Roma to Charleville
Sightseeing in Roma
After our false start with the ‘missing’ car keys (see my previous post for an explanation), we started our morning in Roma with some sightseeing around this quintessential Queensland country town.
The Big Rig
First, we took a short drive to look at the Big Rig, which we had passed on our way into town. This attraction tells the story of Queensland’s oil and gas pioneers. Visitors have the options of taking a tour or watching a night-time show, but we just went to have a look at the rig itself (from a distance). A lot of family travellers stay at the tourist park alongside the attraction. I think this would be a great place to stay if towing a caravan.
Roma’s Largest Bottle Tree
We also stopped to check out Roma’s largest bottle tree, located at the end of Edwards Street in Roma, quite close to our accommodation. The tree has a girth of 9.62 metres, a height of 15 metres and a crown of 23 metres. It has been in its current location since 1927 and is probably over 120 years old! While looking at trees is not necessarily every kid’s idea of fun, ours managed to make it something memorable by taking some fun photos around the sign (the tree is roped off, so photos are taken from outside the fence). There are bottle trees all over Roma and it’s worth pointing them out, because they’re not something you see every day in other places.
Roma Railway Station
We also stopped in at the Roma Railway Station, which we had seen from across the road at the White Bull Tavern the night before. It opened in 1880 and is an excellent example of the architecture of the time. The station was very quiet when we visited – passenger trains only come through town a couple of times a week – but it was all open and available to be explored. The kids found a palm frond in the carpark and had a bit of spontaneous fun trying to create scenes from Harry Potter. Editing the photos they took became a fun project for time in the car during the next leg of the road trip as well.
Main Street
Following this bit of exploring, we visited the main street of town. Here’s a tip for those who haven’t visited before: Parking is rear-end in. (Our travel buddies may have discovered this information the hard way, from a police officer, haha! No fines issued – phew!)
Morning Tea at Bakearoma
We stopped at Bakearoma for some baked treats for morning tea. The range was excellent and the food was fresh and yummy at this popular bakery. It was extremely busy and social distancing was being enforced, so our only disappointment was that we had to stand and eat our delicious bakery treats on the footpath. In non-pandemic times, it would be a lovely place to sit and relax.
Roma Bush Gardens
Our final stop before leaving Roma was at the Roma Bush Gardens. It was worth a quick stop, but we were keen to get on the road and didn’t stay long. There didn’t look to be a lot of shade, so this would probably be a great destination for an early-morning or dusk walk rather than somewhere to spend the day.
Lunch at Mitchell Cafe
After our stops in Roma, we hit the road for Charleville. We learnt our lesson regarding lunch and stopped in at the cute little Mitchell Café in the main street of the small town of Mitchell. We were travelling on a Sunday, and many places in rural areas still close on Sundays, so we were grateful to find this café open and welcoming. The fare was pretty typical of small-town takeaway stores and lots of hot chips were eaten, but we also enjoyed tasty burgers and cold drinks. It was a big improvement from lunch on our first day!
Rocks Motel Charleville
We reached Charleville mid-afternoon and checked in at our accommodation at the Rocks Motel. We were pleased to find that our rooms were in the same wing as our friends, and we were both in the wing that was closest to the entrance and easy to find. Our family room for six had a bedroom at one end containing two single beds, and a queen bed in the living room. We also had to set up a sofa bed next to the queen bed, so our living area setup became wall-to-wall beds along the back wall, with a kitchenette along the front wall. I’m not complaining – we appreciate the way sofa beds can open up a room to six people (see my Ode to the Sofa Bed here), however the room was also quite dark and relied upon artificial downlighting, so it ended up feeling both crowded and dark, and wasn’t a particularly appealing space to be in. Thankfully it was just a base for us.
We began to comment about a change in water quality in Roma, but in Charleville it was much more noticeable. Most fresh water in the Queensland Outback comes from the Great Artesian Basin. We all thought the water felt ‘slippery’ and quite ‘soft’, and it was quite nice to shower in. The only downside was the smell, which was slightly sulphuric, and which seemed to hang around in the rooms. We also found a few spiders in our shower when we arrived, so we didn’t extend the length of our showers for any longer than necessary (which was probably a good thing, as water use is restricted in most places anyway).
We visited the pool at the Rocks Motel and it was fine – if a bit small. We were one of two groups there, and it felt a little overcrowded, but the kids had fun. The pool furniture wasn’t in great condition – it felt like an area that could have used a bit more investment. Having said that, we were well aware that tourism had taken a hit with the pandemic and we could appreciate why things like outdoor furniture might have been low on the priority list. We didn’t stay long at the pool, but it was good for the kids to let off a bit of steam after a few hours in the car. We had intended to eat dinner at the on-site restaurant, but it wasn’t open when we were staying, so we headed out for dinner.
Dinner at The Lucky Elephant Restaurant
For dinner, we visited The Lucky Elephant Restaurant for Thai food. It was ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS and was one of the best, if not the best, food we ate on our trip. The only disappointment was that the staff were run off their feet with takeaway orders and we were eating in the restaurant, so our meals took a while to arrive. We had to be at our night-time activity at a fixed time for a tour and, in the end, we had to leave with some of the food in ‘doggie bags’ for later and had to forgo the children’s included desserts. We loved the food so much that we drove past the restaurant on our way out of town just to have a memory of it (photo below).
Cosmos Centre Charleville
Our night-time activities were booked in at the Cosmos Centre. First, we did their ‘Universal Dreaming’ tour, for which the guide had us all sit around a campfire as it grew dark and then pointed out different constellations. We learnt about the stories that different cultures attach to the constellations, which was extremely interesting and educational for the adults and children alike. The view of the sky from the Outback is so much clearer than the one we see at home with our urban light pollution – the Milky Way galaxy was clearly evident to the naked eye, for example. We finished this tour by roasting giant marshmallows near the fire, which the kids absolutely loved!
Drive Around Town
We had a bit of a break between tours at the Cosmos Centre, so we took a look at some of the educational displays inside and did a spot of souvenir shopping before heading back to our accommodation for ice-creams on the motel veranda. There was a colourful mural and light display on a water tower in town too, so we took a drive past that while we were out and about.
Then, to finish day two of our family road tour around Outback Queensland, we headed back to the Cosmos Centre for a late-night booking in their Big Sky Observatory. This was a memorable experience in a purpose-built shed with a roof that opened (to a grand, Star-Wars-esque soundtrack) to reveal the sky above. A guide pointed out lots of the constellations again, and we also got to take turns using high-powered telescopes to view various stars and planets. The absolute highlight of this experience was seeing Jupiter and Saturn, with the rings around Saturn clear for everyone to see, including the children. Our experiences at the Cosmos Centre were fantastic all around – a real highlight of the trip and something we would recommend to anyone.
After our late night at the Cosmos Centre, we returned to the Rocks Motel tired and ready for a refreshing sleep ahead of day three of our family road trip around Outback Queensland!
Day 2 Outback Queensland Family Road Trip Summary
Start:
Roma
End:
Charleville
Driving:
3 hours (267 km)
Accommodation:
Rocks Motel, Charleville
Notable stops:
The Big Rig, Roma;
Roma’s largest bottle tree, Roma;
Roma train station, Roma;
Bakearoma bakery, Roma;
Roma Bush Gardens, Roma;
Mitchell Café, Mitchell;
The Lucky Elephant restaurant, Charleville;
The Cosmos Centre, Charleville.
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