Charters Towers

Along the way we met a guy who was from Charters Towers and was singing its praises. He told us to go inland from Townsville to Charters Towers, then follow The Great Inland Way north, then come back down along the coast. We are so glad we listened to his advice!

Leaving Townsville and heading west, you meet the outback almost immediately. Dry dusty country with a few cattle. The road is littered with dead animals, mostly kangaroos, so the driver needs to concentrate. We also see the first of the "Road Train" signs, and it isn't long before we see the first of these monsters, a truck with 4 trailers hauling cattle, all 50 metres of it!

One of the old bank buildings

After less than 2 hours we are in Charters Towers. It is an old town with a lot of history, built around the gold rush of the 1880's. Yes this is another gold rush town. We didn't know they found gold in so many places, and lots of it! The town has kept most of its magnificent old buildings, and there are some pretty impressive examples built in stone and wood. The town is nicely kept, has some beautiful parks, and they do a good job of keeping them green. A quick stop at the Visitor Information Centre to collect our homework, to plan activities for our stay.


We find our home for the next few days, The Dalrymple Tourist Van Park, on the northern edge of town, next to the golf course, which to John's surprise has grass greens, but not much other grass in sight! The Park is nice and spacious, lots of trees, but not too tall to stop our satellite TV, and the managers are very friendly and helpful. We like the feel of the park, it looks well maintained, and it has a nice shaded swimming pool, which will soon have us in it! Yes the weather has turned warm to hot and we are loving it. We are fascinated to find out that our neighbours have been living on the road for nine and a half years. What is most remarkable is that Kevin is blind. He has about 1 percent vision, so sees only basic shape. Listening to him tell about his adventures getting into amenity blocks with their various codes and keys, was quite hilarious. He knows where the fridge is, can open a stubby, gets his wife to walk him to the bin once so he knows where the empties go, and then he's set! His wife does all the driving, and puts a lot of blokes to shame the way she handles their 22ft caravan behind the Landcruiser. I loved the way she rubbished a new arrival, who had chosen a drive through site, even though he was staying a few days. "Probably can't reverse the bloody little thing! I see it all the time! Too bloody precious to make an idiot of himself. How the hell is he gunna bloody well learn! I dunno!"



This pub is now a B & B

Next day, we walked the 2 km into town to do the walking heritage trail around town, and find out all about the old buildings. There are so many. They are all in the square mile that is the centre of town. The Post Office is impressive, as are all the old bank buildings. The old Police Station is an impressive old Queenslander built from wood, and is right in the middle of town. It is one of the few remaining ones of its kind in Queensland. Apparently it was badly damaged by fire in the 1980's, but the towns people, fought and raised funds to have it rebuilt, rather than lose the history. You wouldn't even recognise the Target Store that is hidden behind the facade of an old emporium with beautiful lead light display cabinets out front, amid old tiled walkways. Seems odd looking at Targets cheap range of merchandise, badly arranged in these magnificent cabinets. Take a Target manager out of his/her square box modern store, with its uniform aisles and standard shelves, and they haven't got a clue what to do!!

Stock Exchange Arcade

At its height, the town really must have buzzed. It was locally known as "The World", as it was believed there was nothing on earth you could want for. One of the first Stock Exchanges in Australia, was founded in Charters Towers, in an attempt to stop con men selling shares in bogus mines, and to raise capital from overseas, to open new mines and expand existing mines. Apparently it was very successful. The Stock Exchange Arcade is beautifully restored, and has some very interesting displays and stories to tell. The stories you read about some of the trading sessions, would curl your hair. Fortunes made and lost, hearts broken and lives taken. The Stock Exchange saw it all and more!

Tower Hill, with its water tank still proudly displaying "The World", sits above town and gives a panoramic view over the town and surrounding area. It is riddled with old shafts and mullock heaps, but the road up to the top is easy, and the display showing the old town and mine layout, was really worthwhile. Apparently many of the old mines were taken over by the army during WW11, to house munitions, and many of these bunkers are still visible. The Yanks also had set up an air base here, and there were a lot of US troops to fill the dozens of Pubs in town! The museums and many of the historic buildings have some great photographs of the war years.

The weir at Charters Towers

Maybe a Hops Farm????

A drive out to the Charters Towers Weir was worthwhile. The original weir was built in the late 1890's to provide water to the bursting town. The mighty Burdekin River was dammed, and Charters Towers was drought proofed. The weir was raised and strengthened in the 1980's, and now holds an enormous volume of water. The width of the river, given that we are a fair way from the ocean, gives testimony to the volume of water that comes downstream during the wet season. It must be spectacular to see. The area is a popular picnic area, though there is no swimming in this area, which is also a haven for birds.



Charters Towers Drive In

The last highlight of our stay in Charters Towers, was a chance to relive the 1960's and '70's. Would you believe that they have a working, twin Drive-in Theatre in town! So we packed up the car and headed out to see Cars 2 and Pirates of the Caribbean, in Field 2, yes you even get a double feature! We bought dinner from the cafe, and to our surprise it was really nice, all freshly made, and settled in for the night. We had a fun night. Would you believe that it cost us $6 each to get in. I didn't have the heart to ask for a senior concession! Dinner for two, comprising hamburger for John, a Toastie for Carol and chips to share, cost us $8.50. I think we paid more than that in the '60's! The crowd really rolled in. Field 1 had 2 cars, and Field 2 had 4 cars. The car in front of us had 2 couples and they all got out of the car and sat in fold up chairs! These young ones haven't got a clue! I managed to keep Carol's hands off my body long enough to see most of the Pirates, but I succumbed to her advances during Cars 2, despite that bloody console between us!

We got home really late, had a good sleep in, well as good as Carol can, and enjoyed a lazy day around the caravan park for our last day, doing a few chores. As the neighbours were moving on, we also got to see Kevin show off, by hitching up the caravan. I have enough trouble, and I'm seeing what I'm doing! Kevin said "she told me I can keep doing it until the bloody thing comes off, then I'm sacked. Been following us for 9 and a half years and ain't come off yet!"

Next morning we also hitched up and bid Charters Towers farewell, thankful that our friend had suggested the detour. We now headed north along The Gregory Developmental Road, which forms a part of "The Great Inland Way" from Sydney to Cairns. We are in the accessible outback, and loving the change of scenery.