The drive from Winton to
Longreach along the Matilda Highway was straight and boring. The countryside on either side of the highway consisted of flat grassy plains, with few trees and even fewer animals. The only bumps we saw were right in the middle of the roads! Mark and I both think Jeff Noonan and his Main Roads / RoadTek buddies have a lot to answer for. The road from Cloncurry to Winton is currently being upgraded and in places that haven't yet had road markings applied, there were several potholes starting to appear.
Our arrival in Longreach also corresponded with the end of the official tourist season for this township. We were surprised to learn that a few of the local tours were now closed from Nov to March and surprisingly this also included the local Information Centre. At this stage there were still a lot of travellers in town and we were surprised to see that so many attractions were closed for the next 5 months.
As soon as we parked the van, we headed straight for the Stockman's Hall of Fame. It's a wonderful building with an imposing statue of a stockman right at the entrance into the facility. It's so life like and definitely captures the spirit of the 'Outback Stockman'.
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| An Impressive Statue and Building |
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| Building interior is Amazing |
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| Taking It All In |
The Australian Stockman’s Hall of Fame and Outback Heritage Centre is a spectacular tribute to the pioneering people of outback Australia. Each of the five themed galleries was enlightening. They are based on Discovery, Pioneers, Outback Properties, Life in the Outback and Stock Workers.
After travelling through this region we could definitely relate to the hardships that most of early outback explorers and workers would have experienced; especially in the days before travel was so readily available. This heritage centre included a depth of information that we believe most people could access easily.
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| Furphy Watercart |
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| Furphy Info |
The use of audio-visual displays enhanced the experience.
The art exhibits – paintings, sculptures and wood carvings were pretty amazing! Mark was really impressed with "The Ringer" carving. Just check out the detail of the bridle hanging over the subjects shoulder and also the buttons on the shirt. This exhibit was simply spectacular and was almost life-like.
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| "The Ringer" |
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| Info on 'The Ringer' |
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| 'Smithy' |
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| Info on 'Smithy |
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| 'Walking Together" |
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| Jumbo Jet |
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| How Big Is This Engine? |
Ironically it was while the QANTAS planes were grounded that we visited the QANTAS Founders Museum. The heritage-listed original hangar is adjacent to the modern airport terminal. The museum was easy to spot as there is a Boeing 747 Jumbo Jet on display immediately adjacent to the main road, with Australia’s first international jetliner, a Boeing 707 tucked just behind its bigger brother. There were many modern interactive displays and theatres which told the story of QANTAS and also the pioneers of this region. Once again, a very interesting experience.
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| Just Hail For a Lift to the Airport |
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| Catalina |
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| Donna Was Ready For a Flight! |
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| Visitor in QANTAS Hangar |
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| Tree of Knowledge Memorial |
From Longreach we then moved on to Barcaldine. It hasn’t changed very much since Mark and I first visited my parents here several years ago. However when we were last here the Tree of Knowledge was in good condition and stood outside the Railway Station. Today the Tree of Knowledge Memorial stands in its place, primarily because the original tree was mysteriously poisoned back in 2006. I know the new memorial has a few outspoken detractors, but I thought it was very effective given that the old tree has been destroyed forever. On the day we visited, the wind was making this architecturally designed memorial into a huge wind chime. Next to the memorial was a windmill and artesian bore memorial. According to the literature these items had been relocated to this location, to celebrate the fact that it was in the Barcaldine area that the first ever bore was sunk in Australia.
We also visited the Australian Workers Heritage Centre which is situated in the grounds of the old Barcaldine State School. This not only gives the history of the Shearer’s Strike, but also had exhibitions including a one teacher school, police watch-house and railway station. There were also displays to working women and (Jeff, this is for you!) the Main Roads Department! We weren’t sure whether they’d left the ‘J’ off, “Effie the Engineer”, but we thought we check with you for further info.
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| The Syllabus (1 BOOK!) |
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| Desks in One Teacher School |
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| Can You Remember This? |
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| J'Effie the Engineer |
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| War Memorial Clock Barcaldine |
One thing we admired about Barcaldine was the way the town was planned so many years ago. The streets are extremely wide, with vehicle parking available on the sides of the road as well as right down the middle of the road. The
War Memorial Clock is in the centre of one of these roads.
We also visited other attractions including the Comet Masonic Lodge which was completed in 1901. Its elaborate facade of arches and columns has been cleverly painted to resemble aged stonework, but upon closer inspection it's easy to see that the hall had been constructed from sheets of corrugated iron – very unusual.
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| Comet Masonic Lodge |
Along the Landsborough Highway there are two murals relating to Barcaldine; one was painted by D’Arcy Doyle, who visited Barcaldine and donated the picture of a Sand Goanna in appreciation for the wonderful time he had here in this region. The second was created by local students and really caught my eye.
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| Barcaldine Mural |
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| D'Arcy Doyle's Mural |
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| St Peter's Anglican Church |
St Peter’s Anglican Church was yet another interesting building within this lovely township. This church was consecrated in 1898 and is testament to the building skills of these early pioneers. They sure knew how to create buildings that would last forever.
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| 1916 Advertisement |
It was Melbourne Cup Day when we arrived in Barcaldine, so we enjoyed a great lunch at the Shakespeare Hotel with Ken and Kay, who were our neighbours back in Longreach. This hotel is one of the original pubs in Barcaldine and when we went to the Heritage Centre there was a 1916 advertisement for this wonderful pub. Unfortunately we didn’t win on the race – but a great time was had by all.
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| MMM... Which Direction from Barcaldine? |
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| View from Lloyd Jones Weir |
When we left Barcaldine we only travelled 14km from town as we headed to Lloyd Jones Weir. This freestay was pretty amazing. The loos even had flushing water, a washbasin and pot plants. While there was not a lot of water in the dam the birdlife was amazing. We also watched kangaroos and wallabies go down to the water for a drink. Pyromaniac Mark enjoyed having a fire again and we shared a lovely meal with Terry and Trish, a couple from Lane Cove in Sydney, who have been travelling around Oz now for more than 12 years!
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| Toilet at Weir |
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| Hard To Believe It's a Freestay |
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| Jackie Howe Statue |
We then headed south to Blackall. This is the place where Jack Howe broke the world record for shearing sheep using hand held blades. According to legend, he shore 321 sheep in 7 hours and 40 minutes. Interestingly, he finished 20 minutes before the official finishing time for the day. That’s because his fellow shearers were giving him a lot of stick for working so hard. Apparently they had been jumping on his back and annoying him any way they could for a few hours. His wife, Victoria, made a singlet according to his specifications, as a garment ideal for shearing, now known as a “Jackie Howe.” His grandson said that in his lifetime he was always known as “Jack Howe” and if anyone had called him ’Jackie’ to his face he would have most likely put one on their chin.
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| "Cutting Out" |
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| "Eagle and Nest" |
The town of Blackall does a lot to encourage tourists. They have invited artists-in-residence over the last few years to create artworks to be displayed around the town. Next to the Information Centre, the shire council has provided a public toilet and showers especially for caravaners, who might be staying near the Barcoo River.
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| Memorial Clock on Median Strip |
There are grass and flower gardens in the median strip, a mighty effort in the hot climate they regularly experience in this region. We were also very surprised at the number of spacious and modern homes in Blackall. In the afternoon, we also enjoyed a visit to the local Aquatic Centre. This 50m pool and spa use artesian water, so basically they have to cool the artesian water so it’s suitable for swimming.
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| Blackall Aquatic Centre |
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| Campsite Blackall |
After a long hard day we managed to find a delightful freestay right on the banks of the Barcoo River. Just after we set up we had a visit from one of the local councillors, who dropped in unannounced just to welcome us to the town and to make sure we knew about the many local attractions. Very thoughtful! We then sat and admired the scenery, only to have the serenity destroyed when a colony of large bats decided to take up residence in the trees immediately above our cruiser and van. Fortunately, our site wasn’t too bad, but a few of the other vanners had to run for cover.
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| Tambo Teddies |
From this great freestay, we then travelled south- east, stopping on the way at Tambo. Tambo Teddies are produced here, using wool that the local farmers couldn’t find a market for. It is a pretty little town with a park and tables around a man-made lake.
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| Tambo Lake |
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| Tambo Shire Hall |
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| Meat Ant Sculpture Augathella |
From there we went on to Augathella. This town lies a small distance from the highway and it's one place we’re unlikely to ever want to visit again. It is known as the ‘Place of the Meat Ants.' Doesn’t that just say it all! Even though they’ve painted murals on some of the historical town buildings, it seems like a town that is destined to just fade away, as there seems to be nothing to keep people there even for a day.
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| Mural Augathella |
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| Augathella Mural |
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We moved on to Morven, which is situated on the Warrego Highway. (Warrego means River of Sand) In contrast to Augathella, which doesn’t encourage campers to stay in their township, Morven is very welcoming. We were fortunate to find a campsite at the local Recreation Ground where for $5 a night, we have access to power, water, toilets and showers. How good is that! The campsite facilities are better than most caravan parks, so we’d highly recommend you take the opportunity to stay if you’re ever travelling in this area.
The township itself is very small, having only one pub, a newsagent, cafe, and grocery store. However, everyone in the town is friendly and accommodating you can tell that they really value the tourist dollar, as they know that every little bit helps to keep this township alive. There is a local museum where they dispaly models of this town through the ages. Outside there is a kerosene tin shed. During the depression when many people lost their homes, some innovative people built their homes out of kerosene tins which were plentiful at the time. On the Morven common there were five of these huts all built in a circle, sharing one tap which was in the centre. They also had a veggie garden and a bower hut. Apparently these huts were once very common in a lot of towns, however most have corroded or been demolished.
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| Kerosene Tin Hut |
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| Warrego River |
From Morven we will continue on the Warrego Highway on the homeward stretch.
