MANY FRIENDSHIPS have been forged, yarns told and travel information exchanged during the laidback smoko time at the Longreach Caravan Park. The smoko bell rings twice a day - 10.00am and 4.00pm - and guests wander over to have a cuppa and biscuit supplied by park hosts Shane and Kerry Morgan.

For the Morgans, it’s a chance to be with their guests on a personal basis and to tell them about some of the attractions around Longreach. And they have local maps, information, tour and cruise booking facilities to back it up.

If you arrive by train, coach or plane, you can easily organise a transfer to the park through the Morgans. Book an en suite cabin for your stay, or there are air-conditioned vans onsite as well. If you’re camping, there’s a camp kitchen where you can cook up a storm. A small kiosk carries bread, milk, cold drinks and icecream and there is a supermarket just two streets away.

A special concession rate encourages seniors to stay, and a bonus of a night free in a week-long stay is available to all.

One night a week, the park hosts a bush poetry night. As well as locals who come along to recite traditional and contemporary verse, people who write a little poetry while they’re on the road are invited to give their work an airing.

Impromptu music nights happen quite frequently too, so staying there can be quite entertaining!

Shane and Kerry have had the park for eight years, so they like their visitors to feel that the park is a home away from home. It’s comfortable, with grassed and shaded areas and a relaxed welcoming atmosphere.

Get the most from your journey

IF YOU believe that the journey is just as important as the destination, you’ll be wanting to see things along the way as you travel towards the Matilda Highway. If you’re picking up the Matilda Highway via the Capricorn Highway from the coast, a rewarding side trip is to the Blackdown Tableland National Park.Here, you will see the beauty of nature, unadorned. There are picnic areas and scenic walking tracks so you can discover deep sandstone gorges, caves, cliffs and waterfalls, heritage sites, unusual vegetation and Australian wildlife including bridled nail-tail wallabies.

The park turnoff is 11km west of Dingo. The 8km climb up the tableland is steep and winding, and the Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service advises that it is unsuitable for towing caravans.

The town of Dingo is a convenient access point for exploring the Blacktown Tableland, so book into the Dingo Caravan Park where you can park your van at a powered or unpowered site, or pitch your tent. It’s free to book ahead to the Longreach Caravan Park.

Dingo Caravan Park Capricorn Highway, Dingo, Queensland Phone (07) 4935 9121 Drive through powered and unpowered sites, close access to Blackdown Tableland National Park, halfway between Rockhampton and Emerald

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