Part 4 - Elizabeth's Outback Adventure

Thank you for joining me on my Queensland Outback Adventure!

We thought we’d play tourist in our backyard and visit all the places in our own state that we said we’d get to ‘one day’ and since overseas travel is so far off for most of us, I thought you might like to go on a virtual holiday with my husband and me.

Here’s our itinerary:

Saturday, April 24 – Home to Chinchilla Motor Inn
Sunday, April 25 – Chinchilla to Augathella Palms
Monday, April 26 – Augathella to Longreach (Jumbuck Motel)
Tuesday, April 27 – Longreach
Wednesday, April 28 – Longreach to Winton (Matilda Motel)
Thursday, April 29 – Winton to Blackall (Coolibah Motel)
Friday, April 30 – Blackall to Mitchell (Major Mitchell Caravan Park and Cabins)
Saturday, May 1 – Mitchell to Toowoomba (Platinum International)
Sunday, May 2 – Toowoomba to Home

DAY 4

Longreach

DAY 4

Despite the age of the motel and its location opposite the airport, we had a great night’s sleep.

Opposite an airport?!?!

Longreach airport only operates during daylight hours and the aircraft taking off are light aircraft and turbo props.

So why on earth stay so close to a working airport? This is going to be today’s adventure – visiting the QANTAS Founders Museum!

My what fun that was! If you have any interest in history or aviation, then this is the place for you.

The museum is worth seeing in its own right. It’s filled with historical pieces relating to the origins and founding of the Queensland And Northern Territory Aerial Service.

So why was Australia’s flagship airline founded here in Longreach? As much as this region sees drought, it also sees flooding rains and once rain hits the rich, black soil turns gelatinous and no road transport could get through.

Keeping reading for tomorrow’s installment because there is something remarkable about central Queensland black soil that will hopefully astound you as it did me!

The establishment of an aerial service brought together communities separated by great distances.

We spent two hours in the museum itself before joining a guided tour through an original 747, a Super Constellation, a DC3, 707 and a little Avro.

The story of Qantas’ early days more than a century ago is truly remarkable and how dedication to bringing communities closer, inspired the founders and how that vision was captured and share by communities who funded an airline to bring mail, supplies and medical support to outback communities.

After the museum visit we walked up and down the main street of Longreach and bought a few souvenirs.

Including a cute pair of handmade leather earrings.

By the time we got back to the hotel, we were footsore and thought we might cool off in the pool. The water was freezing, so we settled for dangling our feet in instead.

Apparently there are two places in the world where you can stand in the engine of a jumbo jet and have your photo taken. The QANTAS Founders Museum is one of them. Doesn’t Duncan look right at home in this Outback town?

We took a guided tour of the jet park where decommissioned planes from Qantas’ past are available to walk through. The Southern Spray is a Super Constellation.

The tour guide said only ‘hosties’ (stewardesses) would have been allowed to pose for promotional pictures, so I decided to try my hand at it.

Around, under, through these amazing aircraft – and for some enthusiastic souls, you would even book a wing walk, where you could walk along the length of a 747 wing!

The story of the founding of Qantas (now accepted as title case rather than acronym) is utterly fascinating. We take flying for granted and forget that it was a revolutionary, and dangerous technology 100 years ago.