Roaring Meg Falls

Another beautiful spot for my list of all-time favourites.

Roaring Meg Falls is about an hours drive south of Wujal Wujal on the CREB Track which starts just north of the community. So only about 30 kilometres distance as the road is narrow and steep as it drops down to creeks and climbs the high ridges.

I must say I have found the drive so far along the (recently graded) CREB track to be smooth and easy driving, with the odd steep hill and shallow creek crossing. Of course the creeks will be much deeper during the wet season. Right now it is dry, not too hot and a little cool at night.

Roaring Meg Falls itself is at the end of a one kilometre long steep, dirt track for which I did need to use low range 4WD, but it was not anything like the Old Telegraph Track or the Old Coach Road!

Once I reached the end of the track I found some shade, parked and had a quick lunch. I hadn't seen anyone else since I started on the CREB track and I haven't seen anyone since I left Wujal Wujal.

After lunch I followed the trail 200 metres to the falls and they are certainly very impressive! Unfortunately photographs are not permitted as this is a sacred place for the local Aboriginal women, so I'll try and describe them.

The falls drop down in about three stages, first flowing over a very wide, light grey rock that stretches about fifty or more metres across the width of the river and curves down stream, like a rounded shoulder, so that a wide sheet of shallow water rushes across the rock and drops down to the next level where this is repeated. The enormous rock shelves over which the water drops are beautifully shaped and the effect is one of enormous, smooth boulders, flattened in great big sweeps across the river.

Looking up-stream there is a deep pool just above the first stage of the falls. On the river bank, just below the first stage of the falls, there are huge shoulders of rock that jut out and slope steeply down towards the river. I carefully walked down the steep rock slope so that I was about level with the top of the falls and standing above the second falls. I could see clearly both up and down river. Below me I could see the last stage of the falls with the longest drop down to the valley below. Above the valley, and straight ahead of the falls is a wide sweep of ridges all around, so that the river is dropping into a deep gorge in the bottom of an enormous bowl, surrounded by rainforest stretching to the horizon in the far distance.

I was fairly warm after the walk back so I continued on to the swimming hole, about 600 metres the other way. I have plenty of photographs from here. It is a really great swimming hole below some tiny waterfalls, with flat rocky bottom and a sandy beach. It is quite deep in places as well. The steep sides on each side of the river are covered in rainforest trees and vines. There are huge boulders above and below the swimming hole.

I returned in the evening to take some more photos and, as I waited about 45 minutes for the sun to set, I lay flat on my back on one of the big rocks which was still very warm from the sun. The falls are quite high up in the Daintree forest and the air cools quite quickly so the heat was very welcome. The rock I was on is almost totally surrounded by water. As I watched the blue of the sky deepen I was surrounded by the sound of the waterfall and, would you know it ... a turbo-prop passenger plane flying high, north out of Cairns. 

Peace was quickly restored and I had fun watching all the butterflies, which are plentiful in the rainforest, and the small honey-eaters and sunbirds. Every time I see a Ulysses butterfly I am blown away by the blue colour on its wings. Pretty hard to photograph though!

Far down stream I could see the Sulphur Crested Cockatoos returning to the trees by the river to roost.

I'm camping here tonight ... Don't think I have even done half the CREB track today but, if it continues as smoothly I should get to Daintree Village quite quickly tomorrow. 

Update: Boy ... was I wrong ... it took me nearly 3.5 hours for 20-25 km ... as the crow flies