Mt Pieter Botte Landscape

These ancient granites and ancient plants have been interacting together for over120 millions years.

Eroding Granite - Mt Pieter Botte

The Nulbullulu Granite is characterised by being white to pale grey, fine to medium grained slightly porhyrittic hornsblende biotite granite.

Granite Landscape-Pieter Botte area

After millions of years of erosion, fascinating shapes and patterns emerge with the aid of tough Lomandra and Resurrection Plant that both grow between the rocks on a handful of granite sand and pebbles. Algae grows attached to the rocks, which adds to the mysterious textures, hues and patterns of the granite.

Coral Sea from Mt Pieter Botte

The Coral Sea can clearly be seen from the summit and the Roaring Meg Creek upper catchment is in the middle ground. Due to the vertical nature and exposure of the rock, moisture is not retained. This discourages algal growth, leaving the true colour of the granite visible.

Mt Pieter Botte Valley

The true colour of the granite can be seen on the summit rocks. Led by an elder, Six Kuku Yalanji people guided three Europeans up the climb in October 1896: the first recorded European party to climb the peak. They were Frank Hislop, a Mr Anderson and the visiting botanist-cum-explorer, Dudley Le Souef. The party only climbed to the platform below the summit. The peak itself, a sheer sided granite outcrop, was not climbed.

Eroded Granite - Mt Pieter Botte

The Pieter Botte granite has been aged between 260-280 million years before present and is distinctly different to the Thornton Peak granite although they belong in the same suite of granites.

Pieter Botte Valley Mountain Kauri

Mountain Kauri Pine (Agathis atropurpurnea) has its roots deep into the cracks in the granite.

Mt Pieter Botte Sunset

Habitat for Rare Plants

A species of a Medicosma, a mountain rainforest understorey tree, is known only from one sample in the Mount Pieter Botte area. Eidothea zoexylocarya, a member of the Proteaceae family is a large tree that only grows in the mountain rainforests of Thornton Peak, Mt Bartle Frere and Mount Pieter Botte.

Mt Pieter Botte Summit

This is a sheer sided granite tor, a favourite spot for the resident Peregrine Falcon to use as a roost.

Mountain Kauri Pines Dominate

Mountain Kauri Pine (Agathis atropurpurea) is restricted to the area from Mt Pieter Botte and southwards to Mt Bartle Frere. Altitudinal range from 750-1500m. A characteristic tree of the ridge tops in mountain rainforest and usually found on soils derived from granite.

Mountain Kauri Pine

In the canopy of a large Mountain Kauri Pine (Agathis atropurpurea)

Lunar Landscape Mt Pieter Botte

Over the last 110 million years, between 4-8 metres of rain fell here annually. Due to slight weaknesses in the rock, this rainfall has caused a unique erosion pattern.

Mt Pieter Botte From Thornton Peak

Easily seen from the sea, Mt Pieter Botte remains hidden from the north and east on land. A great place to get a view is along the long straight road from Port Douglas to Mossman, especially around the Killaloe Dump turnoff and north before the Cassowary Range cutting. Look to the right of Thornton Peak and left of Mt Sorrow.

Erosion Pattern Mt Pieter Botte

Roaring Meg Creek Mt Pieter Botte

Daintree Pine (Gymnostoma australianum) restricted to Thornton Peak and Mt Pieter Botte environs. Altitudinal range from near sea level to 1350m. Grows in association with rain forest but usually in situations where full rain forest development is arrested, e.g. along watercourses subject to flood damage or on mountain tops.

Sunset Mt Pieter Botte

Mt Pieter Botte from the Coral Sea

From the Coral Sea Mt Pieter Botte is very much a sentinel for the local area. It must have been in cloud the day Captain Cook struck the Endeavour Reef because he surely would have named such an obvious and unique mountain.