''Babinda Boulders'', officially called the Boulders Scenic Reserve
[ but known locally as Babinda Boulders or simply the Boulders, is a public recreation reserve alongside Babinda Creek, managed by the ]Cairns Regional Council
The Cairns Region is a local government area in Far North Queensland, Queensland, Australia, centred on the regional city of Cairns. It was established in 2008 by the amalgamation of the City of Cairns and the Shires of Douglas and Mulgrave. ...
and adjacent to the Wooroonooran National Park
Wooroonooran National Park (Aboriginal for "Black Rock") is a national park in Queensland, Australia, 1,367 km northwest of Brisbane, between Innisfail and Cairns.
The park is one of the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area series of national ...
in far north Queensland
)
, nickname = Sunshine State
, image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, established_ ...
, Australia.
Description
The Boulders Scenic Reserve encompasses a section of Babinda Creek where several smaller tributaries
A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drainage b ...
join it. Most of the site, apart from the picnic and play areas adjacent to the main swimming hole, is covered by dense tropical rainforest
Rainforests are characterized by a closed and continuous tree canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforest can be classified as tropical rainforest or temperate rainfores ...
. It lies in the foothills between Queensland's highest and second-highest mountain peaks – Mount Bartle Frere
Mount Bartle Frere (pronunciation mæɔnt̥ ˈbɐːɾəɫ ˈfɹɪə Ngajanji: Choorechillum) is the highest mountain in Queensland at an elevation of . The mountain was named after Sir Henry Bartle Frere, 1st Baronet, Sir Henry Bartle Frere ...
and Mount Bellenden Ker
Mount Bellenden Ker is the second-highest mountain in Queensland, Australia, with a height of . It is named after the botanist John Bellenden Ker Gawler. Located south of Cairns, Queensland, Cairns near Babinda, Queensland, Babinda, it is adj ...
respectively.[ This high coastal mountain range, the tropical location and the moist south-easterly trade winds are responsible for making the coastal strip between Tully and ]Cape Tribulation
Cape Tribulation is a headland and coastal locality in the Shire of Douglas in northern Queensland, Australia. In the , Cape Tribulation had a population of 118 people.
Geography
The locality is north of Cairns. It is within the Daintree Na ...
the wettest area in all of Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
,[ and as a result a constant supply of cool mountain water flows through all the creeks of the reserve.
]
Location
Access to the Boulders Scenic Reserve is via the town of Babinda
Babinda is a rural town and locality in the Cairns Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Babinda had a population of 1,253 people.
Geography
Babinda is located south of Cairns.
The town is noted for its proximity to Queensla ...
which is about south of Cairns
Cairns (, ) is a city in Queensland, Australia, on the tropical north east coast of Far North Queensland. The population in June 2019 was 153,952, having grown on average 1.02% annually over the preceding five years. The city is the 5th-most-p ...
and about north of Innisfail on the Bruce Highway
The Bruce Highway is a major highway in Queensland, Australia. Commencing in the state capital, Brisbane, it passes through areas close to the eastern coast on its way to Cairns in Far North Queensland. The route is part of the Australian Na ...
. The reserve is located about to the west of the town.[
]
Facilities
The site is well suited for families, boasting spacious and calm swimming holes with clear cool water year round, a picnic area with tables and free gas barbeques, toilets and showers, swings, grassed areas, viewing platforms, and walking tracks. There is also a free camping ground close by.[
]
Walks
There are three walking tracks within the Boulders Reserve:
* Wonga Circuit Track: an easy loop walk which takes one through rainforest alongside both North Babinda Creek and Babinda Creek.
* Devil's Pool Walk: this return walk takes the visitor alongside a lower section of Babinda Creek. There are two viewing platforms where the spectacular and dangerous rock formations may be observed.
* Goldfield Trail: a track for more serious walkers, it begins from the reserve and leads north west approximately over a saddle in the Bellenden Ker Range
The Bellenden Ker Range, also known as the Wooroonooran Range is a coastal mountain range in Far North Queensland, Australia. Part of the Great Dividing Range it is located between Gordonvale and Babinda.
The whole of the range falls within t ...
to the Goldsborough Valley
Goldsborough is a locality in the Cairns Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , Goldsborough had a population of 929 people.
Geography
The Mulgrave River flows from the south to the north-east of the locality, forming its northern boundary. T ...
.[
]
Indigenous names
In the language of the local indigenous Yidinji people
The Yidiny (also spelt Yidindj, Yidinji or Yidiñ), are an Aboriginal Australian people in Far North Queensland. Their language is the Yidiny language.
Language
The last fluent speakers of Yidiny were Tilly Fuller (d. October 1974), George Dav ...
the area is called Bunna Binda meaning "waterfall" or "water over your shoulder". The town name "Babinda" is derived from the indigenous one. Wonga is a local indigenous family name. The original Yidinji name for Mt Bartle Frere is Chooreechillum.[
]
Devil's Pool
The Devil's Pool is at the top of a perilous section of Babinda Creek. Approximately downstream from the main swimming hole, the river valley narrows considerably and the creek channel is filled with massive boulders and lined with bedrock, polished smooth by the water flow over millennia
A millennium (plural millennia or millenniums) is a period of one thousand years, sometimes called a kiloannum (ka), or kiloyear (ky). Normally, the word is used specifically for periods of a thousand years that begin at the starting point (ini ...
. In the dry season
The dry season is a yearly period of low rainfall, especially in the tropics. The weather in the tropics is dominated by the tropical rain belt, which moves from the northern to the southern tropics and back over the course of the year. The te ...
, the water in Babinda Creek passes over and under these rocks, sometimes disappearing from view altogether. In the wet season
The wet season (sometimes called the Rainy season) is the time of year when most of a region's average annual rainfall occurs. It is the time of year where the majority of a country's or region's annual precipitation occurs. Generally, the sea ...
, the boulders are often completely covered.[
Regardless of the season, the rocks are slippery when wet. Many casual visitors have slipped into the stream and been dragged by the strong current to their deaths. Others have drowned while attempting to swim in the Devil's Pool.][ Approximately 20 people have drowned at the pools since 1959.]
Gallery
File:Babinda boulders main swimming hole SF20355.jpg, The main swimming hole at the Boulders Scenic Reserve, Babinda, Queensland
File:Babinda boulders picnic area SF20355.jpg, Babinda boulders picnic area
File:Babinda boulders one of the picnic shelters SF20355.jpg, A picnic shelter at Babinda Boulders
File:Babinda boulders barbeque SF20355.jpg, One of the public barbeques at Babinda Boulders Scenic Reserve
File:Swiming-babinda-creek.jpg, Swimming in Babinda Creek, upstream from the main recreation area
File:Babinda Swimming Hole-1and (4194243193).jpg, The Boulders main swimming hole
File:BabindaCreek11.jpg, The main swimming hole
File:Babinda Boulders - top of the treacherous chute.jpg, Water rushing between boulders from the Devil's Pool
File:Babinda Boulders-09and (4201339870).jpg, Babinda Creek below the Devil's Pool
References
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[
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]
Babinda
Rainforests
Protected areas of Queensland