Kayaking, Hiking and visiting the waterfall at Wilderness

The day started early today with breakfast at Fairy Noir and preparing to set off to collect the triyaks. We got a drop down to where the kayaks were and it was a loop, paddle down to the beginning of the trekking path, trek to the waterfall then return back the same way. There were a number of us paddling and the fact that we were from different countries made conversations interesting.

It was a warm sunny day to be paddling and we had mini competitions to see who'd reach parts of the waterway. It was possible to see native birds in the water, fishing or just swimming around and this added on to the experience. The waterway snaked through bridges and houses and we had fun waving to people on the opposite sides of the banks. The waterway eventually ended at the entrance to the kingfisher trail where it was a short hike through the forest to the waterfall.

Jumping into the plunge pool

The journey was easy and simple to follow with few misleading paths and before long we were at the waterfall where many others like ourselves were gathered to just relax and enjoy the scene or jump off into the plunge pool created by the waterfall.

Wall painting at Fairy noir backpackers

After a few more hours of playing in the waters and sun bathing, we took a walk back to where the kayaks had been placed by the river bank and started paddling back, eventually reaching the point where we had collected the kayaks. It was a short walk back to the backpackers and we made plans to head to town for dinner before showering and changing up. The day had been tiring especially after a long night and most of us took a short nap in the afternoon before meeting up for a drop down to town.

Sun burnt, worn out but all shots completed - with Charl

Dinner was at a restaurant and we took a chance to go shopping before that. There was a market place with many temporary stalls selling everything from jewellery to clothes and books and this occupied us for sometime. We got a drop back to the backpackers around 9 pm and visited the bar for drinks. Charl was as enthusiastic as ever preparing interesting concoctions for us to try and we had a nice time chatting over drinks before calling it a night.

A truly satisfying day.