Freshwater Track and Lake Poona
Freshwater Track and Lake Poona.
“Not all those who wander are lost” ~ J.R.R. Tolkien
If you’re doing a day trip to Double Island Point, Freshwater Track and Lake Poona are worth adding to the itinerary.
Freshwater Track is located off Rainbow Beach Road 4km out of the township of Rainbow Beach and heads through bushland all the way through to Teewah Beach.
It is often used as the way to get to Double Island Point if Mudlow Rocks are impassable due to rock exposure or high tides.
The track is beautiful; as it takes you through eucalyptus bushland, lush rainforest, coastal heathland and ends on the sand at Teewah Beach.
Make sure you check out a couple of sites along the way!
Firstly- Lake Poona.
This perched lake is a 2.1km each way walk from The Bymien picnic area. The walk takes you through dense rainforest with hoop and kauri pine as well as strangler figs and piccabeen palms.
The bird life is awesome too- listen for wompoo pidgeons and whipbirds whilst trying to spot eastern yellow robins and red backed fairy wrens to name a few!
The lake is bordered by a white, silica sand shore and is stained an orange tone that merges to a deep maroon colour as the water gets deeper- this is caused from the tannins of the tea trees that surround the shore. A great place to cool off after the walk there!
Often you are lucky enough to have the place all to yourself and it is so relaxing to hear nothing but the abundance of bird calls and water lapping on the shore…
The walk out there is not too difficult- a slight uphill for half way then down for the rest and then it works out the same for the way back.
Secondly- The Freshwater Day Use area.
The highlight to this spot for me is spotting the HUGE goannas that you will see plodding around here! Also, bonus-there are toilet facilities and picnic tables here.
All in all, Freshwater Track and Lake Poona are definitely worth checking out – we usually recommend a circuit through the track out to Double Island Point then home along Rainbow Beach (depending on the tides of course) if you are doing a self-drive 4wd day trip in the area- a great way to see the variation of the surrounding bushland that this beautiful area has to show off!
Check out this site for more info on The Cooloola Recreational Area: