Barron Falls: Heart of the Australian Rainforest
This falls resides in the Barron Gorge National Park, a suitable name for the park which exists solely to show off the falls and river. They are 853 feet in height. The falls themselves are in Kuranda, Australia within the large protected parkland. Look for something similar in our collection of backyard waterfalls.
Unfortunately much of the water to the Barron Falls has been diverted to the Barron Gorge Hydroelectric Power Plant. So the falls are greatly reduced in their capacity most of the year bringing the average volume down to 1,064 cubic feet per second, but during the wettest seasons the waters manage to become magnificent again flowing at a much higher volume despite the diversion of water and the maximum recorded volume of the falls was at one time, 255,006 cubic feet per second. The wet season in Australia is December through March. During the construction of the plant in the 1930’s the site of the falls were used as a base and there is today a display of some of the construction equipment that was used in the building of the plant.
The Aboriginal name was Bibhoora, for the Barron river and falls. Barron Falls flows from the Barron river on the Atherton Tableland. The tableland is a high mountainous plateau similar to the tepuis that can be found in South America. This river is has also worked to erode the escarpment and carve out the Barron Gorge which many enjoy visiting. This gorge is also the traditional home of the Djabaguy who have a spiritual connection to the area.
Much of the land in the park and around the falls is rainforest and full of lush vegetation and unusual critters. They have Cassowaries. These are the second largest bird in Australia at about five and a half feet tall. They are flightless, have blue skinned neck and heads and a crest at the top of their heads. Its not recommended that visitors try to get very close as they can be quite grumpy. Also in the park is the ‘Stinging Tree’ otherwise known as the Gympie-gympie tree whose leaves can sting you like those of the Nettle plant. By the way Gympie roughly translates to ‘devil.’
One of the best views of this 900 foot wide cascade waterfall is above the Barron Falls railway station. There are two main ways to get to the overlook, by car, or by hiking up one of the trails. They also have a Skyrail that will take visitors over the greenery of the park.
When the falls are seen at their height in the rainy season they are a torrent of rushing water, usually slightly muddy from the sediment that’s been stirred up during the rains. A good sized cloud of mist rises up from the cascades, where the water really starts to churn and usually spreads out over the area in a light foggy way. On either side the rainforest is typically full and green with a number of different trees.