Cooloola Great Walk Day 2or4 - Kauri to Litoria Walkers Camps

The Cooloola Great Walk links Rainbow Beach to Noosa North Shore via the eastern high dunes known as the Cooloola sandmass. This one of the largest accumulations of wind-blown sand found along the Queensland coast that has been built up during the last 500,000 years. It conserves unique dune, lake and vegetation systems. This 61,750 hectare section of the Great Sandy National Park is one of the best conserved landscapes of its kind in eastern Australia.This version describes the hike going from North to South. North to south is a better route because the sun tends to fall on your back during the course of the walk.

If you are going north to south this day will be one of the hardest with the concluding stages of up and down being a challenge to most people. After leaving the campground you head out amongst the Kauri Pine to enjoy more time in the rainforest. You will cross Eastern Break the major track feed for the Kauri Walkers camp which connects for 4WD vehicles only to the road into Rainbow Beach.

Views this day are limited as the forest is dense with a variety of coastal hardwood trees. The tracks that form the basis of this walk were created during the period when this area was subject to heavy logging in the 1860's. So at one time all the tracks you are walking on were vehicle width. Like with many tracks in the area from time to time there will be treefall which will impede the walker.

After bumping along and usually at the 200 elevation the track will descend into a valley before ascending back up onto a long ridgeline of dryer Banksia and Eucalypt. At various times along the ridgeline you will get glimpses out across the surrounding flatlands.

From the ridge you will eventually start to lose elevation which gradually becomes steeper before descending to the final two hills. These two hills are quite exhausting as they wind back and forward across the dryer hills.

At the base of the hill you wl come to a little offshoot track which takes you to the side of Lake Cooloomera. This lake is home to many birds as well as 'acid’ frogs that are adapted to the mildly acidic lake waters. When the frogs start their evening chorus, listen for the high-pitched 'rrrr-ee-ee-k' call of the near-threatened Cooloola sedgefrog, a dainty little frog with a distinctive song. The lake is not suitable for swimming in as you need to access the deeper parts of the Lake by the reedy shallows which are full of snakes.

From here you will need to ascend up to ridge to take a left turn from the main track to where the campground is amongst the open forest of blackbutt and tallowwood gum green and at the lower level foxtail sedge and grasstrees. The road that you cross before the campground is Western Break which connects to the Rainbow Beach road.

This day will be a challenge in the warmer months so ensure you have plenty of water for the exhausting day.