Bush 'n Beach Fishing Magazine Location reports & tips for fishing, boating, camping, kayaking, 4WDing in Queensland and Northern NSW
Hi all, when you’re out in the Queensland bush travelling, you get to see the wonderful sights and explore the country, and occasionally you come across unusual occurrences that can’t be rationally explained. Now, these are only accounts without facts, however sometimes you can tell by body language and reaction that something strange had been experienced and left the person in disbelief. Queensland bush
Boulia in western Queensland is well known for the phenomenon of the Min Min lights. For centuries travellers have spoken of strange lights that travel alongside vehicles only to disappear into nothingness. To my knowledge, there has never been a scientific explanation for the lights. There is a well-known saying in the west along the lines of, ‘if you go looking for these lights, you’ll never find them – travel and they’ll find you’. Personally, I have a fascination with the mystic of the indigenous culture of our country.
Different locations throughout Queensland such as the Babinda Boulders near Cairns have a story – the boulders, of a young bride Oolana who lost her soon to be husband.
Distraught, she threw herself into the pool and from that day on has been luring young men into this watery grave. Devil’s Pool – a natural pool in a treacherous stretch of Babinda Creek where the boulders are situated – has claimed 17 lives here since 1959.
Queensland has a wealth of sites that offer stories to challenge our everyday existence. I’m sure statistically there are reasonable explanations, but the unknown adds a mystical experience to your travels. Old derelict graveyards offer both history and questions. To stand quietly on the harsh dry dirt devoid of life and stare at a rusted fence and a weather-ravaged gravestone helps connect you with what life may have been like for the folk of the time. To hear a voice on the wind or feel a presence in the stillness can create quite a strange atmosphere. Even taking the time to read gravestones leaves you with a chilling insight.
One particular site had a row of graves of children who passed away in the month of August, during winter in 1918. The ages ranged from six months to 13 years, and all had passed of an influenza.
Camping in small towns, you tend to frequent the local shop during your stay and get to know the community.
On one occasion when visiting a small coastal town, I found myself drawn into a sighting of one of Queensland’s best folklore entities – the Yowie. Two young girls and their mother had walked an isolated beach near the township. The three had thought they’d witnessed a cow browsing along the dune vegetation. When the cow began to raise on two feet to a height of about 2.5m and then move towards them, they realised they were looking at something quite different. We camped in this area for about a month and the community rallied around this family. Other local sightings and stories began to surface from trusted locals and old-time farmers. Queensland bush
