Duaringa, Queensland

Duaringa is a small town in the Central Highlands of Queensland, about 110 kilometres west of Rockhampton along the Capricorn Highway, and approximately 720km north-west of Brisbane. We have stopped here a number of times in our travels but only for a top up of water and a rest stop. This time we decided to stay a few nights and walk around the town.

Duringa is one of the oldest towns in the region and many of the old buildings still remain. A town and surrounds of less than 500 people started life as a settlement for railway workers in the 1870's.

Original inhabitants of the area were the Ghungala people. Ludwig Leichhardt passed through the area just west of the town-site in 1847, and sent letters to the Archer Family advising that good grazing land was available around the Dawson, Comet and Mackenzie rivers. Brothers Charles and William Archer settled in the area with a large pastoral run.

By 1876 the railway was established and the town grew, and in 1881 Duaringa became its own government division.

 

Duaringa campgrounds  is located in Mackenzie Park.There are two natural attractions in the park. The Budgeroo Strtrees (Lysicarpus Angustifolius) is a rare timber only found in this area of Queensland. It is considered to be one of Australia's most beautifully grained timber. These trees flower in spring and were used in the past by the local Aborigines to make rope and baskets. The other natural attraction is the colony of flying foxes, that inhabit the trees near the Budgeroo trees, although we have never seen or heard any.

It is a great stopover for a night or two.

It has electric barbecues, a communal power pole (although there were two vans connected the whole time we were there). The toilet block has hot showers and potable water for a donation left at the information centre.

The Duaringa Information Centre is worth a visit. The volunteer staff have been very informative and helpful each time we have visited. Inside there are local crafts and souvenirs for sale, as well as historic artifacts from the area.

There are a few things to do in the area:-

-Blackwater township is not far away, with a 'flag' park with an old station and train, also a coal museum and Japanese garden.

-Blackdown Tablelands National Park is a little further on, with Aboriginal rock art, walks and waterfalls.

-At the other end of Duaringa from the rest area ia the Woorabinda Arts and Cultural Centre that displays and sells indigenous art. It was closed when we were there.

There are a number of walking tracks from the park but we decided to walk around town. The town is laid out in a grid formation and therefore very easy to walk around. Many streets have information boards describing the history or the building .... or what use to be there.

There are many old, old buildings in the town.....

... and some being renovated. These buildings were once the local grocer and the Regent Picture Theatre.

They are being renovated into a home and a bed and breakfast.

At the other end of town, next to the Woorabinda Arts and Cultural Centre is a historic grave yard with only a few, but interesting headstones.

No one really knows for sure how Duaringa got its name. Some say its an Aboriginal name for 'oak', others say it means swampy oak, some even say it was named after a person. I think it is a local word from the past and the meaning has been lost. We enjoyed our stay here, despite the weather.

Look out on the right side of the road heading west towards Blackwater for the minions.

 

Brisbane City Tiny Doors

Saw this on a travel program and decided to have a search for them. We started in Fish Lane, as we were staying close by.

Fairy Door - 76 Fish Lane, South Brisbane. Created by Mace Robertson. There is also a fairy door in Mandurah, Western Australia that apparently if you know the right password you can teleport to. We tried Abracadabra and it didn't work - also tried Live Long and Prosper - didn't work either.

Medieval Tiny Door - 25 Fish Lane, South Brisbane. Created by Mace Robertson, it is opposite the Saccharomyees Beer Cafe.

Red Records Store Front - Fish Lane, South Brisbane. Created by Mace Robertson and located just past the railway overpass.

Fish Lane was named after George Fish, who in the 1940's owned a steam laundry on the corner of Fish Lane and Cordelia St. There is a sculpture by Christopher Trotter that was installed in 2013 a part of the Fish Lane Arts Project. It is also not a fish, but indicates the site of the original Fish Steam Laundry.

The art work, cafes, and rest places along the lane are absolutely worth a visit.

 

Next we walked over the Victoria Bridge to Burnett Lane. Peter use to drive down this lane every day when he was working in the city. There is a lot to see on the way too.

Burnett Lane is one of Brisbane's oldest passageways and dates back to convict days and was the site of the prison cells and the Soldiers Barracks. The paved lane was where the first prisoner hanging took place in 1830, and was where the flogging triangle was placed. The barracks and convict cells were demolished in the late 1870's, early 1880's.

The name comes from Brisbane's first surveyor, James Burnett who died aged 39 years. There is a wall dedicated to James Burnett in the lane.

The Red Door - Burnett Lane, Brisbane City. Created by Mace Robertson. This is the site of the first fairy door placed by Mace Robertson in 2016. Apparently it didn't weather well and was often repaired by passers-by. I'm unsure if this is the original or a replacement.

 

 

Christmas Door - Burnett Lane, Brisbane City (outside the Hyatt Hotel). This one was placed December 2023 and was one of about five Christmas door placed in the city. It was the only one we found - and we did look.

There use to be a Van Gogh door, but sadly it was stolen. We walked to the town hall (and had a lovely visit there) and Queen Street Mall looking for more doors but didn't find any - but we did find Krispy Kreme.

A great day out, learning some of Brisbane's history, and fun looking for the tiny doors.

Proserpine, Queensland

Proserpine, a short 70 minutes from The Leap near Mackay, was a lovely little town, and easy to walk around.

The donation camp is right in the middle of town. An easy walk across the road to the supermarket and a lovely stroll up and down the streets. Located behind St Catherine's Catholic Church, it was super quiet, secure and so handy to shops, and tourist attractions, such as Airlie Beach.

 

We arrived on a Friday about 1pm and there was still a number of vacant spots. However by 7pm it was packed. Saturday was much the same. We had a 'wiz bang' turn up about 11pm on the Friday night and squish in between us and the van next to us. We didn't hear them ..... until just after 5am when one of them lit up 'something' and our smoke alarm went off!! They also left a lot of toilet paper around the area!!

In 1859 George Elphinstone Dalrymple, on an expedition north, named the Proserpine River after the Greek goddess Persephone (Latin name Proserpine). The area appeared to be very fertile and Persephone was the goddess of Spring and fertile growth. Prior to the arrival of Europeans the area was home to the Gia people. The first Europeans settled in 1861 with the Proserpine Creek pastoral run. By 1882 sugar plantations were being established along land cleared by Pacific Islander and Chinese labour. The land around the creek was surveyed in order to establish a town, and by the 1890's was subdivided into lots. In 1897 a sugar mill was opened to service the many sugar plantations in the area, and it still operates today. The town quickly grew around the mill, including many hotels. 

The Prince of Wales Hotel on the main street (pictured above) is a lovely art deco building built in 1904 by T. Heron and C. Cheffins for Mrs Elizabeth Simpson and provided accommodation, meals and stabling of horses. Many building renovations have taken place over the years, with the most recent being the added bistro and beer garden.

Across the road from the camp was a public park - Pioneer Park. It has toilets and showers, that are only open during the day (due to vandalism), bbq's, small playground and covered picnic tables. There is also a monument telling the legend of  Persephone, the Greek goddess of Spring, after which Proserpine is named.

Perephone was the daughter of Zeus and Demeter, the goddess of agriculture and fertility. Perephone was picking flowers in a meadow and Pluto, the god of the underworld appeared and kidnapped her back to the underworld. Demeter was furious with Zeus for allowing their daughter to be kidnapped and refused to let crops grow until Perephone was returned. Zeus persuaded Pluto to return his daughter but she had eaten the seeds of a pomegranate, which symbolised marriage with Pluto. A compromise was achieved with Perephone spending one third of the year with Pluto and the earth would be cold and barren, the rest of the year on earth when crops would grow and the harvest would be full. This explains the seasons. 

Close to the Whitsundays, Proserpine is now a tourist stop. A little further north, before the turn off to Airlie was Whitsunday Gold Coffee and it was well worth a visit. We stopped in to get a coffee before heading to Airlie and spent quite a while there. 

It's a cafe ......

...... a garden 

...... an arts centre

..... and a menagerie of birds and animals.

A short drive to the coast is the beautiful Airlie Beach. The first European in the area was Captain Cook who explored the islands and named Repulse Bay. 

There are markets on Saturday's and cruise days.

Definitely a place we will go back to next year.

The Leap Hotel, west of Mackay, Queensland.

 

 

The Leap Hotel is located about 23km west of Mackay on the Bruce Highway, and was our campsite for the night. The pub was established in 1882 and houses a great deal of memorabilia and local stories, as well as good food and cold drinks. We drove from Camila Beach to The Leap via Mackay, stopping to stock up on some groceries and fuel.

There is a big camping area to the side of the pub and it is free, although it is nice to get a drink or two and maybe a meal. 

There is a good flat area at the top for self contained vans and a smaller slightly sloped area further along. We were at the end of the flat area and had this view. As it became darker this area filled up with backpackers and little mini vans. It was a great over-nighter.

The tall 360 metre mountain behind the pub is officially known as Mount Manadarana, but known locally as the Leap, so it made sense to call the hotel The Leap Hotel when it was opened in 1886. However, the story behind the Leap is a very sad story and sadly incidents like this were common in the early days of European settlement. 

The sad story behind the Leap is well documented inside the pub and the monument stands outside. It tells of the early settlers, and the interactions with the local first nations people. After some research, I found many different versions of the story depending on who wrote it and when it was written. 

In January 1860 Scottish born John Mackay left Uralla, south of Armidale N.S.W, heading north to claim land in Queensland for grazing cattle. His expedition arrived in May 1860 and quickly marked out large tracts of land for grazing. Mackay returned in 1862 with 1200 head of cattle. He sold the land shortly after and changed professions to become a mariner - later Captain John Mackay. 

It is believed that more than 200 Aboriginal men, women and children of the Yuwibara peoples lived in the area when the European settlers arrived. In our travels we have found that Aboriginal communities were often disbanded across the eastern states in the early days of European settlement, either due to land clearing, fear of stock pilfering, or fear of the indigenous people themselves.

By 1867 native police (Aboriginal troopers and white officers)  were patrolling the area. History has shown that most of the native police were cruel and violent. In July 1867, it was reported that Aborigines were killing cattle. The troopers invaded the camps and the Aboriginal people fled to the mountain, Mount Mandarana, yet unexplored by the European settlers. 

The troopers followed them up to the top of the mountain and all but one women, carrying a small child, scattered in all directions. Her name was reported to be Kowaha, and she had the choice of surrendering to the brutality of the troopers or jumping from the mountain. She chose to jump with her baby. Kowaha died on the rocks below. However her baby survived by being caught in some branches. A local farmer rescued the child and later adopted her.

The locals called the mountain The Leap and the Leap Hotel is a a great place to read about the legend and to see the local memorabilia.