The following walk reports may include locations subject to restricted access. It may not be open to the public and you would not be authorised to visit the location without approval of the landowner. Our walking groups obtain permission where required for these walks.
Leader: Colin Walkers: Linda & Ed (NZ visitors), John, Paul, Steve, Christine D, Joy, Colin Distance: 5.1k
Eight walkers enjoyed a cool but beautiful sunny day viewing the spectacular Back Creek Falls all the more spectacular after heavy rain. There used to be a clear track which made its way down past six spectacular falls along Back Creek. From Denham Reserve they are in order Denham Falls, Lip Falls, Cavern Falls, Rainbow Falls, Double Falls and Cascade Falls. Numerous rock falls destroyed parts of the track and the rest fell into disrepair.
They are still visited by intrepid hikers and also abseilers who do retrievable abseils (dropping into water) while making their way down the creek itself.
Today we were going to introduce some of our group to some of the finest falls in SE Qld by trying to navigate the old track over some of the rock falls. The old track continues on from the bench seat which overlooks Lip Falls. Instead of going right down to Lip Falls you go left further along. Once the first part of the track is negotiated over a rock fall it is fairly easy to get to a narrow track which forks right to lead down to the creek below Cavern Falls, or left which continues on over further falls and gullies to the base of an escarpment. At the escarpment you can go down to the creek to get to Rainbow Falls, but we had decided to continue on to make Double Falls our first stop. We followed the base of the escarpment until we could go no further and then headed down toward the creek. At the creek we were met with a wonderful scene. Double Falls was at its best after the recent rains and both falls were roaring.
After stopping for photo opportunities we reluctantly turned away to make our way back up to the escarpment and back to the place where we would go down to the creek again, this time below Rainbow Falls. The falls lived up to its name as the sun was just in the right place to create a rainbow. Again more photos before departing again to make our way back up to the fork and then back down to the creek to Cavern Falls. Just before the falls there is a huge cavern which is obviously a home for micro bats and which is continually being hollowed out as there was loose soil at the bottom of two caves that looked like chimneys going further back and up into the cliff face.
Next stop was Lip Falls by going back up to the fork and then back over the first rock fall to the seat and then down again to Lip Falls. Here we had a long lunch before making our way up and past the Denham Falls Lookout and back to Denham Reserve.
Our refreshments were had at the newly opened School House Cafe where all enjoyed the beautiful sunshine - Colin
Why does attentiveness to nature matter? In a very fundamental sense, we are what we pay attention to. Paying heed to beauty, grace, and everyday miracles promotes a sense of possibility and coherence that runs deeper and truer than the often illusory commercial, social "realities" advanced by mainstream contemporary culture. ... Our attention is precious, and what we choose to focus it on has enormous consequences. What we choose to look at, and to listen to--these choices change the world. As Thich Nhat Hanh has pointed out, we become the bad television programs that we watch. A society that expends its energies tracking the latest doings of the celebrity couple is fundamentally distinct from one that watches for the first arriving spring migrant birds, or takes a weekend to check out insects in a mountain stream, or looks inside flowers to admire the marvelous ingenuities involved in pollination. The former tends to drag culture down to its lowest commonalities; the latter can lift us up in a sense of unity with all life. The Way of Natural History, edited by Thomas Lowe Fleischner and published by Trinity University Press (Texas)
