North of Fraser Coast and Bundaberg is Capricorn Coast, so named because of its location on the Tropic of Capricorn. Part of this coast is off the access because of the Shoalwater Bay Military Training Area, but there are still plenty of things to do: Outside Rockhampton is Great Keppel Island, and off the coast are some of the best islands of the Great Barrier Reef, like Lady Musgrave, Lady Elliott and Heron Island. Inland are some great fossicking areas around Sapphire and Rubyvale, where you’ll find yourself amongst some outback characters. Further inland are Blackdown Tablelands National Park, and Carnarvon National Park - one of the best national parks in Queensland.
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Courtesy of Tourism Queensland
Capricorn Coast Australia - Rockhampton Australia The largest town on the Capricorn Coast is Rockhampton, the area’s cattle farming centre. Rockhampton has got some fantastically beautiful historical buildings from the times of gold rushes. Some excellent examples are on Quai Street, right on the waterfront next to the Fritzroy River. Behind Quai Street is the central mall, and north of it are the Rockhampton City Art Gallery and the Archer Park Station & Steam Tram Museum. North across the river is the Kershaw Gardens with Australian native plants, and south of the city are Botanic Gardens with plants from all over the world and a small zoo. A few kilometres north of Rockhampton are the Dreamtime Cultural Centre and an interesting living museum - Heritage Village. The accommodation in Rockhampton includes Downtown Backpackers, Ascot Stonegrill Backpackers, Rockhampton City YHA and Criterion Hotel.
Courtesy of Tourism Queensland
Capricorn Coast Australia - Great Keppel Island Queensland Off the Capricorn Coast outside Rockhampton there is the Great Keppel Island – a beautiful getaway with lots of bushwalking tracks, budget accommodation and great snorkelling – the good news is there are no box jellyfish here (they are in northern waters), although be aware of sharks and keep yourself in shallow waters. Great Keppel's accommodation is on the western coast along Fisherman’s Beach and from here there are some short bushwalks to the southern Monkey Beach and Long Beach. Longer bushwalks take you to central and eastern parts of the island, to beautiful lookouts and some good snorkelling at Clam Bay, Wreck Beach and Sandhills Beach. In the eastern point of the island there is a lighthouse, and from the central lookout point there is a track to the northern Leeke’s Beach. Contiki Watersports Kiosk at Fisherman’s Beach and Great Keppel Island Jet Ski on Putney Beach hire kayaks, sailboards and snorkelling gear, and Keppel Reef Scuba Adventures take you diving. You can stay at the Great Keppel Island Holiday Village or Great Keppel YHA hostel. Freedom Fast Cats and Keppel Tourist Services take you to Great Keppel Island from Rockhampton.
Courtesy of Tourism Queensland
Blackdown Tableland National Park Inland from Rockhampton, the Capricorn Hwy takes you past Blackdown Tableland National Park to Emerald – the centre of Queensland’s gemfields, where in the nearby Rubyvale, Sapphire and Anakie you can get a fossicking licence and try your luck.
Courtesy of Tourism Queensland
Capricorn Coast Australia: Emerald Queensland In Emerald, there is the Emerald Pioneer Cottage and Museum, Kiely’s Farm and Animal Sanctuary, and a huge replica of Vincent van Gogh’s painting "Sunflowers". In Rubyvale, you can attend tours to the Miners Heritage Walk-in Mine or Bobby Dazzler Mine. Rubyvale Gem Gallery and Miners Cottage sell the precious stones, and Fascination takes you fossicking. In Sapphire, you can ‘do a bucket’ with Pat’s Gems, and the Forever Mine has gems on sale.
Courtesy of Tourism Queensland
Capricorn Coast Australia: Emerald Accommodation You can stay at Emerald Inn, Western Gateway Motel or Emerald Cabin & Caravan Village in Emerald; in Taylor’s Units, New Royal Hotel or Bedford Gardens & Caravan Park in Rubyvale, or Sunrise Cabins in Sapphire. There is a caravan park next to the pub in Anakie, or you can stay at the Ramboda Homestead, a working cattle farm. West of Anakie is Willows Gemfield with more caravan parks. Personally I camped in the bush in Rubyvale for a few dollars which has to be paid in one of the gem shops where you can also buy a fossicking licence.
Courtesy of Tourism Queensland
Capricorn Coast Australia: Carnarvon National Park South of Emerald is the amazing Carnarvon National Park with the 200m-deep Carnarvon Gorge carved into the sandstone. There are about 20km of bushwalking tracks both up the top and in the bottom of the gorge, that take you to lovely moist waterholes like Moss Gardens and some of Australia’s best sites of Aboriginal rock painting in places like the Art Gallery and Cathedral Cave. You can camp at the camping sites in the bush (you need to book with EPA), or stay at the Carnarvon Gorge Wilderness Lodge or at Takarakka Bush Resort (Takaru), both near the park entrance.
Courtesy of Tourism Queensland
Capricorn Coast Australia - Gladstone Queensland Back on the Capricorn Coast Queensland, south of Rockhampton is Gladstone – the gateway to the stunning Heron Island on the Great Barrier Reef, but there are a few things to do in town. In the centre of Gladstone there is the Gladstone Art Gallery & Museum, and south of the centre there is the Tondoon Botanic Gardens, and the Gecko Valley Winery where you can sample their products for free. There are some good views over the harbour from the Auckland Point Lookout in town.
Courtesy of Tourism Queensland
Heron Island Queensland Heron Island off the Capricorn Coast is a coral cay with easily accessible coral reef all the way around it. Snorkelling and diving are consequently the main activities. There is also an old shipwreck (as on many islands on this coast), and a pisonia tree forest, which is full of birds called black noddies. During the summer months, large female turtles come to lay their eggs on the beaches of Heron Island. In the south-eastern corner of the island there is a Marine Research Centre (where I stayed during my only visit to Heron while doing a science degree at the UTS Sydney); and in the north-eastern corner there is the Heron Island Resort - the only place to stay as camping in the bush is not permitted.
Courtesy of Tourism Queensland
Capricorn Coast Australia - Lady Elliott Island Other Great Barrier Reef islands off the Capricorn Coast are Lady Elliott, Lady Musgrave, Masthead, Tyron and North West Island. Lady Elliott is a coral cay like Heron, with excellent snorkelling and diving, many shipwrecks, and the Lady Elliott Island Resort – camping is not allowed in the bush. Lady Musgrave is an uninhabited island which is a national park with a camping ground, and excellent snorkelling around it. On Masterhead and North West Island, camping is only permitted seasonally, usually between Easter and October, but check with EPA.
Here's a map of Capricorn Coast Australia, where I have tagged the places that I mentioned on this web page. You can click on the tags to see what places they are, and double-click anywhere on the map to zoom it in and see the places closer. Drag the map to move around, and if you want to see the satellite image with Google Earth, click on "Sat" in the top right hand corner.
NOTE: This website is written in British English, which is the English we use in Australia. You will find words like "traveller", "harbour" and "realise", and they are all correct in the language used in Australia.
