Tag Archives: QLD

Through the Ruins of Paronella Park

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The Tea Rooms, Paronella Park

The Tea Rooms, Paronella Park

José Paronella arrived in Australia from Catalonia in Spain, in 1913. In 1929, after spending a number of years in Australia, José purchased 13 acres in 1929 and started to build his pleasure gardens and reception centre for the enjoyment of the public.

there was a waterfall, hydro electricity, tea rooms, a castle, a ballroom, swimming pool and over 7000 tropical plants in the extensive garden, all built by José.

A view from the Falls at the front of the Park. On the left is the castle and at the bottom left is the hydro plant

A view from the Falls at the front of the Park. On the left is the castle and at the bottom left is the hydro plant

Unfortunately there was a flood and then soon after José died of stomach cancer, his wife died some years later and his son as well. His son’s wife was left to run the park and in 1977 she sold it.

Sadly, in 1979, a fire swept through the Castle. There were a number of cyclones and floods in the following years and the park fell into ruin.

A pic from the night tour, this is the castle

A pic from the night tour, this is the castle

In 1993 the current owners found the park, bought it and work on maintaining and preserving, rather than rebuilding.

The park has won a number of awards and it’s easy to see why.

We purchased our tickets through RACQ for a 10% discount so it was about $39 each. This includes entry into the park, a day tour, a night tour and 1 nights accommodation in their campground and your ticket is valid for entry up to 24 months. Really it was great value.

The park itself is just stunning! I was able to get some lovely daytime and night time shots.

The Tea Rooms

The Tea Rooms

We loved our time here! The guides were fantastic and the staff in the cafe/reception were amazing. The park is beautiful and a truly unique attraction in FNQ.

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A Day Trip to The Land of The Clouds

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After 6 glorious days we left Byfield and resumed our journey north to Mackay.

From this point forward we will be staying in caravan parks. I’ve never been up this far north and I want to spend some time in the larger towns. Unfortunately you don’t find free camps in bigger towns/cities so we have to stay in caravan parks for ease of access.

Anyway, the next stop was Mackay. I spent a couple of hours in Mackay CBD and while the historic building trail I was following was very interesting, the town itself was pretty average.

On one of the days we drove out to the Mackay hinterland, to Finch Hatton Gorge and Eungella National park / Township.

Finch Hatton Gorge is a beautiful secluded section of Eungella National Park. We did the short 1 hour walk to the Araluen Cascade Falls. On the way back we came across our first snake, a tiny baby black. We stamped and banged the ground and it slowly slithered away.

Araluen Cascade Falls

Araluen Cascade Falls

Eungella means “Land of the Clouds” and the township definitely embodies this being 1280m at its zenith. The drive up the mountain is not for the faint hearted, thankfully we weren’t towing at the time. It is the oldest and longest stretch of subtropical rainforest in Australia and it’s been cut off from other rainforests for roughly 30,000 years. This has guaranteed that there are a number of strange critters not found anywhere else in the world.

We did a couple of very short stops at lookouts around Eungella.

View from Sky Window Lookout

View from Sky Window Lookout, Eungella

A walk around the Historic Eungella Chalet where the backyard looks out over a cliff and a number of random woodcarvings have been placed.

Wooden carvings on the lawn outside of Eungella Chalet

Wooden carvings on the lawn outside of Eungella Chalet

Then through the cane fields, with stunning mountainous backdrops, back to our campsite.

Cane fields with mountains in the background

Cane fields with mountains in the background

Exploring Five Rocks Headland

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Looking behind us towards Stockyard Point

Looking behind us towards Stockyard Point

At about midday the tide was going out, so armed with our wet suit boots, drink bottles and a camera we traversed the rocky crop on the north side of Little Five Rocks Beach.

Yesterday during our exploratory trip to Stockyard Point Lookout we could see that there was another tiny remote beach. A quick check of the maps confirms this to be the case. So with a hop, skip and a jump were on the second beach.

From here we weren’t able to positively ascertain whether or not we would be able to reach the headland. The rocks were all different sizes and we couldn’t see if there were any obstacles that might stop us from getting across. We decided that the only way we would find out is by attempting it, then we could always turn back if we got stuck.

Climbing over the rocks

Climbing over the rocks

Over, across and through the rocky outcrop we went for about 30 minutes and finally we came to the channel separately us from the headlands. On the other side of the rocks was another perfectly remote beach.

The channel separating us from the start of the headland

The channel separating us from the start of the headland

As the tide was nearly at its lowest point, we were able to walk the short distance to start of the headland. It soon became apparent that the headland is actually separated by small channels. We traversed 3 channels, about half way along, before calling it a day and turning back around to our campsite.

Back onto Little Five Rocks Beach. When the tide is out there is a huge sand plain

Back onto Little Five Rocks Beach. When the tide is out there is a huge sand plain

The View From Up Here – Stockyard Point

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The little township of Stockyard Point is named after Stockyard Point, which makes sense. Stockyard Point, the lookout, is a short 1 minute drive on the outside of the township.

One of the days we were exploring Byfield, we drove up to the Point and found that we had phone reception, everyday for the remainder of our visit we drove up there to get our technology fix. Besides the phone reception, we had the most stunning uninterrupted views of the coastline.

To the left of us was Little Five Rocks Headland and our own private beach.

Little Five Rocks Headland

Little Five Rocks Headland

To the right was Nine Mile Beach. As a side note, we drove along Nine Mile on our explorations. I really don’t rate the beach, it was scummy, full of rubbish, barren and obviously used for driving only. But, from up high it looks lovely.

View of Nine Mile Beach

View of Nine Mile Beach

In my previous posts, I mentioned that near our campground there was a corridor of butterflies, well, we found more at Stockyard Point!

More beautiful butterflies

More beautiful butterflies

Off the man made track we found a couple of memorial plaques. Both men died in 2005 in different months, one was definitely in an accident in Byfield and the other memorial plaque had no explanation.

Stockyard Point, what a great view from here!

Memorial Plaque

Memorial Plaque

Byfield National Park Stockyard Point_A Girl A 4WD And A Trailer-18-2

Second memorial plaque

 

 

A Trek Through the Heart of Queensland, Carnarvon Gorge

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I can’t tell you of the first instance I became aware of Carnarvon Gorge, only that I knew it to be a place that was necessary to visit one day.

For thousands of years the Aboriginal custodians, the Bidjara and Karingbal tribes had lived in this area. In around 1850 white settlers had confiscated the land for farming, only to hand it back after vicious, but successful raids by the Aboriginals.

Today the spectacular sandstone cliffs form the towering walls of the gorge. The creek that formed the gorge over millions of years to this day continues to meander through the cliffs, sustaining a wide variety of flora and fauna to exist within the gorge walls.

We stayed at Takarakka Bush Resort for 3 nights to give us 2 full days to enjoy the Gorge.

Day 1: Visitor centre to the Art Gallery = 13.5 kms

Stop 1: The Moss Garden

Dripping water from the sandstone walls of the gorge have formed a tiny haven of moss and lush ferns, there is ever a little waterfalls.

Moss Garden, Carnarvon Gorge

Moss Garden, Carnarvon Gorge

Stop 2: The Amphitheatre

A 60meter deep chamber gouged from within the cliff. It was a cool, quiet place where we sat to have morning tea.

Amphitheatre, Carnarvon Gorge

Amphitheatre, Carnarvon Gorge

Stop 3: The Gallery

A 62 meter wall of sandstone records the history of the tribe from this area. This wall contains over 2000 stencils, paintings and carvings. Unfortunately, it have been vandalised in the previous decades.

Art Gallery, Carnarvon Gorge

Art Gallery, Carnarvon Gorge

Day 2: Visitors Centre to Boolimba Bluff = 6kms

Boolimba Bluff gazes out above the cliff line of the gorge. We climbed a steep series of ladders to reach the lookout and once we made it to the top we sat and absorbed the view.

view From Boolimba Bluff, Carnarvon Gorge

View From Boolimba Bluff, Carnarvon Gorge

Rain drops after a water night

Rain drops after a rainy night

Hitting the Road Jack

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We are finally on the road again. Have you ever felt held back, anxiously waiting in anticipation and lost? Having spent the past 3 weeks in Brisbane, waiting to leave has been a mixing pot of emotions. Some great, I love staying with my family, but it’s had its stresses as well. But, knowing that you are effectively stuck in a place you don’t want to be, waiting to go is horrible.

But, the day is here and we are finally packed, fuelled, have said our goodbyes and as we speak we are driving down the Bruce Highway towards Maryborough and Wongi Waterholes.

This is the beginning of the next chapter in our 12 month trip around Australia. I really can’t wait to share the experiences of our travels around this amazing country with you. Stay tuned!