Eli Creek

Kgari, Queensland

This swim is a 150 metre long, lazy river ride along a sand-bottomed, freshwater creek with vibrant aquatic life under the water on each bank. This spot is super fun for kids, with shallow water depth along most of its length, a gentle current, easy entry and exit from the water, and a boardwalk that runs from one end of the creek to other for repeated river rides. Above: The steps down to the upstream departure point in Eli Creek (Order this image)

Vehicle access to Eli Creek is limited to two hours either side of low tide, unless you have come in on foot from one of the nearby beach camping areas. When I visited, it was not necessary to cross Eli Creek when travelling from the south, with parked cars and tour buses lined up directly in front of the creek. Because there is only a few hour window to visit, make sure you plan ahead using the tide times. Driving along the beach is quite fun, and much easier than driving inland, with only a couple of tricky sections around Yidney Rocks and Poyungan Rocks where you have to detour inland on a short one lane track if it is not quite low tide. Above: The bridge and boardwalk across Eli Creek (Order this image)

Once at Eli Creek, head up to the footbridge, then walk 150 metres along the creekside boardwalk to the upstream departure point, where there are steps down into the water. The creek is typically around half a metre deep. It was deep enough to fully immerse under the water, with some slightly deeper patches here and there, but there was not anywhere that I encountered where I could not stand up with my waist above the water.

Floating down the creek there is lush vegetation on either side and in some places the trees have grown overhead to create an arch of foliage over the creek. The views above the water are stunning as the creek environment wraps around you gently from all sides. This swim can however be as calm and relaxing, or as energetic and exciting, as you want to make it. Under the water there were lots of fish hanging around the exposed tree roots, with plenty of reeds and grasses for cover, so bring a snorkel mask to explore this underwater riverscape if you want to take the energetic option. Once at the downstream end there are steps available to exit the water, straight onto the boardwalk to head upstream and ride again as many times as you like. Above: The outlet of Eli Creek and the beach parking area (Order this image) Before you head out, make sure to read the swimming safety information and check with the managing authority for any current change of conditions. Specific to this swim, the managing authority has warning signs on site advising that the water height may be shallower than it looks, and therefore to never jump or dive into the water, to be dingo-safe, and to always supervise children when they are near water. The marker indicates the approximate location of the start of the boardwalk along Eli Creek. If the map is not zoomed in locally, as can sometimes occur when loading, simply click or tap on "View Larger Map" below.
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