Babinda Canyon, Babinda Creek
A stunning creek lined with granite drops, gorges, and slot canyons. Located upstream of Babinda Slides and Babinda Falls.
Babinda Canyon
Location: Wooroonooran National Park, North Queensland, Australia
Grade: V4 A4 IV ** (French Grading System)
Approach: 1 day
Descent: 1-2 days
Exit: 4-6 hours
Total time: Allow 8 hours on first trip
Full course: 11 - 15 km round trip
Elevation loss: metres
Flash flooding level: High
First descentists: Unknown, possibly Luen Warneke and Graeme Taylor 2018
A stunning creek lined with granite drops, gorges, and slot canyons. Located upstream of Babinda Slides and Babinda Falls.
Approach
To do the full length of the creek, you'll first need to summit Mount Bartle Frere (or hike in via another ridgeline). Continue down the ridgeline towards the B25 Bomber wreckage and then enter in the creek.
Interactive Map
Rappels
These raps are broken up into two sections: the upper creek and slot canyon.
R1 50m NA-TR
Can split into a Multi pitch and abseil down 20m to a tree half way down and then another 30m. River right
Tree dry rappel
R2 40m NA-TR
River right tree
40m rappel onto rock slab. Scramble out to boulders and cross creek.
R3 30m NA-TR
River right
Rap down to tree above cliff 20m
From tree rap down - 30m to water
Pack swim to next waterfall rappel
R4 35m NA-TL
River left
Climb out of water just above the next waterfall. There is a decent ledge to get out of water.
Climb up around on flake and rap from tree
35m dry rappel
R5 20m NA-TL
Option one: Can scramble down but it's slippery.
Option two: 20m rappel on slabTree river leftpack.swim.out
Option three: Cross creek and go bush. Head up and over the bank and scramble down.
START OF SLOT CANYON
Do not enter!!! Potential death zone at end. Difficult escape if entering. Required 'Oh Shit Kit', an emergency bolting kit. Walk around canyon...Unless you have thoroughly examined the exit from below. We walked around this section.
R6 15m NA-TR
River right work way around cliff to tree
Rappel from tree into water.
15m
R7
This commits you to a canyon.
Use rock at chock stone and sacrificial webbing to rap down next falls.
Or maybe you can climb up river left on crack to tree???
R8
~20m???
R9 - Babinda Falls
~80m??? A two-tier waterfall
Dangerous choke/pinch/sieve hazard midway
End of canyon
Exit
Follow the Babinda Slides and Falls track out to the Goldfield Trail and then to Babinda Boulders.
Canyoning Topo
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