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Published: July 25th 2011
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Sunday is a day for relaxation! So that's excately what we did, we packed up an easy lunch, our backpacks, waterbottles, camera, hats and sunscreen, oh and the children of course (our doggies Mollie & Benjie) and set off down the highway - destination.......Emu Creek, just down the road from the little town of Blackbutt. The trip down the highway from Kingaroy to Blackbutt was pretty uneventful but as soon as we took the turn off to Emu Creek.......instant beauty! We just love driving through the forest and down dirt tracks taking in all the trees, the birds and smell (The smell of fresh air!).
The dirt road into the Creek had a few bumps and pot holes, a bit of corregation but that's the fun bit of taking a Sunday drive, never knowing what is around the next corner. The trees were so tall and Paul pointed out a few spots where he and his work (he works for the Department of Foresty Products) were marking and cutting trees down - yes logging! It's funny to see that even though they have logged there is still so many trees left and the habitate of the native wildlife is still
there and there is still plenty of it.
We arrived at bout 10.30am and set off on a 2 hour hike through the forest road that had been washed away during the January Floods of 2011. We were there before the floods and the place was so beautiful and photogenic.....So although the floods have devistated the area, there is still beauty to be seen and fun to be had.
Firstly the walk from Clancy's Camp Area to the Emu Creek Camp Area.
You used to be able to drive there on a dirt track that went though the hills but during the floods the road was washed away and walking is the option to get to the beautiful camping area at Emu Creek now (even though you can't actually camp there anymore). It was a challenge in some place but easily enough to walk for the inexperienced hiker. When you look at the devistation the water did to the road and to the trees it's easy to respect that mother nature has a nasty side. There were trees down and debre everywhere, but there is still beauty if you just open your eyes and look around. It was however.....freezing!!!
Paul reckons it must have been about 5 degrees in the shade, and I had the goose bumps to prove it. Our little dogs didn't seem to mind the cold though, they were having a great time with all the new smells and the the bush turkies sprinting out from everywhere!
Once we got to Emu Creek Camping Area, it's easy to see why it was once such a popular area and how it is now going to waste. What a total shame, we really hope the local council gets some funding from the State or Federal Government to re-open this camping are (because we would surely be back to stay there!) There is a beautiful swimming hole there now that will be perfect for a summer day out and I'm sure we will be making the journey back when it's a bit warmer to go there for a swim and have a lazy day.
On the way back we decided to walk along the creek on the oposite side, so off our shoes and socks came....OMG.....it was freezing (even if the water was only half way up our calves). So once the feet had dried a bit,
the shoes and socks went back on and off we went. Over rocks, through sand and under trees, it was great fun! There are some really pretty water holes and rapids and the water....the water is so clear it's unbelievable!
So after 2 hours we made it back to the ute and had a sit down for a bit before lunch was cooked. Lamb burgers and boy were they good! Not a bad feed for out in the middle of no where. After and hour or so of relaxing and taking ramdom photos we decided to take a look in to oposite direction and well....we didn't get very far (due to a fence and the creek was not cleared enough to walk with the dogs. But what we did see was still really nice and there were some beautiful spots to take photos.
When it was time to leave we headed out and decided to take a detour though were Paul was marking trees to be logged. Since he knew where he was going it was good to go a different way back to Blackbutt and see different parts for the State Forest.
We stopped in at
an artist village on the way back and saw some nice bits of artwork and old school furniture, artifacts and bits and pieces. I took some nice photos there as well. All in all......we had a really good day and it was heaps of fun and we will be definately going back soon.
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