Hughenden was hot, and the flies were crazy, however there were some lovely things to check out. The first afternoon we drove out and watched the sunset over the amazing vast land from Mount Walker. Check out some of the pictures below where the land seems to go on forever. The next day we did a drive out to Porkupine Gorge for the boys to explore and walk down to the bottomof the gorge. Words can not explain the size and expanse of the gorge and how in the middle of such hot and dry landscapes, something so lush can be found. A highlight for the boys while we were here was the Hughenden Discover Center, which is part of the Australian Dinosaur Trail we will be following while out west. They were pretty excited to learn about the Muttaburrasaurus and the stations around here that the fossils were found on.
Further on West, we arrived at Richmond at the Lakeside Caravan Park. Both Hughenden and Richmond have man made lakes, that are stocked with fish (however we still haven't caught any) and are used for water sports. It is lovely to have a place to cool off and escape the heat in the afternoon (you could not in the middle of the day as the sun is just too hot). Richmond is the home of the Kronosaurous. Millions of years ago, it seems Australia was split into two by water. These dry, dusty plains are covered with shells, shark teeth and evidence of these pre-historic times. We spent the morning exploring Kronosaurous Korner learning about the different fossils found locally, then headed 12km out of town for some of our own fossil finding. We found lots of shells, formed in the rocks and one small part of an ammonite. The kids are keen for some more fossil hunting so this might not be the last time.
Our last stop West was Julia Creek at a free camp on the creek to fish. This picturesque location is nearly postcard worthy...,if there were not so many flies! I have never seen so many before, and you just couldn't escape them so we were glad to move on the next day west to Cloncurry. Cloncurry was our base to head out and explore some old mines we had read about before leaving and boy they did not disappoint. We headed towards Mount Isa, and found the old Mary Katheleen Township and impressive open cut mine. There is nothing except foundations that remain of the once bustling township, where the miners worked up until the mid 1980 when the mine finished up. The township included banks, swimming pool, golf course, lawn bowls, and many houses. You can now camp for free on the old home slabs if you want to while you explore the area. Just a bit further down the road is the mine. It is the most amazing shade of blue from the heavy metals that are soaking into the water.
Just a short drive slightly further west we found the road/driveway to a retired Limestone Mine where the kids enjoy finding all sorts of rocks. So many hidden gems and amazing history to be discovered out here. Thankfully the wind picked up and the 37 degree heat was replaced with a more comfortable 27 degree days to enjoy.
Now we are headed South East and into Winton for some more dinosaur fun. See you then...
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