Week 3 - Winton - Boulia - Mt Isa

Winton Qld

The Andrew Barton 'Banjo' Patterson monument - writer of  Waltzing Matilda.

Arno's Wall, now a quirky tourist atttaction by 'Arno' who liked 
to cement interesting items in his wall (mower, motorbike, tv).

Like many outback towns, Winton's streets are wide and its main street 
is divided. Cycling in outback towns is easy with very little traffic about.

Winton's Age of Dinosaurs museum, many volunteers have worked on these bones of a dinosaur they've named Matilda. It's taken a long time to get these bones to this stage.

Action at Winton's Saleyards

Bougainvilleas are plentiful in Winton Westward bound on the Min Min Bwy to....

 Boulia

Slow moving cattle are the only hazzards to contend with on this narrow road. 

Middleton - "What? That's a place here in this deserted part of the country?"

Yes along the Min Min Byway from Winton to Boulia, a distance of 371kms is -
The Hilton Hotel! Like to stay awhile?
Sign says - Vacancy, Airconditioned, No TV, No Phone, No Charge!

Directly opposite the Hilton is the Middleton Hotel and the Cobb & Co Coach. In the early 1900s this stop was one of 9 changing stations for coaches along the 371km distance from Winton to Boulia. Now this roadhouse is the only stop along the road.

Boulia

The Burke River bridge crossing in Boulia - tradition has it that Burke and Wills filled their water bottles here. The river's named after Burke and a creek is named after Wills.

In Boulia (the town of the Min Min lights) this sign reads - 'west of Boulia is the vast Simpson Desert, travellers are advised to carry ample food, water and fuel.'
The Min Min Museum  is brilliant and well worth a visit.

Boulia's murals on the water tanks. We continue further north towards Mt Isa!

 On this stretch we needed to get off the road completely each time road trains passed. Luckily it wasn't a busy day - only six passed! Sign along the road - 'Overtaking Opportunity 45kms ahead!'  You wouldn't want to be in a hurry!

But the scenery was often beautiful and varied.

Mt Isa

Sign on Mt Isa lookout - almost halfway between Melbourne and the Equator.

Mt Isa Mine by day from the Lookout and below... after sunset.

Mt Isa's Underground Hospital was built in 1942 as the area was considered a possible target during the war when Darwin was bombed. Fortunately it was never needed but it is a great museum now and enjoyed by many tourists.

Also at the hospital museum, the dummy in bed looks a bit crook but the patient in 

the dentist chair either died from fright or had to wait too long!

At Mt Isa's Lake Moondarra picnic ground the peacocks greet visitors.

Keep watching for our next travel blog update!