There’s something about a waterfall that inspires awe and Minyon Falls certainly did that for us. True there are none in Australia that have the sheer roaring power of some of the world’s great waterfalls – Inga Falls in Congo, Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe or Niagra Falls in Canada. But our waterfalls have an understated splendour, minus (mostly) the surging might and omnipotence of those mentioned above.
What is it about them that is so mesmerising? The sound? The earthy smell of the spray on the air? The plummeting and plunging over the edge and down into the abyss? All the myriad tracks and trails that lead bushwalkers to waterfalls where ever they occur speak volumes about the the way this natural phenomenon reaches us on a deep level. Perhaps the same feelings cause us to stand and watch the ocean crash onto the shore. On our recent visit to northern NSW, we weren’t going to miss a walk to Minyon Falls, in the poetically named Nightcap National Park, an hour or so inland from Byron Bay. It’s a well known spot.
What we loved about Minyon Falls
This waterfall sends Repentance Creek more than 100m down into a subtropical rainforest gorge. At the top there is a lookout maintained by the National Parks and Wildlife Service from where you can watch the relentless torrent or gaze down into the gorge below. There are spectacular views of the surrounding weathered cliffs and off to the ocean in the distance. A beautiful spot by any measure. But more than the beauty of the falls and the surroundings, is the fascinating history beneath your feet. You are standing on the remnants of an ancient story – on the outer rim of the vast Tweed Caldera – one of the largest examples of its type in the southern hemisphere. A caldera is a bowl shaped depression caused by the collapse or erosion of a volcanic cone.
The volcano in question was a monster – the Tweed Shield Volcano – which at its peak towered 2km over the surrounding landscape 23 million years ago. It was active for three million years, spewing forth huge amounts of lava over 7000 square kilometres at various times and then lying dormant between. Geologists explain that this vast volcano had three main eruptive phases and each one produced a different kind of lava and left behind a legacy of stratified rock layers. Each type eroded in a different way shaping the dramatic landscapes of the Tweed valley. At Minyon Falls its mostly rhyolite which has been more resistant to 23 million years of erosion than other rock types and has given rise to deep gorges and plunging waterfalls like this one. Monstrous volcanoes, lakes of lava, geological time frames…what’s not to love about that!
What we did at Minyon Falls
We started from Minyon Grass Picnic Area (plenty of picnic tables) and took the well kept track which zig zags down the slope toward the creek at the bottom of the gorge. From here its a 4km return walk down to the falls leading you from spectacular dry forest through ever more lush vegetation. Ferns and towering Bangalow palms appear. Moss covered logs and twirling vines and creepers. At the right time of year – a myriad of fungi will be fruiting in the perfect moist conditions. All this to the constant background hum of Repentance Creek and the sound of rainforest birds. Eventually you will come to a track intersection. If you cross the creek the path will take you up to Minyon Lookout (it’s quite a hike with lots of steps). Instead keep going ahead – the path gets a bit hard to see here as it winds up between big boulders.
We continued on scrambling over fallen rocks (and it really is quite a scramble) on the path that leads to the base of the falls. You’ll hear it long before you see it – but it’s the highlight of this walk. In the summer people swim in the pool at the base of the falls which must be lovely. Then we returned the way we came – but this time it’s all up hill. That might sound gruelling, but it really wasn’t with the worst of it smoothed out by the series of zig zags up the slopes. Even dawdling to take pictures and look at things, and have a drink – it’s only going to take you two or three hours.
