We really have enjoyed ourselves here in North Queensland. From snorkeling & diving on The Great Barrier Reef, to the Croc Farm at Hartley's, to the train trip to Kuranda, everything has been fantastic! We wanted to show everyone a bit of our home in Palm Cove, and the first five shots show the gigantic pool (perhaps the girls' favourite aspect of our stay here!), and the coastal views - beautiful, but the real thing is even more impressive.
On Wednesday, we took Kim & Michael's (our hosts) advice and checked out a local hiking track at Barron Gorge National Park. We drove 15 minutes south to Redlynch and started up the Stoney Creek track to the swimming hole at the top. When we arrived, however, we found we couldn't advance towards the falls without doing some scrambling over rocks we deemed too tough for our group, so we headed back down the track in search of a more accessible swimming spot. What a great idea that turned out to be. We found a spot about halfway down the track that had a bit of a sandy shore to wade in from before it dropped off quite a bit. Soon after we arrived, we were joined by a group of university students from the local "uni", and they pointed out the swing off the rock and gave us info about the depths of the pool. The water was ice cold as the creek runs down from the mountains, but once we were in, it was wonderful to swim around with the fishes. We stayed about an hour there, jumping, swimming, laughing, and chatting with the group of students - what a great time! We felt even more fortunate when we were told that this is a place that usually only locals know about.
On Wednesday, we took Kim & Michael's (our hosts) advice and checked out a local hiking track at Barron Gorge National Park. We drove 15 minutes south to Redlynch and started up the Stoney Creek track to the swimming hole at the top. When we arrived, however, we found we couldn't advance towards the falls without doing some scrambling over rocks we deemed too tough for our group, so we headed back down the track in search of a more accessible swimming spot. What a great idea that turned out to be. We found a spot about halfway down the track that had a bit of a sandy shore to wade in from before it dropped off quite a bit. Soon after we arrived, we were joined by a group of university students from the local "uni", and they pointed out the swing off the rock and gave us info about the depths of the pool. The water was ice cold as the creek runs down from the mountains, but once we were in, it was wonderful to swim around with the fishes. We stayed about an hour there, jumping, swimming, laughing, and chatting with the group of students - what a great time! We felt even more fortunate when we were told that this is a place that usually only locals know about.
One of the highlights for the girls was me taking the jump off the swing over the pool. Once I had watched the guys do it a few times, I mustered up the courage to take the plunge a few times myself. It was exhilarating (if not too daring)!