[Seth] Tablelands and Jungle Waterfalls

We came to Northern Queensland in Australia for the Great Barrier Reef.  On Tuesday we spent all day on the outer reef about 40 kilometers offshore.  The diving/snorkeling was good but not incredible.  The water was warm and the corals were plentiful (at least where we visited -- Michelmas Reef and Hastings Reef -- I didn't see any signs of coral death, which I had read about).  But the boat was crowded and I have been spoiled by small group dive trips vs the large boat operators.  One highlight was Grace doing her first two dives, she was a natural and I am excited for her to get her PADI open water certification in the future.

To be honest, other than the Reef we really didn't know that much more about this part of Australia, so yesterday we set off on a road trip to visit some waterfalls in the Atherton Tablelands region.

We started with Josephine Falls (almost certainly named after my sister Leah).  After a short hike, the jungle opened up and we found it.  Sadly the water was too high for us to use the natural waterslide.

Next we visited Nadroya Falls (my personal favorite).  This was about 2.5 km hike through a dense tropical rainforest.  When we finally reached the falls, they were incredible -- the water was pouring through a narrow opening in the rock and landing in a pool surrounded by jungle walls on three sides.  But again, the water level was too high to safely swim.

We then visited Mungalli Creek Dairy Farm for lunch which was incredible -- but since I am over 30 I did not take a picture of my Ploughman's Lunch to show all of you.  The views from the dairy were fabulous

Next, we stopped by at the nearby Mungalli Falls.

Finally, we visited three falls on the Atherton Waterfall Circuit -- Ellinjaa, Zillie and Milla Milla.  Happily, the pool at the bottom of Milla Milla Falls was perfect for swimming (and practicing hair flips).