Zoe to Mulligan

Jul 5

We respectfully acknowledge the Bandjin People as the traditional custodians of the land on which we walk. We pay our respects to Elders past and present and those Aboriginal people present today.

high waterfall with still clear pool below people sitting on rock next to pool — *Mulligan Falls is extraordinarily beautiful. Swim when you arrive in the afternoon, and again in the morning before you leave.*

Today’s hike to Mulligan Falls and our final night on the island is relatively short at 6.7 km, but is surprisingly demanding with an elevation gain of 300m over short sections; the track remains inland the entire way. You’ll climb to a saddle with expansive views, followed by a long descent along a spine and then through rainforest into Mulligan Falls campsite. Along the way, you’ll pass the spur trail to Sunken Reef Bay.

Again, because distances are modest, leisurely hikers have plenty of time for one final swim at Zoe Falls either in the pool at the bottom or, even better, a quick dip after a sunrise breakfast at the top. And you will be blown away at the end of the day by Mulligan Falls for a breathtaking final evening.

Aerial image of section of island with the days trace marked din red elevation graph highlights one main long climb

close up of a single light purply coloured mushroom — Many fungi in the rainforest and on the climb up beside the falls.

close up of fig tree roots wrapped around trunk of another tree trunk — Strangler fig *(Ficus watkinsiana)* clambers its way up trees towards life-giving light. Eventually, the fig completely encases - or strangles - the trunk of the original tree, causing it to rot. By this time the fig has not only become self-supporting and reached the sunlight, but no longer has root competition with the original tree for soil nutrients. What a clever strategy!

man walking across large flat rock slab next to river with large shallow clear pools — One of the many lovely pools above Zoe Falls. We collect water here: it’s beyond the main swimming spots so we don’t bother treating it.

view across clear pools and rocks towards beach far below — Another step up above those last pools. At this zoom, and through a strange trick of perspective, you can easily see the mouth of Zoe Creek, but not the infinity pool below the lip.

hiker with blue backpack walking amongst boulders in creek line — The track follows the creek bed with its huge boulders: see the arrow on the round one to Geoff’s left? This section would be extremely challenging at times of high flow!

woman sitting on flat rock next to rocky creek looking away along narrow creek line fringed by thick vegetation — Further up, we stop for a drink and snack break. I’m looking at a lovely bank of coral fern, which I haven’t yet seen elsewhere on the island. The track continues up to the left, behind our packs.

hiker with blue backpack standing in bright sunlight amongst open vegetation under blue sky with mountains in distance — It’s a big long, hot climb. We are nearly at the top and Geoff is gazing north, back the way we came. He’s also carrying my camera for me as we have eaten most of our food (see our load sharing technique).

open heathland on saddle with surrounding small rocky peaks — We reach the saddle, a patch of open heath with those dark cliffs looming above.

view across low open shrubs through saddle to the blue sea in the background with — And here is the view south, where we are heading. If you’ve had a swim this morning or left late, this makes a lovely spot for lunch, or at least second breakfast. Several other hikers have taken the opportunity to take a break lower left.

hiker on single foot track though open woodland with thick understory plants with sea in distant background — Down we go, through casuarina and sedges. It’s nice to have the climbing behind us for we are in the hottest part of the day.

hiker with blue backpack standing in bright sunlight looking away towards vast views of mountain tops and the sea and distant islands and coastline — Wow, the views are marvellous. Down to our left through the valley is the spur track to Sunken Reef Bay. We considered popping in for a look but it is a very long way down (and therefore back up again!). We’ve also been told that it’s a midge/mosquito haven. So we continue on: you can see the trail snaking along the spine centre mid ground. This spot has a number of Hinchinbrook Island’s famous blue banksias *(B. plagiocarpa).* They occur nowhere else on the planet. Well, except in gardens.

hiker with blue backpack on single foot track walkign away through open grass lands with scattered banksia shrubs — Still following that sunny spur. The open country is a delightful change after the forests and beaches.

close up of banksia flower cone with partially open seed pods — I keep my eyes peeled for flowers of this famous banksia but a spent cone is the best I could do. This is because I didn’t research thoroughly and am scanning the bush for splashes of red or yellow, rather than pale blue. What a doofus! This banksia can flower at any time from summer through to winter.

hiker walking across top of large rounded rocks crossing creek water is flowing around the rocks — We have eaten lunch on the shady bank of Diamantina Creek and Martin, Diana and Doug are just arriving to do the same.

Other hikers are splashing in the water upstream. We’re advised by some walkers who are day hiking from Mulligan that the campsite will be very full. Two hikers elect to backtrack to Sunken Reef Bay, but we decide to take our chances. This turns out to be the right decision.