Townsville to Emerald

Great news! I (Janice) have a new granddaughter, Madison Lee born last Friday in Newcastle.  She was two weeks early, but she’s doing wonderfully well & so is Krissy.  We will see her in about 4 weeks. Picture below.

 

We are now leaving the coast and travelling inland. One of the first things you notice is the vast distances between habitats. This is now the dry time of year and there are hundreds of dried up river beds and many of the large rivers have little flow. This riverbed on the approach to Charters Towers has little water.

Charters Towers is an old goldmining town and at one time was the second largest city in Queensland next to Brisbane. It has many heritage buildings like the bank shown below.
 

We visited many goldmining sites in Charters Towers and Ravenswood. Below are the remains of an open cut mine (they are now mining underground) and an old miner’s cottage.
 

Nearby we discovered a landmark know as White Blow which is a large lump of white quartz about 10 metres high which was forced out of the ground millions of years ago.

 
We spent two days in Charters Towers before moving south towards Emerald. The distance was too far to travel in one day so we planned to stop overnight about half way there. We left CT on the Great Inland Way and the only civilisation we saw in 400 kilometres was the roadhouse at Belyando Crossing which was too close to CT to stop for the night so we continued on until we reached Clermont. This is the longest section we have driven on our trip so far, just over 400 kms. The road was straight, flat, boring and at times quite narrow. We stayed overnight at the Teresa Creek Dam just outside Clermont and continued on to the “Emerald City” the following morning. Along the way we encountered a large number of cattle on the road and at one point we hit an unmarked ditch in the road about 1 metre wide and 100mm deep at 100 kph which almost sent car and caravan airborne. A number of things were shaken about in the caravan but only one bowl broken thankfully. We are staying in the grounds of the Emerald Scout Hall
Emerald is quite a nice town in the middle of the gem mining area. Today we tried out some fossicking at a place called Sapphire and came away with some small pieces of sapphire. We also visited an underground mine at Rubyvale.  Photo below.

 

The people around here have a sense of humour as shown on a boat in a paddock

 

and on a mechanics workshop.

 

We leave here tomorrow heading for Roma but we will stop somewhere along the way.

 

 

Millaa Millaa to Townsville

Our drive down to Millaa Millaa was quite uneventful and we arrived before lunch at a very nice caravan park amongst tropical trees and bushes and backing onto a golf course. In the afternoon we visited a series of local waterfalls and a lookout giving a magnificent panorama view of the surrounding countryside. Millaa Millaa Falls.

The following morning we were up early for a drive to the Undara Lava Tubes. The journey along the Kennedy Highway was quite boring. I have never been on a road that was so straight for so long. All you can see in the distance is one long straight road with the odd bend here and there. On the sides of the road and in the bush are thousands of termite mounds.

 

The Lava Tubes are formed when lava from ancient volcanos flows down a gully or watercourse and the outside of the flowing lava solidifies leaving the inside to continue to flow. Eventually the flow of lava ceases leaving these extensive tunnels or tubes. Because of the remoteness of the area, these tubes have only been discovered relatively recently. Some of the tubes have partially fallen in giving access to the inside. Absolutely fascinating.

The Kennedy Highway carries quite a few “Road Trains” which are trucks with two or more trailers. On our way back we met a road train with 3 trailers going the other way and the draft created by this speeding mass broke the support bracket on my drivers’ side extension mirror. Amazing.

The following day we travelled down to Paronella Park which we visited on our way up and took part in one of their night-time tours where many of the features where lit up. Paronella Park.

It was then off to Townsville again, staying at the Scout Camp at Bluewater. The local Rovers had a “Christmas in July” function while we were there and I met one of the leaders who is an ex Northern Area Rover from Tassie. We again visited the waterfront at Townsville and re-stocked our caravan. Townsville waterfront.

Next stop Charters Towers.

Atherton Tablelands and Cairns

The drive up to the Tablelands was a steady uphill climb through some beautiful countryside in various shades of green. Our destination was the Barabadeen Scout campsite on the shores of Lake Tinaroo, a magnificent site but without power. We had just travelled from a site with no power so we were unsure as to how our batteries would hold up, particularly as the campsite is heavily treed with limited sun for our solar panels. We survived another 2 days before having to borrow a generator to top up the batteries. Lake Tinaroo

 

Tinaroo Dam
 

The first full day, Janice had to visit the dentist in Atherton and have her abscess drained and the first part of a root canal done and we looked around the area visiting Malanda Falls
 

and Curtain Fig
 

The next day we dropped down into Cairns. You don’t realise how high you are until you drive down off the mountains to the coastal city below. It takes 1 hour 15 minutes on a very winding road. There we met up with my son Tim and his partner Sia for lunch and went back to their place for a while before heading back up the mountain.
On Sunday we headed for Port Douglas
 

where we wandered around the local waterfront market and looked around the town before heading back along the coast to visit Palm Cove and rekindle our memories of a holiday there 5 years ago. It is still a very nice location and we thought we would like to stay there again some time. Palm Cove
 

The next day we went to Mareeba where we visited Coffee Works. It cost $12 to get in (pensioner rate) and for that you can sample dozens of different coffees and teas plus sample lots of different home made chocolates and look around the Coffee Museum. A great place. Coffee Works.
 

We then met up with Tim and Sia again and spent some time in the Crystal Cave viewing a wide variety of geodes filled with amethysts from South America which had Tim mesmerised. Tim and Sia then came back to our caravan for a look and we spent the rest of the afternoon on the shores of the lake with Tim checking out the pebbled shore looking for crystals. Us with Tim and Sia on the shores of Lake Tinaroo.
 

We had intended to stay at Lake Tinaroo for two more nights but discovered that the camp was to be invaded by 70 children on Tuesday so we decided to depart early that morning and start our journey south heading for Milla Milla.

 

Silkwood and Paronella Park

The journey from Townsville to Cairns was going to be rather long so we decided to break the journey staying at a scout campsite at a place called Silkwood. We rang the caretaker and were advised we could easily access the camp with the caravan as she said “we’ve had semi trailers in here”. There is quite a difference in ground clearance between a semi trailer and our low slung caravan. The road in started off fine but before long we were crawling on a narrow gravel track with potholes driving through a field of sugar cane and then alongside a river. We ended up in a clearing in the middle of a tropical rainforest which was a magic spot. Margaret (the caretaker) is a real character. She was of an ‘undeterminable’ age and she has lived there in her 10 foot caravan for 7 years. The scout building has a main hall, bunkroom, leaders room and showers and toilet. There is no power so she uses a generator. She has a pet chicken called “dook dook” and I think he’s a silky bantam (looks like he’s always wearing pyjamas), and if you go near him he starts ‘talking’ – quite cute really.  

That afternoon we visited popular Mission Beach, where we picked up two coconuts, and the town of Tully. Oh what a lovely bunch of coconuts!
 

The following morning we headed off to Paronella Park, about 45 minutes drive. Jose Paronella came out from Spain at the beginning of the last century and worked on sugar cane farms until he had enough money to buy his own farm. He bought and sold sugar cane farms and made a lot of money. He discovered a parcel of land with a waterfall on it and bought it. He built a cottage on it for himself and his family. As a child he had always wanted to own a castle so went about building himself one. People travelling past came in to look at the castle and before long he was charging visitors to view. His wife made home made ice cream and sold it and with the money they developed the site further with swimming pool, tea gardens, movie theatre, and tropical rain forest walks. After the death of Jose and eventually his son, the park became neglected and was sold. The new owners have tried to reconstruct the old park but unfortunately Jose used local sand in the concrete to build his castle and other buildings and due to impurities in the sand, the buildings have started to fall down due to concrete cancer where the concrete deteriorates from the inside out. It was still a very interesting place to visit and we found some turtles near the river bank. Photo of waterfall.
 

Remains of castle
 

Turtles
 

In the afternoon we travelled to Innisfail and had lunch on the waterfront. We travelled back to camp via Etty Bay
 

and Kurrimine Beach where we spotted a pair of Cassowaries. These birds are protected as numbers are declining. Photo-male in foreground and female behind..
 

Off to the Atherton Tablelands above Cairns tomorrow.

Airlie Beach to Townsville

Airlie Beach to Townsville, from Janice

I loved Airlie Beach with its beautiful aqua sea & white sands.  We caught up with some friends from Tasmania who just happened to be in the same area at the same time.  We went to Hydeaway Bay with them for lunch & our table was right on the sand – just so perfect.  It is an ideal spot for a beautiful wedding.
 

We were staying in Flametree & the small airfield that take people to the Whitsundays was right next door, so we were woken at 7.30 in the morning with the small planes going overhead (very regularly).  I would love to go back & spend more time in Airlie (another time).

From here we went to a scout camp in Bluewater which is 20km north of Townsville.  It was very ‘natural’ there with the caretaker feeding all the local possums & other four legged friends.  He has a permanent caravan & enjoys every minute of it.  He called us over one night to see the possums, and we managed to see about 6.  We also spotted a green frog on the wall of the shower.

 

The following day was overcast but still warm so we drove into Townsville and visited an army fort overlooking Magnetic Island, went through the Museum of Tropical Queensland which was very interesting, & had a good look around Townsville with lunch on the waterfront.  Photos of Rock Pool on front at Townsville and view of Magnetic Island from prominent lookout.
 

One thing I’ve forgotten to mention is the thousands upon thousands of acres of sugar cane we’ve seen since our arrival in Mackay. We seem to travel for miles with only sugar cane on both sides of the road.  Had no idea they had such a lovely feathery plumage.  We see little railway tracks in strange places, and these are purely for the carting of the sugar cane. Photo of sugar cane.

Next stop Silkwood.

Hervey Bay to Mackay

We spent one more day at the Hervey Bay Scout Camp doing some shopping, washing and beachcombing on the deserted beach less than 100 metres from our caravan, magnificent spot. Late afternoon on beach.

The next morning we were on the road again. We had originally planned to go to Bundaberg but the Scout Camp there was booked out so we decided to travel a little further north to a place called “Seventeen Seventy” which people we met said was a nice place to visit.

Captain Cook (then Lt James Cook) landed in Botany Bay on 29^th April 1770. He then travelled up the east coast and made his second landing at a place half way up the Queensland coast. He was in search of fresh water and food supplies. The cove he landed in is now called Seventeen Seventy as he arrived there on 24^th May 1770.
It was Queensland and NSW school holidays last week so the place was very busy. We were told of a 4WD trip down to a place called Baffle Creek so we decided to try it. I may not have had the thrill of actually driving on Fraser Island but the trip down to Baffle Creek was equally adventurous. The track was 20 kilometres long through tropical rain forest consisting of long tracks of soft sand that we ploughed our way through by sheer speed and momentum – great fun. We met only one vehicle on the way in but met 5 on the way out. There were a few passing points so one vehicle had to reverse into the closest passing point. Photo of track.

The next day we visited the Captain Cook landing memorial, went to a lookout to see if we could see any whales (negative) but I saw a large turtle which Janice missed. The place seemed to be swarming with butterflies of various colours and sizes. We tried to visit a National Park but the road was so corrugated, we gave up as it was so bone jarring it would have taken ages at a crawling speed. On the way we met a family of kangaroos, some as tall as me. Photo of Cook memorial.
 

Then it was off to Rockhampton. Every day has been glorious with blue skies and sunshine but most nights have been cool. It was 25 degrees when we arrived at Rocky so after setting up camp we visited the Rockhampton Heritage Village. It was very good value at $9 each (pensioner rate) and kept us entertained most of the afternoon. There were many buildings spread over 28 acres which had been re-located from the Rockhampton area and furnished with historical items. There was an old church, school, printers, shop, fire station, railway station, various workshops, old cars and trucks and even a hospital that came complete with all the old equipment which was fascinating. There were also a number of houses set up as they would have looked in the 1800’s. Photos- Brian checking out an original washing machine and Janice ringing the fire bell.

 

We are staying at a place called Gracemere which is a suburb of Rockhampton.  It has some cabins here that I would not even put an animal in, and the caravan next to us is unusual – Brian and I were sitting outside having a drink yesterday afternoon and Brian said to me “look at that, there’s a mouse in the window”, and as I looked we noticed there were two mice scurrying about in there.  It looked like an abandoned caravan, so Brian went & told them in the office, and was told that a man booked his caravan in 2 days ago, and sure enough, we saw him later on.  People are odd !!!

The following day we headed for Yeppoon on the coast visiting a national park on the way. The coastal area of Yeppoon has many beautiful beaches and we followed the tourist trail around in a circle back to Gracemere. On the way we passed the “Singing Ship” which is a recent memorial to Cook and makes sounds as the wind blows through it. Photo.

 

 It was then off again to our next stop, a free camping area at Clairview which again is on the coast. The site was great, right on the beach but we were next to the main rail line from Brisbane to Cairns and a train comes through every couple of hours, even through the night and it sounded like it was coming straight through the caravan. We had only planned to stay the one night as a break between Rockhampton and Mackay so we had an early start the next morning arriving at Rowallan Park Scout Camp at Mackay mid morning. It is a great site in almost park like surroundings. We met a retired couple who are leaders in scouting and spend most of their time at the park doing odd jobs. The park was opened by Lord Rowallan when he was World Chief Scout in the 50’s. Picture of camp from our campsite.
 

Spent the day touring Mackay visiting the waterfront (photo of marina below) and a driving through a local national park which has a number of magnificent beaches. Tomorrow we are of to Airlie Beach for a couple of days.

 

Day trip to Fraser Island

Our Day on Fraser Island

Fraser Island is probably the main tourist attraction in the Hervey Bay area apart from whale watching. My thoughts were that we would put the Prado onto the ferry and drive around the island --- that was until we discovered the cost. You can travel from Devonport to Melbourne cheaper. For only a few dollars more, you can travel in a 4WD bus on a fully guided tour with lunch provided. Much as I would have loved to bash around the island tackling the 4WD tracks and driving along the magnificent beaches, letting the bus take the pounding and not the Prado had benefits. Many 4WD’s acted like bulldozers when confronted with sand piled high in the centre of the tracks and the surf spray would not have done them much good either. I think a vehicle would need to be fully detailed after such an ordeal. I’ll let Janice tell you about the trip.

It was 8 degrees when we headed off on our Fraser Island adventure.  We had our ‘layers’ on as it was going to be a beautiful 21 degree day very soon.

We were picked up by a rather chunky 4wd bus & taken to ferry.  The ferry has a resident cat which isn’t something you see often!  Once on the island we boarded another 4wd bus & told to buckle up as it would be a rough ride.  Brilliant fun – the island is all sand and so it is very soft in parts and you go up & down & sideways with a great commentary from the driver.  We were taken to Lake McKenzie which is a freshwater lake on sand!  Apparently Lake McKenzie has special qualities – you come out feeling great & it takes 10 years off you, which is why you see some men push their wives in for a second go (tour guides words).  This lake stays at a steady 21 degrees all year round & looks like something from Thailand. Photo of Brian hoping for a 10 year refurbishment in Lake McKenzie

 

We went for a drive on the local ‘motorway’ which was the beach.  It really is their motorway – it has speed limits etc on certain sections.  A little tricky though when there are people fishing as they can sometimes be in the way.  Great ride though on the beach, and the whole time we were all looking for whales. Photo of beach

 

We came across part of the beach where they were offering plane rides. Brian and I decided to try our luck at whale watching & went up on a 6 person plane ride, but we were the only group in 4 weeks who didn’t see one (that didn’t make us feel any better). Photo boarding plane and photo of Butterfly Lake.

 

On our way back along the beach in the bus someone shouted “whale” and I just managed to see a big spurt of water, so I know there were whales somewhere.  It had been a big 12 hour day of adventure.

Just to add a few things to Janice’s commentary. The whole island is made up of sand so the tracks are just that, wheel grooves in a sandy track with trees and bush on either side. Our tour guide/bus driver did a fantastic job negotiating these tracks with such a large vehicle and there were times we got through some soft sections by sheer speed with revving engine and wheel spin.

The beach highway is amazing. 120 kilometers of wide sandy beach with small rivulets every now and again pouring fresh water out into the sea. Hitting one of these rivulets at speed can be disastrous and we saw two 4WDs disappear in walls of water. as they were caught out by the depth but luckily they came out OK. The traffic is two way so the “keep left” rule applies. Washed up on the beach is the wreck of the Maheno. She was a cruise ship built in the 1800’s in New Zealand. She served as a hospital ship in WW 1 and was eventually sold for scrap in the 30’s. Whilst under tow to be scrapped, the tow cable snapped and she washed up on the beach.

It was getting dark as we made our way back to the ferry. Photo of loading ferry at sunset.