Windin Falls cascade over a sky high cliff face, with incredible eye-opening views into a tropical rainforest. It’s a hidden gem. (Quite literally). A place truly so spectacular, it feels like something out of a fairy tale. To find it is a fun and daring adventure…
James and I set off to Windin Falls after a stay in Mission Beach, Queensland. We knew this was one place we HAD to go whilst we were in the northern region of this state for our second time. We didn’t know how to get there, we just had a vague idea of where the falls were. At the time, you couldn’t even search for Windin Falls on Google Maps and there was only one short blog article on how to get there.
So, where is Windin Falls?
Windin Falls sits within the gorgeous Atherton Tablelands in Wooroonooran National Park, Queensland. To give you a better idea, it’s almost a 2 hour drive from Cairns.
The adventure
After a beautiful drive in, we had a pretty fun walk to the top! We had been told the track was tough and treacherous, but with a love for bushwalking, this really wasn’t too hard for us. We’d also heard the track takes 1.5 – 2 hours each way, but this only took 53 minutes for us. This of course will depend on your level of fitness and how fast you want to walk the track.
What to look out for
Apart from the basic precautions you should take when you are bushwalking, there are two things you’ll need to be careful of when walking to Windin Falls.
Cassowaries
Cassowaries, otherwise known as the world’s most dangerous bird, are native to the tropical forests in this part of Australia. They stand 1.5 – 2 metres tall in height and have been known to attack humans with their long claws. Definitely not a bird you want to run into on this track. James and I were lucky enough not to see any on this adventure, although they were in the back of my mind the whole way!
The mud!!
The mud on this track is thick, and there is A LOT of it. It hadn’t rained for a while before we arrived here, so the mud had hardened a bit which worked in our favour. However, you can tell the track gets extremely muddy and it’s like that for the duration of the walk. I can’t imagine how hard it would have been if it had been wet. I’m sure you would be slipping over every minute. Make sure you wear proper walking shoes.
How to get there
Usually, if a place is as special as this and it isn’t well known, I won’t share it. However, after the popularity of this place grew through social media, and the “address” now online, I decided I would share the directions on my blog.
Here are the directions to Windin Falls
Type Lamins Hill Lookout in Google Maps.
Once you reach the lookout, continue in your car on Old Cairns Track.
You’ll travel along the rolling hills for a bit before the road becomes more enclosed.
When we visited, there was a sign with “Windin Falls 4.3km” on it. To the right, you’ll notice an area large enough for about 3 cars. Park here. The rest of the way will be on foot.
Below is your marker for the car park.
Walk a few minutes up the hill. Once you reach the metal gate, jump over it.
You’ll notice there is a track large enough for a car to get through. This is the track you’ll be walking on.
As you can see, the track could get really muddy if it’s been wet at all.
After about 40 minutes you’ll get to a sign showing 2 ways down to the falls. We chose the 900m route down.
Your legs are pretty jelly by this point so be careful! It’s only 10 minutes from here, so don’t rush.
And you’re there!! We crossed the water here to get over to the other side.
The view from the top
The view from the top literally took our breath away. To this date I still have not seen anything like this before on our adventures. James and I had travelled here for sunset, and it really was so beautiful.
We had a swim at the edge of the falls and looked over the cliff into the gorge. It was pretty windy when we were here so unfortunately we didn’t really get any drone photos or footage. We did have fun taking photos as the water from the waterfall blew back into our faces, cooling us down from the walk.
Tips for visiting Windin Falls
Windin Falls is gorgeous, so let’s keep it that way. It can also be dangerous so go prepared and be careful.
- There are no toilets anywhere here. If you do need to go, take your toilet paper with you when you are finished. No one is coming through here to pick it up. Let’s keep this place pristine and untouched.
- Take plenty of water and food! It’s a long way back.
- Leave only your footprints, taking all of your rubbish with you.
- This area is very secluded with no help nearby. You won’t have a phone with service so if you do get into trouble you are going to need to get back to your car. Make sure you take a first aid kit and don’t go alone.
- Share the experience with a loved one!
- When we visited, it was extremely windy. Take care when climbing over the rocks and boulders.
- You can swim here – just be careful near the edge! The drop is a longgggg way down.
If you’ve been to Windin Falls I’d love to hear about your adventure! If you used my directions I’d love to know as well. Let’s chat in the comments below.