Mary Cairncross Reserve

The editor was up for a reconnaissance mission to find another camping site. So after touring Glass House Mountains we drove around Maleny to see the town's showgrounds and upon seeing the site he decided we are to camp there the next day and stay for a week for him to do some work. Maleny is only 25 kms northwest of Glass House Mountains and is very strategic since other tourist destinations are just nearby. Maleny is a small busy town known as the heart of the Sunshine Coast Hinterland.

Mary Caircross Scenic Reserve

On the way to the town we dropped by Mary Cairncross Scenic Reserve and was astounded with the tropical rainforest that overlooks Glass House Mountains. It was a 2.1 km walk but it felt forever. Once you enter the rainforest you will feel eerie and the air is distinctively cool and fresh. It was like being transported in time and nature's sound is just so relaxing and calming.

This a map of the 2.1 kms track of the rainforest. It has
wheelchair friendly tracks, boardwalks and viewing platfrom.

"The Mary Cairncross Scenic Reserve is a 55 hectare remnant of the subtropical rainforest that previously covered the southern end of the Blackall Range and valleys on the west side of the range. The reserve is currently an ecological island with no continuous habitat linkages to other nearby remnants." There is a good distribution of highly prized timbers like Tulip Oak, White Beech and Australian Red Cedar.

This is a Rose or Flooded Gum believed to have germinated probably
500-600 years during drier climatic period.

A Small-leaved Strangling Fig tree. It is one of
the oldest and the largest in the reserve.

I was just amazed with the shape of these roots.

These giant vines are eveywhere in the forest.

See the almost perfect spiral vine?

 

They dont just cling to any huge tree.

 

There are several native mammal species recorded in the reserve including three small representatives of the kangaroo family - the Red-legged Pademelon, the Red-necked Pademelon and the Red-necked Wallaby and luckily we spotted one with her joey. "A number of native mammals likely to have been once present in the locality have apparently disappeared such as various species of Spotted Native Cat or Tiger Cat and Marsupial Mice. The streams around the Reserve contain significant frog species, a rare Spiny Crayfish and other fauna which depend on high water quality."

We got lucky to see this Red-legged Pandemelon.

I reckon she's a mum with a joey.



This bird is so tiny and fast it took us a while to get a good shot of him.



These two creatures were too busy to realize they were creating a scene.



These are just a few of the amazing things you can expect at the reserve.  After exploring the forest you can shop at the kiosk or have a cup of coffee while enjoying the great view of the Glass House Mountains from the cafe.