Atherton Tablelands Waterfall Quest
Apart from escaping the southern winter months, our primary focus on this trip was to explore the Atherton Tablelands in Tropical North Queensland.
The area is a mix of rainforest, wetlands and savannah. The fauna and flora in this area is extensive; tree kangaroos, wallabies, platypuses, birds (lots of kookaburras) and frogs, cassowary, just to name a few, all happily living within their natural habitat.
Our first stop on our waterfall quest was Ravenshoe, In the past, we have stayed at Railway Museum RV Park, which is located in the heart of town. This time we thought we would stay just a few k’s out of town, at Archer Creek Rest Area. It’s a relative large area, with a flowing creek and good swimming hole. If you can tolerate road noise, then it’s an ideal spot to spend a night or two.
Millstream Falls
From Archer Creek, you drive to both Big Millstream Falls and Little Millstream Falls. It’s only a short walk to the falls from either carpark. You can hear the roar as you amble down the track but nothing prepares you for the spectacle; the amount of water cascading was unbelievable. I would like to see the flow in the wet season (Queensland’s summer months),when this area receives 6,000 millimetres (6 metres) in rainfall. Having said that, it does receive 3,000 millimetres in the dry season (Queensland’s winter months).
We stayed three nights in the only caravan park in Millaa Millaa. Fortunately, we had booked a powered site as it was overcast for our entire stay and our site was under a dense rainforest canopy. We had zero solar. It was so dark inside the van, we had our lights on during the day
Milllaa Millaa Falls, Zillie Falls and Elinjaa Falls
On our first day, we did the waterfall circuit trail which included Milllaa Millaa Falls, Zillie Falls and Elinjaa Falls. All are close by and easily accessible by car. It’s an easy walk from the carpark to each of the falls through a rainforest. Great walks, water a plenty and terrific swim holes.
Souita Falls, Pepina Falls, Mungali Falls, Nandroya Falls
On our second day we completed another waterfall circuit. Souita Falls, Pepina Falls, Mungali Falls are also easily accessed. You can spot a platypus at Pepina Falls and also at Mungali, Dawn and dusk is best.
My favourite, Nandroya Falls, was a 4.8 km return hike through a beautiful lush green, dense rainforest along a narrow track that some may find challenging. There’s also a creek crossing and although some rocks were slippery, it’s manageable. At the base of the falls, there’s a fabulous swim hole; the water was too cold on the day I visited so I gave it a miss.
‘Watch your step’ and ‘Lift your feet’ to avoid stumbling over or slipping on exposed tree roots along the track.
Henrietta Creek Campground is nearby and is worth staying for a few days. All sites within this National Park are unpowered and most are in the shade, which presents a problem on overcast days when the UV is extremely low. However on a warm or hot sunny day these sites are ideal, as they provide shelter from the extreme heat and a portable solar blanket would more than adequately provide for your daily power needs.
Tully Gorge
The “Wow” moment for me was driving into Tully Gorge along Tully Gorge Road. It was a misty overcast day, the fog had set in and was enveloping all the spaces within the rainforest. It was eerie driving through the dense forest along a winding, narrow road, especially those sections that were in complete darkness. Heavy raindrops landed on the car roof, leaves glistened and shimmered with the early morning rays whilst Bush Turkeys actively foraged for food. It was magical!
