Heading north

Rainbow Serpent on the Warrego Way

Our adventures in the west of the state have been wonderful, but as there are continued road closures due to flooding, and the threat of more rain, we have gone west as far as we can go! Returning to Windorah after our  two days "caravan free" in Birdsville, we packed ourselves up and, on Thursday 18th June we left the Warrego Way and joined the Matilda Way to travel north. Ian, the publican at Windorah, who also serves as the mailman two days a week (driving ten hours a day to deliver to the stations in the area), told us the road conditions were fine if we stuck to the middle of the road where possible and chose a safe spot to get right off the road should a road train approach.

Our intended destination on the first day was Stonehenge, a small settlement south of Longreach, however a power outage had virtually closed the town, so we continued, stopping in Longreach for fuel and lunch, then pointing the car towards Winton. Rejoining a busy main road after the smaller back roads, we certainly noticed the increase in traffic, in particular the large road trains! We were very happy to get to our destination, 500+ kilometres of travel from where we had started the day. 

Gregory North

We unhooked, did a quick set up, then headed to the North Gregory Hotel to hear the nightly recital of Banjo Paterson poems as performed by Gregory North. It is a wonderful performance of his work, interspersed with stories about Banjo's life and the times in which he lived. We have been here before, in 2019; we loved his performance then and we weren't disappointed to hear a different show this time. I was so impressed that I even bought the book! Dinner was already prepared, thanks to generous portions of pasta from the Birdsville Hotel, so it was a lazy evening in the caravan and early to bed after such a big day.

On Friday morning, as we were eating breakfast, the local fruit and veg truck came around the caravan park, so we enthusiastically purchased some supplies. Later we did some extra grocery shopping and bought a couple of things from the hardware store - there's always something that we need! Then we visited the information centre. Winton is famous for its links to Waltzing Matilda - Banjo Paterson wrote the poem and it was put to music and first performed here - as well as to the birth of Qantas and for dinosaur remains. Last time we were here we had enjoyed the extensive Dinosaur display and toured the links to Qantas, this time we headed to the Waltzing Matilda Centre for their very extensive museum. We spent two hours there, reading and learning so much. It was fantastic! 

We purchased a pie from the local bakery to supplement the home made sausage rolls we already had for lunch, and returned to the caravan just as rain started to fall. It continued intermittently all afternoon, which was a good excuse for a quiet time catching up on a few odd jobs and relaxing. Later, when the drizzle stopped, we went for a walk down the Main Street, admiring the lovely old buildings and buying a couple of small souvenirs before a drink at the Tattersalls hotel on our way back to the van. The rain started again so we shut the doors and windows and enjoyed a quiet night in.

On Saturday morning we packed the van up again and continued our journey. We headed north east towards Hughenden and the road was sealed but bumpy; so much so that I had done 13,000 steps, according to my watch, by the time we reached our destination. We booked into the caravan park, chose a suitable site, then headed into the Visitor Information Centre to find out all we could about the local area. As with every place we have visited so far, the staff were a wealth of information! Armed with all sorts of things to study in order to make plans, we returned to the caravan in time for Martin to watch his beloved football team...later, we walked to town to do some preliminary exploration before a quiet night in. 

Sunday was tourism day - starting with the helpful map of all the sites worth seeing in town. There is a wealth of artistic works to be seen, from murals on the water towers to sculptures in the park and any number of dinosaur related pieces - Hughenden is the home of "Hughie" the Muttaburrasaurus as well as a range of Pterodactyls, Ammolites and other prehistoric creatures. There are signs to read everywhere, information panels galore, a Coolabah Tree and a man-made lake to view. Hughenden is a lovely town to explore.

We spent at least an hour going through the Flinders Discovery Centre, with a very informative historical display about early life in the district, a full size dinosaur skeleton and lots of other fossils, and a feature film about the formation of Porcupine Gorge. It was fascinating! Later on we enjoyed lunch at the Royal Hotel then returned home for a lazy afternoon.

We were on the move again on Monday morning, this time just 42km down the highway to Prairie, a tiny town on the Flinders Highway with a quirky pub and not much more. We had last stayed here in 2021 and enjoyed it so much we were keen to repeat the experience. Parking our van and car in the paddock behind the pub, we went into the bar to meet the publican and make a booking for dinner - a nightly ritual where tourists eat together - whatever meal the cook has decided to make - and get to know each other and swap travel tales. Cherie, the owners’ young daughter, cooked delicious steak with veggies and we all enjoyed a convivial night.

Gorge lookout

There was not much packing to do on Tuesday morning so we were on the road before 9am, heading back the way we had come for 50km, to detour through Hughenden because the most direct route, the Flinders Way, is closed since the crossing over the Flinders River washed away! We were soon on the Kennedy Development Road and heading north, stopping briefly at the Porcupine Gorge lookout before heading into the national park and Pyramid camping ground. We walked to another lookout before our camping spot was vacant, but we were still set up well before lunch. Porcupine Gorge is called “Australia’s Grand Canyon” by some local people; it was formed 100 million years ago when the Porcupine Creek forced its way through soft sandstone layers and gouged a narrow pathway through the rocky outcrops. The views from the lookouts are quite spectacular!

Rim lookout

Porcupine Creek waterhole

In the afternoon we walked down into the gorge proper - 580 steps down - to enjoy a swim in the waterhole. It must be quite spectacular, while inaccessible, in the wet season, with water pouring over the rocks, but the water was lovely and calm, if a bit fresh, where we had a swim. Climbing back up the steps was challenging and we were quite warm again once we reached the top.

That night we had BBQ lamb chops we’d bought at Flinders butchers in Hughenden, eating inside as the night cooled down. Next morning, after a walk to the last lookout and breakfast in the sunshine, we packed up and headed out of the National Park, well satisfied with our visit there.

It’s been three weeks today since we left home and we’re heading east again, back towards the coast - just in time for school holidays…