We have moved a couple of times now , down to Beaudesert and now up to Kilcoy .
Leaving Warwick , we headed out along Cunningham Hwy toward Boona , not sure what to expect , one thing we did know , was we had to go down to the coastal plains again - that involved going down Cunningham’s Gap . After a few google search’s , we had - it’s an 18 klm climb from the bottom - that was enough to make the imagination go into overdrive - how steep , 18klms of twisting turning hell on bitumen !!!
The road fears aside , we drove through some beautiful black soil countryside , when we say black soil , we mean BLACK soil - don’t think we’ve ever seen it that black before !! Some had been ploughed ready for the next crop that will be grown , with a backdrop of mountains , it was certainly a treat to view .
We stopped at a road side stop to check a few things before hitting Cunningham’s Gap , then onwards we went , leaving the fields behind and venturing into a section of rainforest . After rounding several corners we came to a parking area and stopped on the crest just before the descent started . There’s many walks to do from here along the Scenic Rim , we walked up to the memorial cairn for Allan Cunningham , who discovered the way through the mountains . It gives you a view of the road down the mountain , tracks also wander of into the rainforest further but we weren’t dressed for the freezer room - the cross country thongs and shorts didn’t quite cut it in 11 degree heat !!! The rainforest was beautiful however , and I managed a few photos , thankfully the camera has vibration reduction , the goosebumps had gone into multi level mode !!!
Crows Nest ferns were growing quite happily 30m above us in the canopy .
Back to the ute and the heater , we headed off down the mountain -18 klms to go and we’re down . Cautiously we enter the down lane and proceed around the first corner , not so bad , there’s 3 lanes - 2 up 1 down , and a few pull off areas to let faster traffic go on the way down . A couple of more corners , a bit steeper but still good , corner by corner down we go . Then we’re down the bottom , never got out of 3rd gear all the way down - it was a doddle , one of the easiest drives down a mountain we’ve had , that’s probably why most of the semitrailers and B doubles use this road to get to Goondiwindi and then onto the Newell Hwy to Melbourne !! , probably passed 20 trucks going up the hill !!
This photo is to the north of Cunninghams Gap while we were going down , the scenery was pretty good looking out toward Boonah & beyond .
We stayed at Beaudesert and caught up with Dave & Deb ( our daughters fiance’s parents ) who had just moved over from WA - last week actually !
Saturday was lost to golf at the local club , which is great condition - 34 points on their medal day was pretty reasonable on a course previously unseen .
Sunday was spent doing a bit more work renewing the sealant on the van - after nearly 3 years the UV is taking it’s toll on the caulking , so before it has to be done , we’ve got in renewed it !!
Monday was shopping and also catching up with Dave & Deb again with lunch at the Railway Hotel in Beaudesert , a great meal and company .
Today we headed north again after a wet night , the rain still being a nuisance this morning , but clearing before we headed off - got to be happy with that !! The drive us took us toward Ipswich then onto Rosewood and into the Lockyer Valley near Gatton , before heading north up to Esk and then over to Kilcoy . Gatton is market garden territory , a lot of our vegetables get grown here , it’s a very fertile valley .
We’ve been to Esk before and knew the road over to Kilcoy via Somerset Dam was a bit narrow and had some winding sections , but we headed that way to save about 12 klms going the longer way . Stopping at O’Shea’s Crossing at the Brisbane River for lunch at a picnic area that would be perfect to stay overnight at , unfortunately it closes at 6pm every day ! The road from here get’s narrow and rougher , but nothing that caused us any grief , it was a good test for the ute and the van , and came through no drama’s !! This is the Brisbane River beside the picnic area .
That’s it , all caught up again , here’s a map link :- https://drive.google.com/open?id=1YHuaNneUSoxKzgfs3l1u6BRyjRw&usp=sharing
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