TOD Tour 2.0 Day 20 - Porcupine Gorge

Winton to Hughenden: 430 kms (trip 2745 kms)

Porcupine Gorge lies approximately 70kms to the north of Hughenden and on our original planning - such as it was - it was one spot we had intended camping in. However, overnight temperatures have taken a dive in the last few days owing to the big cold front which is affecting southern states so strongly. We don't camp in temps under five or six degrees, so our day trip today was a make up.

The Tourist Information people in Hughenden are pretty practical mob and along with a NP information sheet, they also provide an sheet with eleven points of interest to see on the way to Porcupine Gorge. We didn't stop at all of them but we might have otherwise missed some interesting ones.

The drive starts by crossing the Flinders River. Its the longest river in Queensland exits the state in the Gulf on Carpentaria, a journey of a tick over 1000km. The section of it on show in Hughenden isn't mostly sand, its all sand and despite the wide gap between banks - perhaps 300m - its a dry and dusty argument. Hughenden is well served by a bore which provides plenty of reliable water. Further on, we crossed Matchbox Creek, so named because a small wagon loaded with matches exploded there. An old and dilapidated section of the infamous dingo fence is divided by the Kennedy Development Road, at this point called the Hann Highway, a rather grand description for a country road.

52km from Hughenden is Eaglehawk Lookout, which is located Devils Elbow. It wasn't clear if the elbow was in the road or the gorge beyond. This is near the start of the Porcupine Gorge system which extends for 25kms along Porcupine Creek. The gorge at this point is perhaps twenty metres deep and ill-defined and only the top layer - the basalt capstone - has been cut through. Everywhere was deep, rich brown rock in this basalt environment. Nearby, a pile of painted white stones is an unmarked grave, variously thought to be the resting place of a Chinese man run over by a wagon wheel or an aboriginal girl called Minnie Waite who was either murdered or died from exposure as she walked from a nearby station to Hughenden.

They like to keep their option open up here.

Bottle Tree Ridge Lookout was next. The lookout was at the top of a small jump-up and only I made the rocky climb to the top, where the local name of the lookout, Bottle Tree Lookout, becomes obvious. The tree that stands there isn't a bottle tree but it has the same distinctive look. Views were expansive to the east and south. The basalt rocks made climbing an ankle testing exercise. A local mailman, on his pack horse was attacked by a group of aboriginal men here in 1886 and his grave is at the base of the lookout.

Finally, we reached Porcupine Gorge Lookout. It was jaw dropping. Located 120m above the
Porcupine Creek, it is a narrow, steep drop which extends several kilometres in view. The 280 million years it took to develop are on show in the steep sides of the gorge, from sandstones in several different layers, to conglomerates and finally the basalt cap which flowed from a volcano ten thousand years ago. It is sometimes called the Little Grand Canyon and its not hard to see why. This is one of those places where nature is just showing off and you are left feeling small by comparison.

From there it was just a few kms to the camping area. Here the gorge has widened considerably and the sides are less wall and more slope. The prominent feature on the far wall is The Pyramid, a triangular shaped section of wall which creates the illusion of being a square pyramid. In truth, we didn't think this anywhere as spectacular as the previous lookout but it features a walking track to the base of the pyramid which attracts all comers. We started by declined. Sue's back and my knee would not have stood the rigours of the decent, let alone the burden of the climb back. Nothing lost. My word we are becoming adult.

On the way back to Hughenden, we spent about twenty minutes passing through a mob of 1500 cattle straggling along in the long paddock and not many of them looking in good condition. The drovers, most of them young women in their early twenties, had cheery waves to offer from their quad bikes and horses. I've been through road mobs before but nothing like this. It was quite and experience.

Click here to see today's photos

What a magic day and one which filled us with the excitement of why we love to be on the road. Eating lunch back at Porcupine Gorge, with out cheese sandwiches and black tea, we couldn't stop smiling.