Wooroonooran National Park had been on the itinerary right from the start of our trip planning. As part of the wet tropics it is UNESCO-listed. Closer to Cairns we realise that it has got several access points. We decide to visit the Palmerston section.
The picturesque camp ground at Henrietta Creek reminds us of the one at Paluma Ranges. Nicely cleared, grassy spots, picnic benches, all the amenities you may expect from a national park camp ground. While we are having lunch, a huge shiny blue butterfly hovers above our heads.
As we embark on a hike to one of the waterfalls, we enter a completely different world: As soon as the campground is left behind, the dense canopy of the rain forest offers constant shade. This is the world of decay and renewal, of mosses and lichens, of ferns and lianes that compete for the little sunlight that hits the ground. The world of uprooted trees, leaning trunks, fallen logs, entangled figs, some of which strangle their hosts. It’s here where the cassowary is king. As a human being you feel somehow out of place.
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| Red tulip oak |
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| One of the many no-name falls in this region |
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| Nandroya Falls (in the background) and cascades |
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| Wallicher Falls |
Not far from here you will find the aptly named Waterfall Highway. The hills around Cairns, amongst them Queensland’s highest peek Mount Bartle Frere, are dotted with waterfalls. Close to our camp site, Henrietta Creek, there are 4 very scenic examples. Of course we visit them all. And the rainforest canopy walk, the Mamu Tropical Skywalk, which is nearby. We then leave this natural wonderland and head down to Cairns to stock up for the coming days and get grandma Elke and grandpa Siegfried's camper van repaired.
[Wooroonooran National Park (Palmerston section), Henrietta Creek camping area, 1.-2. August]
[Cairns, 2.-.4. August]
