The foothills of Mt Barney let you embrace the mountain without climbing to her summit. Rocky scrambles and grassy ambles lead to pockets of subtropical rainforest, refreshing creek crossings and beautiful waterfalls.
A giant rises from misty paddocks on our pre-dawn drive toward the Yellow Pinch trailhead. The giant is Mount Barney, the 1354-metre granophyre mass with a silhouette like a pregnant woman resting on her back. She is a force of nature, revered by the Traditional Owners of the land who share borders across her sprawling peaks and valleys. Shadows and waterways provide welcome respite for walkers traversing her foothills.
My husband Zac and I set out as early as we can on these familiar paths, our one-year-old daughter Rosie taking it all in from the carrier on Zac’s back. At the trailhead we turn right to walk up the loose rocky path, golden sunrise bouncing off the gums, and our tingling quads hint at why it’s called Yellow Pinch. The short, steep climb stings momentarily, like being pinched on the legs as you ascend through open eucalypt forest, turning right at the Yellow Pinch gate and up the rocky ridge to the exposed cliff edge.
One of many creek crossings on the Cronan Creek Falls track.
We often see goannas on the trails around Mount Barney.
Cronan Creek Falls is a humble and tranquil spot.
The reward is one of the most spectacular views you will see of the mountain. The natural lookout is a great spot to catch your breath, have a bite to eat and read about the volcanic history of this ancient landscape. Here we could let gravity push us all the way back down the hill to our car, having seen Mount Barney in the space of a two-kilometre return walk, but we have a waterfall to visit.
We head back in the direction we came and a sign at the Yellow Pinch gate warns against summitting Mount Barney unless you are very fit and prepared for a demanding climb on ungraded and unmarked tracks. Having come up here on previous visits via Southeast Ridge, Logan’s Ridge and South/ Peasants Ridge, we can attest to the fact that she is not a mountain to be taken lightly.
Ancient tree ferns tower over ferny beds along the grassy section of track.
This impressive little bird, which I later identified as a spotted pardalote, stopped us in our tracks.
Palms rise impressively from the creek bed, which we walked alongside for much of the way.
The 12-kilometre return on Cronan Creek Falls Track starts on dusty fire trails showing angles of Mount Barney and Mount Lindesay through the haze of recent bushfires as the morning heats up. We enter grasslands and subtropical rainforest in the shadow of the mountain and the smoke gives way to the gentle blue and green glow of light filtering through the canopy. We count eight creek crossings, most of them barely a trickle when we walk, but I recall sloshing through in socks and shoes in wetter times. Along Cronan Creek, we pass the Burbank and Forestry bush camp sites where you can pitch a tent if you get a permit from Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service.
Zac spots an impressive little bird which I later identify as a spotted pardalote, one of 231 bird species in the national park which is part of the Gondwana Rainforests of Australia World Heritage Area.
It is a glimpse into an area recognised as one of the world’s most outstanding and valuable natural places.
Cronan Creek is a healthy and thriving ecosystem.
The path to Yellow Pinch is steep, loose and rocky.
A tiny sign saying Cronan Creek Falls 100m pokes out from the bushes to our left and we crouch down through overgrown scrub and rock hop our way to the humble but beautiful falls. It is a gently shaded pocket where the water is always ice cold, and today we have it to ourselves. Zac braves a swim, and the walk back out feels shorter with the promise of a pub lunch in the small Scenic Rim town of Rathdowney on the way home.
