Isla Gorge National Park, QLD.

Views from the Isla Gorge Campground.

After leaving Blackdown Tablelands National Park we drove to Isla Gorge National Park. As we climbed the range towards the turn off we saw a sign stating that there had been 8 caravan accidents in the last 5 years. Little wonder, we thought, when we saw the turnoff. There is no turning lane and the turn is very sharp as the entrance road effectively doubles back and runs parallel to the highway.

I took this photo (facing south)  on the way out to show how sharp the turn off is when coming from the north.

The views from the car park, lookout, Day Use Area and one end of the campground are absolutely stunning. 

Welcome shade was found in the picnic shelter which has an amazing view.

Prime spot with a view in the Isla Gorge Camping Area.

We had planned to camp here, however, we changed our mind because it was very hot in the middle of the day and the dusty and rocky surface was not inviting for tent camping. I'm sure the sunrises and sunsets are mind blowing though.

The main camping area.

There are a couple of short unformed walking tracks to explore. We saw Wedge-tailed Eagles soaring over the sandstone gorge.

Walking track along a ridge; views all around.

View to the south.

Details for Isla Gorge Camping Area:
Where:  524 km north-west of Brisbane. Turn off from the Leichhardt Hwy is approximately 60 km north-east of Taroom or from the north it is 39 km south-west of Theodore, QLD. Please note the caution below.
Access: 1.3 km of unsealed road from the turnoff. Can be reached by all rigs in dry weather.
Bookings and Fees: Self-registration on arrival or book online prior to arrival.
Facilities: Day Use Area with covered picnic shelter, tap (non-potable water), lookout and parking. Composting toilets shared by campground. Fire rings (BYO wood). No phone reception. BYO water. Class 4 walking track to natural lookout.
Sites: Undefined sites. Dirt and gravel with rocky hard surface.
Prohibited: Generators. Pets.
What's Special: Amazing views.
Caution: Coming from the north the turn off from the highway is very sharp (practically a U turn) and there is no turning lane. Extreme caution required.

More Walks at Blackdown Tablelands National Park, QLD.

View from Yaddamen Dhina Lookout

Yaddamen Dhina Lookout, or Horseshoe Lookout is an easy 200m return walk. We visited this lookout in the afternoon and we loved it so much that we returned and had breakfast in the Day Use Area the day we left Blackdown Tablelands so that we could go to the lookout again.

Yaddamen Dhina Day Use Area has tables, BBQs, an amenities block and is the only place in the national park that has taps (non-potable water). There is an emergency phone at the entry shelter across the road. Both the Lookout and Goodela Walk leave from here. It is a further 8 km from here on an unsealed road to Munall Camping Area.

Breakfast at the Yaddamen Dhina Day Use Area 

Goodela Walk: 3.6 km return, moderate grade. The Goodela walk also leaves from the Day Use car park. The walk along the escarpment in a eucalyptus forest offers similar views to those that can be seen from the Yaddamen Dhina Lookout. 

Goodela Walk

Gudda Gumoo, Rainbow Falls Walk: 3.6 km return, moderate, to the lookout or 4 km return, difficult, into the gorge to see the falls.

The trail-head for the Gudda Gumoo or Rainbow Falls Walk is about 8 km past Munall Campground by unsealed road. At the trail-head there is a car park and bush toilet but no picnic area. The walk descends gently to the lookout, however, there is no view of the falls. To see the falls, it is necessary to descend to the base of the falls. The last section descends steeply via 240 steps. 

View from the lookout on the Gudda Gumoo walk.

240 steps down to Rainbow Falls.

Rainbow Falls

We enjoyed the walk and saw many birds along the trail.

Yellow-tufted Honeyeater.

Blackdown Tableland National Park: Mook Mook and Goon Goon Dhina Walks.

Mimosa Creek in the afternoon.

The Goon Goon Dhina trail-head is located between campsites 12 and 13. The Mook Mook walk starts opposite the campground entrance. However, it is possible to join the two walks together by walking alongside Mimosa Creek and through the campground. 

Mook Mook: 2.4 km return, moderate grade. 
Cross Mimosa Creek and past interesting rock formations to a lookout. We were lucky to see the Blackdown Tablelands Fan Palms in flower.

Close up of a Blackdown Tablelands Fan Palm, Livistona fulva, in flower.

Rugged landscape on the Mook Mook walk.

Approaching the Lookout, Mook Mook.

Excellent views from the edge of an escarpment.

Goon Goon Dhina circuit, 2.5 km, moderate grade. There are excellent information signs along the walk.

Remnants of an old fence.

This walk follows Mimosa Creek upstream and we heard many frogs, possibly Scarlet Sided Pobblebonks, even during the daytime.

Crossing Memosa Creek

The walk is wanders past many interesting rock formations and a Ghungalu art site.

Gungalu art site, Mook Mook.

Detail of at the Ghungalu art site.

We enjoyed this walk a lot and as an added bonus we saw lots of birds.

White-eared Honeyeaters.

Blackdown Tablelands National Park, QLD.

Mimosa Creek near Munall Camping Area, Blackdown Tablelands National Park, QLD.

Blackdown Tablelands is on a plateau high above the surrounding countryside. The drive in is windy, narrow and steep. After reaching the park entry it is eight kilometers of unsealed road to the campground. There is a sign just after the turn-off from the highway that clearly states the road is not suitable for caravans. 

"Road is unsuitable for caravans."

The first thing we noticed about the campground was that sections of the figure eight driveway are covered in slats. We arrived during a very dry season but the slats indicate that at times it can get very wet in the campground.

Slats on the road near a compost toilet block.

As there is no phone reception at the campground we booked before arriving. As the sites are numbered it is necessary to choose a site number and it can be hard to know which one to choose but there is a map of the campground  online that is helpful. We also read all the comments on WikiCamps before making our decision. Some sites are tent only and  some are multi-use. When we arrived there was someone set up on the site we had booked. They also had a booking and when they showed me their booking email I was able to show them which number they had booked and they moved.

Our site was huge and had its own driveway with one section for camping and another section with a fireplace and log seating. 

Site 11, Munall Camping Area.

There are Kookaburras and large numbers of Pied Currawongs in the campground. Every time we prepared food we were mobbed by about twenty Currawongs intent on pinching food. They are quite brazen and one even entered our service body and tried to steal some cake we had stored in our drop down kitchen.

Laughing Kookaburra.

We met a fellow camper from James Cook University who was studying macropods. She had set out small live mammal traps but the traps were destroyed when Currawongs removed the pins holding them together. Although we found Blackdown Tablelands National Park to be an excellent birding location we were disappointed in the lack of animal sightings. However, we could hear frogs near every waterway, even during the day. Beautiful Mimosa Creek was only a few meters walk from our campsite and was the source of a delightful frog chorus every evening. 

Pied Currawongs

There are four walks in Blackdown Tablelands National Park. Two walks lead from the campground. It is necessary to drive to the trail-heads of the other two walks. There is also a popular 4WD track in the park. We did all the walks and I will cover them in separate blog posts.

Wildlife List: Eastern Grey Kangaroos, Lace Monitor, frogs (possibly Scarlet Sided Pobblebonks and Stripped Marsh Frogs).
Birds: Wedge-tailed Eagle, Grey Butcherbird, Sulphur-crested Coackatoo, White-bellied Cuckoo-shrike, Pied Currawong, Torresian Crow, Australian Raven, Red-backed Fairy-wren, Grey Fantail, Leaden Flycatcher, Noisy Friarbird, Blue-faced Honeyeater, Yellow-faced Honeyeater, Yellow-tufted Honeyeater, White-cheeked Honeyeater, Laughing Kookaburra, Rainbow Lorikeet, Australian Magpie, Magpie-lark, Noisy Miner, Australian King Parrot, Eastern Yellow Robin, Pale-headed Rosella, Rainbow Bee-eater, Little Shrike-thrush, Weebill, Rufous Whistler. We saw Emu along Charlevue Road. We heard Tawny Frogmouth and Southern Boobook.

Details for Munall Camping Area, Blackdown Tablelands National Park:

Where: 190 km west of Rockhampton, QLD.

Access: Not suitable for big rigs. Not suitable for towing anything bigger than a small camper trailer. The sign on Charlevue Road states that the road into the national park is "unsuitable for caravans". The sealed section of road is winding and climbs very steeply. The unsealed section past the entry shelter is windy; corrugated when we visited in September 2017 and slippery when wet. Nearest fuel is at Dingo.

Campsites: 8 km past the entry shelter. 16 numbered dirt sites. Some are multi-use and some are tent only. Tip: Site 6 is listed as a multi-use site but it is not level and didn't seem suitable for most rigs. 

Booking and Fees: No self registration. Book online or by phone before arriving. Gets booked out at times. Standard National Park QLD camping fees. $6.30 pp. Family rates.

Facilities: 2 amenities blocks with composting toilets, individual fire rings with log seats (BYO wood). No water. No phone reception at campground, some available at Yaddamen Dhina Lookout. Emergency phone at entrance shelter 8 km from campground. Walks. Nearby 4WD loop.

Prohibitions: No pets. No generators.

Tip: If you have a caravan or large camper trailer it is possible to camp at Dingo or Bluff and do a day trip to the national park.

Mount Scoria Conservation Park, Thangool, QLD.

Mount Scoria

On our road trip to Blackdown Tablelands National Park we visited Mount Scoria Conservation Park. No camping is allowed at Mount Scoria so we camped at Lawgi Hall which is only about 22 km away via Thangool.

We walked the short track around one side of the mountain to an area with seats and views of the basalt columns that fall down the side of the mountain like pick-up-sticks. National Parks QLD discourages climbing to the summit as descending in the loose scree could lead to injuries. 

Basalt columns at Mount Scoria.

We saw lots of Chequered Swallowtails fluttering amongst the dry grass.

Chequered Swallowtail

We enjoyed breakfast in the day use area before we continued on with our journey.

Day Use Area, Mount Scoria.

Bird list for Mount Scoria Conservation Park (We were there for about an hour): Australian Brush Turkey, White-bellied Cuckoo-shrike, Pied Currawong, Red-backed Fairy-wren, Grey Fantail, Double-barred Finch, White-faced Heron, Rainbow Lorikeet, Australian Magpie, Noisy Miner, Pale-headed Rosella, Golden Whistler, Willie Wagtail.

Details for Mount Scoria Conservation Park:

Where: 543 km, 6 hours 20 minutes, north of Brisbane. Or about 2 hours drive south of Rockhampton.

Access: Sealed road if coming from Thangool. There is a turning circle but limited space to pull up if towing.

Facilities: Sheltered picnic tables, toilets, gas BBQs. Short walk.

Prohibitions: No camping. No pets. No open fires. Do not collect wood from the park. No firearms. Do not strike the basalt columns.

Cautions: Climbing to the summit is not advised due to slippery scree slopes.

Camping at Lawgi Hall:

We really appreciated being able to camp in the grounds of Lawgi Hall. I believe that the hall committee allows people to stay so that they can use the donations for the upkeep of the hall. It was a refreshing sight to see such a lovely country hall in excellent condition.

Lawgi Hall, south of Thangool

Camping at Lawgi Hall.

It's always fun to see a bit of Aussie humour on our road trips.

"RIP Here lies the last toilet roll thief", at Lawgi Hall.

There were lots of Yellow-throated Miners and Little Friarbirds in the grounds of Lawgi Hall. 

Yellow-throated Miner

Large leaved Bottletree Brachychiton australis: flower and seeds (with a few Harlequin beetles).

Details for Lawgi Hall:
Where: Just off the Burnett Hwy, on the Lawgi Connection Road. About 17 km south of Thangool, QLD.
Access: suitable for tents and all rig types.
Camping: allowed for up to 72 hours. No booking. Flat, grassy, open area.
Facilities: Small outdoor amenities block with solar showers and flush toilets. Bins. TV and phone reception. Pets allowed.
Fees: Donation pillar outside amenities block. 

Tolderodden Conservation Park, QLD.

Tolderodden Conservation Park

On the first leg of our road trip to Blackdown Tablelands National Park we dropped into Tolderodden Conservation Park. We had intended staying the night here as camping is allowed but it was so early in the day that we ended up having a picnic lunch before moving on. There were plenty of picnic tables and trees provided much needed dappled shade on such a hot day.

We did the walk which is only 700 m return. 

Being early spring, there were lots of butterflies and dragonflies about.

Clearwing Swallowtail, male.

The main birds in the campground were Cuckoo-shrikes.

Wildlife: Several types of dragonfly.

Butterflies: Clearwing Swallowtail, Yellow Albatross, Common Crow.

Bird List: Whistling Kite, Cuckoo-shrike, Peaceful Dove, Laughing Kookaburra, Rainbow Lorikeet, Australian Magpie, Rainbow Bee-eater.

Details for Tolderodden Conservation Park:

Where: Just over 400 km north-west of Brisbane, less than 5 hours’ drive. 6 km from Eidsvold on the Eidsvold-Theodore Road.

Access: just off a sealed road.

Facilities: Disabled toilet, tables, picnic shelter, wood BBQ (BYO wood), short walk, combined camping and day use area. Generators permitted. No bins.

Prohibited: Pets. Collecting wood.

Fees and Bookings: Book online before arrival as there is very limited phone reception and no self registration available. Normal National Park QLD fees. $6.30 per person per night.