Ingham
population 11.568
Grows sugar cane, cattle and aquaculture.

We stay at Palm tree caravan park, there is no free park around and this park has a deal stay 5 night pay for 4, so not so bad.

As we don't arrive until dinner time we do not do much but eat and shower..
Next day we go to the Tyto wetlands. This is named after the endangered eastern grass owl {tyto capensis ]. They do have a couple living in the wet lands .
It has not rained here for a long time so wetlands not at their best, but they are still a nice place.
These wetlands were created by the local sugar cane growers to mange eco diversity of farming across the area and ensure sustainability for future generations and help protect the reef .
The wetlands covers 120 hectares of re-habilitated wetlands.
 
Next day we go to Wallaman Falls which is part of Girrirgum National park. This park has a dominant volcano of Mt. Fox , but we start by walking to the falls. Wallamn falls is Australia’s longest permanent single drop waterfall.


The creek to the falls is Stoney creek and has a camp ground, there is no way we could have got the caravan in here, so it is a day trip only.
There is a short walk along the creek to see platypus, turtles, and at night sugar gliders. We did get photos of turtles in the water and saw a platypus, but by the time I got the camera focused it had dived and all I got is its wake.The turtle photo shows it half swimming half floating in the fast currant.


The walk to the falls lookout is not bad only short, but you can take the path down to the bottom of the falls from which you have to climb back from. It is sign posted as very strenuous and slippery,
and people have been hurt here. We later learned a young man died here a few weeks back as he carried his young child down and up. Got to his car and had heart attack.No we did not attempt the walk even though it would have been something else to walk down to the bottom of a waterfall of this size.
So we enjoy what we can see as it starts to rain and the mist in the gorge rises making for some different photos.
Back at the caravan park I have nice swim in salt water pool on my own, but we then ended up in the Ingham hospital as Larry's back pain from the day before got worse and it was around his kidneys, it was a good job we opted out of the waterfall walk.
The hospital is very good, clean and all the staff, nurses , doctor were excellent. A lot of tests were done with exra and a ultra sound to be obtained when we reach Townsville. Our Vic doctor sent up all his records, but it was decided it was muscular and the ultra sound was just a precaution.
Ingham is a very nice little town 2 hours from Cairns and 1 ½ hours from Townsville. Has plenty of shops , Coles, Woolworth etc and 10-15 mins to some nice beaches. This place is on the list to winter in later, as there is part time work aswell.

Even though Larry’s back still sore but a bit better on medication, we go to more waterfalls. These ones we were going to get a permit to camp at , but because it rained again overnight we did not know how much water would be in the two creek crossings. So the van stays put and we drive and find we would have made it in ok , not deep or hard creek crossings.
We do end up wlking to the top of the mountain from the park, to see the waterfall. We just do it slowly as it hard for me anyway.
This is Jourama falls in the Paluma NP. The walk about 1km starting in the creek bed of boulders and water, and then up. It took a good 1 ½ to walk but had some beautiful butterflies and birds.
While we were walking around the creek and camp I caught a glimps of a large lizard, so we went looking and it climbed a tree. It is a monitor lizard of some variety, it looks like a bigger version of the one the kookaburra had for lunch a few days ago.


When we get back to the caravan We I swim again and then use the free oven in park camp kitchen to make roast for Larry as it is very clean.

We move on to Rollingstone we think named beacause the creek full of round pebbles that would roll in the flow of water when it rains.

We are slowly making our way to Townsville but have 5 days to be there , we stay at free camp on creek where you can swim and there is lots of bird life.There are other camps on the beach we check out but too small for the van and have lots of bitting midges.This place big enough and close enough to town to safely leave the van locked up and go exploring.
I find a figbird nest in the tree above the carvan, it is not a well made nest and both parents sit on it.


We go back to the Paluma Range but more south than before. Paluma village , yes there is a little village hidden in the rain forrest, is 1000 mt above sea level. It is made up of artists and potters and I would say people who want a kind of hermit life. Old houses and a little school with a school bus taking older kids down to other schools. The car trip up the Mountain is long, twisty, steep with no guard rails so school bus trip would be slow.

This little village has lots of forest walks starting in the village and are used for education of the local and further a field school kids, we meet some on one of the walks.

This is the most southern part of the tropical rain forrest, we walk some of the walks then see Little crosstalk creek, McClellands lookout and Birthday creek falls and Lake Paluma.
The walk to Birthday Creek falls takes you to right on top of the waterfalls, I did not cross the water to look down but Larry did , My photo of water going over top, Larry's of falling water.

Balagal beach near Rollingstone.
We have a walk along the beach then a swim in the ocean. The jellyfish nets are not out yet and there can be salt water crocs, so I on;t stay in as long as Larry. The tide is nearly all the way out so a long way of only waist to chest water to play in .
 
  On the way back to the caravan we buy bananas and a pineapple ,that was picked on wednesday and this is Sunday, cost $2.00 and it tastes absolutely beautiful.

It seems just lately all we are doing is walking up and down Hills and waterfalls with slippery steep tracks. A few days in Townsville will be good.