Babinda

Babinda, The Boulders & Qld’s Two Highest Mountains

We left Kurrimine on Monday 16^th Sept and headed 60kms up the road to Babinda, stopping on the way to look at Cowley Beach, Mourilyan Harbour (which was only a boat ramp) and Etty Bay. There are so many islands and reefs along the ocean out here, all part of The Great Barrier Reef. As we are so close to the coast there are also many little places just off the highway, but if we stopped at them all, we’d never get to Cooktown before it gets too hot! It’s already quite warm and humid, but not unbearable at all just yet. Etty Bay was such a disappointment, we’d heard it was an absolutely beautiful place, so because we had driven off the highway to look at Mourilyan Harbour, we took the turn off for Etty Bay on the way back. It’s only a 9 km drive, however when we got to the very last turn into the place, there was a big sign saying No dogs beyond this point. You’d think someone would have the foresight to place that sign at the turn off, not wait until people actually get there! Oh well, these things happen, at least it wasn’t too far a drive.

Driving towards Babinda, you can clearly see Queensland’s 2 highest mountains in the distance. Mt Bartle Frere is on the left at 1622 metres and Mt Bellenden Ker on the right at 1957 metres.

A plane crashed in Mt Bartle Frere during WW2 in 1942 when a crew of 7 were coming back from the Coral Sea. They misjudged the mountain due to heavy cloud cover. The residents in Babinda heard a loud bang and saw a small fire, however because of the tropical rainforest the fire went out quite quickly. All 7 people on board were killed. 

Mt Bartle Frere (left) & Mt Bellenden Ker (right)

Babinda is a very pretty little town, 58 kms from Cairns, and is nestled in the valley of these two mountains with a beautiful scenic outlook, reminding us off Walhalla back home in Victoria, although more open but of course tropical and warmer. The Rest Area here at Babinda is the best we have seen so far on our travels;  wide open grassy camping areas, shady trees, picnic tables, a dump point, drinking water, a small older toilet block, and the newer amenities block that is amazing. There are 6 huge cubicles with hot showers - $2 for 4 minutes and one is a disabled comprising of a toilet also. The town provides this for free! It is a 72 hr Rest Area, but the council don’t mind how long people stay, some stay for weeks, because money is spent in the town which in turn helps the community. 

The Amenities Block

 

The Babinda River flows down from the mountains, along with many others, creating lots of creeks and swimming holes that are perfectly safe to swim in…no crocs! Apparently there are crocs, but they are way, way down, near where the river meets the ocean, and  that’s many kms away, so we are indeed safe. The creek here is lovely and clear with a sandy bottom; the banks have grassy areas to sit under the trees, and sandy beach areas at the water. It is only shallow, but just delightful to cool off in. Millie really enjoyed splashing about, and even though it is shallow, the current is quite strong. She seemed to enjoy swimming in the one spot, her little legs going so fast, but she was going nowhere. No matter how many times I took her back to the shallower areas that she could stand up in, she kept coming back for more! I was a bit worried she would go right past me, and all the way down to where I wouldn’t be able to rescue her! She was one very tired little doggie!

The creek alongside the Rest Area

A lovely spot to cool off and relax!

Hi Mum! It's so nice in here! Not too deep for me!

Umm...I can't seem to get anywhere...

Okay...I think I've got it now...if I can just keep doggie paddling...

Oh that was such a nice refreshing swim...now I feel quite tired...

Today we went to explore the town and ask some questions at the Information Centre. These places are a wealth of info and the staff are usually very friendly and helpful. The town has a few shops; chemist, hardware, small supermarket, cafe's, op shop, a hospital, a couple of pubs (one was built in 1927 and is currently being renovated) and the bakery is apparently well known for its delicious goodies. If the Baker has goodies left over at the end of the day, he comes down here to give them out to people. 
On our way back, we saw a creek from the road and turned off to have a look. It was crystal clear and a few  locals were down there cooling off.

Have to keep stopping for photos! This is Mt Bellenden Ker

At a roadside cafe

This is actually someone's garden along the highway!

We have decided to stay here at Babinda for the week as it’s such a lovely spot and very restful, the river is a nice place for a swim and to sit and catch the breeze while reading or snoozing, and it’s a good base for a few day drives to visit other areas.

Walsh's Pyramid - 922 metres

We went to visit The Boulders, a swimming area 6kms from here, where the water comes down from Mt Bartle Frere. It is a lovely place for a picnic and a swim to cool off, with electric BB’Q’s, toilets, change rooms & playground. The swimming area is huge, with steps leading down to it, and the water is lovely and clear. There is a short walk to the Devils Pool, which takes you to several viewing platforms overlooking the gigantic boulders along the river. There are many signs warning of the dangers of swimming in the river itself and that many people have died; strangely only men. The current can become incredibly strong, especially after rain, and if you take the risk to get in the water, you also run the risk of becoming trapped under the unseen ledges underwater. There are plaques around the place that families have placed in memory of their loved ones. It is so sad that a day of fun can turn into tragedy due to not heeding the warnings and taking risks. The walk to the viewing platforms through the rainforest is beautiful and the walk is easy going.

The Boulders Picnic Area - the swimming area is directly ahead

This tree root was interesting and quite large

Stairs down to the huge swimming area

Signs like this are everywhere warning of the dangers

The rock to the top right looks like a face

A close up

A vine growing in a strange direction

Cooling off in the swimming area after our walk

Mt Bartle Frere on the way back from The Boulders

A close up showing the clouds hovering over the top

We went into Cairns on Wednesday, it is large and more of a commercial hub like many of the larger towns. We find the smaller towns have a lot more to offer and are interesting places to visit.

A huge fig tree in Cairns

Ferns are growing all over the branches of this tree

Mark decided to drive back into Innisfail on Friday. He was filling our water tank from a bucket using the 12 volt pump and because we hadn't used it for a few days, it had seized up. We are sick of forking out $35 for a new one when this happens, so this time he went to a boat shop and purchased a bilge pump; the very helpful staff attached a longer 12 volt cord and water proofed it. This will last us forever and won’t rust or seize up anymore!!

The weather has been lovely; warm days, a little humidity but nice cool nights for sleeping. We had a little bit of rain one night, which is normal here, as Babinda is known as the umbrella town. 

We aren't sure when we will leave here. Cooktown is about 400 kms, however we think we will stay at a place called the Lion's Den Hotel which has camping areas and drive the 30 kms into Cooktown itself. 

Stay tuned!

“Suburbia is where the developer bulldozes out the trees,         then names the streets after them”

Bill Vaughn