Journal entries Wednesday, 6th April to Friday, 8th April
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| Wheelbarrow Way icon |
Wednesday-- The road from Mareeba to Chillagoe is known as the Wheelbarrow Way, so called after the gold mining pioneers who trudged this way carrying all their worldly goods in a wheelbarrow in search of work or to make their fortune. Very few found either!
After leaving Dimbulah and the orchards of mangoes, lychees, and sugarcane, the landscape changes dramatically. Huge boulders and rock formations set the scene for our visit to the sandstone cave area of Chillagoe.
Tours are conducted here by NP rangers into three caves and there are areas that you can explore on self-guided tours. We booked two cave tours - Royal Arch at 1pm today and Trezkin at 11am tomorrow.
There is more to Chillagoe than the caves though, and we spent the morning exploring the copper mining history of this western town.
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| Mining area Chillagoe smelter |
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| Chillagoe in 1900's |
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| Smelter tower in Chillagoe |
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| Copper mining in Chillagoe |
The area was originally mined for copper and the remains of the old smelter works can be viewed from an interpretive walk on the outskirts of the town. The brick smelter tower can be seen as you enter the town. In the early 1900s the smelter employed over 1000 people. Although there is a lot of history to explore in and around Chillagoe, the main attractions now are the wonderful caves that can be explored on guided tours.
