Wallaman Falls facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Wallaman Falls |
|
|---|---|
Wallaman Falls in Girringun National Park
|
|
 Location in Queensland
|
|
| Lua error in Module:Infobox_mapframe at line 185: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value). | |
| Location | North Queensland, Australia |
| Coordinates | 18°35′32″S 145°48′05″E / 18.59222°S 145.80139°E |
| Type | Cascade, horsetail |
| Elevation | 533–554 m (1,749–1,818 ft) |
| Total height | 305 m (1,001 ft) |
| Number of drops | 2 |
| Longest drop | 268 m (879 ft) |
| Total width | 15 m (49 ft) |
| Average width | 15 m (49 ft) |
| Watercourse | Stony Creek |
| Average flow rate |
3 m3/s (110 cu ft/s) |
| World height ranking | 294 |
The Wallaman Falls is a stunning waterfall found in North Queensland, Australia. It's part of the Wet Tropics of Queensland, a special area recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. This means it's a very important natural place that needs to be protected.
Wallaman Falls is famous for its main drop, which is 268 metres (879 ft) high. This makes it the tallest single-drop waterfall in Australia! At the bottom of the falls, there's a deep pool, about 20 metres (66 ft) deep. Many people, around 100,000 each year, come to visit this amazing natural wonder.
Where is Wallaman Falls Located?
Wallaman Falls is located inside Girringun National Park. The water comes from Stony Creek, which is a smaller stream that flows into the Herbert River. Stony Creek tumbles over a steep cliff, called an escarpment, in the Seaview Range.
How Tall is Wallaman Falls?
The waterfall starts with a few smaller drops, like steps, before its huge 268 metres (879 ft) main drop. This main drop looks like a horse's tail, which is why it's called a "horsetail waterfall." In total, the water falls about 305 metres (1,001 ft) from top to bottom. Because of its impressive single drop, Wallaman Falls is ranked among the top waterfalls in the world.
How Wallaman Falls Was Formed
The story of how Wallaman Falls came to be started about 50 million years ago. At that time, the land in this part of Australia began to rise up. This created the mountains and valleys we see today.
The Herbert River, which used to flow west, started to cut its way through the land towards the Coral Sea. As the river carved its path, it created a deep valley, or gorge. Over millions of years, this gorge slowly moved inland, about 40 centimetres (16 in) every hundred years. As the main river's gorge moved, the smaller streams that flowed into it, like Stony Creek, were left hanging high above. This is how Wallaman Falls and other waterfalls in the area were created, as these streams now plunge down into the deep gorges.
