Barron Gorge National Park

Barron Gorge National Park Queensland
IUCN category II (national park)
Glacier Rock, 2009
Barron Gorge National Park
Nearest town or city	Cairns
Coordinates	16°50′34″S 145°39′08″E / 16.84278°S 145.65222°E / -16.84278; 145.65222Coordinates: 16°50′34″S 145°39′08″E / 16.84278°S 145.65222°E / -16.84278; 145.65222
Established	1940
Area	28 km² (10.8 sq mi)
Managing authorities	Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service
Website	Barron Gorge National Park
See also	Protected areas of Queensland

Barron Gorge National Park is a national park in Queensland, Australia, 1,404 km northwest of Brisbane and 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) from Kuranda. Barron Gorge is part of the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area.^[1] The Kuranda Scenic Railway line passes through the park with a station at Barron Falls.^[1] One train runs from and returns to Cairns daily.^[2] The original weir, constructed in 1934 at the top of the falls, is visible from the station lookout.

Landforms

View from the Skyrail Rainforest Cableway

Barron Falls

Barron Gorge formed where the Barron River passes over the eastern escarpment of the Atherton Tablelands.^[3] Barron Falls cascade 265 m to the gorge below. Two waterfalls—Stoney Creek Falls and Surprise Creek Falls exist on tributaries of the Barron River within the park. Slopes around the gorge are steep with some at a 45° angle. This made construction of the railway hazardous. 23 lives were lost during its construction.^[3]

History

In 1885 the explorer Archibald Meston described the Barron Falls in flood where the raging waters "rush together like wild horses as they enter the straight in the dread finish of their last race ... (where) the currents of air created by the cataract waved the branches of the trees hundreds of feet overhead ... the rock shook like a mighty steamer tumbling with the vibrations of the screw."

In 1935, the waters of the Barron River were harnessed in the Barron Gorge Hydroelectric Power Station to generate Queensland's first hydroelectric power. Two hundred metres from the base of the Barron Falls an underground power station was carved into the cliff face. Water was delivered through pipes to drive the turbines, two 1200 kW turbo-alternators. The substation, workshops and staff houses were built around the area now forming the Skyrail station.

Ownership of the park returned to its traditional owners on 17 December 2004.^[4] Visitors to the park have not faced any changes under the new owners but Aboriginals were then able to hold traditional religious ceremonies.

Flora and fauna

Bird's-nest fern and elkhorn ferns grow amongst Candlenut, Corkwood, Native olive and False Red Sandalwood trees at the bottom of the gorge.^[3]

The park forms part of the Wooroonooran Important Bird Area, identified as such by BirdLife International because it supports populations of a range of bird species endemic to Queensland's Wet Tropics.^[5] Noisy pittas and the orange-footed scrubfowl are two species of bird that may be commonly seen. The southern cassowary is occasionally spotted in the southern section of the park.^[3] Nocturnal animals are relatively common. These include a variety of possums and flying foxes as well as Lumholtz's tree-kangaroo and the northern quoll.^[3]

References

1 2 "Barron Gorge National Park". Department of National Parks, Recreation, Sport and Racing. 8 October 2013. Retrieved 6 September 2014.
↑ "Kuranda Scenic Railway – The Tour". Queensland Rail. Archived from the original on 31 March 2009. Retrieved 8 May 2009.
1 2 3 4 5 Shilton, Peter (2005). Natural areas of Queensland. Mount Gravatt, Queensland: Goldpress. pp. 45–47. ISBN 0-9758275-0-2.
↑ Jeff Waters (17 December 2004). "National park to be handed back to traditional owners" (transcript). AM. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 23 October 2009.
↑ BirdLife International. (2011). Important Bird Areas factsheet: Wooroonooran. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 2 December 2011.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Barron Gorge National Park.

Barron Gorge National Park Queensland Holidays
Barron George National Park protectedplanet.net

Far North Queensland, Queensland

Cities:	Cairns

Townships:	Aurukun Babinda Bamaga Cooktown Innisfail Kuranda Lockhart River Malanda Mapoon Mareeba Millaa Millaa Pormpuraaw Port Douglas Thursday Island Weipa Wujal Wujal

Local Government Areas:	Aurukun Cairns Cassowary Coast Cook Hopevale Kowanyama Lockhart River Mapoon Napranum Northern Peninsula Area Pormpuraaw Tablelands Torres Torres Strait Island Weipa Wujal Wujal Yarrabah

National Parks:	Alwal Annan River Barnard Island Group Barron Gorge Black Mountain Blackbraes Bulleringa Cape Melville Cedar Bay Chillagoe-Mungana Claremont Isles Clump Mountain Crater Lakes Daintree Danbulla Davies Creek Denham Group Edmund Kennedy Ella Bay Endeavour River Eubenangee Swamp Family Islands Fitzroy Island Flinders Group Frankland Group Forbes Islands Forty Mile Scrub Great Basalt Wall Green Island Grey Peaks Girringun Goold Island Hann Tableland Hasties Swamp Hinchinbrook Island Hope Islands Howick Group Hull River Japoon Jardine River Kirrama Kuranda Kurrimine Beach Kutini-Payamu (Iron Range) Lakefield Lama Lama Lizard Island Ma’alpiku Island Macalister Range Malaan Maria Creek Marpa Michaelmas and Upolu Cays Millstream Falls Mitchell-Alice Rivers Moresby Range Mount Cook Mount Hypipamee Mount Lewis Mount Spurgeon Mount Webb Mount Windsor Mowbray Murray Falls, Girramay Nymph Island Oyala Thumotang Palmerston Rocks Piper Islands Possession Island Precipice Quoin Island Raine Island Rocky Islets Russell River Sandbanks Saunders Islands Sir Charles Hardy Group Staaten River Starcke Three Islands Topaz Road Tully Gorge Turtle Group Two Islands Undara Volcanic Wooroonooran Yungaburra

Places of Interest:	Atherton Tableland Barron Falls Cape Tribulation Daintree Rainforest Hinchinbrook Island Mount Bartle Frere Princess Charlotte Bay Torres Strait Islands

National Parks of Queensland

Central	Blackdown Tableland Byfield Capricorn Coast Capricornia Cays Carnarvon Castle Tower Curtis Island Deepwater Epping Forest Eurimbula Expedition Goodedulla Humboldt Isla Gorge Junee Keppel Bay Islands Kroombit Tops Littabella Mazeppa Minerva Hills Mount Archer Mount Colosseum Mount Etna Caves Mount Jim Crow Mount O'Connell Mount Walsh Nuga Nuga Palmgrove Peak Range Rundle Range Snake Range Taunton West Hill Wild Cattle Island

Darling Downs	Bendidee Bunya Mountains Crows Nest Erringibba Girraween Main Range Mount Binga Pidna Southwood Sundown The Palms Wondul Range

Far North	Alwal Annan River Barnard Island Group Barron Gorge Black Mountain Blackbraes Bulleringa Cape Melville Cedar Bay Chillagoe-Mungana Claremont Isles Clump Mountain Crater Lakes Daintree Danbulla Davies Creek Denham Group National Park Edmund Kennedy Ella Bay Endeavour River Eubenangee Swamp Family Islands Fitzroy Island Flinders Group Frankland Group Forbes Islands Forty Mile Scrub Great Basalt Wall Green Island Grey Peaks Girringun Goold Island Hann Tableland Hasties Swamp Hinchinbrook Island Hope Islands Howick Group Hull River Japoon Jardine River Kirrama Kuranda Kurrimine Beach Kutini-Payamu (Iron Range) Lakefield Lama Lama Lizard Island Ma’alpiku Island Macalister Range Malaan Maria Creek Marpa Michaelmas and Upolu Cays Millstream Falls Mitchell-Alice Rivers Moresby Range Mount Cook Mount Hypipamee Mount Lewis Mount Spurgeon Mount Webb Mount Windsor Mowbray Murray Falls, Girramay Nymph Island Oyala Thumotang Palmerston Rocks Piper Islands Possession Island Precipice Quoin Island Raine Island Rocky Islets Russell River Sandbanks Saunders Islands Sir Charles Hardy Group Staaten River Starcke Three Islands Topaz Road Tully Gorge Turtle Group Two Islands Undara Volcanic Wooroonooran Yungaburra

North	Blackwood Brook Islands Bowling Green Bay Brampton Islands Broad Sound Islands Cape Hillsborough Cape Palmerston Cape Upstart Conway Dipperu Dryander Eungella Gloucester Island Halifax Bay Wetlands Holbourne Island Homevale Lindeman Islands Magnetic Island Molle Islands Moorrinya Mount Aberdeen Mount Martin Mount Ossa Newry Islands Northumberland Islands Orpheus Island Paluma Range Pioneer Peaks Reliance Creek Repulse Island Round Top Island Smith Islands South Cumberland Islands South Island Swain Reefs Whitsunday Islands

South West	Alton Chesterton Range Culgoa Floodplain Currawinya Diamantina Hell Hole Gorge Idalia Lake Bindegolly Mariala Narkoola Thrushton Tregole

North West	Boodjamulla Camooweal Caves Porcupine Gorge White Mountains

Central West	Astrebla Downs Bladensburg Cudmore Diamantina Forest Den Goneaway Lochern Munga-Thirri Narrien Range Welford

Wide Bay-Burnett	Auburn River Beeron Beninbi Burrum Coast Cania Gorge Coalstoun Lakes Fairlies Knob Goodnight Scrub Goomboorian Great Sandy Grongah Mount Bauple Pipeclay Poona Tarong Woondum Woowoonga

Brisbane and Surrounds	Bellthorpe Blue Lake Bribie Island Burleigh Head Conondale D'Aguilar Deer Reserve Dularcha Esk Eudlo Creek Ferntree Creek Fort Lytton Freshwater Gatton Glass House Mountains Kondalilla Lamington Lockyer Mapleton Falls Mooloolah River Moogerah Peaks Moreton Island Mount Barney Mount Chinghee Mount Coolum Mount Pinbarren Nicoll Scrub Noosa Nerang Ravensbourne Sarabah Southern Moreton Bay Islands St Helena Island Springbrook Tamborine Teerk Roo Ra Tewantin Triunia Venman Bushland Wickham

Protected areas of Queensland

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