166-168 Lake Eachem (Tablelands) (10/9 - 12/9)

So after months of endless red dirt and dust (not including the short sojourn to The Top End) we rolled into one of the greenest parts of Australia I've seen, let alone been to. It was almost surreal and the crew in the car certainly took some time to adjust the contrast in our eyes to make sure we weren't seeing things.

I really didn't know to much about this area of the country, the Atherton Tablelands. It turns out it's quite the spot, both from an economical and natural perspective. Given the sunshine and rainfall this tropical area gets, almost anything grows up hear, and because of that dairy also flourishes.

Fruit... fruit beyond your wildest dreams!

The area, from flora, fauna and geological perspectives has evolved over millenia from volcanos, the remnants of which are stark and quite obvious.

The Tablelands was one of the few places that B and I could see ourselves relocating to should the oppurtunity arise. The people, the place, the scenery. It was brilliant.

The snug spot at Lake Eacham Tourist Park. Took a little bit of Austin Powers style manoeuvring but we made it work. In the end, it turned out to be a lovely quiet and affordable spot that comes highly recommended.

No sooner had we parked than we needed to stretch our legs. A kay up the road was Lake Eacham itself, a lake formed out of the remains of a volcano.

This was an interesting little walk to the lake, and for some reason we brought the footy. Not sure why, wasn't exactly suitable location!

The trail to the walk was great and included a number of information signs aimed at school children. Lucky we had a few of those on hand!

It was quite funny actually, as the 5km walk around the crater actually gave you very few views of the lake due to the dense foilage. At one stage we joked was there actually a lake at all, until there was a break in the trees and we spied this!

The walk around the lake was interesting enough with plenty of strangling figs and rainforest crawlies to discover. And then on completion of the lap we came to the swimming area, which was a snapshot of swimming of yesteryear. I could picture ladies having "luncheon" and "high society get-togethers"

The kids were the only ones from our crew to go for swim... Water far too cold for me!

The water in the lake was crazy clear. Given there is no in and outflow (not including groundwater seepage) it's pretty pure. If you look closely, this spot is littered with turtles clambering over the logs and each other.

The camp kitchen was pretty rustic but really quite awesome. We found plenty of fans by firing up the fireplace hotplate each evening. The first time was intended to cook on, but really, without decent wood, it really wasn't getting hot enough. Still, fire did what we love best, and brought everyone together...

...and B revelled in the responsibility of taking over the tongs on the gas BBQ!

A pano of the beautiful Malanda Falls. Another one of the swimming holes of yesteryear.

The Information Centre at Malanda was one of the best so far. Incredibly informative, interactive and inspirational (not really, just wanted another 'i' word). 

We took a drive around the nearby "Waterfall Way"

#1 - Milaa Milaa

Life springing from a new branch

#2 - Zillie Falls

#3 - Elinjaa Falls

Here was a first for all of us, a trip to a tea plantation. B and her addiction to tea brought us here, and was reasonably interesting. It would have been better had the plant been up and running but I think they were prepping for a harvest.

I thought this was interesting... These are the same type of tea plants. The one on the left is how it looks being harvested and if they were left to grow 'rogue'. I didn't realise they got so big!

A highlight of the plantation for most was the sightings of some rare tree kangaroos which lived near the cafe. 

And of course tea and scones were a must!

Nearby there was the enormous Curtain Fig Tree located in the aptly named Curtain Fig NP. This tree was enormous, and no matter how we tried we couldn't get the whole tree in the shot!

Overexposed I know, but it gives you a size of the tree... An impressive display of nature.

We called in to the Yungaburra Platypus Viewing Platform. Here I was thinking "as if we'd see any". How wrong was I...

We spotted 3 seperate little critters on the beautiful walk along the creek. It became one of our favourite walks. Turtles, frogs, platypus... Awesome.

Bubbles... bubbles... bubbles... Hello!!

Along the walk there was plenty of calls  of "sssh... I think I've spotted one"

The Peterson's Creek Walk come highly recommended. Lots of stops and cool things to read about.

Open grassed areas, perfect for a picnic lunch or school excursion.

Creek crossings as well!

It's a little hard to see but there are a couple of turtles in this shot. There was at least 8 or 9 on the logs as we approached, but they jumped in as they felt us coming. I used it as a lesson for Evie. I asked her to yell at the remaining turtle to scare it, but it did nothing. When I asked her to stomp her foot on the ground, it slipped into the drink. A nice lesson in why you have to be quiet and gentle when looking for wildlife.

On request from some other campers, we started the fire in the camp kitchen. This time Sam asked if he could do it himself and this was his effort. He's done well this grasshopper...

We took a trip into Atherton to have a look at town and have a trip to the Crystal Cave Shop. This shop had an amazing display of gems and fossils and stones. It was really cool.

James had some birthday money to spend. The shop had baskets full of geodes which you can choose to open. For those not in the know, a geode is a ball of crystal and rock, formed by air pockets in volcanoes millions of years ago. Most of these were sourced from Mexico I'm lead to believe. James had to choose one to crack in the machine. 

The it was loaded into what are essentially industrial sized nutcrackers...

Was a little hard, and a big brother was needed for the extra bit of mumbo.

The first one was a fizzer and didn't really have much in it, so they let him choose another to crack.

And here was the result of the second one. Crystals formed over 44 million years with this 5yr old the first to see them! It was a really cool experience and James loved it.

Sam was transfixed by the Amethyst Table... 

We took a walk around the neighbouring Lake Barrine Walk, which like Lake Eacham, was formed by water in a volcano. We had a quick bite to eat before setting off. Not entirely how Evie can sit like this, that would be the complete end of my knees...

So we went for a walk and found this sign. We were keen for a trip to the Teahouse... No guesses which way this group of walkers went...

Some great views of the lake.

Evie and I walked ahead of the crew for the entire 5km walk chatting. Well, she chatted, I just let her talk. She has an amazing ability to keep conversation when stimulated. 

When finished we went to the Lake Barrine Tea Rooms for a coffee. There we found the single greatest childrens reading nook. Was brilliant and the kids happily lounged and read the entire time we were there...

...so much so they didn't even notice us upgrade the coffee to cake as well! No sharing required!

One of the more unique signs in the area...

We loved our time in the Tablelands and was so unexpected. It was such a peaceful and interesting place. I can't wait to come back and explore it more next time we pass through the area.

And it will be my turn to crack a geode!