Rainbows and Waterfalls....Nandroya

Hike to Mystical Nandroya Falls

On the first day of May, an intrepid crew set forth to investigate a hidden waterfall advertised in tourist mags and on National Park brochures. The promotion photos abound with beautiful waterfalls littered with pixies and elves in a golden tropical rainforest.

It was an ideal walk for some who had not hiked for a while....and even those who had not hiked at all.

Nandroya Falls was located about 20 minutes west of Innisfail in Far North Queensland. The falls themselves were located on a circuit track which were estimated at 3.5 kilometres on the eastern track and 1.7 kilometres on the Western Track.

The hiking trail itself is a fairly flat and easy negotiable track through rainforest settings with hardly any climbing involved. The Eastern track winds it's way through the rainforest, and then finds the side of the creek of which the Falls feeds into.

From the trail, the creek, of which would feed into the North Johnstone River, looks like a negotiable Grade 2 river mostly with the odd Grade 4 rapid thrown in.

Understandably, Tarzan, Timme, and Flounder were wondering if it could be paddled. However, drops of at least 10 feet waterfalls were on the cards. So if paddled, it would need to be scouted rather than a read and run.

Along the way there were a couple of waterfall crossings for the hikers, and it gave the intrepid crew a welcome break plus a great photo opportunity.

On reaching the main falls, of which the group heard before we viewed the falls, the group settled down for an early lunch.

Nandroya Falls consist of two sets of waterfalls. The higher falls which also housed the main swimming waterhole, was a 100 foot drop of majestic power. It was a sight to behold. The Lower Set of the Nandroya Falls consisted of numerous pourovers of a level set of waterfalls. Photo opportunities of both sets of falls were evidently the main drawcard of this mystical canyon.


The main waterfall emptied into a swimmable basin of freezing mountain water. However, going this far, a swim was always on the cards. The brave few could end up swimming to a few appropriate located sand bars. One of which was right next to the boil of the main waterfall.

On locating ourselves next to the main boil, we found it difficult to keep our footing on the sand with the power of the waterfall being wind and rain the strength of a category 4 cyclone.

It definately was a different experience of feeling the power of something so majestic up close.

After basking in the sun for a while , it was time to brave the lower set of falls. A motley crew of 6 ventured down through the tricky slope and out onto the unstable rocky bank of the lower falls.


This gave us the experience of a swimmable lagoon located under the waterfalls. Yes, even at this stage of the day, the water was still freezing.

Once the group had stayed for enough time to be fed, watered and relaxed, it was time to head back to the Henrietta Campground from whence we came. We completed the 1.7 kilometre track with ease enabling us to get back to the safety of our vehicles inside of 20 minutes.

All participants of the day thoroughly enjoyed themselves and found that they had been touched by the mystical qualities of the waterfall. This then trasferred into motivation to complete more hikes around the area.

Proud Supporter of Adventure Equipment Cairns.


Remember, if you plan to hike along the most wonderous trails of this great country of ours, please only leave footprints in the sand, and take away only photographs and memories our you experience.



Blue Skies

Flounder

Confront your Fears - Split Rock - Barron Gorge

Jump into the Unknown - Abseiling Split Rock - Barron Gorge

As a part of motivating friends of mine, I had organised Pete Dumson (Roper Extraordinaire) from Top Knot Climbing to facilitate a couple of abseiling sessions on a basic rock drop called Split Rock in the Barron Gorge, Cairns.

The crew consisted mainly of the regular paddlers, and a few friends from the Department of Environment and Resource Management.

So on a balmy April Sunday morning, the first crew set foot in the gorge to challenge themselves for an introduction to abseiling. Pete led us through directions of our safety gear, and to initialise us with the practice of relaxing when being suspended on a height above the ground. Split Rock is only a 15 metre granite rock base. But the speciality of this site is that it is a flat rock all the way down and does not have features of any overhangs or craggy rock pieces to overcome.

The teams were split into two groups and everyone was keen .

Pete had people practise on a small practise rope with their descender and harness before stepping up to the main abseil.

For some, this was a challenge at abseiling for the first time. A notable reaction to first time abseiling is the trust you need to place in your equipment.

Below are some of the images of the abseil day for the team.

The experience was enjoyed by all who participated and some had come away with a new-found confidence of conquering their fears.

After each session, Pete had then led the group down to another part of the rock to show a small cave which houses small micro-bats. It also accomodates rock climbers for a crevice to scale internally.



The cave is only a small worn crack in the rock and was yet another experience for the participants to overcome. So Fear of Heights and Claustrophobia were checked off in the same day.

Well done to all who had participated for the day.

Proud Supporter of Top Knot Climbing and Adventure Equipment Cairns.

Remember, when you are hiking or boating through the natural trails and watercourses of this great country of ours, please leave only footprints in the sand or a ripple in the water, and take nothing away apart from photographs and memories.

Blue Skies

Flounder

Upper Stoney Creek Falls - Douglas / Smiths Track

Hike to Upper Stoney Creek Falls via the Douglas and Smiths Track




On a nearly cloud free day, a group of paddlers set off for a different kind of adventure. Basically we were off on a hike in search of an elusive set of waterfalls which existed on Stoney Creek high above the tourist falls, which you see in every tourist brochure.

The plan was to do a circuit of Stoney Creek Gorge with the lunch being at this most beautiful vista. The author had being here once before but had come up from below via the railway track. This access was no longer viable unfortunately.

The group existed of various levels of hiking experience, mainly with Quirky who was in the elite Bushwalking Club, Pete who relived his expertise of a long ago Scouts experience, the author whom hiking experience stretches back a few years to 2004, and Tarzan, Laggy, and Dano who will try anything.... as seen previously in paddling experiences.

The intrepid group left early on the saturday morning to hopefully get rid of most of the humidity of climbing through tropical rainforest. To access the Douglas and Smiths Track, you need to take a left at the Kamerunga Villas turnoff before crossing the Barron River bridge , and continue through the multitude of roundabouts to as far as you can go.

Once well into the Douglas Track, you finally reach the ridge over-looking our familiar Lake Placid playground after about 45 minutes to an hour. You head out on the ridge to the turnoff to Glacier Rock to suffer another 30 minute climb. However , on this track the vistas are superb.


Once getting to the lookout of Glacier Rock, the group tends to be tankful for the rest. A bit of sight-seeing is to be done, including the secondary lookout of which it looks over to the target of Stoney Creek falls.












Another bout of walking for about an hour, will get you to the Stoney Creek Crossing, which basking in the cool of the tropical rainforest setting of the flowing creek, adds refreshment and rest to the weary traveller.

It is here that there can be a choice to continue on for about 15 minutes....or rock-hop down the creek to the destination. Due to prior knowledge, it was agreed to press on and access the area from a different point.



Once getting to the bluff where the Smith's track travels along the southern ridge, there is a small pathway leading down to a rocky outcrop which offers amzing viewpoints of the Gorge, the famous railway bridge, and on the other side, sheer drops leading into the target pool of the trip.










It must be said at this point that ropes must be taken to traverse the travel down the precarious slope. The decision was made that we could not get to the bottom pool due to it being too dangerous. Hence the decision was to take our lunch at the top of the falls and bask and swim in the beautiful setting. The water was actually ice cold and felt like an athlete's ice bath. It actually did the same thing as an ice bath in that it refreshed and rejuvenated the tired aching muscles and limbs.










After lunch and a rest, the intrepid travellers again geared up for the hike back. However, looking from Glacier Rock, the view of the ridge was unlike anything we expected. From the turnoff to the creek, Smiths actually took a long two kilometres on a steady incline of which there was much complaining eventually from the author.






On the way up over the Smith's track, it again offered amazing vistas showing Glacier Rock from a different view.



Muscles tiring, limbs aching, the hiker actually looks forward to reaching the pinnacle of the hiking track from hell. Unbeknown to the hiker....worse is yet to come.





Smiths Track is an amazing trail in that the descent covers a 1 kilometre descent at an amzing 45 degrees at least. Together with loose gravel, and casuarina seeds acting as mongrel ball-bearings, it makes the descent very heavy and slow-going.

After about a good hour of torture, you eventually arrive at the trailhead of the Smith's track...only to face another 500 metres of undulating bitumen to be able to come back and kiss your vehicle vowing that you will never leave your car behind again !

Even for the muscle torture for the next few days (half the group actually kayaked the Barron Gorge the day after)....travelling around the Stoney Creek gorge was a rewarding experience. Well....enough to know to avoid the Smith's track in future anyways....

Remember, when you hike through the magnificent trails of this great country, always leave only footprints, and take nothing out except for photographs and memories.

Blue Skies

Flounder

Teamwork, Team Games - Trust Games

Trust Games



If we think about it....we use trust everyday in our normal lives.... We trust that car that is coming towards us has an experienced driver beind the wheel when we cross the road, we trust our friends when we tell/ask them various information, and we trust that pilot in the cockpit of the jet plane that we are travelling on to see our loved ones.

Trust is a very hard thing for us to do....but an easy thing for us to master. Trust is usually a matter for us to learn....and with some people, they take all their lives just learning to trust. Unfortunately, in this day and age, of all of the wild things that people do, trusting people in society may be like climbing a huge wall without the end in sight.

S-Teem places in the eye of the participant, a chance to enhance their trusting ability without any prejudices, and with the aide of the many team building games that can be accomplished. All people, even shy people, will always be happy in the fact of accomplishing a very intuitive, interactive team initiative. Trust forms the basis of this fact. So the circle is formed....to trust, you have to know whether your teammate is competant....and to know that your teammate is competant....you have to trust them.

Teamwork is fostered by respecting, encouraging, enthusing, caring for people, and not exploiting or dictating to them. Trust is gained in that the participant must respect that the fact of the matter, is where their teammate would not voluntarily place them in danger. To illustrate this fact, blindfolds are a great aide to enhance this special trait. In the above photograph, the game called " Blind Train Walk" , enables people to trust in the person who is driving the train. The driver in this case, is the person at the back who "drives" the train by squeezing the shoulder/s of the person in front, and that person although blindfolded, does the same, and the person in front of him/her, does the same. This is communication at it's most basic so as to guide the team through a safe passage. Trust comes about by the fact that the person in front has to believe that the train driver will affect the necessary changes and thus keep them safe.

For this game to work, the rules are that if you are the driver, you need to squeeze the shoulder of the person in front for the way you wish the train to move. On no account, is there to be any verbal communiaction. For the team to go straight ahead, a squeeze on both shoulders at the same time should be affected. To stop, the driver just needs to affect a "double squeeze" on both shoulders. The train driver also needs to affect the change with enough time for the message to get from the back to the front. Thus, the driver has to anticipate the amount of time to affect a change at the front.

In this game, it is easy enough to complete without blindfolds....but blindfolds would enhance the trust factor. "Blind Train Walk" is a simple and easy way to introduce the team to trust issues, and a gentle game to play on the way to the "Games Area".

"Hug a Tree" is a pure blindfold game where trust is placed in one person. The participant is blindfolded and "led" by the guide who is not blindfolded of course. This game is best used in Nature....or some park . The object of the game is to get the blindfolded participant to retrace his/her steps to find out the journey that was recently undertaken.



The guide having blindfolded their "mate", then takes their mate on a journey over the ground in the immediate area, getting them to experience the absolute despair of not having the advantage of sight. The guide leads them all around the area for a number of minutes and then gets the mate to grab hold of a tree/object. Then the guide leads them back to the start. The mate then takes the blindfold off and has to go and identify the tree/object. Once this is done, the persons swap the tasks.


" Magic Hat" is a game of strength and team initiative. The task is to get the team from one side of a defined area to the other other something like a "River of Radioactive Dinosaur Snot". The trick is that only one person wearing the "Magic Hat" can be able to walk across the river. The "Magic Hat" can only be worn once by each person.


The solution is basic. One person caries another person across. That person walks back with the hat on and then waits while the rest of the group follows the same with the final person carries two people across.


This game enables people to understand that with communication, they will eventually get the solution while throwing their ideas into the ring. It also shows the team that various people of different sizes and strengths may be used at cruicial times during the game.

"Tic Toc" is a basic game to enable trust to grow between the team members. In groups of three, One person "the clock hand" stands in the middle of the other two facing one, and with their back to the other. That person fold their arms across their chest, keep their feet together and close their eyes. (You can also use a blindfold). Keeping their body stiff, and their feet still, they gently sway between the people who catch them and redirect them back to the other person. Once people get comfortable, they may increase the distance or speed. This is a great game to start your trust activities with.

"Wind in the Willows" is another game for basic trust principles and is a respectable game in which to follow "Tic Toc". It is just a formulation of the Tic Toc game where the unsighted or blindfolded person stands in the middle of a tight circle of the whole group. The person then can sway in any direction. The whole team keeps their hands up to support the "Willow" in the middle.

"Bull at a Gate" is another intimidating trust game where the group lines up in two lines facing each other with arms extended out so that their fingertips are touching. One person stands about 10-20 metres away and runs at full speed towards the middle of the two lines of people. Just before the person running gets to the outstretched arms of the waiting team members, the persons standing in the two rows lowers their arms quickly by their side allowing safe passage for the person running.

This is a fun game and to have different sized people running at you is another anxious trust activity.

The "Trust Fall" is the Epitome of any trust game and is seen on many displays of personal character building games. Usually the person faces away from the catcher and falls into their arms. However you can add an increase to this challenge by having the group line up closely in two rows facing each other with their arms slightly bent and alternating with the person beside them and opposite to them. The restriction for this game is that the lines of catchers must be longer than the person's height who is falling. The person doing the trust fall stands on a table with their back to the group, closes their eyes and crosses their arms on their chest. Keeping their body stiff they fall backwards to the group who should safely catch them.

This game has different analagies to it as it shows that "if a person falls, the group can be there to catch them if trust and respect are in place."

Please remember that there is a high level of risk to this challenge and leaders must be confident that the group is up to this challenge. Leaders would do well to have all of the safety precautions on hand for any of the risk trust activities.

All of these trust games will eventually lead to or build up to common teamwork ideals. The formulation of the team through Forming, Storming, Norming , and Performing rituals will enhance the team and enable it to get through the rough times as well as outshine others when the calm times are there.

Look forward to the next installment where we will explore Team Initiative Games.

Canoeing and Kayaking the Mulgrave River, Queensland, Australia

For a few years now, I have enjoyed exposing the natural backyard of North Queensland to many of my friends. Generally, our playground is the serene setting of the Mulgrave River in North Queensland.

North Queensland is a haven to get out and away from the hustle and bustle of city life and practise the skills to paddle a river. The Mulgrave is graded at generally a Grade II river with a few challenging rapids for the hard shells of canoes and kayaks.

As a team of friends which get together regularly, it is a great time to spend splashing about in a safe and stress-free environment.

As a team, the adventurous paddlers search out for the fun of negotiating the challenging rapids in their bushranger and Rover Canoes. Aided with the river knowledgeable crew of kayakers, bold paddlers explore their own limits of excitement and courage.

Crews from various organisations have taken up the challenge to strengthen their bond together. Some of these are the legendary Sea Eagles Swimming Club and staff from LJ Hooker Edge Hill Cairns Real Estate.

Groups end the day feeling sated and tired of course but overall, happy and contented.

Some come with us to play on the river. Remember, it is not a tour....it is not a business when we paddle like this....it is just a group of friends enjoying the natural fun and beauty of the North.

Remember, when paddling the fabulous natural watercourses of this great country, please do not leave anything except for footprints in the sand, and take nothing but photos and memories.....