Kings Cascades

[Day 5 - Kings Cascades & Cathedral Falls, Careening Bay and Mermaid Boab]

This morning we sailed up the Prince Regent River, the longest river in Australia to see the iconic Kings Cascade waterfall, which stands 45m tall.

We were reminded that the area is full of crocodiles and Paul, our guide, took the opportunity to tell us about the tragic story of the young 24 year old American woman, Ginger Faye Meadows, who died after being mauled by a crocodile in 1993.  I won't go into the graphic details that Paul did, but let's just say it was a gruesome death.

A small group of us had put our hands up for another rock climbing challenge.  This one will take us to the top of the cascades to yet another 2 swimming holes and more waterfalls.  So, now that we're all on edge and incredibly anxious about the thought of crocodiles, it's time to take a leap of faith off the boat and onto the rocks.  With adrenaline pumping through our veins we quickly made it to the top (Michelle& Suzy - all those squats in the pump classes have put me in good condition).  We were not disappointed - this waterhole was magical.  We splashed around for an hour in the cool water, with some even diving/jumping in off the rocks.

We have to exit the Prince Regent River the same way we entered and because the river is tidal, our departure from the Kings Cascades was timed to coincide with the changing tide.

The others who chose not to climb to the top of  the cascades, were taken to another beautiful spot called Cathedral Falls.  Now, my group was  incredibly lucky because time and tide permitted a quick trip for the group to the Cathedral Falls.  These falls are a result if the summer rains and won't be there I another 6 or so weeks.

Earlier, the other group had seen a crocodile on their trip to the Falls. It swam along side the boat for a minute and submerged itself.  The boat driver wasn't comfortable that he couldn't see the croc, so they high-tailed it out of there quick smart.  We didn't get to see the croc, and I'm glad about that!

It's a four hour sail back up the river, so the afternoon was spent relaxing on board.Read more