Hiking and Walking Trails Near Cairns: Rainforest, Waterfalls and Reef

Cairns is the gateway to some of the world's most extraordinary hiking environments, with World Heritage rainforest, volcanic highlands and coral reef all within day-trip range. The Barron Gorge National Park near Kuranda (accessible via the Skyrail or Scenic Railway) has several rainforest walking tracks including the Rainforestation trail and the Barron Falls lookout walk. Daintree National Park, about 2.5 hours north, has the Mossman Gorge walking circuit in crystal-clear water — a must-do experience. The Atherton Tablelands, an hour inland via the Kennedy Highway, has walking tracks at Millaa Millaa Falls, Josephine Falls and the Lake Barrine rainforest circuit. The Wet Tropics World Heritage Area contains over 1,200 kilometres of walking tracks across several national parks. Closer to the city, the Rainforest Circuit at Redlynch is a good introductory rainforest walk. The Dry season (May to October) is strongly preferred for most walks; the Wet season brings flooding, leeches and significantly reduced visibility on highland tracks.