ATHERTON TABLELANDS

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The Tablelands- Queensland

After our visit to Cooktown we headed back south on the- Venture Mulligan Highway to the Atherton Tableland. The long scenic, mountainous journey took us through vast dry terrain into the coffee growing area of Mareeba. The Tablelands plateau rises up to 100m above sea level and there are several majestic water falls to visit.
We found the scenery diverse, resembling England with rolling hills and green countryside to deep rainforest gullies. The mountain towns are quaint and we stayed 3 nights at picturesque Yungaburra- a heritage village. It was originally called Allumbah Pocket, established in the 1880’s as an overnight stop over for settlers from the coast seeking their fortune in tin and gold. Allumbah is the Aboriginal name for Red Cedar.

At dusk we were able to walk to the creek and sit patiently waiting to see platypus from a purpose built platform. We did see some which proved to be a delight but it was too dark to take photos. Another attraction in the area is the Giant Curtain Fig Tree which is estimated to be over 500 yrs old. The roots drop 15 to the ground, though the original host tree has long gone, it is supported by another tree- this is the most visted tree in the world!

We had a great evening meal at a local resturant and had our first 'lock in' 'till 2 am. When we left the bar it was only 3 degrees, the Tablelands get very cold at night in winter- much like the UK.

We didn't manage to see all that we could and regret not taking the tourist drive to admire the view from 'Bones Knob Lookout'. We'll never know what we missed now........

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Comments

[Claire White]

Thanks again!
Hi Steph and John - just to say thanks again for keeping up with your blog - it really brightens ups these darker mornings to see pictures of lovely bright sunshine. take care, and all the best Claire and David