Jourama Falls - Paluma Range National Park

Acknowledging the Nywaigi people as the Traditional Owners and first people to live in the Paluma Region for thousands of years and many generations.

Jourama Falls provides a cascade of fresh flowing mountain water from the misty mountains of Paluma Range National Park.  The waterfall flows from Waterview Creek and creates plenty of fresh water swimming holes along the 3km return trail.

Jourama Falls is located 90km north of Townsville and easily accessed via the Bruce Highway, with a 10 minute drive along the unsealed Jourama Road winding through cane properties to reach the gateway of the national park. (1)

The area is set up for day use, providing grassy banks with plenty of shade, picnic tables and barbeque facilities, as well as unpowered camp sites available for booking overnight or longer stays.

From the carpark, the first section of the trail is an easy sealed walking path through the bush and set above the banks of Waterview Creek.

The first set of stone steps leads down to a lovely swimming hole.

                                

    

Moss covered stone steps add to the enchantment of this place.

The trail leads you down to the creek crossing

Lengths of timber boardwalk have been constructed with non-slip wire mesh, 

making the creek crossing relatively safe and easy.  This is an improvement on years gone by when there used to be a chain hand rail in place to help negotiate across the wet rocks.

    

Reaching the upper section of the trail provides a rewarding view of Jourama Falls.

The track winds further uphill leading lookout points as you get closer to the top section of the Falls.

View of Jourama Falls, from the first lookout point.

On the day we visited, the final sectinon of the trail was closed due to construction of the lookout platform at the top of the Falls.  Department of Environment website says the closure will run from May 2021 to end of April 2022.  So this gives a great incentive for a return trip once the new lookout platform opens for access.

Jourama Falls is part of the Wet Tropics World Heritage area, proclaimed in 1988 as meeting all four of the criteria for natural World Heritage listing.  The area is recognised for it's outstanding universal value, exceptional natural beauty, ancient ancestory and diversity of plants and animals.

According to the Wet Tropics Management Authority, "The Wet Tropics has the oldest continuously surviving tropical rainforests on Earth.  They are a living museum of how land plants have evolved since the break up of Gondwana 40 million years ago..."

According to me, this place is magical.

References:

1. Queensland Government, Department of Environment and Science, Parks & Forests, Jourama Falls - Paluma Range National Park

https://parks.des.qld.gov.au/parks/jourama-falls-paluma

2. Wet Tropics Management Authority

https://www.wettropics.gov.au/wet-tropics-world-heritage-values

 

Crystal Rockslides & Big Crystal Creek

Acknowledging the Nwyaigi people as the Traditional Owners and first people to live in the Paluma Region for thousands of years and many generations.

Paluma Range National Park is located about an hour's drive (70km) north of Townsville with easy access to freshwater swimming holes for day trips and camping at Big Crystal Creek. 

Crystal Rockslides are located just 2km past Big Crystal Creek Campgrounds, taking a narrow and sealed road to reach the ample carpark areas.   From here, its a short 500m walk on sealed surfaces, with an uphill section before taking the shady path to reach the Rockslides. 

    Crystal Rockslides is great for cooling off, having fun and enjoying the Paluma experience

It's an easy walk to reach the Rockslides

When you get there, mind the steps

                   

Towering rockfaces and boulders of granite and granodiorite surround the natural pools and waterfalls that form Crystal Rockslides (1).  Granite and granodiorite are types of intrusic rock formed deep below the earth's surface when volcanic magma has been forced into older rocks and slowly cools and solidifies (2).  These ancient rock formations are the mountain roots which have eventually reached the earth's surface through erosion (3 & 4).

Leaping off natural rock platforms into the pool below provides hours of entertainment.

This is not for the faint-hearted.

Those looking for a quick rush of adrenalin will enjoy the fun of rock jumping. 

Beginners start with a jump of about 3m, 

before graduating to jump about 7m from the higher rock.

Even if rock jumping isn't your thing, it makes for good spectating 

and is a memorable part of every visit to Crystal Rockslides.  

Please remember:  SAFETY FIRST!

The traditional name for Paluma Range is Munan Gumburu, which means 'misty mountain'

Paluma Range is the southern-most national park in the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area.

UNESCO World Heritage Centre has declared the Wet Tropics of Queensland an area of "outstanding universal value" with "exceptional natural beauty...sweeping forest vistas, wild rivers, waterfalls, rugged gorges and coastal scenery."  The Wet Tropics extends from Townsville north to Cooktown and includes the Daintree Rainforest and Hinchinbrook Channel.  The entire Wet Tropics area makes up less than 0.2% of Australia's land mass, however it is home to 20% of reptile species, 30% of marsupial and frog species, 40% of bird species, 60% of butterfly species and 65% of fern species (5).  Of the 2,800 vascular plant species found in the Wet Tropics, 700 species including 50 flowering plants, are not found anywhere else in the world (6).

Pandanus palms amongst the eucalypts

Lichen patchwork covering tree trunks

            

When you finish exploring Crystal Rockslides, head back to Big Crystal Creek day-use area for a barbeque or picnic in the shady park.  Take a short walk to Paradise Waterhole for a final swim.

Paradise Waterhole - Big Crystal Creek

Pheasant Coucal

A member of the cuckoo family, the pheasant coucal is one of Australia's largest cuckoo species.

Pheasant coucals are found across north-eastern Australia, from the Pilbara in WA to Southern NSW, and also in the Torres Strait islands, Timor and Papua New Guinea.  They especially enjoy the canefields, tropical forests and mangroves of North Queensland.

Cuckoos are 'parasitic' birds that lay their eggs in the nests of other birds.  However the pheasant coucal is an exception, as the only Australian species of cuckoo to lay eggs in it's own nest.

Pheasant coucals are ground dwelling and feed on large insects, frogs, lizzards, eggs and small mammals.  They build their nests on the ground with long stems of grass to form a dome shape. (7)

Australian Brush-turkey

Crystal Rockslides - upper section

References

(1) Department of National Parks, Recreation, Sport & Racing; Paluma Range National Park Management Statement 2013;

https://parks.des.qld.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0018/167004/paluma-range.pdf

(2) Britannica 

https://www.britannica.com/science/intrusive-rock

(3) University of Auckland https://flexiblelearning.auckland.ac.nz/rocks_minerals/rocks/granodiorite.html

(4) US National Parks Service

https://www.nps.gov/goga/learn/education/granite-and-granodiorite-faq.htm

(5) UNESCO World Heritage Centre

https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/486/

(6) Wet Tropics Management Authority

https://www.wettropics.gov.au/world-heritage-area-facts-and-figures.html

(7) Australian Geographic

https://www.australiangeographic.com.au/blogs/creatura-blog/2018/03/the-pheasant-coucal-is-proof-that-australia-has-the-best-birds/