Towing A Caravan On The Savannah Way: Best Savannah Way Qld Road Trip Itinerary

This post covers towing a caravan on the Savannah Way and the towns along the Savannah Way in Queensland, starting with Croydon. We have covered Normanton in depth here. We haven’t travelled to Burketown, Gregory Down, Hells Gate or Doomadgee yet. However, when we do, I’ll update this post.

The Savannah Way is one of Australia’s iconic road trips. It stretches from Broome in Western Australia through the Northern Territory to Cairns in tropical North Queensland.

We’ll also discuss where to stay and what to see and do along the Savannah Way.

The Savannah Way Map Qld

Towing A Caravan On The Savannah Way

Towing your van along the Savannah Way is easy. The road is mostly bitumen. However, the road goes down to one (bitumen) lane in places east of Croydon to Mount Surprise. After Georgetown, the road becomes hilly as it heads for Mount Surprise.

When we left Mount Surprise, the roadworks stretched around half a kilometre. However, it will probably be bitumen when you pass through the road.

The roads are being upgraded as the roadworkers fill the dirt areas and extend the bitumen in other areas.

There is no need to adjust your tyre or caravan tyre pressures. Although it is a red-dirt road, there are no corrugations (when we drove the Savannah Way). It was a gravel road and easy to navigate.

The Savannah Way Road Trip Itinerary

The journey from outback Queensland back towards the east coast will take you through some extraordinary country, including the beautiful Etheridge Shire, where there is so much to see and do.

Leichardt Lagoon

We left Karumba and headed for Leichardt Lagoon, a low-cost camp in a beautiful wetland teeming with birdlife.

There is no power or water, so it is off-grid camping, meaning your van needs to be fully self-contained.

This is where we found that our main water pump had failed. Fortunately, we had our separate drinking water tank, and its pump worked.

Explore Croydon Qld

A great place to stop is the small but historic town of Croydon Qld. We had had a small taste of Croydon when we stopped there after our journey from Normanton on the Gulflander Rail Motor so we were keen to explore the town and surrounding area a bit more.

Although it is now a tiny, quiet town, Croydon was once a thriving gold-mining town. Following a large gold strike in 1885, Croydon was the third-largest town in Queensland. As a result, there is a lot of history in and around the town.

True Blue Visitor Information Centre

A great spot to start your exploration of Croydon is the True Blue Visitor Information Centre. More than just an information centre, it houses historical displays, including machinery and equipment from the early gold rush days. There is also a very informative, short video about Croydon’s history and the gold rush era.

Croydon Heritage Precinct

The buildings in the Heritage Precinct are a credit to the town as they have been lovingly restored and beautifully maintained. With free entry to them all, you can wander in and out of the Town Hall, Police Station—complete with gaol and ‘prisoner’—the Police Sergeant’s residence, and the courthouse. At the Court House, you can listen to a re-enactment of a real case from the town’s past. Fascinating!

Federation Park

Just across the road from the Information Centre is Federation Park. This lovely shady spot has very clean toilets and plenty of places for a picnic. Some sculptures in the park are worth checking out.

Lake Belmore

Located just 4 kilometres from town, Lake Belmore is the perfect spot to relax with a spot of fishing. With a grassy, green bank, covered picnic areas, BBQs, a boat ramp, and clean toilets, it’s a great spot for the whole family.

The dam is well-stocked with fish, including barramundi and black bream. However, swimming is not recommended as there may be freshwater crocodiles present. We didn’t see any, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t there!

Chinese Temple

Along with Croydon’s mining heritage, the area has a rich Chinese heritage. As with most historical mining areas in Australia, the Chinese flocked to the Croydon gold diggings to either mine for gold or sell wares essential to the pursuit of gold.

A Chinese Temple was built just outside town, and although long gone, remnants can be seen at the site. Information plaques, which tell the stories of Croydon’s Chinese population, have been added to the site.

Iguana Consols Mine

The site of the Iguana Consols Mine has been long abandoned, but the ‘stamper’, mining machinery and chimney still exist along with a replica of the Bing Chew family home. Information plaques tell the story of gold mining operations in the area.

Where To Stay In Croydon Qld

Croydon has a lovely caravan park within walking distance of the small main street. It has numerous level sites, both powered and unpowered. There are also air-conditioned, en-suited units and a swimming pool.

Address	Alldridge St, Croydon QLD 4871
Phone	0437 270 584
Email	caravanpark@croydon.qld.gov.au

Freedom Camping Croydon

Freedom camping is also available at the rodeo ground on the outskirts of town. The grounds are level, but when we visited, they were very dry, so they were dusty.

A few trees offer some shade. Clean toilets and showers are also available. A permit must be obtained from the Information Centre for a donation of $5.00. You can stay a maximum of two nights.

Unfortunately, we had no freedom camping due to the faulty water pump.

Address	2 Alldridge Street, Croydon
Phone	07 4748 7152
Permits	True Blue Information Centre
Email	admin@croydon.qld.gov.au

Georgetown

Georgetown is just a short 150-kilometre drive east of Croydon, and we based ourselves there to explore Forsayth, Cobbold Gorge, and Copperfield Gorge.

Georgetown is a small but busy centre on the banks of the impressive Etheridge River. A must-see when in Georgetown is the Ted Elliot Mineral Collection, which is located inside the Terrestrial Visitor Centre. This display consists of over 4,500 specimens displayed in nine themed rooms.

Georgetown has a pub, supermarket, service stations, and caravan parks.

Goldfields Caravan Park Georgetown

We stayed at the Goldfields Caravan Park, which we found to be very clean and tidy. It is reasonably priced at $30 for a powered site. Staying there also gave us free entry to the local swimming pool, which was just a short walk up the road.

We stayed on site 3, which was by far the largest. We had beautiful green grass underfoot, a rarity in a caravan park in the busy dry season on the Savannah Way. The amenities there are outstanding, as was happy hour. A large communal fire is lit around 5 p.m. every night, and some of the staff stay around for a yarn and a few beers.

Address	2 St George St, Georgetown QLD 4871
Phone	(07) 4062 1269
Email	goldfieldsvanpark@bigpond.com

Georgetown Butcher

If you like a good steak, head to the Georgetown butcher. I’d read about the quality of the meat from the butcher. He grows and sells his own beef.

We ordered two eye fillets and a few snags. Both were cooked over an open fire and were delicious. You’ll have to take my word for it as I forgot to take photos on this occasion!

Forsayth

Forsayth is just a tiny dot on the map, 40 kilometres south of Georgetown. It is one of the few remaining towns from the gold rush era of the late 1800s and the last stop for the Savannahlander Rail Motor.

If you are interested in the area’s gold mining history and railway, it is worth stopping in this quaint little town for a wander around the railway station and adjacent park. Make sure you check out the wood carvings in the park. They are very clever.

Cobbold Gorge

Like Boodjamulla National Park, Cobbold Gorge is a ‘must-see’ destination when you visit outback Queensland.

Formed over 1700 million years ago, Cobbold Gorge features spectacular 30-metre sandstone cliffs and is only two metres wide in some places. Now, Cobbold Gorge is part of an almost 5,000-hectare Nature Reserve that protects several rare and vulnerable plant species and provides an important wildlife corridor.

Cobbold Gorge Tours

As Cobbold Gorge is privately owned, the only way to access it is by guided tour. Tours run twice daily during peak times at either 10.00 am or 1.30 pm. All tours depart from reception in Cobbold Village. Groups are kept as small as possible – we had 14 in our group, and each group has a guide. All guides are trained Savannah Guides and highly knowledgeable.

Once you have been welcomed and divided into your group, you climb aboard a 4WD-driven bus for the short trip to the starting point of the tour. As there are at least four groups, each group goes in a different direction, so you are not crowded together. The tour requires some walking on narrow, rough tracks, with some up-and-down sections, so we recommend wearing sturdy shoes. If you are moderately fit, you should have no issue participating in this tour.

We did the boat section of the tour first. The boats are custom-made, flat-bottomed punts powered by an electric motor and can fit through the narrow gorge. We were captivated by the beauty of the gorge. We were even treated to the sight of a couple of freshwater crocodiles sunning themselves on the edges of the gorge.

After our cruise up the gorge, we made our way to the top of the gorge to the Glass Bridge, which was only installed in 2019. The bridge spans the width of Cobbold Gorge and affords spectacular views of the gorge and the river below. Our guide took the time to take several photos of everyone in our group standing on the bridge, which was awesome. We highly recommend this unique tour of this spectacular part of outback Queensland.

Where To Stay In Cobbold

If you choose to stay at Cobbold Village, there are several accommodation options, including cabins and powered and unpowered sites. There is a great restaurant with a huge covered deck that looks out over the dam and Cobbold’s amazing infinity pool. All guests are welcome to use the pool, even if they are not staying on-site.

Phone	07 4062 5470
Email	enquiries@cobboldgorge.com.au

The road into Cobbold Gorge from Georgetown is only sealed in some places. We found it to be quite rough and corrugated in places, so it may take you longer than the suggested one and a half hours to travel the 85 kilometres to the Gorge from Georgetown.

Einasleigh And Copperfield Gorge

Another not-to-be-missed spot is the stunning Copperfield Gorge, located just outside the tiny village of Einasleigh.

Copperfield Gorge is on the southern edge of the Undara lava field. The river has cut through a lava fissure and you can just imagine how the lava would have flowed through the area thousands of years ago.

Walking along the top of the Copperfield Gorge with the Copperfield River far below, you can almost imagine how it was when hot lava flowed through. The colours and patterns in the rocks are unique.

Back in the village of Einasleigh, make sure you drop into the local pub for a beer or two. It also serves as a cafe, and I had the best piece of carrot cake I had eaten in years there!

Mount Surprise

In typical All Around Oz style, we changed our minds about where to stay for the night. That’s the beauty of winging it when you are on the road full-time.

Instead of heading to O’Brien Creek Campground, we opted for Planet Earth Adventures Van Park. Driving into Mt Surprise, we noticed many travellers opted to pull up to stretch their legs, grab coffee, or eat.

The local dump point and water top-up are located alongside the road so that adds to the traffic.

The park has a small power and water section at the front (booked out when we stayed) and a large paddock out the back for off-grid camping.

There are showers and toilets and out the front facing the main road a large shed. The shed is where you can grab a bite and a coffee.

*Hot Tip: If you love a good vanilla slice, you’ll find one of the best here. As I am gluten-free, I can’t verify this.

Kev would have loved a vanilla slice for morning tea. However, one of the owners chose to have a coffee and cigarette break despite the queue waiting to order. I waited over 10 minutes, and with the queue growing and not shrinking, we headed off to our next stop.

Undara Lava Tubes

Another spectacular spot in the Etheridge Shire is the world-famous Undara Lava Tubes. The lava flow that created the Lava Tubes is over 160 kilometres long.

Formally the Rosella Plains cattle station, Undara has been in the Collins family since 1899 when they travelled inland searching for grassland to fatten their cattle. In 1988, they decided to preserve the unique geology and protect the area for future generations. The Undara Experience opened in 1990.

THE UNDARA EXPERIENCE

As with Cobbold Gorge, the only way to visit the Lava Tubes is by guided tour. A couple of different tours are available, and we chose the Archway Explorer. All the guides at Undara are trained Savannah Guides, including the owner, Bram Collins, who we were lucky enough to have as our guide. His passion and enthusiasm for Undara, plus his background stories of growing up and exploring the tubes as a child, were fascinating.

The tour takes around two hours and includes a short 4WD bus ride to the entrance to the tubes. For most of the tour, you are walking on formed boardwalks, so it is a leisurely tour for most people.

Visiting the Undara Lava Tubes is a truly unique experience. The colours and formations made by the lava are amazing.

Where To Stay In Undara

Undara offers a range of accommodation options to suit all tastes and budgets. From rustic railway carriages to powered and unpowered sites for caravanners or campers, everyone is catered for at Undara. There is also a restaurant and bar on site.

Bookings for both tours and accommodation are essential and best made simultaneously.

Two caravan parks are also located in the small village of Mt. Surprise, just under an hour’s drive away. We, however, decided to stay at Pinnarendi Station Stay.

KALKANI CRATER

Have you ever walked around the rim of a volcano? Well, that’s exactly what you can do if you stop at Kalkani Crater on your way to or from Undara. This long-extinct volcano last erupted about 20,000 years ago. The walk is about 2.5 kilometres long, with a 600-metre climb up a steep but well-formed track before you reach the rim of the volcano.

The track around the volcano is rough and narrow in places but worth it for the views of the surrounding area, including other long-extinct volcanoes.

At the start of the walk, there is a large picnic area with plenty of shade, a toilet and a parking area.

Pinnarendi Station Stay

When it came time to find somewhere to stay whilst we visited Undara, we couldn’t go past Pinnarendi Station Stay and Cafe. This little gem is located just 55 kilometres from Undara. Pinnarendi is a working cattle station, but owners Nadine and Ronnie also have a passion for food, so as well as having the campground, they also have an excellent cafe.

Pinnarendi has 12 powered caravan sites and a large free-range unpowered area, which is where we set up. The area is grassy and has some scattered trees. Pets are welcome but must be kept on a lead at all times. There is also a fantastic amenities block, which was very clean and had awesome murals painted on the front wall.

There is a great walking track that takes you around three of the property’s dams, making it a great spot for bird-watching.

But the absolute highlight of Pinnarendi is the food. Their speciality is wood-fired pizzas made on sourdough bases. These are available on Wednesday and Saturday nights, so if you are a pizza lover, make sure you time your visit for those nights.

Don’t worry if you can’t make it for pizza. On other nights, you can have lasagna or barramundi. Breakfast is also available, and the Banoffee Waffles are to die for. Coffee and cake are also available throughout the day. Bookings are essential for breakfast and dinner, so make sure you get in quickly if you want to eat!

We lunched the day we arrived. The toasted Rueben sandwiches (on gluten-free bread for me) were delicious.

Coffee and cake are also available throughout the day. Bookings are essential for breakfast and dinner, so make sure you get in quickly if you want to eat!

We were also lucky enough to be there when Ronnie made a batch of his famous sourdough bread, which is some of the best we’ve eaten.

Address	22971 Kennedy Highway, Forty Mile, QLD
Phone	0401 627 315
Email	coffee@thebrickoven.com.au

We absolutely loved exploring all that the Etheridge Shire has to offer and taking the iconic road trip along the Savannah Way. There is so much to see and do that you could easily spend a couple of weeks seeing it all!