Another pack up morning. Luckily it was a very clear morning with hardly a breeze. Just my luck as I was not cycling for a few days! We managed to pack up in our quick way especially as we had stowed numerous items before going to bed the previous evening.
Our first stop for the morning, after leaving the Caravan Park, was to Gallery 5. We were the first to arrive but soon after the regulars came in. Of course, our order was as normal-cappuccinos and toast! The staff had become familiar to us and us to them especially after visiting with Geoff and Veronica the previous day.
We left Atherton, after a lovely few days there, by tracking up to Herberton where we visited the Museum previously. There was no need for us to stop again.
We travelled through Herberton then passing through the localities of Kaban and Toumoulin. Last year there was a large gathering of Bushtracker caravans. These caravans seem to be where former Kimberley Karavan owners end up after they have done the rough stuff but with still limited off road ability.
The next town was Ravenshoe. We parked in the main street and noted how few free campers there were in the town. Last year the area had a lot of campers, of some type, located in the park adjacent to the historic steam train. We walked up and down the main street taking in the businesses there. A few vacant shops but there are 2 supermarkets in the town along with 2 medical centres. As we passed by the Bakery we checked out its wares but opted not to indulge!
Our journey resumed by rejoining the Kennedy Highway in a westerly direction. A few kilometres from Ravenshoe, we stopped to take some photos of the sign board indicating “9th Division 2nd AIF 2/3 Tank Attack”. This told us it was the location of the camp that my father was in when he returned from the Middle East, during WW II. This was a retraining location after desert warfare to retrain for jungle warfare before he went to New Guinea and Borneo. There were tens of thousands of Army troops on the Atherton Tablelands during that time and there are numerous locations marked where each unit had their camps. Those old soldiers would notice a big difference in the area now with wind farms and lots of irrigation just to mention several changes.
The next stop we had was at Innot Springs. It is an artesian bore letting out quite hot water. I used my electronic thermometer which indicated 61° at the outlet. Along the creek it dropped as low as 43°. The Caravan Park had a pool with this water in it for therapeutic purposes but we did not worry about that.
Next, we moved on and through the little mining town of Mount Garnet. As tourists we did not find anything of interest as we passed through.
A further 70 kilometres down, we turned off the Kennedy Highway onto the Gulf Development Road. Our next turn off was 17 kilometres along this road which is all sealed. The turn off, to the left, was into the Undara Lodge Resort. We travelled along the still sealed road for 15 kilometres and then arrived at the Lodge Reception.
We had booked in so we had a powered site to park on for the duration of our stay. All sites were well marked out and included numbers. There were a lot of people doing the same as us as well as numerous ones that were just camping either in their own tents or the permanent 5 star tents, complete with water and power.
We set ourselves up and then had our lunch. Half of the afternoon was just taken up with reading and relaxing.
Around 1530, we had gone to the Reception area to board a little bus with an Undara guide, Bill, driving it. Bill is a farming Kiwi (New Zealander) who has leased his farm for a few years while he and his wife travel around Australia doing different jobs. He is very well informed and is well able to share that knowledge.
As we drove towards the first of the lava tubes, we drove near the “100 Mile Swamp” that has quite a lot of water still in it following the previous wet season and the remnants of Cyclone ‘Yasi’. We drove through dry savannah land and through it were numerous types of wildlife. The area has many basalt and granite boulders left from the time of volcanic upheaval.
The lava tubes are located in the Undara Volcanic National Park and access is only by guided tour from the Undara Lodge Resort. The original owners, the Collins family, found these tubes by accident as they had a very large property and it was sparsely stocked. After they found it was used as a picnic place for friends and eventually they turned it into a thriving business that they still own. As it was becoming popular and was unique, the Queensland Government decided that they would resume the land for National Park. However, the Collins family warned the Government that they would fight it in court. Eventually, the Government came to an arrangement and settlement with a special business lease over the Lodge Resort area. The Collins family have grown the Lodge massively from a small beginning. The area is a must visit area. There are numerous former railway carriages now set up for accommodation along with the permanent 5 star tents.
The first lava tube we went into is known as the “Road Tube”. The reason for the name was the proximity to the original Cardwell to the Gulf Road. It is quite massive and an easy walk into it. There is an excellent board walk into the end of it. The local aborigines had a legend that it housed evil spirits so they never went in and as a result there is no aboriginal art around. Some wonderful calcium deposits have left some amazing shapes that the mind can imagine various results. There are tiny tree hair roots hanging through the roof minute cracks in their quest to reach moisture.
The second location we visited is known as the Archway. When you visit this it is apparent by the actual archway that is the remainder of a tube with the board walk moving us over the fallen in sections. There is much more iron oxide in the rock ceiling which allows a different type of pattern to form on the ceiling and walls. As we wandered through this area, we encountered a little python up on a branch. Some of the visitors were not so pleased to have passed under it.
The lava tubes are believed to have been formed about 190 million years ago. There are a lot of sites but very few are open due to safety concerns as many are unstable.
After we returned we had a drink at the bar and looked over the dining area which is all under the great big sail roof. It is hard to imagine how many people could actually dine there but it would be more than 100.
We returned to our Karavan to organise our own dinner. It was a lovely day.
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