Caravan World – May 2019

104 caravanworld.com.au

The Riversleigh World Heritage Site is

156km north of the Barkly Highway and

100kmwestofGregoryDownsinremote

northwestQueensland.

All access roads are mostly or entirely

unsealed and a four-wheel-drive vehicle

is recommended. Only the route from

Gregory Downs is suitable for

conventionalvehiclesandoffroad

caravans.

The best time to visit is during the

cooler,driermonthsfromMayto

September.

The nearest major centres with a full

range of supplies and services are

Burketown (275km) and Mount Isa

(285km).Fuelandbasicsuppliesare

availableatAdelsGrove(60km).

Unpowered camping is available

within the national park at Miyumba

camping area, 4km south of Riversleigh

WHS, and at Lawn Hill Gorge camping

area.Accommodationandcampingis

alsoavailableatAdelsGrove.

For more information about

Boodjamulla (Lawn Hill) National Park,

visitwww.npsr.qld.gov.au/parks/

boodjamulla-lawn-hill.

For more information about Adels

Grove visit http://www.adelsgrove.com.au;

(07) 4748 5502.

fast

"

"

"

"

!

"

"

"

"

"

"

"

"

"

"

"

!

"

"

"

"

"

"

"

"

!

"

" "

"

"

"

Queensland

Northern

Territory

Clar

aR.

Yapp

ar R

.

Du

gal

d

Riv

er

oC

re

all

R.

Sa

xb

yR

ive

r

Fli

nde

rs

R.

Belmore

Lawn

Hil

l

Cr

ee

k

O'sha

nn

as

sy

R.

Greg

or

y

R.

Gu

np

owd

er

Ck

No

rma

n

River

Sa

nd

y

Cre

ek

Le

ich

ha

rd

t

R.

Waanyi/

GarawaALT

Gulf

Country

BallaraNat.Ref.(pvt.)

Boodjamulla

(LawnHill)NP

AA^66

AA^83

BBA6

AAA2

AAA2

Sto

ck

Ro

eut

Ur

and

ang

i

Rd

Lak

eJ

uliu

sR

oa

d

Bu

rke

Dev

elo

pm

en

tal

Road

Wills

Developme

ntal

Road

Gre

gor

yDo

wnsCam

ooweal

Roa

d

Flinders Hwy

Barkly

Highway

'Burke and WillsRoadhouse'

'Milgarra'

'Calton Hills'

'Chidna'

'White Hills'

'Warren Vale'

'AucklandDowns'

'McAllister'

'VenaPark'

'Riversleigh'

'No 3Outstation'

'Split Rock'

'Augustus Downs'

'Wyaldra'

'Myola'

'SaxbyRoundup'

'OldHerbert

Vale'

'New Chidna'

'Endymion'

'Bowthorn'

'Talawanta'

'Iffley'

'Millungera'

'Yelvertoft'

'Claraville'

'Wondoola'

'NeumayerValley'

'BarklyDowns'

'Gregory Downs'

Camooweal Kajabbi

Julia

Creek

Cloncurry

MountIsa

(^05250) km
V
© Hema Maps
MEET‘BIGBIRD’
Owingtotheruggedlimestoneterrain,
visitoraccesstotheWorldHeritageareais
restrictedtoonelocation,‘SiteD’,whichis
adjacenttothemainroadthatleadstoLawn
HillGorge.
ThelandscapeofSiteDisdominatedby
a limestoneoutcropwithslopescloakedin
spinifexandlitteredbyfossil-richboulders.
Agravelpathconnectsthecarparktoa
displaysheltercontaininginformation
panelsandlife-sizedreconstructionsof
someoftheanimalsthatonceroamedthe
Riversleighrainforestorprowledinitslakes.
Oneoftheseis‘BigBird’,a hugeflightless
birdthatstoodupto2.5mtallandweighed
between250-300kg.Thunderbirds,as
scientistscallthem,belongedtotheheaviest
groupofbirdsthateverexistedandonly
inAustralia.Despitetheirappearance,
thunderbirds are not closely related to other
flightless birds, such as emus, cassowaries or
ostriches, but are more closely related to a
group that includes the domestic duck.
The other animal on display is the most
formidable of all the Riversleigh predators
found so far — a 5m freshwater crocodile
(Baru wickeni), one of at least nine species
of crocodile with huge blade-like teeth that
patrolled the lakes and forests of Riversleigh
more than 20 million years ago.
Today, freshwater crocodiles (Crocodylis
johnstoni) still live in and around the rivers
of Lawn Hill Gorge and Riversleigh, but
don’t present nearly the same threat as the
fearsome Baru.
From the display shelter, the 800m Fossil
Trail takes visitors on a walk around Site
D to some outstanding examples of fossils,
including huge limb bones and gizzard
CLOCKWISE FROM BELOW Fossil fragments of a 2.5m tall flightless bird that walked at Riversleigh
about 25 million years ago; modern-day freshwater crocs; a leg bone from a 'Thunderbird'; inside the
display shelter at Riversleigh World Heritage Site