Bouncing Rocks

Jimbo,
While I can't help you with your question you query prompts me to take this opportunity to recommend that anyone with an interest in FNQ try and find at the local library a book by Ion Idriess called "Men of the Jungle".
In it Idriess describes a small part of his fantastic life, in this book before WW2 when he lived in the bush as a tin miner and fossicker at the top of the Range where the Bloomfield and Daintree rivers start as trickles.
His word pictures of the Bloomfield Track, Roaring Meg Falls and the whole hinterland will make one want to go and soak up the place for themselves.
A wonderful story and as you say above, it is sad that one cannot enjoy today what Idriess experienced so long ago. A great read.
All his books are wonderful stories of the Australia that was and that we won't see again.
DB

There are bouncing rocks as well at Cape Hillsborough National Park nort of Mackay in Queensland and I seem to recall this phenomeon somewhere in the NT but the place escapes me now. The bouncing rocks have something to do with volcanic activity some millions of years ago.

"It was a fascninating place and it is sad that it cannot be enjoyed any longer by everyone.

How true ... discussing this with a mate last night (freedom of movement) made us both ask do we live in Australia any more? You can move around Baghdad more freely ... (although with some additional risk). Certainly not the country I grew up in as a kid. Pity.

Jack

I am pretty sure that the Daintree site was closed as too many people decided that they would take some of these rocks home despite numerous signs asking them not to. Maybe complaining about government closing sites is better than not having any beach left because everyone decided to take a stone home with them.
Pullsy

I grew up in Bundaberg and spent much of my young life at the beach.
If you know Bundy then you'll know that much of the beach there is mainly black basalt rocks (like the beach in FNQ that you refer to).
We used to bounce rocks and stones all the time and then when, as an adult, I went to bouncing stone beach in FNQ on our way to Cooktown (we lived in FNQ for several years) and flicked a few stones around, I thought "..... so what's the big deal?"
Maybe bouncing stones are more common than you think.
Cheers
Oskar

Theres a beach on the east coast of Tas, good 4WD track down there, I reckon its near Coles Bay. Theres bouncing rocks there too.

Jimbo
I seem to remember they are within walking distance from Thornton Beach "North"
Cheers Poppy

Hey Jimbo,

When I first read your post it brought back some happy memories of my first trip up the Cape about 15 years ago. The signs to the Bouncing Stones had been taken down then and the bushland had been planted up beside the road to conceal the location. My first instinct though on reading your post was that the Bouncing Stones were south of Cape Tribulation.
I have just spent the last hour going through old map boxes and I found my original maps that still have the "Stones" marked on them.
The road following the coast north to Cape Trib. is weaving inland north of the Daintree Riveruntil it first comes back out to the coastline at the village of Thornton Beach. About a kilometre north of Thornton Beach is where you will find the Bouncing Stones mate. The road is running right at the back of the beach and the council have built up a mound and planted thick vegetation but you can still pull over to the side and climb through the bush and about 50 metres away you will be bouncing your rocks off.
In reference also to the other posts above, I live about right beside the beaches of Bundaberg and have tried bouncing the volcanic stones with my kids as I have told them about the real Bouncing Stones in north Qld. I admit they bounce a bit here but nothing like their northern cousins. We timed some of the stones up north and they continued bouncing of the larger rocks for around 10 seconds if they hit the big rocks well.
I have plotted the position on my Garmin GPS charts but I use my GPS with digital positioning. If you would like the position in a standard hh:mm:ss format just let me know and I will post it.

Bouncing Stones - S16.16440 E145.44252

Have a great day!

Brett

As a kid growing up in FNQ, I recall going to a number of "bouncing stones" beaches. The most southerly may have been Pebbly Beach, between Cairns and Port Douglas, but there were a couple more up past Cape Kimberly and towards Cape Tribulation.
Spent a fair bit of time up there - Dad was with the CREB when they put the power (and the track) through to Bloomfield.
Asked him many years later, which was the best really serious offroad vehicle he ever used. He said "Bombadier". Apparently, the CREB had a bloody snowmobile up there for a while. I believe it went really well in swampy country!
Cheers