The Scenic Trails of Southeast Queensland

Tramping the trails of the southeast of Southeast Queensland.

I have seen the morning burning golden on the mountain in the skies... At sunrise - waking up to a glorious morning in Mount Glorious.

From Mount Barney’s remote West Peak - Mount Barney National Park with the prominent peaks of Mt Barney (East Peak) and Mt Ernest and Mt Lindesay.

Chasing waterfalls.

A secret waterfall in the not too remote Kangaroo Point cliffs.

Kuta. The not-too-secret but seldom seen Simpson Falls in full flow.

JC Slaughter Falls also in Mt Coot-tha.

At Mt Barney descending down to a misty Rum Jungle.

Between Lake Manchester and Mount Nebo, going up the Light Line Road,
with thankfully not a heavy load.

On the side – down England Creek road.

One of the many waterfalls in the Albert River circuit of the Green Mountains section of Lamington National Park. 

And just another sweeping panorama from Echo Point lookout to the east and Mount Warning.

A fallen tree is not in the way up Cedar Creek.

A fork in the road, confusing the trail hardly mowed, though no one knowed
- the backwoods of Kobble Creek.

The Lakes District

On North Kobble break off a Lepidozamia track swale, when the clouds lift their veil
and the trees sway with the gale, behold Lake Samsonvale.

From Kluvers Lookout on the D'Aguilar Range Road, looking east to Samsonvale, and beyond to Moreton Bay. That’s the conical peak of Mt Samson at right. I should go move that branch in the way...

Climbing Mt Samson for a close-up view of Lake Samsonvale,

and below, a distant view of the jungleland capital of Queensland. I hear there's lions there.

From Mermaid Mountain. A close-up view of Lake Manchester .

Back for a roam on the range, from a distance, looking at Lake Wivenhoe.

While on the edge of Lake Somerset, the cross-eyed watcher spots a hawk-eyed feather wearer.

An eagle soars above Noosa National Park.

Lamington National Park

Ballanjui Falls. How does one get up there?

Ship’s stern

Mt Warning

Upper Ballanjui

Samford Valley with not a cloud in the sky, and below a valley of clouds - where's the sky?

The great ranges

Mt Warning

The D'Aguilar Range.

Mt Lindesay, Mt Ernest and Mt Barney.

More waterfalls

Denham Falls in Beechmont

Mt Samson and Lake Samsonvale from Mt Glorious.

Lake Wivenhoe

Purling Brook Falls in Springbrook.

Lake Advancetown (Hinze Dam)

Lamington National Park

Mt Merino lookout.

From the mountains to the bay.

Frolicking with whales in Hervey Bay. This post is supposed to be about trails not whales,
but I was on the trail of the dingo not Migaloo.

So I sailed to Fraser Island and spotted a dingo on the beach.

The trails of Fraser Island near Kingfisher Bay.

Back in jungleland.
From Ocean View I could barely see the sea, so I turned around to the burning Glasshouse Mountains. 

In winter time, where there's smoke, there's back-burning.

They’ve covered a beautiful mountain trail with some grimey sooty tar seal.
It's a cover-up, a dirty deal.

I’ll just go back to the backwoods, the hills above Nambour and Mapleton National Park.

Or farther south to the Nightcap National Park in NSW.
One can camp right at home here, under the gum trees.

North to the Conondale Range. 

Swim in the blue ribbon creek and hope the leeches don’t stick.

On the Conondale Great Walk.

I could just gaze at the mountains all day.

A Mt Barney morning was the beginning, and it ain't boring. Been there, done that. But I'll go again. Achin' with the feelin' of the freedom of an eagle when she flies...

Now the sun sets at day’s end, a known known eh Rummy? Known known? Boring.

Tired from an eventful Autumn day, I watched the paint dry at nightfall.
A most wonderful thing to do in the Fall.

But when the blackness covered the canvass,
 the neon gods turned on the lights they made.

Big city turn me loose and set me free. Thanks and vale Hag.

Cedar Creek

Cedar Creek is the main feature of a tiny eponymous semi-rural locality hidden behind Samford Village on the southern outskirts of Moreton Bay Region. The creek itself is fed by a few smaller brooks that flow down from headwaters on the eastern side of the Mount Glorious Range. One anabranch starts above Greenes Falls in Maiala, and another one starts near residences in Mount Glorious Village. 

The main tributary called Love Creek has its source on Tenison Woods Mountain. It flows and falls down some steep narrow and winding banks before becoming Cedar Creek down in the foothills. The creek joins the South Pine River farther downstream.

Down in the lower flatter sections in the valley, Cedar Creek is lined with boulders within its confines. These channels are hewn shaped and sculpted by the power of raging water. Flashfloods come crashing down from the range in a storm or heavy rain. Even just the trickling down of water, one drop at a time in a dry spell, contributes to the formation of these gorges.

Cedar Creek has plenty of natural swimming holes and rock pools, sparkling cascades and waterfalls. Then there’s the pristine lush rainforest with magnificent natural vegetation & wildlife.

The creek beds are in steep rocky gorges with often no easy way around the cliff sections and waterfalls.

The upper sections of the creek deep in the thick rainforest can be difficult to explore. Vegetation including thick lantana provide quite a challenge to negotiate.

Depending on immediate recent rainfall, the creek may be raging flowing and cascading, or merely trickling down the falls.

The best time to see the waterfalls in Cedar Creek is after some significant rain. However, exploring the creek, let alone the full creek system up to Mt Glorious, is a challenging activity and should only be attempted by those with sufficient off-track bush experience and navigation skills.

Tracking through these a-ways is definitely not for the faint hearted. If you go, do take extra precaution and never go beyond your capabilities.

In the narrow parts of the creek where the rainforest plants compete for sunlight, the brightest summer’s day turns into a dark and gloomy eerie zone. Tall trees stretch their crowns creating overlapping leafy shades that cover everything below. Some other plants such as fern and orchids and mistletoes find a squat on the high branches to reach light. Vines twist their way up. Those plants consigned to the forest floor pile up their leaves, while saplings bide their time for a tall poppy tree to fall. All these and more, the quick-growing scrub and other creek flora, create an impassable natural barrier.

The top of Greene's Falls from the viewing platform accessed from Maiala.

Exploring the Cedar Creek involves a lot of rock hopping, clambering and difficult scrambling. There are certain traps set by the creek along its route.

In every beautiful pool sits an inviting siren. Listen to the song of the siren but beware of what may lurk in the apparent tranquillity of the crystal clear waters. Some swift moving current can knock you off your feet and force you to crash against some rocks.

Other obstacles include deep pools, fallen trees sometimes in impenetrable piles, wet slippery or moss-covered rocks and logs, thick thorny vegetation and lantana, mountainous boulders and steep and high sometimes vertical rock wall climbs, or a tangled mess of logs and rocks.

 Sometimes in the aftermath of a severe summer storm or cyclone, there is no path in the creek.

During a storm, raging floodwaters with fresh loads of boulders trees and debris will sweep all before them down to the sea, or at least down to South Pine River.

So the old road may have been obliterated or covered or totally altered, as the creek cleared the slate or shifted its shape and scoured out a new channel.

Climbing upstream may be achievable, but descending is way trickier and riskier.

Try keeping to a path of least resistance, which is often easier to say than see or do.

In the creek, I took one thousand photos, or two. And although each and every picture paints its thousand words, not a single one truly shows anything. No photograph can capture what only the eyes can see.

Indeed “If eyes were meant for seeing… then beauty is no excuse for - a selfie.” Yes you can take a selfie too, or two, but you have to go there first, and do stand clear of the edge of the cliff.

Those who have explored Cedar Creek claim to have experienced the special moments of being awestruck at the wonders of nature. Others say they have discovered heaven right here off the beaten trail, in nature’s nooks of Cedar Creek.

So be alert for the ever present danger posed by that hazardous trio of slips trips and falls. But slip on your shoes, go on a trip, and see the falls. You won’t regret it.