Hiking Box Forest Circuit in the Rain

15/10/2020

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15/10/2020

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What’s the best thing about hiking in torrential rain? Bigger and better waterfalls. Jacquie heads out among the rain and the leeches to follow the Box Forest Circuit in Lamington National Park. The perfect soggy Sunday microadventure.

Quick Overview

Box Forest Circuit Track is an 11.3km loop, grade 4 hike located in the Lamington National Park in Queensland. The hike should take around 3.5 hours to complete.

Highlights

Two spectacular waterfalls
Thick forest
Subtropical rainforest temperatures

The Lowdown

My friends and I were determined to do a hike on our Sunday no matter what the weather. Of course, mother nature decided to make it rain and make it rain hard.

But that didn’t deter us and in the end, it made for a more interesting hike. Our plan was to hike the Box Forest Circuit.

The drive up the mountain was eerily beautiful, surrounded by fog and drizzling rain. The moss and deep green leaves standing out the most amongst the grey surroundings.

Box Forest Circuit

The hike starts across the road from O’Reilly’s Rainforest Retreat on the Border Track. A couple of kilometres in and the track branches onto the Box Forest Circuit.

Just remember to go clockwise when you begin, so you leave the waterfalls as they treat toward the end of the hike.

One thing that could be a deterrent for people hiking in the rain is leeches.

They were little buggers when taking photos! One was even crawling up my tripod in search of some skin (and blood). I have to give them credit though for trying so hard!

More Rain, Bigger Waterfalls

The main reason why hiking in the rain is the best is seeing waterfalls in all their glory.

The first impressive waterfall along the trail is Picnic Rock. You have to deviate from the main track and go down a short cleared path to reach it.

Rounding the corner of this little path you suddenly get blown in the face with freshwater and the thunderous sound of water crashing down on the rocks.

The second waterfall you come across is Elabana Falls. Which is a big waterfall followed by a series of little falls flowing after one another. I love how the branches and leaves have grown out from the rocks, with water flowing through them.

After these amazing natural wonders, it’s back to business, making the trek back up the mountain. Once we made it out of the dense forest and back on the road to our car, the sun was shining bright.

It amazed me the stark difference in how everything looked once the fog and rain cleared. I was also so glad that we didn’t let some rain stop our day of adventuring and exploring new places.

Want more waterfalls? Lower Ballanjui falls