Malanda Falls

Atherton Tableland / Far North, Queensland, Australia

About Malanda Falls


Hiking Distance: roadside
Suggested Time:

Date first visited: 2008-05-18
Date last visited: 2022-06-29

Waterfall Latitude: -17.35456
Waterfall Longitude: 145.5869

Waterfall Safety and Common Sense

Malanda Falls was a short but very wide waterfall with a bit of an unusual plunge pool turned community swimming pool.

This was one of the easiest waterfalls that we’ve visited because it’s just a real short jaunt from the car park down to the fringes of the man-modified plunge pool.

Malanda_Falls_010_05172008 - Malanda Falls
Malanda Falls

Malanda Falls was where the North Johnstone River dropped a modest 5m though its width was on the order of about 20m.

On our first visit in May 2008, this was the last waterfall out of ten that we visited on a super busy day of self-touring the waterfall-laden Atherton Tablelands Region.

And on that visit, we were easily able to view the falls from all sorts of angles as we were able to walk around the plunge pool to experience it from both sides.

That said, the plunge pool was green and full of leaves, algal growth, and even some litter, which I guess made me question how swimmable the pool was.

Malanda_Falls_013_05172008 - Angled long-expsoure shot of the Malanda Falls as seen on our first visit in May 2008
Angled long-expsoure shot of the Malanda Falls as seen on our first visit in May 2008

The bridge upstream from the falls was the Route 25, which was the very road that we took to get to the car park (see directions below).

On our second visit in late June 2022, it was an unseasonably rainy day while there was a bit of construction work going on so we were only able to see the falls from one side (we couldn’t get to the other side).

Of course, that didn’t stop a handful of people from braving the cold water and going for a swim in the murky plunge pool.

While I did notice a couple of people on the other side of the plunge pool, I surmised that they got there from the Malanda Falls Caravan Park, which was only for paying customers.

Malanda_022_06282022 - Context of the man-modified plunge pool turned community swimming pool before the Malanda Falls on a rainy day in late June 2022
Context of the man-modified plunge pool turned community swimming pool before the Malanda Falls on a rainy day in late June 2022

Also next door to the shelters and walks to the Malanda Falls was a visitor centre, which was a neat little spot to learn about the local geology, flora, and fauna (including taxidermed tree kangaroos).

There was also some pretty good food served up at the Malanda Falls Cafe next door though it was in the process of being sold during our visit.

Indeed, a visit here could take as little as 10 minutes (like on our May 2008 visit) though we did linger here a bit longer to check out that visitor centre and cafe (on our June 2022 visit).

Authorities

Malanda Falls resides in the Eacham Shire Council near Malanda, Queensland. It is administered by the Queensland Department of Environment and Science. For information or inquiries about the area as well as current conditions, visit their website.

Malanda_003_06282022 - Looking past an Eacham Shire Council sign fronting a picnic table at the start of the short jaunt down to Malanda Falls as seen during our visit in late June 2022
Malanda_004_06282022 - Looking at some Aboriginal art fronting a short walkway down to the Malanda Falls as seen during our visit in late June 2022
Malanda_007_06282022 - A dedication to the Prince Family at the start of the short jaunt down to the Malanda Falls as seen during our visit in late June 2022
Malanda_008_06282022 - Looking towards a shelter and restroom facility with some heavy construction vehicles as seen during our visit to Malanda Falls in late June 2022
Malanda_011_06282022 - Looking down at the context of the construction work going on around the base of the plunge pool fronting Malanda Falls during our visit in late June 2022
Malanda_014_06282022 - Descending the short set of steps leading to the plunge pool of Malanda Falls during our visit in late June 2022
Malanda_015_06282022 - Broad look at the context of the Malanda Falls and concrete fringes as seen during our visit in late June 2022
Malanda_016_06282022 - Looking back at the construction zone at the foot of the modified plunge pool fronting Malanda Falls during our visit in late June 2022
Malanda_017_06282022 - Looking across Malanda Falls during our rain-saturated visit in late June 2022
Malanda_024_06282022 - Another broad look focused on Malanda Falls as seen during our visit in late June 2022
Malanda_026_06282022 - Signage of the construction zone around Malanda Falls during our visit in late June 2022
Malanda_028_06282022 - Looking back towards the context of the plunge pool and a partial view of the Malanda Falls as seen during our visit in late June 2022
Malanda_031_06282022 - Looking along the road bridge over the North Johnstone River upstream from Malanda Falls as seen in late June 2022
Malanda_033_06282022 - Looking towards the brink of Malanda Falls and the plunge pool further downstream during our visit in late June 2022
Malanda_040_06282022 - Another look over the brink of Malanda Falls and its plunge pool as seen from the bridge over the North Johnstone River during our visit in late June 2022
Malanda_041_06282022 - Tahia checking out Malanda Falls in late June 2022
Malanda_043_06282022 - Going back up the steps from Malanda Falls to the car park to conclude the waterfalling part of our visit in late June 2022
Malanda_046_06282022 - A tree kangaroo sign fronting the Malanda Falls Visitor Centre during our visit in late June 2022
Malanda_052_06282022 - Tahia checking out a geological display inside the Malanda Falls Visitor Centre during our late June 2022 visit
Malanda_054_06282022 - The Malanda Falls Visitor Centre alongside the car park during our visit in late June 2022
Malanda_055_06282022 - The Malanda Falls Cafe next door to the Malanda Falls Visitor Centre, which served up some pretty good food during our visit in late June 2022
Malanda_Falls_004_05172008 - Profile view looking along the wide Malanda Falls as of our first visit in May 2008
Malanda_Falls_007_05172008 - Frontal view of Malanda Falls as seen from across the large swimming pool during our May 2008 visit
Malanda_Falls_011_05172008 - Portrait view of Malanda Falls with the fading light of the day on our May 2008 visit
Malanda_Falls_016_05172008 - View of Malanda Falls from the opposite side of the swimming pool as seen in May 2008


Located near the town of Malanda, this waterfall did feel a little out of the way for a waterfall in the Atherton Tablelands.

Of course, what was meant by “out of the way” was relative considering most of the falls in the area were so close to each other.

Malanda_057_06282022 - Context of the car park adjacent to the Malanda Falls Visitor Centre, which itself was next to the Malanda-Atherton Road (Route 26)
Context of the car park adjacent to the Malanda Falls Visitor Centre, which itself was next to the Malanda-Atherton Road (Route 26)

Anyways, from the Millaa Millaa Tourist Park on the western outskirts of the town of Millaa Millaa, we followed the Millaa Millaa-Malanda Rd for almost 22km into the town of Malanda.

Then, we turned left onto the Malanda-Atherton Rd (Route 26) and followed it for about 1.3km.

The well-signed car park for Malanda Falls was on our right (north side of the road) just past the bridge over the North Johnstone River.

It was a pretty long car park so there ought be more than enough parking here so you can’t miss it.

Malanda_005_06282022 - Looking back towards the car park from the short jaunt to Malanda Falls on a rainy day in late June 2022
Looking back towards the car park from the short jaunt to Malanda Falls on a rainy day in late June 2022

Contextually, Malanda is 82km (an hour drive) west of Innisfail, 76km (about 90 minutes drive) south of Cairns, 221km (over 2.5 hours drive) north of Ingham, and 332km (over 4 hours drive) north of Townsville.

Find A Place To Stay

Left to right sweep of the falls from the only public sanctioned side while construction was going on


Fixated on the falls from the right bank


Looking across the long pool towards the falls


Fixated on the falls from the opposite bank

Related Top 10 Lists

No Posts Found

Tagged with: atherton, far north queensland, queensland, australia, waterfall, tablelands, malanda, ravenshoe



Visitor Comments:

Got something you'd like to share or say to keep the conversation going? Feel free to leave a comment below...

No users have replied to the content on this page


Share your thoughts about what you've read on this page

You must be logged in to submit content. Refresh this page after you have logged in.

Visitor Reviews of this Waterfall:

If you have a waterfall story or write-up that you'd like to share, feel free to click the button below and fill out the form...

No users have submitted a write-up/review of this waterfall


Have you been to a waterfall? Submit a write-up/review and share your experiences or impressions

Review A Waterfall

Nearest Waterfalls

The Waterfaller Newsletter

The Waterfaller Newsletter is where we curate the wealth of information on the World of Waterfalls website and deliver it to you in bite-sized chunks in your email inbox. You'll also get exclusive content like...

  • Waterfall Wednesdays
  • Insider Tips
  • User-submitted Waterfall Write-up of the Month
  • and the latest news and updates both within the website as well as around the wonderful world of waterfalls


How To Build A Profitable Travel Blog In 4 Steps

Johnny Cheng

About Johnny Cheng

Johnny Cheng is the founder of the World of Waterfalls and author of the award-winning A Guide to New Zealand Waterfalls. Over the last 2 decades, he has visited thousands of waterfalls in over 40 countries around the world and nearly 40 states in the USA.
Read More About Johnny | A Guide to New Zealand Waterfalls.