Cascades Circuit

A nice circuit starting off in a eucalypt forest and venturing deeper into the rainforest along the upper reaches of Dalrymple Creek.
Dalrymple is a level 3 track - medium
Cascades is a level 4 track - hard
Easiest way is to complete in clockwise direction and end up on the fire track heading back to the camp ground.

Waterfalls

Lookouts

Swimming

Bird Watching

Toilets

Scrambling or Climbing

No Dogs Permitted

No Horses Permitted

Camping Permitted

Rainforest

924m

Maximum Elevation

246m

Total Climb

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Getting there

The trail starts and finishes on the eastern side of the Manna Gum campground, found in the Goomburra section of Main Range National Park. Turn onto Goomburra Road from either the Cunningham Hwy at Gladfield or the New England Hwy near Allora. Turn onto Inverramsay Rd and continue for approx 40km. It changes to Forestry Reserve Rd, and the final ~20km are on dirt road but in normal weather 2wd access is fine. Follow the signs to the Manna Gum campground (just beyond Poplar Flat) and park there; toilets provided here.

Maps

https://www.npsr.qld.gov.au/parks/main-range/pdf/main-range-goomburra-map.pdf
https://www.npsr.qld.gov.au/parks/main-range/pdf/main-range-park-guide-april2011.pdf

Route/Trail notes

A nice circuit continuing on from the shorter Dalrymple Circuit, running along the creek of the same name. The start is in very bushy vegetation on a well trodden path. As you venture deeper into the forest there are several creek crossings which can be at times tricky to spot, but nothing that can't be figured out with a minute or so of scanning the opposite side of the creek (only some of the crossings are marked with an orange triangle). The first half of the hike is mostly flat or slightly downhill with one or two exceptions. After halfway there is lots of climbing through rainforest to get back to the top of a ridge and out of the forest, at which point the trail becomes more of a fire trail with vehicle tracks. You can continue back to the carpark on this or you can take a detour by turning onto the adjoining Ridge Track. Scattered cascades, a couple of waterfalls and a few points at which you could take a swim. All in all a very nice track!

Permits/Costs

No permits required. No cost.

Other References

https://www.weekendnotes.com/camping-goomburra-main-range-national-park/

GPS Tracks

No GPS available for this walk yet.

Comments

Beautiful walk. Some of the creek crossings were a bit slippery, resulting in one involuntary swim, but that wasn't too much of an issue. If I were walking with kids I'd consider doing it counter-clockwise as you get the climb out of the way in the first couple of ks and it's all downhill from there, but it is a bit of a relentless climb at first.

I think it's probably nicer clockwise as you are looking up the creek constantly. The climb to the top is a bit more broken up, but probably is steeper in spots. Though it's cooler in the rainforest than on the track.

I'll do this one again.
Craig on 20 Jan, 2024

We went uphill first, anticlockwise, about 45 minutes of decent slow and not particularly interesting and would highly recommend this compared to clockwise. BUT coming down through the amazing rainforest seeing all the beautiful falls, creek crossings and stunning scenery completely worth it. Took us about 3.5 hours. Tired, but we loved it. There is a little bit of clambering required, crossing creeks and tree roots, so be sure footed.
Tanya on 23 Apr, 2023

Great walk
Olga on 25 Feb, 2023

Amazing walk! Hard in some places due to the excess rain at the time making it extremely slippery in some areas
Jacinta Anderton on 24 Apr, 2022

We did it with 2 kids 4y and 8y in about 3h. The sign says it's 6.5km return. If you do it anticlockwise then all the climbing will be done in 30-45 minutes. This worked great with my kids.
Pawel Pabich on 29 Sep, 2021

The bush here is looking wonderful after all the rain we have had and the rockpools are bigger and better than I have ever seen them (but the water is very cold). This is another walk with several changes of vegetation and ecosystem. I prefer to start from the rainforest and descend down the fire trail otherwise it's a long dry dusty haul up. I'm in my late 60's and walk it in about 2.5hrs - there are maybe 10-12 shallow creek crossings which can be treacherous, and some steep pitches up through the forest, but it's a gorgeous walk. The track was clear and well maintained.
Helen on 4 Jun, 2021

Excellent walk done clockwise. Something for everyone as this walk has flats, steep ups, downs, and plenty of creek crossings. Crossings were doable without getting the feet wet even though there was plenty of rain recently. Combined with the Ridge track, it makes for an excellent 3-5h walk if you take it slow with breaks. Could easily do this in a couple of hours with reasonable fitness and no breaks.
AshD on 2 May, 2021

Walked 9.7km in 4.5 hours at a slow pace and lots of pauses in stand offs with multiple snakes
Some steep and slippery inclines, lots of creek crossings, a few pademellons and a wallaby.
We saw a red belly, and multiple brown snakes right under our feet. Nice walk just need to be careful of snakes and wear Gaiters.
KLEEWDO on 26 Oct, 2020

Beautiful Circuit! Many nice areas for swimming if it's hot.
Chesspeople on 22 Jul, 2020

i enjoyed this walk..easy to find, basically at the end of the road - i went clockwise along the creek and ended with the downhill fire trail...many creek crossings early and posts on the other side so u cant get lost..water shallow so just a bit of rock hopping across shallow streams,,i clocked it closer to 8klm....quite hilly in places so expect occasionally to get the heart rate up...overall though its very enjoyable
Greg Brady on 18 Jul, 2020

Completed with my two children. Took just over 3 hrs. Beautiful walk. Had rained the night before, so was a tricky /slippery in some parts.
Hannah on 11 Jul, 2020

A very enjoyable walk, which continually crisscrosses the creek, with many cascades along the way. Completing in a clockwise direction is best as the final part of the walk is on a steep 4 wheel drive track, which would be difficult to climb. You would get wet feet if there has been a lot of rain.
Shazlex on 21 Jun, 2020

The best walk in the Goomburra section in my opinon, beautiful forest scenery with creek crossings and rockpools to enjoy. Vegetation changes a number of times as you move through and change elevations. An easy walk completed in 2hr 20min.
Brent on 28 Jul, 2019

A great walk that takes you through a range of vegetation and cascading waterfalls. This is a peaceful part of the world to enjoy.
Joanne Brennan on 27 Apr, 2019

Gordon Country Camping - Pat & Boys with the Baker Boys
Pat on 10 Apr, 2019

We did this circuit counterclockwise, starting from the campgrounds, and it took us a little under 2hrs without rests. It's a beautiful walk mostly following a creek, so lots of creek crossings and little waterfalls along the way. The first half was up and down, whereas the second half was a decent slog uphill, then down towards the end on a wider track. We saw lots of wildlife and birds, including several snakes leaving the trail, and some small wallabies.
noniej on 12 Jan, 2019

This is a great Circuit with plenty of creek crossings and a bit of rock hopping. A few decent inclines to get the heart rate up. My GPS said 8.4km. Completed in 2 hours, 35 minutes with my 12 year old step son. Highlight : creek crossings.
omb055 on 8 Apr, 2018

Completed this while camping in Goomburra for NYE. Pleasant track with enough inclines to get the heart pumping. Forgot to start my GPS and began to worry when a storm rolled in but the nature of the trails in this section means it's almost impossible to take a wrong turn to get lost. Saw a few blind snakes and what may've been an eastern brown, so keep your eyes peeled. Couple of mint swimming spots if it's warm, which we made good use of!
walkingwithtim on 31 Dec, 2017