A little drive further on, and a short walk into the forest, brings you a stand of Giant Tingle trees. In years past, families would travel up here for the day and it was the done thing to have your photo taken alongside the family Holden, standing within the huge cavity that forms in within the trunks of these centuries old trees. Unfortunately, the root system of the tingles is shallow, and the weight of the people traffic and their cars compacted the soil. Sadly the largest of these giants died before this practice was stopped.
Next stop was the Circular Pool on the Frankland River. A short, easy climb down to the river revealed a spectacular set of rapids that were flowing quite hard. The name, “Circular Pools” describes the movement of the foam that forms on the surface as a result of the saponins (a chemical compound found in the surrounding vegetation). The “cappuccino” like foam rotates in lazy circles in the quiet pools at the top and bottom of the rapids.
Back in the cars
and over to the Tree Top Walk in the Valley of the Giants. This is a series of
cantilevered walkways suspended 40 metres above the ground amongst the giant
tingle forest.
A late lunch was
had in the local café back at Walpole where a more vividly coloured Superb
Fairy Wren made an appearance.
Later
that afternoon Wendy and Laura tried their luck at fishing from the jetty again
whilst Dave and I launched the kayaks. After a bit of moving around and
changing spots to find where the fish were biting, I eventually anchored up at
a location that provided plenty of action. Unfortunately, all the catches were
undersized yet again, but we had a really enjoyable time anyway. We probably
stayed out on the water a little too long and by the time we paddled back to
shore, the sun was really low with the light fading and both of us feeling a
bit chilly. This is an excellent location for this sort of activity with so
many waterways and estuaries to explore.
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