Day 74 – 1st August – Mitchell Falls

I had a restless night last night… I was woken by the sound of dingoes howling…

Today we were finally going to the Mitchell Plateau.  For months we were undecided about getting up here.  We had heard so many horror stories about the track from the Kalumburu Road into the Mitchell Falls.  It was supposedly the ‘worst road in Australia’ and people were coming out with their exhaust pipes tied to the roof of their car, or cars breaking axles… We only decided a couple of weeks ago after speaking to a few people who managed to travel in and out unscathed… and said it was worth the effort.

Boy, are we glad we didn’t choose to skip this part of the trip…  It turns out the road was nothing… NOTHING… of concern.  For the most part, it was vastly better than the Kalumburu Road.  Of the 76km track into the Mitchell Plateau National Park, it was really only the last 20km that got a bit lumpy, bumpy.  Admittedly, we heard the grader had been through here in the past couple of weeks, so perhaps we had jagged the right time to drive it… We opted to camp at the King Edward campsite where we could leave the camper trailer, and drive the 76km without the stress of towing.  But in all honesty, to save us a two hour drive at the end of the day we could have quite easily got the camper in…

So, it turned out to be a MONSTER day… we were up and ready and on the road at 7.15am.  The drive up to the Plateau was really pleasant.  You drive through acres and acres of Fan Palms which are only found in this region.  On the way, two more birds to cross off our birdwatching list… 

2 hours later we reached the Mitchell Plateau National Park.  Our first port of call was the helicopter operators.  We were thinking of walking into the falls then catching their ‘taxi flight’ back out again.  Unfortunately, they were fully booked till really late in the afternoon, so we opted instead to fly into the falls and then walk out. 

None of us had ever been on a helicopter before, so this was a pretty exciting holiday treat.  Aiden is always the over-thinker, and got a bit nervous before we took off, but once in the air his excitement soon took over.  We were taken for a 6 minute scenic flight which flew over the Mitchell Falls, Big Merton Falls, Little Merton Falls and part of the Mitchell River.  It was spectacular!!  Worth every cent…

Here we are being led out to the helicopter.  It was a 6 seater, which were we sharing with another couple.  Dave sat at one of the open doors, Megan was wedged in the middle, Aiden had to face backwards but at least he was behind part of a wall with a window and I got to sit in the front…  

And this was our view… You can see the Mitchell River snaking in at the back.  The large water mass in the middle is the base of the Mitchell Falls, on the left you can see the gorge leading into Big Merrton’s Falls and on the right… I dunno??  You can’t get to that gorge on the right so it’s not on the tourist map… will have to Google it at some time in the future. 

Looking down on the Mitchell Falls.  It is the highest multi-tiered waterfall in Western Australia.  As stunning as it is to look at, it is frustrating as you can’t access or swim in anything other than the top level.  The second and third levels are sacred to the Aboriginal people so you can’t swim in those pools and you can’t swim in the bottom level because of the saltwater crocs… 

The happy flyers…  

During our safety brief it was explained that when we got out we had to make our way along the white painted rocks to the safe area.  Aiden got out of the helicopter and bolted… I think he was a little anxious… 

We all agreed the helicopter flight was pretty awesome.  Look at the kids grins… this was just after they asked if we could do it again… 

The helicopter lands at an area just near the top of the Mitchell Falls.  We didn’t have far to walk to get the ground-level view of the falls. 

Keep an eye out on Dave’s Facebook page.  He was taking this selfie and saying it was to be his new cover photo… 

From the top of the falls we then had to hike our way back to the car park, stopping along the way at swimming holes and the other waterfalls… Our first swim at the top of the falls. 

We got dressed and hiked further along the top to the point where you are looking down on the water cascading over the edge.  Having just got dry, it was time for another swim… 

Today I took 195 photos on my camera… this is the one and only shot that I am in… 

A pretty spot at the top of Big Merton’s falls 

There were several sites along the way containing some Aboriginal art.  These are thought to be thousands of years old… 

We can’t decide if this is a lady with crazy boobs or a frill-necked lizard?

Our final stop was Little Merton’s Falls.  Another dip and a play under the cascading water.  Apparently when water falls from this height it stings quite a bit…  

Six and a half hours later we made it back to the car park… then came the two hour drive home… once again Dave was a champion getting us home safely after a long day.  All up, we were gone for over 10 hours… but it was a pretty spectacular 10 hours.  Super, super glad we made it to the Mitchell Plateau…