We rose early to sunshine and serenity at Sarina Beach. Today’s destination was the historic town of Ravenswood, a journey of around 530km.
First stop was “The Diner” in Sarina for breakfast. It is a local icon, being a firm favourite with generations of sugar mill workers & locals.
Leaving Sarina we ventured up the Sarina Range heading to Nebo to top up our fuel. Fortunately we were carrying cash as the garage’s phone lines were down so they had no EFTPOS available.
From Nebo we headed north to Collinsville with a quick stop at Lake Elphinstone. I have stopped at Lake Elphinstone a few times as a rest break in my work travels. It was depressing to see it totally empty.
From Lake Elphinstone we ventured on to Collinsville with a detour through Glenden. Glenden looks more lively than my last visit through the town. All of the houses were now occupied and well maintained.
Being “The Thirsty Tourists” we pulled up at The Pit Pony Tavern for a cold beer. After we finished our beers it was back on the road, we turned off just out of Collinsville and headed up Strathmore Road. We were heading to Ravenswood via Burdekin Dam.
This gave us the chance to have another beer at the Bowen River Hotel. It is a heritage-listed hotel on Strathmore Station, approximately 34 kilometres from Collinsville.
The Bowen River Hotel was originally built in 1861 as a homestead from local timber. It was originally named the Heidelberg Inn. They offer lunch and dinner seven days a week, cold drinks and a relaxed country atmosphere. They often host live music events, an annual rodeo, as well as comfortable accommodation, and camping.
After departing from the Bowen River Hotel we continued on towards Burdekin Dam and Ravenswood.
We did miss the turn off to the dam, the road we were on looked to be more used for traffic so I assumed it was the right way. Thankfully the ExplorOz Traveller GPS showed us my error. Once back on track we were soon at the dam.
We were now on the final leg of today’s journey with Ravenswood only just over 80km away. So we were lloking forward to booking in to the Railway Hotel for a couple of nights and relaxing in town.
