I am sure that Philip spends his spare time checking out maps to find gravel roads that very few others use. He knows his Hema maps very well and Google Earth gives a good idea how rough the road is.
Today we left Mt. Isa to make our way to Karumba by Saturday. Turning east out of Mt Isa we stay on the main road for about 20 kilometres and then we turn left onto the Lake Julius Road, obviously heading to Lake Julius. One of Mt Isa’s Water storage’s. As we turn onto this road it turns to gravel and we cross our first cattle grid, the first of 12 today. Then we start the creek/river crossings, all dry. It’s 74 kilometres to Lake Julius and we had 54 creek crossings, some small and some quite wide. Lots of ups and downs. We meander our way into Lake Julius, crossing the Leichhardt River, 150 metres wide, and up to the lookout over the dam wall. It’s a funny little lookout with two homes there and the path to the lookout going round the side of the houses and along the front, past their washing line which was tied to the fence to stop it spinning round, and across to the lookout. This dam was opened in 1976 by the Honorable Joe Bjelke-Peterson and dams the tributaries of the East Leichhardt River. It’s a beautiful spot, but unfortunately only a day use area. We stopped for lunch here and enjoyed the quiet and solitude with great views of the lake.
After lunch we continued north on the Lake Julius Kajabbi road to the small township of Kajabbi. In the 1920’s Kajabbi used to be a railhead for the stock drovers to bring their cattle to be railed to the coast. Current population is 6-8 but it was once a thriving town which held an annual race meeting. It was also an important centre for the nearby mines of Mount Cuthbert and Dobbyn, which attracted copper miners to the area. Not much left there now but the remains of the old corrugated iron Kalkadoon Hotel, remnants of the old stock yards at the rail head, a lot of Kangaroos and a few homes.
We continued north crossing the Leichhardt river several more times along with many other creeks, over 100 in all. Mid afternoon we pulled up alongside a waterhole just off the road. Hundreds of birds about, with flocks of bright green budgerigars swooping around the trees and over the road ahead of us.
Today we travelled through West Leichhardt, Glenroy, Gereta, Coolullah and Gleeson Cattle Stations, a great day and apart from 2 or 3 Cattle Station vehicles no traffic at all.
Tassie Travellers 