Killarney Glen Falls attracts social influencers, trespassers

Police have confirmed an increase in young trespassers, who have uploaded 300+ photos to Instagram tagging a secluded location that has been closed to the public.

The Scenic Rim’s Instagram famous heart-shaped Killarney Glen falls, about an hour’s drive from Brisbane and the Gold Coast, has had an increase in youngsters and influencers flaunting their trespassing on Instagram despite local police charging several of them on the spot.

Just this week four youths were hauled before the Beaudesert Magistrates court, where they pleaded guilty to trespassing on defence land while chasing the perfect Instagram photo op.

The court heard they got the idea from Instagram, and with over 300 photos surfacing on the app under the tag ‘Killarney Glen heart shaped rock’ it’s no wonder they thought they’d get away with it.

In late December 2016, a 19-year-old man drowned at the falls.

To access the falls, swimmers have to walk through land on the Department of Defence-owned Canungra Field Training Area.

Following the teenager’s death, The Department of Defence closed the falls pending a review of the safety risks associated with the area saying the drowning highlighted risks to public safety. It was a decision which was supported by Scenic Rim Regional Council at the time.

“The safety review of Killarney Glen identified a number of dangerous hazards at the falls and rock pool area, including steep rock cliff-faces, submerged objects and fast-flowing water,” a Department of Defence spokesman said.

“These hazards, and Killarney Glen’s large visitor numbers, led to multiple injuries at the site prior to December 2016.”

Based on the findings of the safety review and legal and recreational advice, the Department of Defence decided not to reopen Killarney Glen to the public, which were then permanently closed to the public in November 2020.

To break into defence land and access the falls, visitors now pass signage indicating the falls closure, have to climb a fence, avoid Defence Department surveillance cameras, and keep an eye out for security or local police patrols.

While some trespassers are getting away with it, many are not. Local police have confirmed a surge in charges in the past 12 months.

Logan Acting Superintendent Peter Miles said it is illegal to access these falls, and for good reason.

“I know we’ve all got a sense of adventure and it’s a pretty spot but someone’s already paid the ultimate price for that,” he said.

“That sense of adventure turns into tragedy when you lose your life.

“It is a fairly isolated location too so if someone is in trouble it may take emergency services a while to get to you … and that’s if you can even get through to us. The phone reception is spotty and not at all reliable.

“Canungra police do patrols and are catching people but we’re not there 24/7 to charge people and give them a notice to appear in court.

“It’s honestly a hard one to police because it’s not always locals, it’s a lot of tourists.

“It’s pretty obvious you’re not meant to be there, with the fence and signs. Please stick to tourism spots you’re able to access lawfully and safely.”

It seems these police warnings can’t keep eager Instagram posters away.

Gold Coast Instagram influencer and model Layla Graham (laylagraham_), boasting a dedicated following of 22.9k, posted a photo at the falls to her feed in May 2019.

The photo was captioned ‘big heart eyes for you’ and featured her and Lachie Jones (Lachieejoness) risking their lives to kiss on top of the heart shaped falls.

Lachie Jones has also posted photos of himself trespassing on defence land at the falls to his 3k+ Instagram followers.

One Instagram trespasser even captioned her photo admitting she knew the falls were closed.

“This place is currently closed so I had to climb underneath the fence to make my here,” Laura Dall’Osteria, from Bondi Beach, wrote in 2019.

“I’ve been at this place around three years ago. By that time it was still open to the public and it used to be really crowded.”

Despite local officers’ safety concerns, locals and tourists have expressed their disdain at the falls closure.

Amanda Dealla from Tamborine Mountain said it shouldn’t have been closed.

“They should never have closed it,” she wrote on Facebook.

“Survival of the fittest. If you‘re too dumb to pass the ‘don’t jump or slip’ test then so be it.”

Nick Emms from Brisbane agreed.

“Looks like a nice place, wish we could access it,” he said on Facebook.

In Court on Tuesday, Magistrate Tracy Mossop said if anyone had an issue with the closure of the waterfall, they’d be better off taking it up with their local member, instead of trespassing and risking criminal charges and court appearances.