COLLINSVILLE & EUNGELLA, CENTRAL QUEENSLAND

After a week or two in Bowen our friends Neil and Sue arrived from South Australia. They bought our first Bushtracker so of course we had to take them to see around our neighbourhood. First we headed toward Collinsville and then on to Bowen River. Before we got to the pub we stopped to check out Strathmore homestead which was a very grand place in its heyday but is a bit sad these days. The property was once very big into breeding horses but is now mainly cattle, although we did see a large herd of deer which surprised us.

Strathmore homestead today.



The deer are well camouflaged. Can you see them?



Our next stop was Bowen River Hotel where we enjoyed taking a look through all the memorabilia before a lovely lunch on the verandah, accompanied by the local butcher birds.

The historic Bowen River Pub, built from raw cut timber slabs.

Chris, Hope and John

Inside the pub.

John and I had been up this way a couple of times before so we knew the best spot on the river to camp. We spent two great days there fishing, bird watching and enjoying the beautiful weather etc.

Our lovely camp on the Bowen River.

John keeps an eye open for crocs. They frequent these waters.

What ya doing Poppy?

Catchin' fish darlin'!

The next part of our trip took us back past Strathmore and on to Collinsville and roads which were completely new to us. We headed south on the Mt Coolon Road then turned east just past Birralee and headed through the hinterland toward Eungella. There are several river crossings with potential good camps but most were somewhat washed out from the recent rains. We eventually found a lovely little spot after we had turned off the Nebo road and followed the water pipeline toward Eungella Dam. Again, it was lovely to be able to sit out in the bush beside a campfire and enjoy the company of good friends.

The countryside west of Eungella - rolling green hills after a good rainy season.

Continuing on toward Eungella it was only a short time before we arrived at Eungella Dam. The campground here is very extensive and includes toilets and a cold shower. The fees are very cheap and the fishing must be OK as several other groups arrived on the Friday with tinnies etc. obviously looking forward to a weekend on the water. We spent two nights at the Dam, where there were heaps of water birds to be seen as well as some friendly local livestock. It was a good base from which to drive in to Broken River and Eungella for an initial look around.

Eungella Dam

Hope and her best mate.

 

Another visitor enjoyed bread, carrots etc.

Do I really have to wear this  Hope?

At Broken River Neil and I got distracted from the platypus viewing by the abundance of birds so we missed the appearance of a platypus who hung around on the surface for several minutes. Fortunately, Sue, John and Hope all got to see it so we were pretty chuffed.

 

A fig at Broken River has almost engulfed its host tree.

Broken River tortoise.

We then took a drive into Eungella itself and had a drink at the Chalet, taking in the magnificent views down the Pioneer Valley.

The view from Eungella Chalet.

From the Dam we towed the vans into Eungella and set up at the local caravan park which sits right on the top of the escarpment. The views here are probably some of the most spectacular you will find from the window of your van.

Eungella Caravan Park - not a place to be wandering around in the dark!

There were beautiful fungi in abundance up here.

 

Unfortunately, the weather was not too kind, with scuds of rain passing through but we still enjoyed a drive along Dalrymple Road to another family friend’s place. Again the birdlife was abundant and the scenery impressive.

Pioneer Valley from Dalrymple Road.

That afternoon Neil, Sue and I took a stroll on the rainforest walk from the Sky Window car park back to Eungella village. There weren’t too many birds to be seen inside the forest, although we could hear whipbirds, wampoo pigeons and lots of others calling all around us. Unfortunately we didn’t get a glimpse of the elusive Eungella honeyeater, but we did get to see lots of others at Broken River in particular.

Fig trees and fungi seen on our rainforest walk.

 

We walked across to the Chalet that night for dinner which was nothing special but pleasant enough. Next day, after a visit to the local markets,  we headed down the eastern escarpment and along the Pioneer Valley to Pinnacle where we treated ourselves to one of the famous Pinnacle Pub pies.

Chris, Hope, John Neil and Sue at Pinnacle Pub.

The Pinnacle Pie - yum!!

We also visited a very interesting little second-hand shop in Gargett which has an amazing range of old and not so old second-hand goods for sale. We continued on toward Calen, intending to stay at a lovely little spot called Boulder Creek. John and I had spent a night here after we picked Hope up. It was very disappointing however to discover the campground chocker-block full with other vans etc. – a result no doubt of this spot being listed in the Camps book. While the book is very useful, it is also causing lots of the camps to be “loved to death”. We continued on and had a look at the campground where the locally famous Winter Moon Festival is held but it wasn’t really appealing to us so we drove on to Calen and after showing Neil and Sue through the wonderful old general store at Calen (a must if you like looking in shops which stock absolutely everything from Volley tennis shoes to the classic old hand-style beef mincers). They have stock there in the original boxes which date back to the fifties.

From Calen, Neil and Sue continued north and we went south across the bridge over the St Helens river and booked into the caravan park at Kolijo for a couple of days so that we could take Hope home without towing the van for miles more. It is a particularly pleasant caravan park and the facilities were very good for $25 a night. This little add on trip was really great for us as we got to see some really lovely parts of our own backyard which we hadn’t seen before and with great company to boot. Thanks Neil and Sue!

 

SCENIC RIM - SOUTH-EAST QUEENSLAND

We entered Queensland via Warwick and took the Cunninghm Highway to the Gorge Campground near Aratula. This campground is very cheap but quite pleasant. The amenities are very basic with cold showers unless you want to light the ‘donkey’ heater, but there is plenty of room and it is quiet. It was nice to be able to have a campfire too as the nights were getting cooler.

John & Leo enjoy the fire at the Gorge Campground, Aratula.

The views as you head toward the coast are quite spectacular.

 

From Aratula we continued on to Boonah amd Beaudesert then on to Canungra where we decided to stay at James Sharp Park, which is 4 klms south, beside the Coomera River on Beechmont Road. This is a lovely spacious park with very clean toilets and excellent fire pits etc. There are no showers but the river is fine for a dip. There are heaps of birds around as well. If you want to be closer to town there are very good facilities at the Canungra Recreation Ground as well.

James Sharp Park, Canungra

The Scenic Rim encompasses the mountains, plateaus and peaks to the west and south of Brisbane. Our first trip was a drive up to Mount Tamborine. The view from the mountain is spectacular and there are some very interesting little stores, markets and restaurants in the village. We decided to take a look at the Botanic Gardens. While they aren’t huge they have an impressive array of flowering shrubs such as camellias, magnolias, azaleas and rhododendrons. I imagine they would be really beautiful in the spring. There is also a lovely Japanese garden. We really enjoyed our stroll here.

Looking west from the Rotary Lookout at Mt Tamborine.

The Botanic Gardens at Mt Tamborine.

 

Next we drove back to Curtis Falls which are on Cedar Creek, and right in the middle of town. The walk down to the falls is really lovely and full of lovely big trees which are home to lots of birdlife. The falls themselves aren’t huge but very pretty. Further down the creek are Cedar Creek Falls which are much more spectacular. The Mountain is surrounded by National Parks so there are plenty of lovely walks as well as various lookouts.



There are some impressive trees along the walk to Curtis Falls.



 

Scrub turkey nest - Curtis Falls track.

Curtis Falls - Mt Tamborine

Although we didn’t have time to visit there, I would have been interested to visit “Our Lady Help of Christians Shrine” in the Marion Valley. At the shrine there are a number of Chapels which are used by various groups throughout the year for religious ceremonies. The shrine is on Beechmont Road, not far from the campground, and if you drive further on through Beechmont, you can also visit Binna Burra Mountain Lodge or you could go back through Canungra and head out to O’Reilly’s Rainforest Retreat, one of the original holiday lodges built in the area and an iconic place in the Rim.

These are just a few of the many places of interest in the Rim. The countryside is beautiful and green and diverse and provides both economy and up-market attractions. This would also be a great spot to use as a base if you wanted to visit the Gold Coast, as it is only a short drive away. We will certainly revisit the area.

NEW SOUTH WALES - WEST OF THE RANGES

Because we had to call into Wagga Wagga to have our batteries replaced we decided to take a look at the camps nearby on the Murrumbidgee River. Our first night was spent at Sandy Beach Reserve near Wantabadgery. It was a lovely spot with plenty of room and the river itself was lovely.

As on the Murray, many of the huge trees have eroded root systems.

After having our batteries replaced at the Alco dealers, we were off again. We cannot praise Alco enough as they were extremely helpful and fair about the whole matter and were more than happy to replace all four batteries as they felt there was definitely a problem with the Ritar batteries’ performance. As it was getting later in the day when we left Wagga Wagga we decided to go back out past Wantabadgery to another camp on the Murrumbidgee at Oura. Again it was a lovely roomy campground with plenty of fireplaces and picnic shelters, as well as toilets.

Oura camp ground on the Murrumbidgee River.

We hadn’t travelled this far west recently and we were taken aback somewhat by how beautiful the countryside is. Obviously they have had good rain out this way and driving through places like Cootamundra, Young and Cowra was lovely with the beautiful colours of the autumn leaves everywhere. Our next stop was a quaint little village called Gooloogong, where the local council provides an excellent overnight stop for travellers which includes electricity, showers etc for a gold coin donation. Of course it was a very popular spot. There was a free camp just out of town but it is up on a high bank with limited access to the river.

Next morning as we headed into Orange to empty the loo and stock up on groceries etc we spotted lots of hot air balloons ahead of us. Turns out the Australian Ballooning Championships were being held nearby and we followed them for quite a distance. Eventually we got to see them very close up as they all came down very low over a paddock right beside the road. I think part of the skills tested is coming down at pre-determined checkpoints along their route. Anyway, it was a very spectacular sight and we got a real kick out of it.

From Orange we continued north on the Burrendong Dam road. We contacted fellow travellers, Anne and Phillip Breeze, who we had met at Lawn Hill Gorge on our travels in 2010. They were at Parkes and decided to meet up with us at Burrendong Dam. Coincidentally, they were travelling with another couple who we had met at Mapoon on Cape Yorke so we all had a great little reunion. John and I drove into the Mookerawa Waters Park first but it was a real rabbit warren, with steep sites up away from the dam and very little room. Not really suitable for caravans, and the fees were quite expensive at $13 per person plus the $10 State Park entry fee. We decided to check out the Lake Burrendong State Park Campground further up the road and it was much nicer. We all met up at a lovely little spot right beside the lake and spent two nights there before heading off into Wellington.

Burrendong Dam

Sundowner with John S., John, Julie, Phillip and Anne.

Just north of Wellington we found a fantastic free camp called Ponto Falls. This would have to be one of the loveliest camps we’ve been at for quite a while. You can choose to stay up on the higher bank or go down onto the lower bank right beside the river. There weren’t any toilets there but it looks like some are being built. The ground is lovely and flat and covered in thick couch grass.

Our camp at Ponto Falls Reserve.

It just so happened that the local show was on in Wellington the next day so we all headed into town, checked out the local markets then took in the show. It was only very small but still we enjoyed ourselves. Phillip had to have a dagwood dog so we had one too just so he wouldn’t feel guilty. Nobody was keen to go on the ghost train though. I was a bit disappointed. We spent a couple of hours roaming around checking out the livestock and dog show as well as the pavilions full of produce, cakes, preserves, artworks etc.

The second trans-gender model I've seen on this trip!

Meet Sophia Loren - isn't she lovely?

Pumpkins even my Dad would be proud of!

We thoroughly enjoyed our three days at Ponto. The guys had fun pretending to take a swim in the very cold water and everyone enjoyed long afternoon strolls (except for me, Chris, as I was suffering with a very nasty flu). The evenings were great, sitting around the campfire. And of course Anne and Julie treated us all to their lovely desserts. There were also some huge freshwater mussels in the river but unfortunately, they were pretty tough, so they escaped the cooking pot.

It was with a bit of sadness that we left our fellow Bushtracker owners and headed north again. We didn’t go all the way into Dubbo but took a minor road up through Elong Elong to Dunedoo and Coolah. Just north of Coolah we stopped at the Black Stump, an iconic spot that I had heard of many times. Now I know what it is all about.

The Black Stump. Actually this is a replacement for the original
which was burnt in 1908. Apparently in the 1830s any land west of
here was referred to as beyond the black stump.

We joined the Oxley Highway at Mullaley and continued through Gunnedah. We were planning to stay the night at Lake Keepit but discovered that it was another State Park with another $10 entry fee. We figure this fee is fine if you want to stay a few days, but for overnight it isn’t really worth it. A caravan park seems better value in this case. Instead, we continued on to Split Rock Dam, just north of Manilla. This wasn’t a particularly great spot, as the ground was uneven and the bugs were plentiful as soon as it got dark. It seems popular with the local fishermen though and it was free.

Split Rock Dam

There are several camping areas along the Gwydir River just east of Bingara. If you drive out along the Copeton Dam Road, you will see signs with pictures of cars towing caravans at each of the access points along the river. All of these spots are really nice although some have limited space. The river itself is very nice and full of birdlife. The ducks and waterfowl are obviously used to being fed and were quick to appear if you threw them some bread. The trees lining the footpaths in some areas of the little town of Bingara were unusual as they were actually orange trees and at this time of year, they were laden with fruit with ripe oranges laying everywhere on the footpath. It was tempting to stop and grab a bagful which I’m sure nobody would have minded as there were lots of them.

The Gwydir River.

After the Gwydir River we drove to Inverell, so we could empty the loo at the local showgrounds. A word of warning if you go in there though. The caretaker is a bit of a grumpy old bugger and doesn’t appreciate anyone going in without checking with him first. He was less than welcoming and actually rather rude but it provided some amusement for John. A guy at a local garage was much friendlier though and suggested that we might find a nice camp at a spot called Apple Tree Flat, north of Inverell, on the Macintyre River. We found the road into the place but unfortunately, the river access has been fenced off now which was a shame as it was a lovely spot. There was some indication that access could be gained if you called the local station owner so if you wanted to go in there it night pay to ask around in town.

These old tobacco drying sheds reminded us of the log cabins in the US. There were several properties with similar sheds along the road to Apple Tree Flat.

Not far up the road we found a lovely little spot called Wells Crossing on the Pindari Dam Road. It is right beside the Severn River and quite picturesque.

We were really stoked to find a beautiful camp spot beside the Dumaresq River near a tiny little place called Mingoola the next afternoon. The camp is just across the first bridge on the Glenlyon Dam Road, which is about 500 metres north of Mingoola. We all had a swim in the river here as it was quite warm and the birdlife was surprisingly varied. We even saw a large osprey dive into the river right near us to catch fish. In the morning, two young guys arrived from Brisbane to put their canoes in the river and paddle/fish the river. We really loved this spot as it was quiet and we had it all to ourselves. There is room for a couple of vans along the riverbank here and we had a lovely fire as there was no shortage of firewood.

The Dumaresq River.

From here we continued on to the showgrounds at Tenterfield, where we had stayed previously. There is plenty of room, the showers are hot and the shops are within walking distance so it is a nice spot to stay for $20+ a night with electricity.

Next day it was north again to Warwick via Thunderbolt’s Way. We even called in to have a quick look at Thunderbolt’s hideout (he was a famous bushranger who operated in these parts in the early days) and then it was on to Canungra in the Scenic Rim behind Queensland’s Gold Coast. We’re almost home!

Thunderbolt's hideout.