secret swimming

Cranky Rock

| flynny101

Leaving Girraween and dropping back into NSW we are aiming for Warialda but decide to take a bit of a detour into Kwiambal NP for a look at Macintyre Falls.

Macintyre falls are located about an hour out of Ashford, near the Ashford limestone Caves (which at the time of writing were closed to the public).

The falls aren’t massive but they are impressive none the less, check out the little whirlpool near the top of the main falls in the top view. hate to get stuck in that in high flow.

the view from the lookout is impressive and a tourist trail leads down to the pool below
large Murray Cod could be seen swimming in the waterhole and fishermen are setting up so we opt not to swim and disturb their hunt for dinner

We spend a bit of time rock hoping and exploring then head across to Lemon Tree Flat for a swim in the Severn River.

This is a beautiful little camp ground I got zero photos of…

Then it was onto Warialda and the very cool little council run camp ground at Cranky Rock.

At $20 a night for a powered site it’s a great low cost campground with hot shower and clean toilets.

And an impressive swimming hole

Now I have to be honest, being spoilt in the crystal clear waters you find in Blue Mountains canyons the water hole here did have that agricultural run off look and slight whiff but on a stinking hot day with no better publicly accessible swimming holes within cooee it’s an oasis.

Sure, I wouldn’t drink it but there is no hesitation at jumping in and cooling off.

and the colours in the rocks pop at sunset

With the battery in my head torch now charged I thought I’d have another go at spot lighting.

The creek and waterhole was weirdly devoid of frogs and their predators. I spent a bit of time poking around but was giving up and heading back to camp when this little guy came out to say hello

Spotted Black Snake, Pseudechis guttatus, aka the Blue Belly Black snake

this species comes in range of colours, from creamy grey to shiny black but how good is the camouflage of this speckled version against the blotched granite.

Back at camp Kylie had luck with the furries. Spotting several sugar gliders running amuck in the trees behind our camper.

and also managed to

1. find this little burrowing frog

and

2. find it a second time to show me

But it is getting late. We are mindful of our fellow campers so call it a night.

we also have a long drive tomorrow.

Our next stop will be Waa Gorge (It’s pronounced “War” not “Wah”)

Wild Swimming in the Wollemi

| flynny101

16-05-2025

Kylie and meeeeeeeee

Our weekend plans had fallen through so we thought we’d go in search of some waterfalls neither of us had been to before.

Kylie suggested a spot and during research got a tip off that the fire trail out to them had recently been gated.

So we put the mountain bikes in to help eat up the kilometres.

Not only are the swimming holes spectacular this could now be my favourite fire trail ride (Did I just say that? what have I become?) I have a feeling the guy who did the road work is a mountain biker. Each waterbar seemed to be a perfectly shaped step down. Even though recovering from a shoulder injury meant I couldn’t take to the air it was still a blast.

Anyhoo, that’s not what we are here for.

20min later we are stashing the bikes in the bush and heading down a steep trail cutting through subtropical rainforest quiet different from anything you usually see in the upper mountains..

This brings us to a pleasant creek and we head downstream.

the stunning cliff lines close in ©Kylie

And we reach the top of our first waterfall

It really is breath taking
stunning

We play around here for a bit then continue down stream.

At the junction with the next creek is another spectacular pool.

It’s a beauty

We slip up to a large rock shelf above the falls to find a bit of sunshine.

The shelf was riddled with keeper holes. ©Kylie
beautiful

We have some lunch and a splash then make our way out.

The Haul up the hill is steep but interesting enough that I wasn’t in a world of suffering. And while I thought the ride back to the car might be tough it was just as much fun as it was coming in, with some pinches to keep you honest.

On the way back we spy some interesting mushrooms.

So of course we had to head back in the dark to see if they still had a shine.

It was faint, barely able to be made out with naked eye but some long exposures brought up their beauty.

Click to enbiggen

Ghost Mushrooms produce bioluminescence for around 22hrs a day. And for 14 of those hours you would think they are just another mushroom. People are like ghost mushrooms, if you can’t see their glow you are looking at them in the wrong light: C Flynn

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