Paddling in Greater Beedelup National Park

Greater Beedelup National Park sits in Western Australia's southern forests near Pemberton, karri country where tannin-stained waterways run through some of the tallest hardwood forest on earth.

The paddling here is quiet and lake-based, with one river corridor that comes alive seasonally. Lake Beedelup is the park's primary paddling water.

The lake sits close to Beedelup Falls, which cascade roughly 100 metres over granite and run strongest through winter and spring — the same window when the lake is at its best.

Canoes, kayaks, and SUPs are available for hire from RAC Karri Valley Resort, making this accessible without your own gear.

The water is calm and the setting enclosed by forest, so this is flatwater paddling in the full sense: no current, no gradient, just the lake and what surrounds it. The Donnelly River is the other water worth knowing.

It runs harder and reads differently from the lake — sources describe it as more challenging, and winter is again the season when water levels make it worthwhile.

When the waterways are fullest, the Donnelly is the place to be if you want moving water rather than flatwater touring. Canoeing, kayaking, and paddleboarding are all permitted on the river.

Paddling inside a national park in Western Australia means operating under DBCA (Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions) rules alongside any state requirements.

Check with the park directly on current conditions and any access requirements before you go — what the lake looks like in a dry spring and what it looks like after a wet winter are two different trips. The southern forests don't announce themselves.

The water here is modest in scale, but the karri canopy overhead and the sound of Beedelup Falls carrying across the lake make it worth the drive down.