Back to Yungaburra, the Gateway to the Atherton Tablelands. (If you're driving up the Gillies Highway, otherwise it's Kuranda, Millaa Millaa, Ravenshoe, Herberton or Mareeba. Just covering all possibilities. You can't accuse me of being Southocentric.)
I: St Patrick's Catholic Church (1913) sits at the top of the hill overlooking Eacham Road. This photo from the website of the Catholic Diocese of Cairns shows the side of the building, giving an excellent view of the single skin, exposed frame construction common in older buildings in the Queensland tropics.
J: The Gables (1912) was the residence of the manager of the Bank of New South Wales. It is now a B & B.
K: St Mark's Anglican Church was established in 1912 by the Brotherhood of St Barnabas. Founded in 1902 in Herberton, the bush brothers provided pastoral care to remote communities.The Bishop of North Queensland, impressed with their efforts, undertook a recruiting drive in the UK in 1908 with the call:
O for a band of men that will preach like apostles, ride like cowboys, and having food and raiment, will therewith be content.
L: Wild Mountain Distillery is up for sale. If you fancy turning your hand to making booze in a beautiful mountain town, here's your chance.
M: The sawmill was opened in 1910 to process timber cut from Tablelands forests. The arrival of the rail line allowed huge amounts of timber to be shipped from the area. (Previously, the only transport was bullock or horse cart and plans to float timber down the Barron and Johnstone rivers were stymied by barriers like this Although people did try.) The railway line closed in 1963 and the sawmill in 1988.
N: Eacham Road/Kehoe Place shops.
O: The Yungaburra Butchery (1926) was built to sell meat from the Williams slaughterhouse. Although the slaughterhouse is long gone, the butcher's shop continues to provide local produce to the town. It has its own smokehouse and is also known for its award-winning sausages. I haven't tried the snags, but they will be on next week's shopping list.
Right. That's yer bloomin' lot for Yungaburra this week. It's a lovely place to visit. And it's a lot cooler than the coast.
