Walking shoes on, backpack full of water and snacks and we were off for a 5km hike to the Mitchell Falls. It turned out to be quite a challenging walk with much of it climbing over rocks, down gorges and alongside a creek and crossing over waterfalls. Along the creek was really nice, the trees provided plenty of shade and it was quite cool but the rocky areas were quite exposed and hot. Crossing the Merton Creek where it drops 80 metres into a gorge was quite spectacular, there was not a lot of water flowing over but the drop into the gorge was spectacular and you are right on the edge of that drop.

Big Merton Falls

The walking track across Big Merton Falls

From there it was over one more hill and we were at the Mitchell River crossing. That proved to be a challenge. Up to this point we had got our feet wet but just in small streams, here we were going to get more than our feet wet. There was little option as the Helicopter pick up was on the other side as well as the views of the falls. Our shoes were already wet so we left them on hoping for a little grip on the slippery rocks. The first section had a number of rocks where the water was flowing over them at about shin deep however in the gaps between them the water was waist deep. I went first wondering if the decision to bring my $4000 camera and lens was the right one. I quickly realised that while I could step over the gaps the lack of grip was certain to make me lose my balance so I decided it was a nice day to get wet. Jacky had more trouble but eventually she was able to get past those gaps. The next section was about knee deep but the rock bottom offered very little grip. Jacky gave up trying to stand up and decided to do it on her hands and knees however she lost her grip and started to float down the river. I wisely told her to grab hold of the bottom. After she said she couldn’t grip the bottom (twice) I realised she was in trouble. I was close enough to be able to take two steps and grab her hand without losing my balance or dropping my camera. If I had of missed that opportunity she may have gone over the rapids that were about 10 metres away with about a 2 metre drop.

Rapids at the Mitchell River Crossing

The rest of the crossing was uneventful, the last 20 metres was only ankle deep. It was only after we were across that we realised how close a call it was. It is marvellous how our God looks after us. We found out later that the crossing had only been open for 2 days, before that you could walk to the crossing but you had to take the helicopter to actually see the falls.

Mitchell River Crossing

Mitchell River Crossing from the other side

We had nearly 2 hours before our helicopter ride arrived. The views of the falls are fantastic. In front of the helicopter pickup area is a wide open section of the river where you can swim, the fresh water was beautiful to swim in but there was no way I could persuade Jacky back into the water. I think she’d had enough of the river for one day.

Mitchell Falls from the air

Mitchell Falls

After nearly 3 hrs to walk there, the helicopter ride back was 6 mins and that included 2 circuits of the falls to allow you to take photos.

Jacky at the Mitchell Falls