Thargomindah is conveniently located between Eulo and Noccundra – two other Outback Queensland localities you’ve probably never heard of.  At over 1000 km (620 miles) west of Brisbane, it’s not a place you come across by chance. But there are plenty of things to do in Thargomindah. As part of the Adventure Way, a self-drive trail from Brisbane to Innamincka just over the South Australian border, it’s worth stopping over to see what this remote Outback area has to offer.

The Bulloo in Flood

The Bulloo River was in flood when we arrived.  And getting into Thargo, as the locals call it, meant crossing the river at the town’s eastern entrance.

That gave us a rare opportunity to test our camper trailer’s ability to withstand over 30 cm (12 inches) of flood waters over the causeway by driving through it.

Thargomindah’s hydro-electric scheme

When the bore was first drilled, water was first found at a 795 metre (2608 feet) depth.  With around 1300 cubic metres of water at 84 degrees C produced per day, the pressure was used to generate the town’s electricity supply, Australia’s first hydro-electric scheme.  The bore is part of Australia’s Great Artesian Basin, a network of underground aquifers covering 1.7 million square kilometres that makes living in many outback areas viable.

We did get to experience sunset at the bore though, when the steam rising from the hot water against a setting sun made wonderful photo opportunities. 

The importance of water in the Outback

When I first saw Frederick White’s sculpture ‘Drawing Water’ from a distance, I thought it was an unfinished public amenities block.  That’s how much I know about art.

But the sculpture is actually a clever reminder of Thargomindah’s reliance on bore water.  Its 52 poles symbolise the 4,700 bores that deliver a reliable source of water to Outback Australia, without which the area would be uninhabitable for much of the year.  The outback bore’s average depth of 500 metres (1640 feet) is represented by reflective discs in the centre. Ironically, these were covered in dust, with no sign of the floods that had isolated the town for several months earlier that year.

The manager of the Explorers Caravan Park where we stayed says rain often bypasses the town and falls further north in the catchment area, causing the river to flood. The amount of water lying in the street made us think it must rain quite often – but the street water came from sprinklers and hoses running 24/7 to ensure a ready supply of hot water from the bore.  Modifications completed since our visit ensures this no longer needs to happen.  But having a reliable water supply means that the townsfolk can have green lawns and gardens in the middle of the outback all year round.

Thargomindah Town Attractions

Start your search for things to do in Thargomindah at the Visitor Information Centre.  It’s located in the old Thargomindah hospital complex, also an historic museum.  Made from mud bricks, the building started life as a hospital in 1888.  Later it accommodated a visiting service from the Flying Doctor base in Charleville, and an outpatient clinic.  Mud brick buildings were common in the early days, but the old hospital is one of the few remaining buildings of this type.

Leahy House is also made from mud brick and now houses a museum. The house was once owned by Sir Sidney Kidman, the well known cattle baron.  Its permanent displays and exhibitions offer another insight into the history of the region, as does the Old Jail.

An old Cobb & Co crossing below the Bulloo River bridge is the start of the River Walk, and also part of the town heritage walk.  This dodgy and rocky river crossing was once the main access to town, meaning no access when the river was in flood.  In the 1890’s, Thargo was the centre for Cobb & Co coaches servicing the surrounding area, once the only way of moving between towns.

For a good introduction to the things to do in Thargomindah, take one – or all – of its three town walks.  The scenic Bulloo River Walk follows the river from the Cobb & Co Crossing to the Pelican Point Picnic area. The Heritage Walk winds through the town past buildings and sites of interest.  The Hydro Walk starts in town, passes the new bore and continues to the Hydro Power Plant display.

Lake Bindegolly National Park

Nearby Lake Bindegolly was completely dry on our first visit, making birdwatching a bit pointless.  The number of birds spotted as we trudged the 9.5 km (5.9 mile) circuit track around this dusty wasteland was easy to count. Zero.

Easily visible from the road, thousands of Great Crested Grebe were nesting.  We watched as they cavorted on the water around us, swimming, hunting, fighting, building nests, hatching eggs, playing dead when they spotted us. 

Back at the car was another problem.  Unable to manage parking in one of the many empty spots in this spacious car park, the only other tourist for miles had parked directly behind us. Whether she or he intended to box us in is unknown as we didn’t exchange words.  But it’s definitely possible she or he didn’t figure on Pilchard’s ability to execute a 17 point turn to extricate us, a masterclass in precision driving.

Thargomindah Fast Facts

• Where:  1000 km west of Brisbane, 200 km west of Cunnamulla
• How to get there:  Self-drive the Adventure Way, Thargomindah is on the Bulloo Developmental Road
• Facilities:  Supermarket (with hardware), Roadhouse (with meals), Pub, Post Office, Community Centre with internet access, Library, Swimming Pool, public park with Barbecues
• Where to Stay: Two motels and a caravan park in town, and a station stay 90 km south.

Want MORE?

• Lake Bindegolly National Park
• The Thargo Thunderbox – Thargo’s own scenic loo
• Nearby localities Noccundra, Eulo, Quilpie and Toompine
• More about the Bulloo Region

The post Things to do in Thargomindah, Outback Queensland appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.

Are you ready to return to that magical land of mountains awash with rocks and rainforest; steep passes, plunging waterfalls and patch-worked plains; green and glowing with magnificent sunsets?

What land is this?

It’s Australia’s amazing Scenic Rim Region that I introduced in Part One HERE! Don’t recall? Check it out NOW! I’ll wait …

… OK! You’re back!

So I don’t have to tell you again that the semi-circular Scenic Rim runs along the rugged ranges of the border between Queensland and New South Wales about an hour west of Australia’s far better known east coast hotspots like Byron Bay, the Gold Coast and Surfers Paradise. It’s not that far from Brisbane, either.

And I certainly wouldn’t dream of repeating myself to say it’s quite different to ANY of these – and most other places in Australia as well! SO … if you haven’t already put the Scenic Rim on your ‘MUST SEE’ list, do it NOW!

I’ll wait …

… Oh! You want MORE random adventures?

OK! Read ON!

The Lady of the Lake

Don’t hate me!

I’d spent SO much time using Lake Moogerah as a mere backdrop to (all modesty aside) stunning sunrise (see Part One), lovely landscape (see Flickr) and superb sunset (see below) photos, I hadn’t seen it as an attraction in its own right.

Despite its 8.27 km² surface area!

So on our last day in the Scenic Rim Region, we hired a boat – the same one shamelessly used as a sunset shot prop – from the Lake Moogerah Caravan Park and spent four fun-filled hours exploring the lake.

Reversing the usual vista of the lake from the shore was a master-stroke of staggering genius for both the birdo (Pilchard) and wannabe-photographer (Red) AND a cheap half-day out at only $60! If possible, the landscape – perfect but for the pall of smoke from yet another controlled burn-off – was even MORE sensational than from the shore.

Signs on the shoreline show the height reached by the dam during the rain events and flooding of January, 2011 which also flooded Brisbane. Cruising past the mass concrete double curvature arch dam wall with an ungated spillway that would have been several metres below us during those floods made what we’d seen on TV more real.

As we cruised Lake Moogerah’s long and varied shoreline, the four hours we’d hired the tinnie for disappeared in a flash!  Imagine how much MORE time we’d have needed if we’d actually gone fishing instead of indulging in a birding/photographic frenzy?!?

That’s why this lady sees a lot more of THAT lake in her future …

Mt Barney’s Lower Portals

Warnings about unmarked tracks, rockfalls and fitness requirements deterred us from scaling Mt Barney’s 1300+ metre high twin summits. Even the ‘safer’ walks around Mt Barney’s base were still riddled with hazards.

That’s if we could even get there without a 4WD!

But the imposing magnificence of the Mt Barney Peaks dominating the landscape en route from NSW town Woodenbong to Queensland town Rathdowney had cast their spell. And who knew when – or whether – we’d pass this way again?

So although a burn-off on one of the mountain’s flanks was scheduled on the day of our Mt Barney hike, the forecast suggested the prevailing winds would blow the smoke away. And heavy hiking boots would make short work of the washaways and moderate to steep gradients of the 7.4 km return Lower Portals trail.

We weren’t in any hurry!

A couple of kilometres, some magnificent forest and a kookaburra later, the wind changed direction and the valleys filled with a blue, smoky haze. Not just ‘smoky’, but ACTUAL SMOKE! I could see a long session at the Lake Moogerah campground laundry in my future – but in the meantime, it enhanced my photos superbly!

The campground at the track’s junction with Mt Barney Creek was the first I’d ever been to accessible only by foot, but its location beside the rocky gorges of the Lower Portals almost made me wish I’d carried my body weight in camping gear in so I could stay there.

ALMOST!

The most hazardous part of the hike, however, wasn’t the road in; thickening smoke; rocks in the creek; or challenging track conditions – but passing a group of what seemed like dozens of teenage boys addressing each other in the incomprehensible teen-speak of youth, pungent from the sweat and smoke of a 3-day camping trek around Mt Barney’s highlights as they headed back to the trailhead with the mindless dedication of a mass lemming migration.

Where’s the hazard, you ask?

Well … YOU try maintaining a steady pace – NO puffing or panting! – while climbing an astonishingly steep staircase as you respond (in a normal voice) to the polite greetings of the group and their minders! ALL with a smile on your non-red face!

I dare YOU to try it!

The Condamine River Valley

Our first visit to the Scenic Rim and we didn’t even know the Condamine River Valley existed.

A week later we’d seen this part of Australia’s longest river system twice!

From the New South Wales side, we drove the Lindesay Road, arguably Australia’s worst, from Woodenbong to Queen Mary Falls, then up the range to Carr’s lookout, and (arguably) one of Australia’s finest views across the Condamine Valley.

On that trip, we didn’t take the Head Road down into the valley.

But from Lake Moogerah, it’s a stunning drive through the valley then up an impossibly steep road to the scenic splendour of Carrs Lookout. There’s nowhere to hide on this narrow, steep and winding road, so hope like hell everyone else has seen the ‘not suitable for caravans’ warning signs!!

Tragically, the limitations of our vehicle meant we didn’t experience the 4WD-only Condamine River Road’s 14 creek crossings on the Cambanoora Gorge Circuit. So we took a superb morning tea at the Spring Creek Mountain Café just below Carrs Lookout as partial compensation for our disappointment.

It worked!

Cracking the Rocks at Mt French

At 468 metres above sea level, Mt French isn’t very high by either Australian OR Scenic Rim standards – and it’s SO off the radar by world standards! It’s the lowest of the four peaks that make up the Moogerah Peaks National Park. And it’s only a short drive to the top from Central Scenic Rim town Boonah!

But Mt French’s Logan’s Lookout is one of the highest points in the Fassifern Valley, thus giving great view over the much higher ranges to the south-west on the NSW/Queensland border. But the REAL attraction is the vertical fissuring which apparently makes this an internationally renowned ‘crack climbing crag’ – or so I am reliably informed.

On our late afternoon visit, there weren’t any climbers visible on Frog Buttress, the rocky outcrop at Mt French’s northern end where the crack rock climbers congregate. I guess once you’ve cracked the rock stacks, there’s nothing for it but to retreat to the Frog Buttress Campground.

And with a name like that AND a dose of cool Scenic Public Toilet, who wouldn’t want to stay there? Along with the crack-rock-climber-campers communing with nature via the enticing blend of electro-hip-hop-funky-c-rap spewing at a million decibels (give or take) from their appalling car sound system??

Perhaps crack-rock-climbing wasn’t the only ‘crack’ on offer!

Dang! Where DID I put those ear plugs??!!

Lake Moogerah Sunset

Amongst the detritus of the camera-battery-flattening array of Lake Moogerah shots my snap-happy shutter button finger (and I) took hour after punishing hour, there are a few sunset shots worth keeping.

Weirdly, all the good ones have props!

Taking a sunset stroll along Lake Moogerah’s shoreline became a habit on the nights with no rain, with one added bonus over the sunrise strolls – no one saw me in my pyjamas*!

Want MORE?

• Where is the Scenic Rim?
• Scenic Rim Region Activities and Attractions
• Lake Moogerah
• Mount Barney National Park
• Carrs Lookout and Condamine River Valley
• Mount French and Moogerah Peaks National Park
• Random Adventures in the Scenic Rim Part ONE
• MORE photos on Flickr HERE!

* See Lake Moogerah Sunrise in Part One

Previous Post: Adelaide, Autumn, and the Mt Lofty Botanic Garden 

NEXT Post: Tour the Yorke Peninsula via its BEST Scenic Loos! 

The post Random Adventures in the Scenic Rim Part TWO appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.

As Aussie road trips go, the Lions Road NSW isn’t the best known. Or the longest. Or even the most demanding! But this 50 km fully sealed stretch of road linking the Mt Lindesay Highway near Queensland town Beaudesert with the Summerland Way near New South Wales town Kyogle is one of the most scenic, unusual and intriguing stretches of road in Australia.

According to me, anyway.

I’ve travelled the iconic community owned and operated Lions road in July 2014 twice.

Once travelling north from Kyogle, NSW to Rathdowney, Queensland; then later that same day back south to Kyogle. The drive itself doesn’t take long if you’re just trying to get from A to B.

But as a self-drive tour, the Lions Road NSW with its eclectic mix of natural attractions, fascinating history and unusual points of interest is as good a day out as you’ll find almost anywhere!

Here are my TOP 7 reasons why!

1 The History

If you want something done, it’s sometimes quicker to just do it yourself!

After government funding for a road roughly following the interstate railway line through the McPherson ranges fell through in the mid-late 1960s, the Kyogle and Beaudesert Lions clubs joined forces to build a gravel road themselves.

Since its official opening in 1973, the communities raise funds for

maintenance and improvements via a donation box at the Queensland/New South Wales Border, and visitors to the area have the option of a shorter, scenic and more direct route south.

The construction history in the area goes back even further to the railway line – a project employing over 1500 people over four years – with one of Australia’s most historically significant railway engineering feats in Australia, the Spiral Loop.

2 The Spiral Loop

To the casual observer, the photo (below) shows a fairly standard landscape featuring a not-unattractive well-forested hill with an jagged-edged mountain range in the background.

But lurking beneath the contours, pixellations and wooded slopes is one of Australia’s most intriguing feats of railway engineering. To reduce the length of the Main Range tunnel a few kilometres north, trains gain (or lose) 20 metres of altitude by passing through the mountain below the lookout twice, completing a loop. Naturally, given our national penchant for clear naming conventions, the whole structure is known as the ‘Spiral Loop’!

According to the Kyogle Council Visitor Information Guide, Neville Bonner (first Indigenous politician) was the first person to travel from QLD to NSW through the main tunnel. When he was a child, his stepfather worked on the line, and Neville was passed through the hole when the tunnel broke through!

Tragically, the daily passenger train from Brisbane generally passes through the loop and tunnel VERY early in the morning. So rather than risk a dark, frosty drive during our mid-winter stay in Kyogle, we planned a Sunday drive to catch the mid-morning goods train – which we would have done if not for a FLAT TYRE! So I leave you with this photo (above) of a passenger train passing the Kyogle Caravan Park instead!

Just as well a visit to the lookout is interesting in its own right, right?!?! Here’s a list of other things to do there (in no particular order):

a) Admire the Scenic Public Toilet!

b) Watch the birds (feathered)

c) Play ‘Spot the Trainspotter’

d) Walk the Border Loop Track!

3 Border Loop Track

From the Border Loop Lookout, the Border Loop Track is a 1.2 km easy stroll through a stand of wet eucalypt forest before entering the dense rainforest of the Border Ranges.

It’s an insight into the difficulties in constructing a railways roads through thick, tick-infested scrub over rugged and mountainous terrain!

4 The Viaduct

At the junction of the High and Low roads, a few kilometres north of ‘The Risk’ – the locality off the Summerland way where the Lions Road NSW starts just 19 km north-west of Kyogle – the Viaduct towers above Gradys Creek. From here, the Low road follows the railway line more closely before re-joining the High Road a few kilometres north.

But for me, the Viaduct is just another compelling reason (along with the Spiral Loop) to make the trip across the ranges by train one day!

5 New South Wales/ Queensland Border

There are a few good reasons to stop at the border. Here they are, in no particular order:

a) Make a donation. All funds raised from the donation box go to the Kyogle and Beaudesert Councils for maintenance and improvements of the road.

b) Check your rig for runaway rabbits! Because bringing a rabbit across the border into Queensland (that’s what EVERYONE wants to do, right?) will attract a fine of up to $44000.

Who knew?!

c) Admire the scenery (see 1st photo above). It’s REALLY worth it! Especially the view looking from the New South Wales side down the range – and extraordinarily steep road – into Queensland.

d) Take a photo or two, or two hundred. And be grateful I haven’t uploaded ALL the photos I managed to take in the few minutes we stopped at the border gate to Facebook.  There’s plenty – read: ‘more than enough’ – here, right?!

6 Andrew Drynan Park

Across the border, down the road and round the corner – actually, make that LOTS of corners and many crossings of Running Creek – the Andrew Drynan Park with its picnic area and campground is a great place to stop and admire the superb scenery.

And a scenic amenities block is one of the BEST reasons to stop! Or is that just me?!

7 Rathdowney

A turn-off to the left just before the Lions Road meets the Mt Lindesay Highway at Innisplain ends at Rathdowney, where we turned around for the return leg of our Lions Road NSW odyssey.

Gateway to the magnificent ranges of the Scenic Rim, including Mt Lindesay and Mt Barney, the small town of Rathdowney is a great base to explore the Rim’s eastern reaches.

But that’s another story!!

Lions Road: Fast Facts!

Name: Named for the Lions Clubs, not Mt Lion, part-way along the road

Start: The Risk, 19 km north-west of Kyogle on the Summerland Way

End: Innisplain, 24 km south of Beaudesert on the Mt Lindesay Highway

Traffic: Over 100,000 vehicles per annum

Distance: 50 km

Surface: Fully sealed

Restrictions:  Please NOTE that some vehicle height and weight restrictions may apply.  Please check before taking this route if you are towing, or if your vehicle is high.

Age: 40^th anniversary celebrated in 2013

Scenic Public Toilets: Two, one at the Border Loop Lookout; and the other at Andrew Drynan Park

Want MORE?

• The Lions Road
• Kyogle, New South Wales
• Rathdowney, Queensland
• Woodenbong, NSW (just across the border)
• Book:  “The Lions Road” (by Jack (JD) Hurley OAM)

The post 7 Reasons to Road-trip the Lions Road NSW appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.

It’s the bird du jour around almost any given sub-tropical picnic area and car park, so it should have been easy to get a good shot.  However, my shots of Australian Brush-turkey in the dark depths of Natural Bridge*, part of Springbrook National Park’s lushly magnificent rainforest, all had something missing.

Clarity.

Although it was mid-afternoon this warm and sunny July day, the sun had already well and truly set at the bottom of the valley.

We’d descended the 1 km circuit trail, and a dank chill was rising from the rushing stream below.

Natural Bridge was formed by erosion and weathering by the full force of the creek flowing into the valley. It is actually a hole in the rock where water rushes into a grotto below.

As we left the park, the otherworldly gloom of this abundant and spectacular rainforest reserve fell behind us.  We emerged onto the New South Wales road – aglow with bright, late-afternoon sunlight.

• Natural Bridge
• Australian Brush-turkey (Alectura lathami)
• Springbrook National Park

* Natural Bridge is also known as ‘Natural Arch’

The post Beauty at Natural Bridge! appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.

‘I would NOT like to fall down there,’ the backpacker remarked to his mates with that peculiarly British mixture of overconfident understatement and blinding obvious as he stared down into the depths of the crater.

They nodded wisely, unsure whether or not they’d heard something profound, but deciding to play it safe.

Banal though his utterance was, however, he was right. 58 metres (193 feet) WAS a long way down to the green water-weed infested pool at the bottom of the crater. And I didn’t want to fall down there either.

Acrophobics* like me clung to the heavy duty railing to peer over the edge. Mt Hypipamee’s famous crater was giving me the heebie-jeebies. I wondered how long it would take a falling object – say, a human sacrifice – to hit the green depths far below the crater rim.

I didn’t have to wonder for too long.

The backpacker’s girlfriend picked up a stick and casually twirled it like a baton as she glanced at me sideways. Come to think of it, they were ALL glancing at me sideways as they hogged the railing, showing none of the usual tourist hot-spot etiquette whereby each gets an equal turn at the best photo vantage point.

It was pretty obvious I was the only one not of their kind with my tan, thongs and 20+ year head start.  What were they looking at? My hair-dye job wasn’t THAT bad, was it?

After shooting around them without using my elbows for their god-given purpose as they continued to take up most of the viewing space at the railing, I’d taken as many photos as I could. Their glances were really starting to creep me out.

What were they waiting for? A human sacrifice??

Approximately 5.918 seconds later the stick hit the water, trailing greenly through the native waterweed on its surface.

Judging by the number of similar trails in the water, I guessed she wasn’t alone in ‘testing’ the depth of the water.

What we couldn’t see, however, was the depth of the pool beneath the protective waterweed layer. Estimated at around 82 metres (273 feet) deep, the pool lay still and silent, or would have but for the stick-and-stone-throwing tourists.

Managers of the stunning Millaa Millaa caravan park where we’d based ourselves in July 2011 on the Tablelands above Cairns in Far North Queensland had given us a list of local attractions. One of several was Mt Hypipamee National Park on the southern Evelyn Tableland and within the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area.

Although due to a little flirtation with the facts its technically incorrect colloquial name – ‘The Crater’ – is pure Aussie overstatement. More accurately known as a diatreme or volcanic pipe, it’s thought to have been formed by gas from an underground explosion that expanded to form this deep, cylindrical hole.**

The fact sheet suggested the we look out for platypi*** in the pool and I’d assumed them to be the cause of the waterweed trails. But now I knew the REAL explanation, I wondered if it were possible for platypi – or indeed any creature that couldn’t escape the pool’s closed ecosystem – to survive.

Where was a Platypus Whisperer when you needed one?

On a previous trip to the area, we’d discovered Pilchard’s remarkable talent for spotting platypi, as like the Pied Piper of Yungaburra, he’d seen them at every turn along a river walk. After a while, I and the delighted Swiss family trailing in his wake gave up looking for them ourselves, and just waited for him to point them out.

But Pilchard, the only Platypus Whisperer I know, was busy at the forest edge (aka ‘carpark’) with a couple of other twitchers**** spotting North Queensland endemic Golden Bowerbird (Prionodura newtoniana) high in the trees above.

Later we would go to a TOP SECRET location through leech-dripping rainforest to see the Bowerbird’s bower – with only one use, the avian equivalent of a teenage boy’s chick-magnet hot-rod (I’ve included a mediocre picture of it to satisfy your prurient curiousity) (oh, and you’re now one of not very many people in the world who’ve seen a Golden Bowerbird’s bower)(albeit virtually).

But a more than passing knowledge of the mating habits of bowerbirds wasn’t going to help me with the platypi question. And neither were the backpackers who, having confirmed the depth of the diatreme wasn’t an illusion with their scientific stick, left in a gaggle, speaking loudly of their impending pub-crawl.

And now, gazing into the green waterweed down the green, green vegetation clinging to the granite wall 70 metres (233 feet) away on the other side was making my eyes go funny. If there WERE platypi, they hadn’t made an appearance yet.

I peered more closely into the depths. Was there a movement?

Forget the platypi.  Could there be a Ness-like monster lurking in the depths, trapped by time and a prehistoric explosion?

I wondered whether the Mt Hypipamee Crater had ever claimed a victim. A little introspection goes a long way in a place like this Or maybe I just needed to get back to normality.

That is, if a group of twitchers intent on hunting down a (feathered) bird’s love nest was normal. But it says a lot for the Mt Hypipamee Heebie-Jeebies that as I emerged from the rainforest into the relative sanity of the car park, it was!!

* Acrophobia = fear of heights

** According to the Tablelands Parks and Forests brochure produced by Queensland Parks & Wildlife Service

*** Platypi = more than one platypus

**** twitcher = birdwatcher

Want MORE?

• Mt Hypipamee National Park (The Crater)
• Millaa Millaa Tourist Park
• Atherton Tablelands, Far North QueenslandC

The post The Hypipamee Heebie-jeebies … appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.

I’ve spent my entire life on Islands large and small. But only if you count Australia! Some say it’s the world’s biggest island, some the smallest continent, others don’t actually care …

But me? Of COURSE it’s an island! Anything to add more bragging rights another world class experience to my loud, proud Aussie portfolio!

So narrow the field even further and follow me around OZ for my Idiosyncratic Individualised 5-Island Introduction!

1.  For … ‘Idyllic‘, try Magnetic Island, Far North Queensland!

So much more than the twanging tourists and wandering wildlife I’ve previously described (see below), Magnetic Island perfectly combines natural attractions with niceties; charm with convenience; and laid back lifestyle with luxury.

Only 8 km offshore from Townsville, it’s easy to get to Magnetic Island by ferry, and even easier to stay … National parks, beaches and bays, a variety of accommodation and dining options (yes! a bakery!) and its own public transport system make this island an archetypal idyllic tropical paradise!

2.  For ‘Incomparable‘, try Lord Howe Island, New South Wales!

The high incidence of world class attractions ensures this small island 600 km off the New South Wales coast a steady stream of visitors and makes it one of my all time favourite Australian travel destinations. It’s also the scene of my one and only triathlon attempt … but that’s another story (see link below)!

Lord Howe Island’s well deserved world heritage status manifested in staggering scenery, numerous endemics and fascinating history is best experienced over as lengthy a period of time as you can afford. Add to that (arguably) the most scenic public toilet in Australia AND a bakery, and you’d be ill-advised to ignore this incomparable island!

3.  For ‘Incredible‘, try Griffiths Island, Victoria!

Migrating muttonbirds (Short-tailed Shearwater) manage the 15,000 km flight from their home in the Aleutian Islands and Kamchatka Peninsula so as to arrive at their nesting grounds on Griffiths Island within 3 days of 22^nd September every year!! Incredible!

As is the engineering feat that combined two islands into one at the mouth of Port Fairy’s Moyne River, and the island’s interesting history and glorious scenery. Every day at sundown, the muttonbirds return from the sea to roost and feed their chicks in their nesting burrows – an incredible sight which one day we’ll get to see!

4.  For ‘Intriguing‘, try Kangaroo Island, South Australia!

Australia’s 3^rd largest island, this eclectic mixture of unspoiled beaches, Remarkable Rocks (their actual name!), seal colonies, lighthouses, sand dunes, national parks and the purest strain of Ligurian bees in the world is one of South Australia’s premier attractions.

With a number of settlements, a strong eco-tourism presence and a plethora of natural attractions (a study once named Vivonne Bay the top beach in Australia) ‘KI’, as it is known downunder, is South Australia’s answer to the northern tropics!

5.  For ‘Infamous‘, try the Abrolhos Islands, Western Australia!

If mutiny and shipwreck, with theft, murder, rape, a psychopathic anti-hero and the general breakdown of civilisation in the 106 days before rescue sounds a little too much like ‘Extreme Survivor’, then you probably don’t want to read the sensational true story of the Batavia, wrecked off the Western Australian coast on the Albrohos islands in 1629!

This compelling tale of degeneration, dastardly deeds and despair on the islands has been the subject of many studies, novels, films and TV series, but it’s probably too melodramatic to say I’m dying to visit one day!!

Happily, Perth Daily Photo supplied these pictures from her friend and mentor Bill, whose excellent Bill’s Diving Blog has even more photos of these infamous islands, now home to much less sensational ecotourism pursuits!

Yes, I know.

It’s all too beautiful, isn’t it?

And you want to see it for yourself, right??

So what are you waiting for?

Enjoy!

The post Aussie ABC – I is for Islands! appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.

Cairns is one of the best Australian travel destinations – and I’ve got the photos to prove it! This laid back city 2000 km north of Brisbane between World Heritage Listed Rainforest and the Great Barrier Reef, has come a long way from its sugar-cane farming roots to become Far North Queensland’s tourist hub.

Cairns has just as much to offer travellers seeking cheap holidays as it does to those looking for luxury! In fact, the only problem will be limiting your visit to a week!!

Luckily, I’ve been travelling to Cairns for 20+ years – the time period over which these photos were taken – and Pilchard even longer!  So use our 7 Day Cairns sampler itinerary guide to get you started …

Day 1: Cairns Botanic Gardens

The pint-sized bag-snatcher at the Cairns Botanic Gardens Cafe was probably a one-off. No, really!! The toddler who picked up my handbag didn’t take kindly to Pilchard’s attempts to remove it from her grubby grasp.

Attracted by the shrieks, her rampaging mother berated Pilchard for making her darling cry, gave the child my bag to play with and turned back to her glass of wine table. With a) child clutching b) the handbag.

Now you tell me. Was it so unreasonable for Pilchard to insist on its return?

Sadly, this whole stultifying display of disturbed parenting could have been avoided if only I’d taken my handbag with me to the ladies room …

Happily, in addition to the Scenic Public Toilet, the large Cairns Botanic Gardens complex is full of distractions, with wonderful displays of tropical plants; several interpretive trails, magnificent butterflies and brightly coloured birds!

Although ‘wild boar’ sounds so much more exotic than ‘feral pig’, they’re both equally destructive when crashing through the undergrowth on the mangrove boardwalk through to the Centenary Lakes picnic area. Although I’d rather meet a wild pig than an unsupervised homo-sapiens (juv) allowed to run amok by overindulgent parents …

Spending the whole day in the gardens is easy – the 6.6 km Mt Whitfield trail loop gives splendid views over the busy international airport and Cairns itself. But I’m not sure if the group of school kids led by two young and ever so perky teachers we dodged on the track were a fair replacement for the cassowaries once common in the area.

Day 2: North to Port Douglas

The block of land for sale a few metres below the Port Douglas Lookout platform has the same staggering view. But would that be enough to counteract the 24/7 comings and goings above? Maybe the local residents were on to something when they tried to get the lookout closed …

The Lady Douglas probably isn’t the ritziest craft to cruise Dixon Inlet – but I’ll bet she’s the classiest! And if you want to take a look behind the scenes of what once was a small fishing village but is now amongst Australia’s most expensive real estate, the inlet is awash with wildlife – including crocodiles!

Time it right and attend – or miss, depending on your point of view – the Port Douglas markets, but whatever you do, DON’T miss Mocka’s Pies! This FAAAAABULOUS Bakery (come back for the cheese pasty, potato & pea pie, apple, lemon meringue – hell, come back for ANYTHING) has the well-deserved distinction of being our ALL TIME favourite!!!!

Day 3: Northern Beaches

Although the artificial lagoon, sandy beach and infinity pool are a good substitute for lack of foreshore beach, nothing beats the real thing! And heading north, the real thing is abundant starting about 20 km from the CBD.

Spend a day exploring all the beaches; or stay on one beach all day; or take an extra day and do both!! From the unspoiled excellence of Wangetti Beach (below the hang glider launch spot I’ll always be too gutless to try) to the ritz of Palm Cove; Ellis Beach between the highway and sea to the fabulous curve of Trinity Beach; Yorkeys Knob cliff and marina to the vast sand flats and rock wall at Machans – eateries, picnic and BBQ areas, walks, birdlife … there’s something for everyone!

Take your pick – and if you got it wrong, try again tomorrow!!

Day 4: Esplanade … and Cairns itself

Want a perfect day on the Cairns Esplanade?

WELL … my guest post on 52 Perfect Days will tell all!!

But because I’m a tease nice person, here’s a glimpse!!

Of course Cairns is much more than its foreshore! There’s shopping and eating precincts – yes, a bakery or two – the Visitor Information Centre, galleries, restaurants, museums … do I need to spell it out??

Day 5: Outdoors in the Rainforest …

Snakes, goannas, birds, butterflies, hungover backpackers – I’ve yet to visit Crystal Cascades without finding something interesting to watch!

This popular series of swimming holes on – you guessed it – Crystal Creek buried deep in the rainforest is a water supply access point but walkers can take the track for 1.2 km to the barrier for a taste of REAL rainforest and wildlife. Near the start of the trail, a track – classified as ‘strenuous’ and ‘rough’ – heads almost vertically upwards to Copperlode Dam in the ranges far above …

… and as if to prove it’s not all sunshine and serenity in the tropics, the temperature dropped 8ºC in the 25 km drive from Cairns CBD up the ranges to Copperlode Dam aka Lake Morris, 365 metres above sea level. And the hot soup that sounded so ridiculous in the balmy, high 20’s temperature on the coast was more than welcome in our efforts to counteract the chill wind!

It’s best to be sober when attempting this steep, twisting track with several one-way sections, and breathtaking (aka ‘hyperventilating’) dropaways, often being repaired after heavy rain at which time they become ‘washaways’ … But the stupendous views on each side of the range show just how much unexplored rainforest remains.

Ambitious walkers undaunted by the steep gradient can attempt further exploration on the 3km track dropping straight down from the dam to Crystal Cascades below …

Day 6: Islands

‘Tropical paradise’ is such a cliché – there’s only so much blue sky/clear water/white sand/palm trees you can take, right?

Perhaps. But a trip to the Frankland Islands or Green Island will leave you begging for more, cliché or no!

Trust me.

Day 7: Skyrail and Kuranda Scenic Railway

Despite the jaw-dropping views above the unspoiled World Heritage listed rainforest canopy to the spectacular Cairns coastline, acrophobics* may find the 7.5 km Skyrail cable-car journey from Cairns to Kuranda (or vice versa) ‘challenging’.

But luckily, a couple of stops for the rainforest interpretive centre and Barron Falls lookout break the journey and allow equilibrium to be regained before another 6 person gondola – and the next leg!

But is going up the Kuranda Range by Skyrail any worse for acrophobics than dropping nearly 300 metres through 15 tunnels and across 40 rickety bridges crossing drop-away chasms down the super-steep Barron Gorge if returning via the 34 km Kuranda Scenic Railway?

As a recovering acrophobic I unreservedly recommend both trips – just breathe normally into that paper bag while taking photos all the way. And don’t look down …

Well, how quickly 7 Days can pass!

And I haven’t even started on heading south to the other side of Trinity Inlet, the Goldsborough Valley, and Gordonvale’s Cane Toad World!

Or west to the Atherton Tablelands …

That’s another 7 Days all by itself!!

I developed this 7 day guide based on visits to Cairns totalling MANY weeks over 20+ years!  Photos all taken 2009-2011, except the Kuranda train (1998) as that pic was better than the ones I have from later trips.

*Acrophobia= fear of heights

Want MORE?

• Not quite enough photos here, right? There’s plenty more on Flickr !!
• Cairns and Tropical North Queensland
• Cairns and Tropical North Visitor Information Centre
• What I’ve done in and around Cairns
• My other 7 Days in … Guides

The post 7 Days in … Cairns! appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.

I’ve yet to meet a Calcareous Concretion I didn’t like.

Although there’s some confusion about exactly where that magical Moon Rock meeting is likely to be. My first sighting in Outback Queensland’s Richmond was supposed to be ‘unique to the Richmond Shire’ according to the town guide.

BUT … I’d clocked up several hundred Moon Rock sightings before heading a few hundred kilometres south-west, where a data sheet from Boulia’s Stone House Museum outlines the geological forces that formed – yes, you guessed it – the BOULIA Calcareous Concretions!

Richmond’s dubious claims of Moon Rock uniqueness are weakened further by calcareous concretion presence in the Gogo formation of the Kimberley, Western Australia. Happily, my razor-sharp mind immediately resolved this discrepancy!

Calcareous Concretions are a feature of the Toolebuc formation, left when Australia’s vast inland sea dried up after covering much of what is now Outback Queensland – including both Richmond and Boulia!! QED …

Of course the most common form of calcareous concretion is the pearl – I therefore stand by my opening sentence – but other than formation method, the pearl and the Moon Rock are completely dissimilar …

However, although Moon Rocks can be seen in Boulia and the Kimberley, the fossil fossicking grounds of the Richmond shire, where FOSSILHUNTER once roamed (and shall roam again!), is their heartland.

Ranging in size from tiny to immoveable, you can’t throw a fossil-bearing rock without hitting some evidence of Richmond’s widespread exploitation of the Moon Rock’s decorative qualities.

The commemorative cairn, a grim or happy reminder (depending on your politics and point of view) of ex-Queensland premier Sir Joh Bjelke-Petersen who opened the Flinders Highway that bisects the town, is made of various smaller sized Moon Rocks.

But there’s no evidence that they in any way resemble the pumpkin scones made famous by Sir Joh’s wife, Lady Flo Bjelke-Petersen …*

A scattering of larger Moon Rocks lurk in the gardens below the Lakeview Caravan Park around the wonderful Fred Tritton Lake (above), a feature of Richmond’s ingenuity and an understandably popular local gathering spot.

But if you want to see Moon Rocks in their natural habitat, drive out to Cambridge Crossing on the Stawell River, 40 km from Richmond.

The riverbed, mostly dry on our June, 2011 visit gave no clue to the forces that pushed these Moon Rocks up against the crossing bed when the river flowed.

Luckily, the temptation to crack open a Moon Rock’s hard casing and cut through the limestone layer to discover the fossil or crytal that formed its nuclei was thwarted by the absence of a rock pick. Well, actually a jackhammer …

So here’s one someone prepared earlier!

A pile of Moon Rocks cleared from the riverbed and crossing didn’t look THAT big – until I stood next to them!

And remember I’m not a small person … although I’m still wondering how Pilchard’s photo of me and the Moon Rocks (below) was mysteriously photo-shopped to make me look fat …

While I salivate at the memory of top notch Bakery goods from the mysteriously named Moon Rock café at world class dinosaur fossil museum Kronosaurus Korner … they’ve really got nothing to do with the rest of this post  Just put it down to Moon Rocks in my head …

Richmond residents clearly come by THEIR Moon-Rocks-on-the-brain obsession honestly because it’s here, during the biennial Richmond Fossil Festival that the World Champion Moon Rock-throwing competition is held!

SO … if you’ve got the $AUD5.00 entry fee, and can throw a 23 kg (50 lb) Moon Rock more than 5.04 metres, you just MIGHT topple 2011 World Champ David Ievers in May 2012 and grab yourself a world championship title!!

Me, I think I’ll take my chances with the pearls …

Want more information?

• FOSSILHUNTER
• Moon Rocks
• World Champion Moon Rock-throwing Competition, 2018
• Kronosaurus Korner and Richmond

* Forgive me the indulgence of this gratuitous history lesson – Although Sir Joh Bjelke-Petersen and his wife, Lady Flo Bjelke-Petersen were Queensland’s first couple 1968-87, these controversial and colourful figures were well known throughout Australia. He for his policies that allowed controversial development unsullied by such considerations as standard approval processes, and allegations of corruption; she for the fabulous pumpkin scones for which she will always be remembered despite later becoming a senator in her own right.

The post Only in OZ #19 – Moon Rock-Throwing World Championships, Richmond, Queensland appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.

There’s only one town in Australia furthest from the sea – in EVERY direction!

Surprisingly, to me at least, it’s NOT in Central Australia! Australia’s weird continental shape means the geographic centre is relatively close to the Great Australian Bight to the south, and the Gulf of Carpentaria to the north.

No, the title of furthest from the sea currently belongs Eromanga, a small Western Queensland Outback boulder opal mining town.  Ironically Eromanga was once the site of a vast inland sea – a feature that’s replicated every now and again when the Cooper Basin is in flood …

But the title isn’t all there is to Eromanga!!

Eromanga is also the site of the largest dinosaur fossil remains yet found in OZ, and produces the most oil of any Australian region. Combine this with ‘Opalopolis Park’, a beautifully maintained picnic area right next door to the excellent local museum (get the key from the pub down the road!) showing a well produced video highlighting town and regional attractions and history, and you just might be tempted to stop over in the caravan park for the night.

I’m not sure who actually triangulated the map coordinates to bestow this title on Eromanga, but I’m not about to argue.  Others have – but so far no alternative site has been identified.

Nor is it likely to be without a lot more work and research.  So until the title is bestowed elsewhere, I’m not going to rock the boat.

Not when I get such a thrill out of telling people I’ve been to Australia’s furthest service station from the sea!!

Want MORE?

• Eromanga Map
• Eromanga
• Eromanga Fossil Finds
• Eromanga Boulder opal

Later edit (21/02/2012)

Here’s some additional information and clarification in response to some of the comments below!

1.  Julie queried my claim that Eromanga was the largest oil producing region in Australia.  Certainly, Barrow Island production appears to be greater, but I was convinced I’d seen a claim for Eromanga, so I returned to my source documents where I found the following:
‘Eromanga is the largest oil producing area in mainland Australia …’ (from the ‘Quilpie Shire “simply unique” pamphlet available from the Visitor Information Centre).

So Julie – we’re kind of both right!  But my bad – I left out that vital word ‘mainland’!!

2.  Grey Roamer gave the generally accepted position for Australia’s geographic Centre as Lambert Centre.  While this isn’t in dispute in this post as the town or place furthest from the ocean is not necessarily the geographic centre, the details may be of interest to those who, like me, want to know these things!

The Australian Government Geoscience Australia official website gives a number of interpretations for how to determine the geographic centre.  Interestingly, it also gives an interpretation of how to find the furthest point from the coastline … and it’s NOT Eromanga!!!  But it’s not a definitive science as you’ll see from the website …

Thanx to both for your information, and apologies for any confusion caused by my post!!

The post Signs #19 – Where’s the Ocean? Eromanga, Queensland appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.

It’s amazing how easy – and fun – it is to compose doggerel a new stanza for my favourite RED Aussie things!

AND what better way to celebrate this fabulous Australia Day with some new RED OZ stuff!!

I’m a loud and proud Aussie – so of course I’m going to show off all the OZ good bits to inspire you to travel downunder to, and/or explore Australia!! My recent post ‘H is for Holiday’ showcased some amazing Aussie holiday spots Pilchard and I have visited over the last ~21 years. But I’m sure there are amazing spots in YOUR country too. So my REAL message is – don’t put off finding the world’s wondrous and fantastic places – wherever they are! Get out and explore – then show the rest of the world what you’ve found! Wherever you are, cheap holidays are within everyone’s grasp – work out what you want to do and make it happen!!

But in the meantime, whether you’re an armchair traveller, or just looking for some downunder entertainment and escapism, sit back and enjoy the Australia Day edition of My FavouRED OZ Things! For the full as-Red-Nomad-OZ-intended experience, sing the words to the tune of ‘My Favourite Things’* I can’t guarantee it’ll sound better (it doesn’t when I sing!!), but YOU’LL feel great! And that’s what counts!!

Happy Australia Day!!

RED leaves in Autumn;

RED Aussie wildflowers.

RED Outback landscapes that go on for hours;

RED rusting old buildings;

RED-tailed black cockatoo;

RED HOT gidgee coals for our camp-oven stew!

Footprints in RED sand; and

Giant RED rock stacks.

RED OZ kangaroos; and

Long RED camel race-tracks!

(insert picture of yourself here!)

REDNomad OZ readers; and

RED skies at night

These FavouREDOZ Things fill my heart with delight!

When in DANGER;

When the tree stings;

When the roads are bad …

I’m so lucky to have all my FavouREDOZ Things,

And all those good times I’ve had!

Want MORE?

• My FavouRED OZ Things #1
• My FavouRED OZ Things #2
• Aussie ABC – H is for Holiday

* Apologies, as always, to Rodgers & Hammerstein for shamelessly exploiting paying homage to their ‘My Favourite Things’ from ‘The Sound of Music’

** Photos by Pilchard

The post My FavouRED OZ Things #3*!! appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.