Are you ready for an exciting road trip adventure? One of the best ways to see Queensland is on a road trip along the famous Warrego Way from the magnificent capital of Queensland, Brisbane, inland to the iconic city of Birdsville.
Brisbane to Ipswich
The first stop is Ipswich – the oldest provincial city in Queensland. Here, you will be able to enjoy beautiful gardens and gorgeous public and private buildings. Most of the architecture belongs to the early nineteenth century. One of the buildings that stands out is the Old Town Hall, which is the home to the Ipswich Art Gallery. In the former North Ipswich railyards, you will find the Workshops Rail Museum, which is worth a visit.
Ipswich to Toowoomba
After you leave Ipswich, you will pass through the Lockyer Valley and a number of villages, from Rosewood to Helidon. From there the highway that goes up the eastern side of the Great Dividing Range. Toowoomba is known as Queensland’s Garden City. There are over 150 amazing gardens and parks here to visit. A lot of the gardens are themed, such as the Japanese Garden and the Scented Garden.
Toowoomba to Dalby
When you leave Toowoomba, you are in the Darling Downs. Along the way, you can visit the recently restored Jondaryan Woolshed, originally built in 1859. Dalby is the richest cotton and the richest grain area in Australia.
Thomas Jack Park is the first place you should visit. It is a peaceful park in which you can take in some of the atmosphere of your surroundings. It is especially convenient if you are traveling with kids, as the park has a playground. Next to that, Dalby offers highlights such as:
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Jimbour House – this is a historical estate that was once home to 200 people and 300,000 sheep. Now, the property is still a working station with 2000 head of cattle. Its main attractions are the main homestead and the gardens which you can explore yourself by going for a “Living History Walk”.
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Lake Broadwater Conservation Park
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Cotton gin of choice – Two cotton gins are located within 6 miles of Dalby and visiting them might be interesting, especially because Dalby is the main center of agricultural production in the area.
Dalby to Chinchilla
Passing Warra, with its amazing Warra Hotel, and then through towns of Brigalow and Boonarga, you will reach Chinchilla. Chinchilla is famous for its biannual Melon Festival, as well as petrified wood. The most famous petrified wood specimen is Chinchilla Red. This is a type of petrified wood common in these parts of Australia. It has a unique color and a good quality of preservation. You can get a license (to hunt for fossils) for cheap if you are interested in fossicking, i.e. searching for fossils. Chinchilla White Gums is another place worth visiting before you continue to Miles.
Chinchilla to Miles
It is 45 kilometers from Chinchilla to Miles in Murilla shire which is famous for wildflowers. When you get to Miles, I recommend a visit to the Miles Historical Village. It consists of 20 historic buildings that have been restored, capturing the essence of the early 1900s. If you go down the main street, you will find yourselves in the Dogwood Crossing center. This was Miles’ original name. In this community center, you can listen to stories about the area’s history and get acquainted with the local art scene and culture.
Miles to Roma
After you leave Miles, you will pass through Drillham and Dulacca. Soon after, you will reach Roma, which is the capital of the Western Downs, and the gateway to cattle country. Roma Saleyards is a huge cattle selling facility, which is interesting to visit on Tuesdays and Thursdays when there are auctions.
If you are a wine lover, you should visit the Romavilla Winery, the oldest winery in Queensland. Another great place to visit is the Mount Abundance Homestead, where you can learn a lot about the history of the area.
Roma to Mitchell
From Roma, you enter bushranger territory and the road takes us through Muckadilla and Amby. Bushrangers were simply escaped prisoners of the British settlement of Australia, who managed to survive in the unforgiving Aussie nature. The last bushrangers, the Kenniff brothers, ruled the ranges in the area until they were tried for murder.
People say that Mitchell is where the outback begins. The place that is definitely worth visiting is the Great Artesian Spa. The water there has high mineral content.
Mitchell to Morven
The only town you will go through on your way to Morven is Mungallala. Just before you reach it, there is a protected area that is populated by the rare type of tree called Ooline (Cadelia Pentastylis).
Mungallala was originally a railway town, but now it’s the poorest town in Australia. Here, you can stop at the only pub in town (the Mungallala pub), have a drink and support the local economy.
Locals describe Morven as small in size but big in character. It’s a camping site for bullock teams. In the Morven Historical Museum, you can see the collection of miniature buildings made by the late Bob Johnson which represent early Morven. South of Morven is Tregole National Park.
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Morven to Charleville
Traveling to Charleville, you will see a change in scenery, from grazing country to wild mulga scrubs, which are small trees native to the Australian Outback.
There is a lot to see in Charleville. Many children in the outback attend school via the radio. You can see how this all works at the Charleville School of Distance Education. You should also stop at the visitor center at the Royal Flying Doctor Service to really get to know some of the logistics of leading a safe life in the outback.
At the C.D.E.P. (Commonwealth Development Employment Project) center, you can watch Aboriginal artists at work and listen to the sound of the didgeridoo. The Grand Hotel Corones is the biggest outback pub in Australia. At night, the place to visit and look at the sky is the Cosmos Centre.
Charleville to Quilpie
It is 210 kilometers from Charleville is your next destination, Quilpie. If you’re looking for relaxation, here you can have a picnic at the Lake Houdraman, or pay a visit to the recently renovated Aquatic Centre. If, on the other hand, you’re looking for some action, you can climb and explore Baldy Top and Table Top lookouts, or go fossicking (my dictionary doesn’t know this word) for opals. During your exploration, listen for the famous names in Australia like Durack, Costello, and Tully, who were some of the first settlers in the region.
Quilpie to Windorah
On your way to Windorah, you can take a detour to Eromanga to visit the Eromanga Natural History Museum, where you can see Australia’s largest dinosaurs.
Then, your next stop is Windorah, which is in the midst of the Channel Country. It’s an area in the Australian Outback located mostly in Queensland, but to an extent in South Australia, Northern Territory, and New South Wales as well. It is very fertile with grazing land and produces some of the best beef cattle in the world. Here, you can visit the red sandhills and watch the sunset, or pay a visit to the mirrored solar panels located on the Windorah Solar Farm.
Windorah to Birdsville
Finally, you will reach your destination – Birdsville. It is one of Australia’s iconic towns visited by many travelers that head across the Simpson Desert. The Simpson Desert is the largest area of parallel sand dunes on the planet. There are five types of sand dunes: barchan, transverse, blowout, parallel, and composite dunes. Here you can sit on top of the Big Red, a 40-meter high sand dune.
Visit the Birdsville Hotel and enjoy a meal such as curried camel or kangaroo claret pie. For a historical display, we should pay a visit to the Wirrarri Visitor Information Centre. The Diamantina River is a great place to go camping or have a picnic, specifically at the Hunter’s Gorge or the Gum Waterhole. Birdsville is also the location where you can find the extremely rare Waddi trees, found only in three locations across Australia.
Finally, Relax
Birdsville Hotel
Birdsville
After reaching Birdsville, it is time to take a little rest. Birdsville offers great accommodation for travelers. After all, you have traveled far, passing through the entire Warrego Way.
During my road trips, I always take care of my valuables prior to the trip, because I do not want the stress that comes with thinking about losing them. The most convenient way I found was by using storage units, and I was particularly satisfied with the service from the good guys at Supercheap Storage from New Zealand. (https://www.supercheapstorage
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by Tony Solomon
Tony is a writer from Los Angeles with several years of experience in writing and editing for the web. Currently, Tony is one of the editors at MediaGurus, working remotely from all around the world. Tony loves to travel and cannot be anchored to one place. Check out his Twitter to stay updated with his latest posts.Leave a Reply
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