Mackay’s the perfect spot for a relaxing short break, offering easy access to a range of stunning natural attractions and a vibrant city scene. Damien Condon swapped his suit for some shorts and discovered the region’s hidden secrets.

By Damien Condon

Mackay is a surprising place. You’ll find the contrast of red Brigalow country, lush rainforest, the Great Barrier Reef and the Coral Sea, national parks, beautiful beaches, a colourful heritage and an evolving cosmopolitan centre.

Lamington National Park Celebrates 90th Anniversary

The  fight for protection of the ‘Green behind the Gold’, that priceless area of World Heritage Listed  rainforest-covered mountains and valleys of the Gold Coast  hinterland, was a long and dogged campaign  90 years ago. Tony Walsh reports.

And  to excuse the pun, the early environmentalists did not have an easy ‘walk in the park’ to achieve their aims. Dr Tony Young, author/editor, of an in-depth historical and access CD-Guide of Lamington National Park explains: “From the 1840’s to the turn of the century and later, this was the time of settlement in Queensland when the pioneers literally lived off the land,  ringbarking and burning the scrub to  establish dairy farms  after the timber getters had gone through in their search for cedar and other prized timbers.

A Reef of Riches and an Island of Tragedy

So much of Cape York’s attraction lies offshore. A perfect adjunct to any land-based exploration is a Great Barrier Reef cruise.

Ranging from a few hours to several days, a cruise along our UNESCO World Heritage Listed coral reef is an experience that will remain with you for a long time.

Cruising Tasmania's World Heritage Rivers - A 'No Dam' Wonder

It’s 1982 and the idyllic little seaside village of Strahan in South Western Tasmania is the front line in a vigorous campaign to blockade the construction of the Franklin River dam. This ‘peaceful protest’ is turning decidedly hostile.

Led by an unknown, parochial, but intensely vocal rural GP, Dr Bob Brown, the campaign to preserve the pristine and ancient wilderness of the Gordon and Franklin Rivers is in full swing. The bitter taste of defeat is still in the mouths of the activists after the loss of beautiful Lake Pedder to the greedy ‘Hydro’. They are determined not to lose the Franklin.

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