MT HAY CAMP SITE ENTRANCE

 Left Monto and our plans were to stay at Mount Hay  just off the Capricorn Highway. I was so eager to fossick for Thunder Eggs but I kept getting this nagging feeling....this is what we found 

ROAD TO VAN PARK

The Camp site was no better than these photos and the possibility of finding Thunder Eggs looked as dim as the Caravan Park.  Paul quickly made a U-turn and we high tailed it back onto the Highway & made our way to Rockhampton.

We travelled on to Gracemere which is only 5kms out of Rockhampton. It made an excellent base for us and we thoroughly enjoyed the above view from our Annex

Rockhampton, sits on the Tropic of Capricorn and its claim to fame is being the Beef Capital of Australia.  Population is approx 58,000 and swells by some 75,000  during Beef Cattle Expo which is held once every 3 years after Labor Day weekend 

THERE ARE 6 BULL STATUES REPRSENTING EACH BREED IN THE AREA 

TROPIC OF CAPRICORN

Rockhampton is a much larger Town than we imagined with plenty to offer in the way of sightseeing.  The Riverside Walk along the Fitzroy River and Heritage Trail filled up our day around Rockhampton.  There are some beautiful Buildings which thankfully have been restored to their former glory.  A little bit out of the ordinary is The Great Western Hotel which features real life bull riding twice a week & has won 2012 'Best Steak House'

RIVERSIDE WALK

EAST ST ROCKHAMPTON

FITZROY RIVER

ROCKHAMPTON FROM MT ARCHER 

Mt Archer National Park provides magnificent views of the city... from Frazer Park, the summit of Mt Archer, you are approximately 604 metres above sea level.

BEWARE 'CROCODILES'

Criterion Hotel/Motel

Historic Quay Street

Just some 35kms on the Capricorn Coast Highway are the towns of     Yeppoon, Rosslyn Harbour, Kinka Beach and Emu Park.

 

We are booked in at Yeppoon as from Thurs 10 May and will more than likely have 2 weeks there.  The weather is glorious at present and a few lazy days by the beach & around the pool will be right up our alley 

MOUNT MORGAN's biggest claim to fame is the Mount Morgan Mine, which was mined for 99yrs.  It yielded a total of 225 tonnes of gold, 50 tonnes of silver & 360,000 tonnes of copper.   The town is situated 40 kms south west of Rockhampton.  The population today is around 3,000  whereas in its peak the town was home for up to 16,000. It is 260 metres above sea level. These days the biggest drawcard is the Golden Mount Festival which is an historic event that has been running since 1977. It  is held over three day's during the May Day Labor weekend and is a celebration of the Mount Morgan Community and its rich history.    The festival kicks off with street markets, a procession, and the famous 'Running of the Cutter'. There is also the Golden Mount Festival Rodeo as well as a  family day at the Dam with games, poetry, races and competitions.

 

The Mine and Railway Museum (also pictured is a restored steam engine from early 1900's which was built in Leeds UK & was used up until  1968)

 

Sadly our week's stay at Gracemere is up but we've had a great stay and a good look around Rockhampton & its surrounding areas.

MONTO 
Europeans first settled in the area in the late 1840s 

MURAL ON MONTO WATER TOWER

MONTO HISTORICAL MUSUEM

Steve's destination is Katherine

Gold was found along Three Moon Creek, a tributary of the Burnett River.  The original site where the gold was found  has since been flooded during the construction of Cania Dam .    Like many small towns Monto is rapidly dying.   Many businesses have either closed or are up for sale.   Closure of the rail line has not helped and nor did the closure of the dairy co-op. 


 From our camp site we drove out to Cania Gorge, which is approx 30kms from Monto

MONTO CARAVAN PARK

Cania Gorge Picnic Area

Cania Gorge

CANIA GORGE is a dramatic landscape of gullies, caves and sandstone cliffs

GAYNDAH   is a rural township located on the Burnett River approximately 366 km northwest of Brisbane 

The area around Gayndah was first explored in 1843 and the first squatters moved into the district in 1847.  It is said to be the oldest town in Queensland.

The area around Gayndah was initially used for grazing with cattle replacing sheep by 1880. The  first orange and mandarin trees were planted in 1892.

Dairy farming has now all but disappeared from the district.

By 1861 Gayndah had it's first newspaper and regular coach connection to Maryborough. In 1863 the first school was built and in 1864 the first bank opened in town.

                                                  The drapery store (above & below) was once one of the central gathering points for shoppers.   The store is still  open for business and has the original flying-fox cashier system which is still in operation.  

The town's population increases dramatically in the cooler months of May to August with "Fruit Pickers" who set up home in the local Caravan Parks. 

Our trip has begun, 
Friday 20th April saw us leave Tewantin and travel a whole 108kms to Kilkivan.
Kilkivan is famous for it's history of gold and copper mining. If you are so inclined there is the opportunity to try your luck and also experience the history of mining at the Prophet gold mine.  As luck had it the mine was only a few metres up the road from Kilkivan Bush Camp where we stayed for the week. However it looks as if every ounce of gold had well and truly been dug out.  Needless to say we didn't do any panning



Kilkivan Bush Camping Park is in the foothills of the Oakview State Forest , next to Fat Hen Creek, where you can relax in total peace and it  is well known for it's bird and wildlife
Each site has its own firepit and the wee doggies can run free and swim in Fat Hen Creek to their hearts desire

















A visit to the local Cemetery was a must for us - it is some distance from Kilkivan township but it all made sense once we saw a sign indicating where the Township was originally settled
Some towns that we visited were:

Goomeri  which is famous for its  Pumpkin Festival (take a close look at the power pole) which is held annually on the last Sunday in May.  This unique festival  attracts approximately 12,000 people to the small town to celebrate all things pumpkin.   Unfortunately our timing is out & we won't have a chance to enter the Pumpkin throwing Competition  

It is also  known for its Antique Shops  and the very popular "Cheeseworld".  Paul was quite impressed with the Cheeseball I purchased
There are plenty of coffee shops, which thrilled me immensely - not too often I get to stop for a Coffee!!!  We also stuffed our faces with the famous "pumkin scone".  Was it Flo that made these famous????  Who knows but we did find out that ours were baked in MURGON - they were delicious

 Another visit was to Murgon and also Kingaroy along the Bunya Hwy returning back to our camp via the Burnett Hwy.

Kingaroy being the Regional Capital of  The South Burnett 

Kingaroy is well known for 3 things, Sir Joh & Lady Flo  and last but not least it is the peanut capital of Australia.  The local peanut silos stand out in town and of course don't forget to see the Peanut Van

Another side trip was to The Chimneys, bit of a narrow rough road but beautiful scenery and only 8kms from our Camp Site

All in all it was a great week and we still had time to sit & relax by the fire of a night   In addition to that we had plenty of time to catch up on a bit of reading-  NO TV;  NO  NET & NO MOBILE COVERAGE 
just one other thing!!! TAKE DRINKING WATER OR A WATER CONTAINER SO THAT YOU CAN FILL UP WITH RAINWATER - the tap water out here is putrid. 

Well here we are, Easter has passed and we are still in Tewantin.  If all goes according to plan we should hit the road this coming Thursday.

Tomorrow (Monday) will see me up at 4.30am & driving to Royal Brisbane as Gra has to have another Hickman Line inserted.  We have to stay over for the nite as he has to be within an hour of the Hospital after discharge.  Paul's Birthday celebrations will have to be delayed a few hours till we get home.

Have you ever seen a 'Ponytail Palm' in flower?  I certainly hadn't till we arrived at Gra's