Falls Creek Basin Falls, Parma & Currambene Creeks, Falls Creek
This is a unique double fall. Parma and Currambene Creek converge at the same large roughly circular basin. Both creeks fall into the sandstone basin from about the same height - across river beds pockmarked by potholes.
Currambene Creek approaches the basin from the North. With relatively small catchment area, it is often asleep, but can fill quickly.
Parma Creek approaches the basin from the South. It has a wider catchment, but seems to drain slower than its sister.
Both falls have large overhang rocks. They leave the basin together as the Currambene Creek and, within a kilometer, empty into Jervis Bay.
I came across these falls as part of a systematic exploration of the Parma and Currambene creeks - which together boast a number of pretty drops and one or two less accessible larger falls in the nearby Parma Creek Nature Reserve. For a number of years, I had driven though the locality near Nowra called Falls Creek, and wondered where the falls might be. Only relatively recently have i discovered that this unique and exceptional location was mere minutes of the Princes Highway, just behind the Falls Creek Public School.
When I asked a local tourist information officer about these falls, which are quite exceptional, the officer shrugged said that they did not refer people to this area because it was grubby and full of litter. I am puzzled by this claim, as this has not been my own experience. But then, this is a coast-line gifted with pristine crystalline beaches: perhaps the bar is set very high in this locality.
As such, these falls cannot be thought of as lost through the act of forgetting or misplacing them - these fall have been quietly hidden or, perhaps, neglected because of the proximity of sand and surf. In relation to the nearby Parma Creek Nature Reserve officials have argued that paths to other falls should be blocked off to discourage visitation - to reduce damage and the risk of fire. It is not my intention to criticize official or tourist operators - in the Parma Creek gorge i came across obvious signs of vandalization and the dumping of a car that appears to have been driven off a cliff.
Location
The basin falls can be accessed from the Princes Highway by turning to the west on Parma Road and then taking the first left on Vidler Road. The road tracks down to the parking area can be badly eroded - check before driving in, it may be just as easy to walk from the road.
The area is signposted as the Falls Creek Picnic Reserve. The basin is informally named Paddle Creek on Google Maps.
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