Saturday, Aug 07, 2004 at 15:21
Hi Patrick
http://www.action-graphics.com.au/matilda/matmap.html
this link is very helpful.....click on towns.....will give you details of history etc
A good book.......Explore Australia by 4WD.....They have a 2004 edition.....we have found some errors in the one we have so make sure you double check with another source also, we do.
Where to start......lol....get a good book and pick and choose what you want to see along the way as well as tips from here. Best advice, spend what time you can while you are in an area unless you are going to go through that area another time and can do it then.
We had already done most of it along the way before, Black Stump, Hall of Fame, so and so on. This time we did the Thomson R cruise in the paddlewheeler, best to book for this in advance otherwise you will go on the Yellowbelly, a normal boat. We had a great night and it was well worth the money spent, bit expensive. Gunadoo CVP has a bush poet/storyteller in most nights for the cost of a gold coin. If you are going to
Lark Quarry check the TOUR TIMES. We stopped in at the Burke & Wills R/house for a hot dog, these are $6 each....lol....yes we paid the price just for a bit of nostalgia, 6 hot dogs and a plate of chips only = $39. There's
Combo Waterhole where Banjo Patterson penned Waltzing matilda near
Kynuna As you would've read
Lawn Hill is good, best to spare 2/3 days there to do most of it.
Riversleigh is worth a drive, quite intersting too and the circuit is easy and not long. The
Gregory R is @ 100klms east of
Lawn Hill, it's a nice place to pull up for a while. Before you get to
Normanton there is the Burke & Wills Dig Tree No 119. Don't forget in Norman tonto check out the purple pub, the hugh croc, the railway etc.
Karumba is very pretty and good for fishing if you are lucky with lovely azure blue water. If you're lucky you might see the big fishing boats all rigged together. Walkers Ck on the way back from
Karumba might get you a barra, so we have been told. We have never had the time to stop and have a throw in at Walkers Ck, but next time we are going too. If you have time for a day visit you can go up to the Gilbert R from the Normanton/
Karumba road just veer off onto the
Mareeba T/Off along the Burke Development Rd, this is also another way to go to
Cairns. This road is dirt with some bulldust and rough patches but it was very well graded this year in June, we did 80-100klm on it and then sometimes at 60klms. The Gilbert R is quite a pretty river with a good chance to catch a fish and if you're lucky you may see a croc, we did this time. (If you decide to go to
Cairns this way coming from
Normanton or
Karumba you will need to stop halfway overnight, this is a days drive, trust me. Best advice is turn left and head along Palmerville track to the
Mitchell R about 30klms in and
camp there on the riverbank, come back out the way you went in and head to Carins the next day OR continue on the road to
Chillagoe if you want to go to a CVP. If you stay on the
Mitchell R that night make sure you drive just up and around the corner the next morning, Mt Mulgrave station is there. It is their property you go through to get there as well as other owners but the river and road are for public use, so stay on them. You might even be lucky enough to catch the guys who come down to the river for a bit of a muckaround after a days hard work, they are really nice and harmless. Don't forget, Leave Gates How You Find Them.) If you are heading to
Cairns back along through Croydon/
Georgetown along the Gulf Development Rd, it's bitumen all the way. There are heaps of things to see along this historic road. When you get to Carins check which way you want go and check out what is on the tourist path. As you will find 3 weeks is just not enough but enough to get you interested in planning your next trip.
Have fun.
Cya
Tripp'n
:)
AnswerID:
71663
Follow Up By: Tripp'n Around - Saturday, Aug 07, 2004 at 17:48
Saturday, Aug 07, 2004 at 17:48
Hi Patrick
Silly Billy me.
I forgot to also say if you go to the
home page here and go to bottom of the page, there is general info on the Matilda Highway with other pages linked to it about where you are going.
Post 15295 might be of some help too if you haven't already read it.
Cya
Tripp'n
:)
FollowupID:
331849
Follow Up By: Patrick - Saturday, Aug 07, 2004 at 18:37
Saturday, Aug 07, 2004 at 18:37
Thanks Tripp'n for taking the time to provide such great information. There is nothing like hearing it from people who have been there before.
I thought three weeks would be enough but you have me worried that we may have to race a bit to fit in all the areas we have planed to see. Well at least we will have fun trying.
Cheers,
Patrick
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