WILD AND WONDERFUL
In southeast Queensland, less than an hour’s drive inland from Brisbane or the Gold Coast, the Scenic Rim boasts expansive national parks and stunning wildlife walks,
WHAT TO SEE AND DO Binna Burra Lodge and Lamington National Park
With a range of accommodation and a campsite right on the edge of a tropical rainforest, Binna Burra Lodge is the perfect starting point to explore Lamington National Park.
On a guided walk from the lodge, I learn that the Scenic Rim was formed by the eruption of Mt Warning, the biggest shield volcano in the Southern Hemisphere, 23 million years ago. The soil here is dark and red, and packed with nutrients that have allowed this rare Australian pocket of rainforest to grow.
In less than an hour, I learn about the eucalypts (known locally as gasoline trees). They drop their limbs like a pyre around them, and explode and release oil when burnt; tickle the web of a funnel-web spider (with fangs strong enough to bite through a toe nail, they can kill — the poison is pumped through the body by your muscles, so if bitten, stay still); and spot a lawyer vine, inedible to everything because of its backwards facing barbs.
The Australian bush life is fascinating. We spot native raspberries and taste scurvy weed (packed with vitamin C but tasteless). There is the giant stinging tree, whose fibreglass-like barbs can inflict a pain that reoccurs for years if not removed; the spider that arms itself with a rock to fight off the giant centipedes that loves to snack on it; the ground-dwelling birds that line their nests with dingo faeces to disguise the smell of their chicks.
The rainforest looks like an entanglement of snakes but they’re nothing to worry about — they’re not interested in people and besides, I’m too busy trying to spot funnel-webs and giant stinging trees to notice.
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Summer Land Camels, Harrisville
Did you know that Australia is home to the world’s largest population of wild camels?
Summer Land Camels is the third biggest camel farm in the world, and here you can learn everything there is to know about these fascinating creatures.
First, there are a few myths that require busting. These are not grumpy animals. It’s true that camels will spit (although it’s not spit — it’s actually regurgitated food, i.e. cud or fresh vomit), but only if they’re unhappy. And yes they kick too — but only if they’re feeling threatened, so don’t sneak up on them, or throw them off balance while you’re on their backs.
Camels were brought to Australia from India and Egypt in the 1840s to help the British explore the deserts of the Outback. They helped to build the telegraph network and the rail network, and the army’s Imperial Camel Corps was established in 1916.
But the population got out of hand, and now wild camels roam Australia in herds up to 800 strong. They damage farms and infrastructure, eat anything that gets in their way (even the thorny and noxious lantana weed is no match for a camel).
Camel products are superior — from the meat (lower fat), to the milk (higher nutrients), to the leather (it’s strong, sustainable and ages well). But the culling of Australia’s wild herds (guessed to number anywhere from between 400,000 to 3 million) is a huge task, and the infrastructure — for collection, transport, butchering, leather processing — simply doesn’t exist. And so most camels roam free, as pests, but the lucky ones live at Summer Land.
After a tour and camel ride, sample camel feta and sausage (you may have to look away from the beautiful creatures as you do this — their lovely big eyes blink at you curiously as you sit in the cafe), and camel milk icecream and coffees with camel milk.
Overflow Estate, Beaudesert
At this boutique winery, you’ll find a range of unique grapes making unique wines, and a stunning setting in which to enjoy them. This beautiful estate — set on a picture-perfect island amid rolling hills covered in native Australian bush, and overlooking Lake Wyaralong — has been growing vermentino, fiano, tempranillo and montepulciano since 2010. In the restaurant, dine on a set three-course menu, or take a seat on the lawn (picnic table or blanket, your preference) and order oysters, grilled scallops, and cheese and charcuterie selections.
Towri Sheep Cheesery, Allenview
With three times more protein and double the calcium of cow’s milk, sheep’s milk and cheese are growing in popularity. At Towri sheep farm in Allenview, visitors can take a tour of the family’s very friendly sheep herd, and then sample the wares in the cafe.
Dallas Davidson welcomes us at the farm gate, with her two Jack Russells (“They’re great for catching brown snakes”) in tow. This is a family business — her mum, Carolyn, started the operation, and now their cheese is available across the state — at markets and in food boxes.
This pun-tastic sheep station (try the “eweghurt”, the “cash-ewe” pecorino, or perhaps the ash-infused “black sheep”) welcomes guests on just the first Saturday of every month — join them for a tour, a cheese platter, and some cuddle time with the very friendly sheep. If you can’t make it, check out their popular Instagram @towri_sheep_ cheeses for the weekly Towri Wine Time, when Dallas and her mum have a few local wines, taste some local produce, and natter about what’s new in their neck of the woods.
WHERE TO STAY
For such a large area with so many incredible producers, there has never been a huge range of accommodation options around the Scenic Rim. Several businesses are now stepping up to the plate — from glamping to remote pods to luxurious lodges.
Wander Pods, across Australia
Why build 100 rooms in one location, when you could do one room in 100 locations? The Wander Pods, opening across Australia, are the antidote to big-box hotels. Individual spaces, remote and off-grid, and designed to create a connection to the land around them. In Queensland, five Wander Pods are now open at the Overflow Estate.
Each is designed with its surrounding landscape in mind — completely offgrid, the pods capture and store electricity and water, work with the surrounding airflow to stay cool, and with huge floor-toceiling windows overlooking the view — and no televisions to distract you from it. Wander Pods are all self-catering, and guests can preorder the local Farm Box — a food box collective that gathers together local produce, including from Summerset Camels and Towri Sheep Farm.
And if you can’t make it across to Australia, they have their eye on NZ for the future.
Hazelwood Estate, Beechmont
Wagyu to the left of me; polo to the right — Hazelwood Estate is a luxury lodge with a difference. Guests stay in the small but perfectly formed King Farm Cabins, with uninterrupted views over the valley, or in the more spacious Luxury Pavilions, which sleep four with a lounge room, deck and fireplace, and then gather in the evenings in the great room for canapes and cocktails in the evening before dinner.
At this altitude, the weather is about 5C cooler than the surrounding area, meaning a welcome respite from the highs of summer, and a perfect excuse to light the open fires in winter. Activities on-site include a wagyu tasting experience, beekeeping honey tours, and on the doorstep is Lamington National Park and Binna Burra for walking, as well as mountain biking, horse riding, gardens and vineyards.
Cedar Creek Lodges, Tamborine Mountain
Cedar Creek is a family holiday park with truly something for everyone, from glamping tents to lodges, to an adventure park that will have you soaring through the Australian forest. The park is set in more than 100ha of subtropical rainforest, with a cafe and restaurant on-site, activities such as zip lines, treetop challenges, panning for crystals and forest laser tag, plus regular produce markets and events. In addition to private self-contained bush lodges, caravan parking and tent space, their most recent addition is the popular bell tents right by Cedar Creek. Inside you’ll find a comfortable double bed and kitchenette, and outside you’ll hear the water rushing by. The finest feature is the tents’ gorgeous al fresco shower rooms — unzip your door to find a large and private yet outdoor shower room overlooking the river.