Cloncurry, Queensland, Australia
If you have tuned into the latest Australian Survivor 2021, you can see some of the stunning landscapes surrounding Cloncurry (or the “Curry” as it is referred to locally).
We enjoyed a cousin birthday picnic at Chinaman's Dam, just west of town, and which was used as a location for some of the Australian Survivor challenges. The locals said that the resident freshwater crocs had to be caught and relocated.
Home to around 3000 people, Cloncurry is a small country town with a big heart, and some say that it is the friendliest outback town.
Cloncurry is a crossroads for those heading east to Townsville, or west to the NT, or south to Winton and Longreach and beyond. We plan to head south from here, but before we do so, we will spend quality time catching up with Mum's cousin Trevor, his wife Jill and their family. We were very excited to see our cousins Audrey and Emily again, and to meet baby George, who is our newest cousin.
Cloncurry is famous for being where the Royal Flying Doctor Service began back in the 1920s. The John Flynn Place Museum is well worth a visit and provides more background on the work of John Flynn. Still on the subject of flying, Cloncurry was the destination for the first QANTAS flight and you can still visit the original hanger. Cloncurry’s association with flight continues today as it was most recently the testing site for US and Australian drones.
Burke and Wills passed through Cloncurry on their expedition in 1861.
Robert O'Hara Burke named Cloncurry after his cousin, Lady Elizabeth Cloncurry of County Galway,
The Cloncurry Stockman’s Challenge took place on our first weekend in town and Dad hasn’t seen so many cowboy hats since the Calgary Stampede! We enjoyed this local event and we met some local kids in the process.
We were having such a fun time in Cloncurry that when the State of Victoria announced yet another lockdown, and with NSW still a red zone, we were reluctant to start heading south.
Our parents made a spur of the moment decision: we were to stay on in Cloncurry for an additional five weeks and that we would be enrolled into the local school with our cousin Audrey.
Dad postponed the remainder of.his leave and started working remotely, while Mum started helping out cousin Trev in his vet clinic. Now, we have to thank Anna, Paul and Giorgio (our most wonderful friends) for continuing to dog sit our dog, and for some of our amazing neighbours who feed our two cats, and keep an eye on our house, as well as Granny and Pop, whilst we enjoy and experience the hospitality of far North West Queensland a little longer. It is a full house, with plenty of cousin fun, birthdays to celebrate, time to ride Hector the horse as well as participate in the local Cloncurry parkrun.
A new mini adventure begins....
2025-05-22