The Black Stump...and beyond!

Muttaburra traffic jam

Martin meets Muttaburrasaurus

Winton was as far north as we were taking Vanooka on this trip. On Thursday we followed the Matilda Highway southeast for a short while, then turned onto a dirt road, heading east for Muttaburra. It was nice to get off the "beaten track" and, as we had checked previously with the local council, we knew the road was recently graded and in good condition. After less than 100km of dirt we reached the township, a small population of about 100 which certainly punches above its weight in hospitality. The town also offers two small caravan grounds, with water, power and amenities, for a small fee, payable at the local library. And of course there is the local pub and a great store next door! When we arrived, the power was out for line repairs, so the pub had no meals, but the owner of the store made us some burgers and delivered them to the pub - what great service!!  Muttaburra also has many lovely attractions. First is the "Muttaburrasauraus", an almost complete dinosaur skeleton found nearby, the first one discovered in Australia. There is also an old General Store and Hospital, both preserved by the local community and open for visitors to see how they operated in times gone by. Not to mention the swimming pool and artesian spa, a lovely place to spend an afternoon in the warm bubbling waters. We had a great afternoon in Muttaburra - off the beaten track, but well worth a visit.

Muttaburra is also the town closest to the geographical centre of Queensland - and has a statue to celebrate! On Friday morning we started our day with a walk around town, then packed up and hit the road again, stopping briefly in Barcaldine for supplies. Tonight's stop is also "off the beaten track", this time at a cattle station with its own artesian pool, wetlands and bush camp. Lara Station is a hidden gem, run by a lovely lady, Jodie, assisted by her many friends. The location is idyllic, and many "grey nomads" are discovering its treasures. Friday night is camp oven dinner and entertainment with duo "Country Horizons", so we quickly booked in to make sure we didn't miss out! It was well worth it: chicken and vegetable soup followed by drumsticks, gravy and vegetables and damper with jam and cream - yummy! We met many fellow travellers and enjoyed the country music duo playing toe-tapping music as we ate and talked. Great fun!!
Saturday was a "rest" day - we started with our exercises, then enjoyed walking a couple of laps around the billabong, checking out the wildlife and the other caravanners. There have been 80 different types of birds identified at Lara, attracted by the water and the bushland that surrounds it. Later we enjoyed a dip in the artesian spa - the water, straight out of the ground, is quite hot, but it is a relaxing way to while away the time. That night we cooked up a delicious three-course dinner, with delicious pork bought at the Barcaldine butcher, accompanied with vegies and a nice bottle of wine and followed with yummy apple crumble, cooked on the BBQ as there is no power here! After dark there is virtually no noise, apart from the frogs in the billabong - a very peaceful place to unwind for a couple of days.

Water from the artesian bore

On Sunday morning we had a short drive - the 13kms back to the highway and another 80kms south to the town of Blackall. This is the place were surveyors marked out all distances west from a black stump near the centre of town, hence the expression "beyond the black stump"! After arriving at the caravan park and setting up, we took a walk into town to check everything out. The last four days here have been the "Better in Blackall" festival, so the town was very quiet as it returned to "normal". Neither of the pubs offered lunches, so we returned to our van and made our own (which was very nice!). Then, on a hot afternoon, we headed to the local pool. Blackall's water is pumped straight from the artesian bore, and is piping hot - so much that people don't have hot water systems, some even have water coolers instead! We lazed the afternoon away, swapping from the pleasant Olympic pool to the slightly warmer thermal spa and another much warmer thermal spa - what a way to relax! We returned to the van for showers before the entertainment - and happy hour - started in the camp kitchen. More country music by "Country Horizons"! Later we wandered back to the caravan for dinner and bed.

Chicken races at Tambo

The nights are getting much cooler and we were glad of a short walk to the amenities block!! We took a walk along the back streets of Blackall - the architecture here is beautiful, lots of big old Queenslander style houses. After breakfast we packed up for our next short drive, this time just 100km down the Matilda Way to Tambo. Apparently this was the first town build in outback Queensland and was an important trading post, where the Cobb and Co coaches went, before rail took over to the north and south and the town dwindled. These days it is a popular tourist stopping point, well known for its "Tambo teddies", with one sent to each of the current royal babies. The shop and its contents are lovely, but quite expensive! The other tourist highlight in Tambo is "Ben's chicken races", held at the Royal Carrangerra Hotel every night of the tourist season (May to October). It is quite hilarious watching multi-coloured hens chase a remote controlled car filled with chicken treats around a circuit, with all money raised from the races going to the Royal Flying Doctor Service. The pub does quite well out of it too, because who could watch a chicken race without a drink in their hand? It was great fun.

Next morning, after a short walk, we were on the move again. We weren't sure how far we were travelling today, with a few alternatives in mind. We stopped at Augathella for fuel, then turned southeast towards the Warrego Way, stopping first at Morven, where the pub had burnt down and the town appeared to have died as a result, then at Mungallala, where another pub had suffered the same fate! Neither had much to hold our attention, so we pushed on to Mitchell (where we had stayed on our last trip), and had pies from the local bakery for lunch, then onto Roma for the night. It was more driving than we had done in a while but we were happy to arrive, unpack and go into town for a look around. Roma is the largest town in the region, supported by agriculture and oil and gas wells. It is also famous for its bottle trees, similar in shape to Boabs but with a lot more greenery! The architecture of the main street is also an indication of its importance in the local region, with many large, stately buildings along the way.

Town mural, Roma

The Big Rig

On Wednesday morning, we started at the Big Rig Information Centre, keen to plan a day of sightseeing. A drive around town followed, checking out the largest bottle tree, the tiled feature wall in the cultural centre depicting Roma's history, and the beautiful stained glass windows of the Anglican church - they looked spectacular with the sun shining through. After lunch we toured the Big Rig facility, learning all about the history of oil and gas discovery in the local area, which started with drilling for water but hitting large supplies of gas and oil instead. It is what helped Roma become such an important town in Queensland, and it still supplies much of the gas shipped to Curtis Island (Gladstone) and overseas. Coal seam gas is also now a major industry in the area, although it is more controversial! Cattle is also a major industry, with the largest sale yards in Queensland here, and twice-weekly auctions held, however, the drought has cut the number of stock sold and sales held as many farmers have destocked their properties.
This is our last stop in the central west of Queensland. Tomorrow we continue our journey, moving south and east, heading back towards the Gold Coast and Manookatoo.

The beautiful stained glass windows of the Anglican church, Roma

Into the Outback!

The tree of knowledge

Leaving Emerald before 8:00 on Thursday morning, we headed west on the main central east-west arterial, the Capricorn Highway. Many large road trains use this route, as do lots of "grey nomads", so we take it easy, pull over regularly, and keep our wits about us! We stopped at a small railway siding, Bogantungan, where an enterprising old fellow has created a small museum at the railway office, beside the memorial to a train crash in 1960. It was quite interesting, sobering, and very isolated. Continuing on, we stopped at Alpha, planning to buy a sausage roll from the bakery but ending up with 4 vegemite and cheese sausages from the butcher and a jar of passionfruit and pineapple jam from the local crafts store. Our plan had been to stop in Jericho for the night, but the pub didn't look inviting and with little else to see we continued on to Barcaldine. History abounds here, where the "Great shearers strike" of the 1830s is remembered at the Tree of Knowledge memorial outside the railway station. It was here that the first seeds of the Australian Labour Party were sown. This is also commemorated in the Australian Workers Museum complex, but we didn't visit there, instead we enjoyed lunch at one of the five local pubs! Later that evening we returned to view the Tree of Knowledge memorial at night (the tree was poisoned in 2006, but the enterprising local council had the tree trunk and roots preserved and created a stunning display in its place).

The tree at night

After a walk along beside the Frazer Creek wetlands, we had breakfast, packed up and continued on our journey; a shorter one this time, just 108kms. Being a Saturday, we were keen to find our spot, unhook the van and head into town, as most of the shops, especially the butcher, close at noon and we wanted to buy some food for dinner! The butcher didn't disappoint, cutting a small boneless lamb roast for us to enjoy that night. We bought some supplies from the supermarket and visited the Information Centre to make sure we knew what we wanted to target during our stay here. In the afternoon, we took a drive to the Stockmans Hall of Fame to check out what we might do the next day. We decided on an "Ultimate two day pass", giving us plenty of time to investigate the museum, plus two shows and a barbecue dinner! Later that afternoon we wandered over to the Outback bar and restaurant to listen to the country singers and enjoy a happy hour drink, before returning to our van to cook up a delicious three-course dinner.
Sunday was a big day of learning, laughing and enjoying ourselves at the Stockmans Hall of Fame. With five galleries filled with information and memorabilia, plus two different outback shows and a dinner to attend, we made the most of the opportunity, viewing two galleries before the first outback show, another gallery after lunch, then the last gallery in the afternoon before returning in the evening for the second show and dinner. It was an absolutely memorable day! Each of the galleries had its own theme, including Aboriginal stockmen and women, Pioneers, Communications and The Stockmen, as well as an art gallery. Both outback shows were very entertaining (as you can see in the photos below!!) and we enjoyed the company of other travellers over the dinner.

 

From one small aircraft...

On Monday we continued our learning with a visit to the Qantas Founders Museum. Once again, we spent several fascinating hours learning the history of this iconic Australian airline, which started from humble beginnings and a handshake in Winton, began flying and building aircraft in Longreach, finally moving to Brisbane and then Sydney as it grew to the multinational company it is today. From one small wooden plane to a huge jetliner, it has been an amazing journey, one its founders had hopefully prophesized but never really expected. That afternoon we spent some time in town ensuring we were well prepared for the next part of our journey, returning to a light meal of pizzas and icecreams before bed.

Tattersalls Hotel, Winton

North Gregory Hotel, of Waltzing Matilda fame.

We were on the road again fairly early on Tuesday morning, continuing north-west, up the Matilda Highway. We passed many other "grey nomads" heading south, as the winter weather dissipates (although they wouldn't want to move too quickly as there is still a lot of snow and frosts happening in the southern states!). We drove into Winton before 11am, walking into the Tattersalls Hotel to find out our site number at the caravan park opposite. Winton has the best-preserved country town feeling we have seen so far, with a couple of big old pubs and other large buildings in the main street, it looks like what you expect a country town to look like! We walked up the main street and visited the Information Centre for some local knowledge before going to the North Gregory Hotel for a counter lunch - very nice! Later that afternoon we returned to hear Gregory North perform "Waltzing Matilda" in the very same venue where it had first been performed by Banjo Paterson in 1895. It was a very entertaining performance, with crowd performance expected to sing the song!

Wednesday was "Dinosaur Day" - we drove out to the Australian Age of Dinosaurs site where we attended three fascinating sites: the Laboratory, where bones collected from digs are uncovered, sorted and prepared for exhibition, the Collection Room, where many incomplete but well-arranged bones are displayed with information about how and where the dinosaurs lived and roamed, and Dinosaur Canyon, where dinosaur activity and type is displayed in a most informative way. We were both so impressed with everything we saw and learned! we returned home for lunch, then walked into town to visit the butcher and greengrocer, to stock up for the next couple of nights. Tomorrow we head north-east, beginning our journey back towards the Gold Coast, but with plenty of new places to visit on the way!

Heading west to the warmth

Mundabbera water tower

Our return south was very brief; long enough to get a few things done and catch up with family and friends before we froze over! After six days on the road and ten days in Melbourne, we locked up our house on a cold and grey Wednesday, walked to the station and caught the train and the bus and then we boarded a plane bound for the Gold Coast. We arrived to sunny skies and a light breeze! We collected Vanooka from the storage facility and drove via Dan Murphy's and the Runaway Bay shopping centre and packed our adventuring clothes. Early next morning, with the van packed and ready to roll, we headed out along the motorway. We spent the night with Ian and Jo-Anne, enjoying time also with mum Elizabeth and cousin Vicky, and sleeping just outside their holiday apartment at Noosaville, then turned the car northwest, stopping in Gympie for some last-minute supplies at the Aldi supermarket, conveniently located on the road into town and with plenty of parking for our car and van. Satisfied with our purchases, we continued west, stopping at Kilkivan for morning tea and Gayndah for bakery goods, then onto Mundubbera, our home for tonight. We are in farming country here, and there are many itinerant farm workers stationed here from April to September, picking citrus fruits, blueberries and lots of other produce for markets all over Australia. We walked into town and checked out the shops before returning to Vanooka for a delicious dinner and a well-earned sleep.

Way down to the Burnett River

Next morning, we walked along the banks of the Burnett River, marvelling at how high the river rises during floods. We continued through town and back to the van for breakfast, then we packed up and hit the road. We turned off the Burnett Highway just after Eidsvold, where the R.M.Williams centre is visited by many Akubra wearing folk, and headed along the backroads through Cracow and Theodore, big mining complexes dotted along the road between these sleepy towns. We briefly joined the Leichardt Highway but quickly turned west for our next destination, Moura, located on the Dawson Highway. We are in the southern reaches of the Bowen Basin, a rich vein of coal exploited by large mining companies, with coal seam gas extracted by energy companies, as well as large beef stations along the way. Once again the caravan park is filled with dongas, these ones used by the fly-in, fly-out miners. There is also a large memorial dedicated to mine workers who have lost their lives in accidents in the local area. It is very sobering to visit and read the stories of these disasters.

Mickey's Creek Gorge

On Sunday morning we were up early again, in order to give ourselves plenty of time at our next destination: Carnarvon Gorge! We arrived just in time for lunch, then drove to the visitors' centre to make plans for the next few days. Later we took a "short" walk to Mickey's Creek gorge and marvelled at the forces of water that created the cliffs, gullies and gorges here. That evening we attended "Happy hour" at Takarakka Bush Camp, where we are staying, to hear the information about the range of walks and climbs we could do. Just on sunset, we walked to the creek to see a platypus swimming around, ducking and dodging in the water catching insects for its dinner. We returned to Vanooka for pizzas and an early night - we are planning a big day of walking tomorrow!

Rock-hopping

Boowinda Gorge

Aboriginal stencil art

Ward's Canyon

Moss Garden

  On Monday we were up at sunrise, with breakfast eaten and lunch prepared, and parked at the Visitors' Centre by 8am. We crossed the first of many creek crossings and trekked along the path, winding along beside the creek, and crossing it more than 20 times in our quest to see as many sites as we could manage in a day. We hiked to the other end of the path, at Big Bend, almost 10 kilometres away, where we enjoyed water and some morning tea to revive us, before heading downstream again. First stop was Boowinda Gorge, a narrow, winding crack through the rocks, with mossy sandstone sides and moist ferns, where we picked our way amongst the river rocks trying not to turn an ankle! Next were two aboriginal art sites: Cathedral Rock and The Art Gallery, with many ochre stencils and rock carvings to admire. As we trekked further east there were more challenging sites to visit: Wards Canyon - a short, steep, winding track to a cool, fern-filled garden beside a waterfall, The Amphitheatre - up a rocky path and a ladder into a huge chamber with high sandstone walls, then Moss Garden - another climb, this time into a cave filled with mosses and ferns. It was an awe-inspiring day, well worth the tired legs and feet! We returned to camp just after 4pm, enjoying a foot soak and an early dinner before falling into bed.

Inside the Amphitheatre 

Going up!

We had more to see at Carnarvon Gorge on Tuesday! We left just a little later, arriving at the gorge at 8:45 for a shorter, steeper walk: up the side of the gorge and onto Boolimba Bluff! The walk itself was just over 6km, but it included a 300m climb from the gorge floor to the bluff; with steep, rocky steps and three ladder sections it was a challenge, but the spectacular views were certainly worth it!

Spectacular views

 Returning to the car for morning tea, we drove to The Rockpool on our way back, but the temperature of the water did not tempt us for a swim! We returned to camp for lunch and a lazy afternoon, but we finished off the day with a walk to the lookout to view the sunset. We have really made the most of our three days at Carnarvon Gorge, but it is time to continue our journey west.

Sunset at Takarakka bush camp

Van Gogh's "Sunflowers"

On Wednesday morning we were up bright and early, packed and ready to continue our travels just after 8am. Driving back along the park entry road, we passed many cattle enjoying the green pastures, some ambling across the road as we slowly approached. Rejoining the highway, we bypassed Rolleston, stopping in Springsure for fuel and continuing along the Dawson Highway. We passed more large coal mines as we travelled along on our way to Emerald, the largest town in the Central Highlands district, strategically located on the intersection of the Capricorn Way, which runs between Rockhampton and Longreach, and the Great Inland Way, between Roma and Charters Towers. Emerald is known for coal, cattle and red-claw crayfish, caught in Lake Maraboon, 15km away. We pulled into the Emerald Tourist Park just after 11am, unhitched, unpacked and headed into town. Visiting the Information Centre, we learned about the local attractions, including the largest Van Gogh painting, a mural walk, pioneer village and the Botanical Gardens. Plenty to keep us busy for two days! We walked along the main street and saw a range of art installations along the way and in the local gallery. Like many towns, Emerald's main street has lost a lot of its shops as they have moved to shopping malls on the outskirts, there have also been several pub fires that have destroyed local icons, however the Railway Station retains its historic appeal.

Botanical gardens

Lake Maraboon

Thursday was a "rest" day. We started with our exercises before breakfast, then drove to the Botanical Gardens for a walk around. They have been beautifully planted with many different environmental areas and waterways. Later we drove out to Lake Maraboon, also known as Fairbairn Dam at the spillway. There is a lot of renovation works being undertaken on the spillway and downstream, taking advantage of low lake levels in the drought. We had hoped to try the famous Red Claw Crayfish but unfortunately the cafe was closed in the quiet conditions. We returned to our camp for lunch and a lazy afternoon. Tomorrow we continue west, leaving the Central Highlands for the Outback!

Outback here we come!!