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Destinations > Black Mountain NP
Black Mountain NP
Issue: July 2002
Words and photos by Dick Eussen
Cooktown has some outstanding and intriguing natural features. One of the most phenomenal is in the World Heritage listed Black Mountain National Park on the Black Trevethan Range, some 30km south of Cooktown. These giant piles of granite boulders have been the subject of Aboriginal and European legends and leg pulling for decades. Even the Aboriginals have been guilty of the latter and some well meaning people have gone away thinking that they have got the real mythology, only to be the subject of a new corroboree in the old days and a few laughs today. The locals will tell you yarns about the mountain that will make your ears curl and the hair stand up on edge. They always know someone who has climbed it, got lost in the caves or someone who has vanished forever.
The Park is located on the northern side of the junction of the Bloomfield Road and the Cooktown Road, a short distance north from the Annan River Bridge. In fact the Cooktown Road runs right through a high gap between two mountains of stones. There is a lookout and viewing platform, plus off road parking next to the road. It makes for a welcome stop and gives great views of the black rocky hills.
The Dreamtime Stories.
The Black Mountain has been the subject of legends and tales since the first people saw it. To the Aborigines it formed the border marker of the Kuku Bidiji and the Kuku Yimudji people. While the whole mountain is sacred, there are four very important places or story places of both mythology and religious significance to both clans. Kambi is a cave where many bats live, while Julnabu is a kangaroo shaped rock which looks north. There is also Birmba, a resting place for the Sulpher Crested Cockatoo. It can be seen from the Lions Den at Helenvale.
Jalbamn is a taboo place to women and located near the old road to the east which went around the range, instead of through it as the new road does. Foods gathered from this place, which contains a pocket of fine rainforest, were not allowed to be eaten by women.
Modern Legends & Lies
The Black Mountains attracts more stories than any similar place because it is located in a place which first attracted tin miners at the turn of the century. Many of the miners were Welsh and Irish, both having a reputation of telling a good yarn and being very superstitious to boot. Even today there are tales told about the mountain by people living near it that border on the dreamtime lore of the Aboriginals.
Last time I visited the area we heard that a tourist staying at nearby Mungumby Lodge, just at the south-east base of the mountain saw a yowie. The lodge offers a real means of getting into the Black Mountain country and many people stay there to explore the region. And despite being warned about the danger, people have and still climb the mountain. Some have vanished forever, while climbing or exploring one of the many caves. There are tales of whole tribes vanishing into the mountain while being pursued by Native Police Troopers.
Even better are yarns of entire cattle herds disappearing into one of the small valleys. These tales come from the old days and modern versions differ somewhat. In fact in recent years we have heard of no one vanishing in the area. People have explored many of the caves and have found nothing or have just given up.
In fact these caves are not really caves at all but crevasses, holes and deep drop-offs formed by the uneven round boulders laying on top of each other. Some people who have climbed the mountain reckon that the boulders on the top are the most unstable and will wobble if stood upon. One climber reckoned that some can easily be tipped over and pushed into any of the myriad deep cracks between the boulders and they don't stop until the slide ends deep down in the bowels of the earth. Stones dropped down one of these crevasses echo on for ever as the sound of them clinking against rocks on the way down just slowly vanishes into the depths like the hooves of a galloping horse vanishing into the night.
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Climbers have reached a point where retreat or advance is impossible. A wrong step, a slip from a damp rock, and you will fall into your very own hell. Rescue would be impossible because there is no way of marking the spot where you went down by anyone watching from a distance. Only a well equipped party with ropes should attempt to climb the mountain if safety is the first consideration. It looks very nice from ground level, as do the entrances of the caves.
In one I walked into I got the impression that if I shifted one small rock the whole mountain would come down on top of me. An icy cold wind blew down from all directions. If a mountain could groan, this one was doing so as the weight of the top mass pressed down on the stones on ground level. I have been in mine tunnels subjected to intense pressure and the sound, if it can be described as such, is the same. The passage was smooth, heading down, until some 20 metres in, it suddenly narrowed. I could have gone farther by squeezing between some rocks but the air didn't appear to be that good and I wisely decided to retreat back to where the welcome beam of light beckoned. Besides, the eerie sound of the wind pushing its way trough the rock did sound a bit like a huge python sliding towards me.
Getting There
Black Mountain National Park is located 21km from Cooktown, in North Queensland. The park lies within the boundaries of the Wet Tropics of North Queensland World Heritage Area. The park is famous for the unusually dark granite formations that give the park its name. The granite is dark due to the presence of algaes that thrive in the humid conditions.
Staying There
There is limited camping within the boundaries of the park, but it is all fairly rough bush camping with little in the way of amenities. Cooktown is well set up to deal with tourists and long-term visitors, as it is ideally situated near the base of Cape York. There are several hotels and motels within the city, and it's a fairly easy drive to the park from town.
Things To Do
Black Mountain National Park is well known for it's stunning walking tracks, and interesting geological features. There is a wealth of wildlife in the region, not all of which is friendly, so it would be a good idea to come prepared for nasty surprises. Climbing the mountain itself is not recommended for anyone who is not a very experienced climber - there are several stories of people simply disappearing in the area, which isn't hard to imagine once you've examined the make-up of the mountain. The large boulders are surrounded by gaps and drop-offs - losing your footing could result in some pretty severe injuries.
Around & About
Cooktown is a tourism hotspot in north Queensland, and is recognised as the gateway to several key tourism and 4WDing areas. Other favourite past times in the area include fantastic fishing opportunities up and down the coastal region.
Important Numbers
Ranger 07 4098 2188
Cooktown Caravan Park 07 4069 5536
Milkwood Lodge 07 4069 5007
Recommended Maps
Hema Road Atlas $21.95
Hema Discover Australia By Road $39.95
Hema Queensland Handy Map $5.95
Hema Cairns to Cooktown $6.45
Hema Cape York $7.95
Hema Townsville-Cairns-Cooktown $7.95
Sunmap Cairns-Cooktown $6.45
Auslig 1:250 000 Cooktown 13 $7.70
Words and photos by Dick Eussen
Cooktown has some outstanding and intriguing natural features. One of the most phenomenal is in the World Heritage listed Black Mountain National Park on the Black Trevethan Range, some 30km south of Cooktown. These giant piles of granite boulders have been the subject of Aboriginal and European legends and leg pulling for decades. Even the Aboriginals have been guilty of the latter and some well meaning people have gone away thinking that they have got the real mythology, only to be the subject of a new corroboree in the old days and a few laughs today. The locals will tell you yarns about the mountain that will make your ears curl and the hair stand up on edge. They always know someone who has climbed it, got lost in the caves or someone who has vanished forever.
The Park is located on the northern side of the junction of the Bloomfield Road and the Cooktown Road, a short distance north from the Annan River Bridge. In fact the Cooktown Road runs right through a high gap between two mountains of stones. There is a lookout and viewing platform, plus off road parking next to the road. It makes for a welcome stop and gives great views of the black rocky hills.
The Dreamtime Stories.
The Black Mountain has been the subject of legends and tales since the first people saw it. To the Aborigines it formed the border marker of the Kuku Bidiji and the Kuku Yimudji people. While the whole mountain is sacred, there are four very important places or story places of both mythology and religious significance to both clans. Kambi is a cave where many bats live, while Julnabu is a kangaroo shaped rock which looks north. There is also Birmba, a resting place for the Sulpher Crested Cockatoo. It can be seen from the Lions Den at Helenvale.
Jalbamn is a taboo place to women and located near the old road to the east which went around the range, instead of through it as the new road does. Foods gathered from this place, which contains a pocket of fine rainforest, were not allowed to be eaten by women.
Modern Legends & Lies
The Black Mountains attracts more stories than any similar place because it is located in a place which first attracted tin miners at the turn of the century. Many of the miners were Welsh and Irish, both having a reputation of telling a good yarn and being very superstitious to boot. Even today there are tales told about the mountain by people living near it that border on the dreamtime lore of the Aboriginals.
Last time I visited the area we heard that a tourist staying at nearby Mungumby Lodge, just at the south-east base of the mountain saw a yowie. The lodge offers a real means of getting into the Black Mountain country and many people stay there to explore the region. And despite being warned about the danger, people have and still climb the mountain. Some have vanished forever, while climbing or exploring one of the many caves. There are tales of whole tribes vanishing into the mountain while being pursued by Native Police Troopers.
Even better are yarns of entire cattle herds disappearing into one of the small valleys. These tales come from the old days and modern versions differ somewhat. In fact in recent years we have heard of no one vanishing in the area. People have explored many of the caves and have found nothing or have just given up.
In fact these caves are not really caves at all but crevasses, holes and deep drop-offs formed by the uneven round boulders laying on top of each other. Some people who have climbed the mountain reckon that the boulders on the top are the most unstable and will wobble if stood upon. One climber reckoned that some can easily be tipped over and pushed into any of the myriad deep cracks between the boulders and they don't stop until the slide ends deep down in the bowels of the earth. Stones dropped down one of these crevasses echo on for ever as the sound of them clinking against rocks on the way down just slowly vanishes into the depths like the hooves of a galloping horse vanishing into the night.
read on below advertisement
Climbers have reached a point where retreat or advance is impossible. A wrong step, a slip from a damp rock, and you will fall into your very own hell. Rescue would be impossible because there is no way of marking the spot where you went down by anyone watching from a distance. Only a well equipped party with ropes should attempt to climb the mountain if safety is the first consideration. It looks very nice from ground level, as do the entrances of the caves.
In one I walked into I got the impression that if I shifted one small rock the whole mountain would come down on top of me. An icy cold wind blew down from all directions. If a mountain could groan, this one was doing so as the weight of the top mass pressed down on the stones on ground level. I have been in mine tunnels subjected to intense pressure and the sound, if it can be described as such, is the same. The passage was smooth, heading down, until some 20 metres in, it suddenly narrowed. I could have gone farther by squeezing between some rocks but the air didn't appear to be that good and I wisely decided to retreat back to where the welcome beam of light beckoned. Besides, the eerie sound of the wind pushing its way trough the rock did sound a bit like a huge python sliding towards me.
Getting There
Black Mountain National Park is located 21km from Cooktown, in North Queensland. The park lies within the boundaries of the Wet Tropics of North Queensland World Heritage Area. The park is famous for the unusually dark granite formations that give the park its name. The granite is dark due to the presence of algaes that thrive in the humid conditions.
Staying There
There is limited camping within the boundaries of the park, but it is all fairly rough bush camping with little in the way of amenities. Cooktown is well set up to deal with tourists and long-term visitors, as it is ideally situated near the base of Cape York. There are several hotels and motels within the city, and it's a fairly easy drive to the park from town.
Things To Do
Black Mountain National Park is well known for it's stunning walking tracks, and interesting geological features. There is a wealth of wildlife in the region, not all of which is friendly, so it would be a good idea to come prepared for nasty surprises. Climbing the mountain itself is not recommended for anyone who is not a very experienced climber - there are several stories of people simply disappearing in the area, which isn't hard to imagine once you've examined the make-up of the mountain. The large boulders are surrounded by gaps and drop-offs - losing your footing could result in some pretty severe injuries.
Around & About
Cooktown is a tourism hotspot in north Queensland, and is recognised as the gateway to several key tourism and 4WDing areas. Other favourite past times in the area include fantastic fishing opportunities up and down the coastal region.
Important Numbers
Ranger 07 4098 2188
Cooktown Caravan Park 07 4069 5536
Milkwood Lodge 07 4069 5007
Recommended Maps
Hema Road Atlas $21.95
Hema Discover Australia By Road $39.95
Hema Queensland Handy Map $5.95
Hema Cairns to Cooktown $6.45
Hema Cape York $7.95
Hema Townsville-Cairns-Cooktown $7.95
Sunmap Cairns-Cooktown $6.45
Auslig 1:250 000 Cooktown 13 $7.70
