HAVE you seen the light? The Min Min Light, that is.

Head to Boulia to discover the story of this strange phenomenon - and enjoy some amazing natural sights on the way. Driving along the fully sealed Kennedy Development Road from Winton, you will see unusual mesa-type landscape. Stop at the Cawnpore Lookout to take in the stark flat-topped beauty of the Lilleyvale Hills. These hill formations occur in only two places in the world – Australia and South America.

Another stopping spot along the way is the Middleton Hotel, once one of nine changing stations on a Cobb & Co route and now the only one left. While you’re there, take a photo of one of Lester and Val Cain’s prized possessions - the Cobb and Co coach. Ask them to tell you about when they used camels to pull the coach from Winton to Boulia. Have a meal and a cold drink while you’re there or if you want to make your journey between Winton and Boulia really relaxed, the hotel has an area where you can camp overnight for free. All they ask is that you make a small donation (which goes to the RFDS) for a shower. Otherwise, there are five rooms available for accommodation at the hotel. The pub offers breakfast, lunch and dinner seven days.

Also located on the road are the ruins of the Min Min Hotel. The hotel was destroyed by fire in 1912 and it was in this area that Min Min lights were first seen.

The first documented sightin

g of the light was in 1912, however, the local Pitta Pitta people claim it has been around for many years and that it represents the spirits of their ancestors.

Boulia itself is the best place to go to learn about this unexplained phenomenon ... and you can even “see the light” for yourself at the Min Min Encounter and Information Centre complex in Herbert Street.

The Min Min Encounter is incredibly atmospheric. Even the foyer is outfitted to put you in the right mood for a trip into the 1800s when the Min Min Hotel was still standing. A 45-minute show takes you through the heart of Min Min country and tells of the legends, yarns and explanations behind the mysterious lights, which are still seen today. It’s a theatrical experience, with all kinds of high-tech wizardry used to put you in the picture about this amazing phenomenon.

While you’re there, also browse through the gift lines, have a snack at the Encounters Cafe and gather tourist information for other places to visit. The centre is open seven days.

Accommodation is available at the Desert Sands Motel. If you want to cook your own dinner, the motel has a guest barbecue, and breakfast is available to the units.

At the Stonehouse Museum, see how the early settlers lived. The museum building itself is one of the first homes built in western Queensland and because of its design, kept much of the summer heat at bay. Machinery, saddlery, hospital instruments and fossils collected from around the shire are displayed.

The talk of the region is Boulia’s Indoor Sports and Aquatic Centre, a $4.3 million sporting complex which has a 25m pool, splash pool, multi-purpose court, exercise room, two squash courts, tennis courts and oval.

While in the mood for exercise, don’t forget to pull out your golf clubs (or you can hire them at the golf club in Boulia) to play on a sand green course and meet the locals in the clubhouse.

See the corroboree tree. This is the last recognised corroboree tree of the Pitta Pitta tribe and is situated behind the Boulia State School. It is a waddi tree (Acacia peuce), which is one of Australia’s rarest plants and is naturally occurring in only three places on the edge of the Simpson Desert. The tree is slow growing, has

leaves like long needles and has extremely hard wood. Some waddi trees live as long as 500 years.

The old Police Barracks outside of town on the Boulia-Selwyn Road is a terrific place for a picnic or barbecue and a dip in the large natural waterhole surrounded with trees full of birds. The old Police Barracks also hold a significant place in the early history of the Boulia Shire. This area is also good for a bit of fishing. If you’re keen on fishing - or birdwatching - also look for yellowbelly at Parapituri Waterhole and in the Burke River.

One of Boulia’s most amazing events takes place on the third weekend of July each year. Come out and see the “ships of the desert” as they race around the track - hopefully the right way around! - in what has become Boulia’s signature event.

Make sure you visit Boulia’s version of a highrise building while you’re in town. The Australian Hotel Motel is the only two-storey building in Boulia!

The hotel was opened in 1958 after being rebuilt by the Boulia Shire Council on the site of a previous hotel. The council owned the hotel until 2000 and renovated substantially before selling it. The hotel was sold again, in 2003, to the current owners.

Trevor Jones admits that it’s a rather unusual history to have a council as the owner of a pub. But this isn’t just any pub. It’s the only hotel in town!

“It’s actually the only pub for 300km,” he said.

The building is spacious, with a bar area that can hold 120 people and a big restaurant out the back that seats 70 people. (It’s the only restaurant in town.) The restaurant is named the Cooridgea Watering Hole Restaurant after one of the watering holes on a property owned by the Joneses.

The restaurant serves up good home-style meals, with plenty of steaks featuring home-grown beef along with reef and beef combos, chicken and Nile perch. It’s open Monday to Friday for lunch from noon to 1.30pm and for dinner from 6.30pm to 8.30pm, on Saturday for dinner between 6.30pm and 8.30pm and meals are only available for in-house guests who have made a special booking on Sunday nights.

Accommodation includes nine hotel rooms with shared facilities and 13 motel rooms.

So drop in, meet the local characters and enjoy some great country hospitality at the only pub in town.