Paddling in Eungella National Park

Eungella National Park sits in the Mackay Highlands of Queensland, roughly 90 kilometres west of Mackay, where sub-tropical rainforest cloaks a long run of ranges above the coastal plains.

The water here is rainforest water — creek-fed, shaded, and tied closely to the rhythms of a wet-dry climate. Paddling is quiet and close-in rather than big-volume or technical. The Broken River is the park's central waterway.

It draws visitors for canoeing and kayaking as well as fishing, and it carries the park's famous platypus colony — a fact worth knowing because it shapes how you move on the water.

A viewing platform sits at the Broken River precinct, and the surrounding area is the main hub for camping and water-based recreation inside the park.

Stony Creek and Kangaroo Creek are also within the park's bounds, though the Broken River is the water the park's infrastructure is built around. Queensland's permit system applies here. Camping requires a booking and paid permit.

White water rafting in Queensland national parks is listed as a special activity requiring a separate permit from the state — check with Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service for what applies to your trip before you launch.

Drones are prohibited in all camping areas within the park. The platypus are most reliably seen in calm, early-morning conditions — which also happen to be the best conditions for paddling this water.

Move quietly, keep your distance, and treat the Broken River as the shared habitat it is. That's not a suggestion; it's the point of being here.