Mapleton Falls National Park Park

Address: Mapleton, Queensland, Australia

Hours: Daylight hours (park gates generally open from dawn to dusk)

Mapleton Falls National Park is a small protected area on the Blackall Range in Queensland, Australia, conserving the waterfall and adjoining rainforest around Mapleton Falls on Obi Obi Creek. The park is a local recreation area and protects remnant subtropical rainforest and eucalypt forest.

Short walking tracks, a parking and picnic area, and a principal lookout give visitors close views of the waterfall and the wooded Obi Obi Gorge. The site is compact and commonly visited for short nature walks, birdwatching and scenic views over the Sunshine Coast hinterland.

The park exists to conserve surviving patches of rainforest and native eucalypt communities on the Blackall Range. Land-use in the wider region included timber-getting and small-scale agriculture before protected areas were established to retain habitat and provide public access.

The park sits on the Blackall Range near the town of Mapleton in the Sunshine Coast hinterland of southeastern Queensland. It is reached from local hinterland roads that connect Mapleton with nearby coastal towns.

• Lookout and facilities: The Mapleton Falls Lookout provides the main panoramic viewpoint over the gorge and has basic picnic facilities for day visitors.

What to See#

• Mapleton Falls Lookout: Main viewpoint on the rim of the Obi Obi Gorge with parking and picnic facilities; provides the primary visitor access to the park’s central features.
• Obi Obi Gorge and waterfall: The waterfall on Obi Obi Creek that plunges into a steep, forested gorge; the waterfall and gorge form the park’s central natural attraction.

Mapleton Falls National Park is a short drive from the town of Mapleton on the Sunshine Coast hinterland. From Nambour or Maleny take the Obi Obi Road/Mapleton-Maleny Road inland to the Mapleton township; follow signage to the falls. The main car park and viewing platforms are within a short walk of the road.

• Go to the viewing platform for the best panoramic shots; the platform is a short walk from the main picnic area.
• Arrive after heavy rain to see the falls at full roar - they are most dramatic then but access can be slippery.
• Combine with nearby Mapleton or Kondalilla for a longer day in the hinterland.