Noble Falls, Gidgegannup

What: Noble Falls and picnic area
Where: Toodyay Road, Gidgegannup MAP
When: All year
Who: All ages
Cost: Free
Facilities: BBQs, Picnic benches, toilets, Playground, car park.

There is a bone of contention in our household between my husband and I regarding the seasons. I'm a Summer girl. I love the heat, the long days, the warm nights and all the other great things about Summer. My husband on the other hand loves Winter. He loves the cold, the rain, the thunderstorms, and the chance to light a roaring fire. I have to admit though, there are some fantastic places in Perth (and Western Australia) that are just as nice, if not better, to visit in the cooler months. One of those places is Noble Falls in Gidgegannup.

Noble Falls and picnic area is located off Toodyay road (opposite the Noble Falls Tavern) approximately 40 minutes east of Perth. I seldom get out to this part of the country, and it was my first time to the falls, but I was pleasantly surprised.

Carpark and bridge over the falls and the start of the walk trails

We arrived at the Falls just after 11am, and there were about 3 other cars in the carpark. I couldn't help but think perhaps we had found a secret spot that not many people knew about. I was wrong! 12 o'clock rolled around and the carpark was suddenly full and there were picnickers and bbq'ers everywhere. I'm kind of glad we got there when we did, and got to enjoy the falls and surrounding area in relative peace and quiet. On nice weekends I'd recommend getting there before 12 if you want to have a choice of tables and BBQ's.

Part of the picnic area. Lots of tables, BBQs, bins, shade and space.

The picnic area contains lots of barbecues and picnic tables, as well as a playground and a tree swing. It is also the starting point for a couple of walk trails over and around the falls. There are toilets but they are hidden away and not in the picnic area. To get to the toilets you have to cross the bridge over the falls, and follow one of the walk trails to get to them.

How's the serenity?!

I'm not entirely sure what this is, but we used it to sit on and eat our lunch.

The playground. A little old and run down, but my daughters had fun nonetheless.

The swing on the tree. A little magical and fun for both kids and adults.

We enjoyed taking a short walk around the falls, and it was easy enough for my 3 year old to do. I pointed out some ant nests to her, and she had fun counting and pointing them all out for the entire walk. The falls themselves are nothing spectacular, they are more like rapids or cascades, but the surroundings are beautiful and you can see the Shire has put in a bit of work to make this a great weekend picnic spot.

Part of the Falls

Along the walk trail

  

Upstream of the falls.