ROAD TO MAGICAL BEAUTY
IT might be a winding road through the country to some, but a closer look at Nerang Murwillumbah Road will delight even the most frazzled city-slicker.
Yes, the Gold Coast is known for its highrises, but just half an hour away awaits those rolling hills, sheer-faced mountains and (adorable) belted galloway cattle munching down on lush green grass.
Gum trees — ghost white to fire-blackened — line parts of the drive, which as the name suggests, begins in Nerang and goes all the way to Murwillumbah in NSW.
But you don’t even have to drive out all that way to reap the benefits of the area’s clean country air and a stunning landscape, even speckled with rain, as my last outing was.
I’d recommend, for a nice half-day trip, to head out to Natural Bridge with its famous falls which crash through the open ceiling of a cave.
And with that as your main destination, enjoy the ever changing scenery of the windy road, which ranges from untouched forested bushland to open paddocks.
Some of the paddocks hold horses, others cattle — and all different breeds too. It could keep the littlies entertained for hours with I-spy.
And there’s always a chance you’ll spot one of the local regal, yet elusive pests: deer.
If you’re not keen on that, the flooded gum trees in Hinze Dam also make for fascinating viewing. Oh, but before you head out, make sure your tank is full. There’s no petrol station for 46 kilometres.
Yep, that’s how they roll in the country.