wikipedia has lots of information. 

The photo is taken from the grounds of the Tweed Regional Art Gallery, about an hour's drive north of where we live. It is one of our favourite local places. The building design cleverly gives glimpses of Wollumbin/Mt Warning, as shown in the Extra.