Townsville to Mackay

Distance travelled today 429kms
Distance travelled so far 5,662kms

Queensland should be renamed "State of Coastal Roadworks"!! For the entire day we seemed to be travelling from 110km, to 80km to 60km then 40km back to 100km and within 2km back to 60km then 40km. This seriously impacted our travelling time today!

We started our day with breakfast at Juliettes Gelatario Juliettes – Artisan Gelato 

because some days you need to start off with desert! You only live once!! It was as good as it has been!! Then back to the car and off we went! 

We are now travelling on the Pacific Coast Way Drive Queensland's Pacific Coast Way (visitcapricorn.com.au). 

First stop was Ayr where we took a quick break for morning tea - note if travelling through from Townsville you need to righ turn down Little Drysdale Street at the roundabout on the Bruce Highway - it is a very 'cluttered' street and we initially missed the turnoff as it is not well signposted and there are no giant golden arches visible. They do a great toastie here (actually toasted and cut in half) also lovely service. 

It was then off to Airlie Beach - the one thing you will see a lot of on this route is Sugar Cane Fields! We saw them in all stages of growth today during the drive! We were unaware there was so many fields! The processing facilities were also busy on the way as you could see the chimney smoking!!

The road to Airlie Beach was rural to begin with but all of a sudden you hit a main shopping precinct then continuing to head to the beach it becomes very touristy and busy! We parked the car and went for a walk on the beach, even though it had rained on the way and was still overcast it was nice to see. I was surprised how small the beach actually was! There were plenty of shells on the beach but it did not have a wow factor for us.

Onward then to Mackay, we arrived early evening at The Shakespeare Motel Contact Us - Shakespeare Motel Mackay. We have a lovely family unit, very comfortable, with a balcony and full kitchenette, so we headed to Coles (one of many here) to grab some food to cook!

Hughenden to Townsville

Distance travelled today 139kms
Distance travelled so far 5,233kms

Back on to the Flinders Highway and off to the coast - destination Townsville! We had planned to stop at Torrens Creek, however there was not really much there so pressed on to Charters Towers which is a 248Km run (approx. 3 hours). Once there we headed for Burnzie's Bakery in Elizabeth Street. (9) Facebook  Due to the time we arrived and the local showing only finishing the day before (so alot of people in town) there were no pies left, however we tried an apricot danish and a mini M&M Donut these were both amazing! We then headed down the road for something more substantial for lunch and found a Red Rooster!
Then we left for Townsville still on the Flinders Highway and travelling the rest of the Overlanders Way!

We arrived at Shoredrive Motel Shoredrive Motel - Townsville, North Queensland, Australia - Shore Drive Motel which has onsite parking, comfortable rooms and is across the road from the beach in the late afternoon. We unpacked and then decided to go for a walk along the beach, note the sand here is VERY coarse not like sand in Newcastle or Sydney at all!

We did luck in though as the Townsville Ephemera Seaside Sculptures was on, this is an amazing display from different organisations and people of art along the Strand. Ephemera: Seaside Sculptures (townsville.qld.gov.au) We have been back since once it was dark and it is even better! Townsville along The Strand is very busy anytime we have been out there.

We visited Juliettes Gelatoria Juliettes – Artisan Gelato Highly recommend a visit here for a coffee; milkshake (with any of the gelato flavours!); or of course a gelato. Once you order what you want you can take it out the front of the building and sit at a table or sit in one of the "beach" chairs and watch the ocean! If looking for dinner our two choices while we stayed here were Fish n Chip Delights (9) Gail's Fish N Chip Delights | Facebook and Tony's Pizza Tony's Pizza & Gelati: Traditional Italian Pizza and Pasta (tonyspizzatownsville.com.au) both exceptional for taste and value for money.

The other good place for food is the Kiosk at The Strand (9) Facebook they have burgers, fish, chips and drinks.                  As Townsville was a bit of a rest stop for us we did not do a lot. We had planned on going to the Barrier Reef HQ Aquarium, but unfortunately it is closed for renovations and will not open until 2026!

But we did walk to the Queens Botanical Gardens Townsville Parks:: Queens Gardens ________________________________________ (soe-townsville.org) which was a nice oasis in the area and has two hedge mazes (not huge) and a nice rose garden.

We went and looked at the Rockpool at the end of The Strand, but it was a very windy day so did not go in!The Strand & Beaches - Townsville City Council Tomorrow we begin the trek down the coast and eventually home!

Hughenden

Today we spent the day in Hughenden as we knew it would be a full day here.

We headed off to Flinders Discovery Centre, for more dinosaur adventures! Flinders Discovery Centre - Visit Hughenden It is here that you will see a replica skeleton of the Muttaburrasaurus Langdoni Australian Age of Dinosaurs | Muttaburrasaurus langdoni 

There are also specimens of fossils from a variety of geographical locations such as Winton, Richmond and some overseas spots. They have a Pterasaur fossil and Ichthyosaur paddle & rib fossils too.

Within the museum they have a room dedicated to the Wool industry as it played an important role in the town's history and is quite interesting! Then you can watch a video about Porcupine Gorge and how it came to be over the past 500 million years. This is an excellent video and explains the layers of rocks and why they are what they are!

Having finished here we got information on getting to Porcupine Gorge and headed to Holden's Bakery for something to eat before heading on to the Gorge. (6) Facebook

On the way to the Gorge there are some points of interest, one being Eaglehawk Gorge lookout, this is worth the stop if only to see the large basalt rocks! Hughenden to Porcupine Gorge - Visit Hughenden The trip will take you about an hour if you stop along the way at the lookout and a couple of other quick spots.

Once turning off towards the Porcupine Gorge campsite make sure to stop at the Ebony & Ivory trees (nature is amazing) and watch along this section for kangaroos and cattle as there are no fences. You will need to turn right and head to the camp area and we headed to the day use section, applied sunscreen and headed off! 

First stop was the lookout, where you can view Pyramid Rock this is not far from the carpark and if it is all you can manage it is worth doing.The walk is noted as moderate and we agree that it is on the way down, but definitely the walk up is harder due to the incline! Is the walk worth it? Definitely!

When you reach the floor of the Gorge you can see how the water has shaped the rocks. Head towards Pyramid Rock and you will come across a swimming hole that you can go in! The water is cool and it has fish in it who are curious when you put your feet in. Once down on the Gorge floor, look around at the geology, sit on the rocks and look/listen to the birds and just enjoy the serenity!

It is easy to spend an hour or so here! Probably also needed before you begin your ascent back up!Outback Queensland Porcupine Gorge National Park - Outback Queensland 

When heading back from the Gorge, again beware of the wildlife and cattle that are around. 

There is a Foodworks FoodWorks online (myfoodworks.com.au) and a Spar in Hughenden for your shopping needs too.

Richmond to Hughenden

Distance travelled today  114kms
Distance travelled so far 4,691kms

We have the day here as Hughenden is only just over 1 hour drive away so, back to dinosaurs today as we visited Kronosaurus Korner at Richmond. Home (kronosauruskorner.com.au) 

There are so many fossils displayed here!

Kronosaurus Korner - Collections

When you go in the museum you are given an audio handheld device that you enter the number shown on displays and the story of the display is then played to you. They also had a video explaining what the area was like, about the Eromanga Sea Eromanga Sea covered inland Australia 110 mya (australianenvironmentaleducation.com.au) and where/what dinosaurs were discovered at first! Kronosaurus Queenslandicus, the largest pliosaurid  was discovered in Richmond and you can see the fossil on display at the museum Kronosaurus Korner - Kronosaurus

The cafe in the museum is worth a visit and the onsite pies are good! Whilst here you can get a Fossicking Permit and go to two sites that are about 12km out of town and find your own fossil. We went to Site 1 and found quite a few fossils of shells - these are 25million years old! Bonus is you get to keep them. We did purchase the Paleontologist kit (Geo hammer; small crowbar; bag; safety glasses; paleontology ruler; dustpan and brush) they had at the museum too. If you find anything significant or want to know what you have you can go back to the museum, and they will look at it and advise you!

We were then back on to the Flinders Highway and off to Hughenden.

If you go there check out Chengs Chinese Facebook they only do takeaway currently but celebrated 30years of business this year and the lady is lovely and the Chinese very nice!

Our accommodation at Hughenden is the Rest Easi Motel Comfortable Accommodation | Hughenden, QLD | Rest Easi Motel very comfortable place to stay and is about the first accommodation you come to when entering Hughenden.

Mt Isa to Richmond

Distance travelled today  408kms
Distance travelled so far 4,551kms

Today we headed to the Riversleigh Fossil Centre, the fossils here are 25 million years old and are mammals and reptiles. It is an interesting display with a bird fossil in its entirety, except its head. The fossil has not been removed from the rock, so you are able to see it as it was found in the ground with gizzard rocks as well. They have a video which explains what all the parts are in the rock.
There is also a video which explains Gondwana land and how the countries were attached and moved over time. Riversleigh Fossil Discovery Centre - BOOK NOW ONLINE - Mount Isa Tourism (discovermountisa.com.au)

After we had finished here we headed on the Barkly Highway for Cloncurry. We stopped briefly prior to arriving in Cloncurry to visit the Burke and Wills Historical Site tripadvisor.com.au/Attraction_Review-g499646-d14793323-Reviews-Burke_Wills_Monument-Cloncurry_Queensland.html 

We then got back onto the Flinders Highway and on arriving into Cloncurry, headed to the Unearthed Museum and Visitors Centre. Here there is a large display of gemstones, Aboriginal artifacts, Burke and Wills information (including the tree they etched their initials in) and historical town information.Cloncurry Unearthed Museum & VIC | Visit Cloncurry (experiencecloncurry.com)

We discovered that Dame Mary Gilmore was laid to rest (well her ashes) with her husband in the local cemetery so off we headed to see if we could locate the grave, we did! Biography - Dame Mary Jean Gilmore - Australian Dictionary of Biography (anu.edu.au)

Moving on then to Julia Creek, unfortunately the Information Centre was closed, however the installations around it were very interesting. AT THE CREEK VISITOR INFORMATION - At the Creek

We arrived at Midway Motel & Roadhouse, lovely room, well set out (huge television) and the staff were great. We had dinner at the Roadhouse which was excellent! (11) Facebook

On the Road Again! Winton to Mt Isa

Distance travelled today 466kms
Distance travelled so far 4,137kms

There was considerably more roadkill on this stretch of our journey today between Winton and McKinley, to be honest up to now it had been negligible! With roadkill comes the flocks of scavenger birds and the occasional hawk/eagle. Today we started on the Landsborough Highway....

Our first stop was Kynuna and stopped at the Blue Heelers Hotel for lunch, quite reasonably priced. You can sign the wall too if you make a donation to the Royal Flying Doctors Service!
There were two Brolgas in the carpark when we arrived and when we came out they had come quite close to the pub! (11) Facebook 

It was then on to McKinlay and the Walkabout Creek Pub from the Crocodile Dundee Movie! (11) Facebook It was a nice stop for a drink as the temperature had risen to 29'C.

We turned off the Landsborough Highway and onto the Flinders Highway. Saying goodbye to Matilda Way.

We stopped briefly at Cloncurry for a stretch and driving break only, as we return here tomorrow and will look around then.

Time to change highways again and onto the Barkly Highway.

Arrived at Mt Isa and found our accommodation Townview Hotel right at the beginning of town.Welcome to Townview Motel in Mount Isa A very spacious room with a 3 piece cane lounge!

We then headed to The Overlander Pub for dinner - Rump Steak special $13.90 which was just amazing and then 4 scoops of flavoured ice-cream for $5.50! Highly recommend the food here! Home - Overlander Hotel Group 

Winton - Wildlife!

On our journeys to and from the AAOD Museum we saw some interesting wildlife, the most notable we saw was what looked like a duck on an emu's body - after asking about this with Vicki from Red Dirt Tours Red Dirt Tours - Red Dirt Tours - Winton Day Tours and describing it as an emu/duck she informed us it is an Australian Bustard or Plains Turkey (same bird two names). We did catch sight of a group of them in the second week. 

Spinifex Pigeons were also around the AAOD building, if you keep an eye out! 

When we went to Lark Quarry we saw these lovely little lizards (Pretty sure they are Netted Lizards)

The bird life is great too, galahs a plenty in fact they hold court at a house near the showground daily! Hawks can also be seen! Emus and these lovely little birds!