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Nestled within the coronary heart of Queensland’s rugged outback lies a hidden marvel that you just wouldn’t anticipate finding in Australia – the Undara Lava Tubes.
Shaped hundreds of years in the past by a colossal volcanic eruption, these historical tubes lurk underground, weaving beneath the earth’s floor, and whereas Australia is just not identified for volcanic historical past, it’s astounding that it has one of many world’s largest underground cave tunnels shaped by lava.
Visiting the Undara Lava Tubes in Outback Queensland was one of many extra fascinating locations we’ve explored on our journey round Australia.
I didn’t know a lot about Australia’s volcanic historical past earlier than, however now I’m wiser. I used to be fascinated and impressed with this off-the-beaten-path expertise in in Tropical North Queensland, and simply needed to share my ideas for visiting it.
Right here’s what to see and do there, methods to get there, and ideas for visiting Undara Lava Tubes!
About Undara Lava Tubes
The Undara Lava Tube System in Tropical North Queensland are a captivating geological formation ensuing from a collection of volcanic eruptions that occurred roughly 190,000 years in the past.
As molten lava flowed from the large Undara volcano, it created an in depth community of lava caves, that are thought-about to be one of many world’s longest cave methods.
The tubes had been shaped when the outer layer of lava cooled and solidified, whereas the molten lava continued to circulate beneath, ultimately draining away and forsaking hole tunnels.
The caves lie inside a nationwide park, which might solely be accessed by guided tour. The park is just not solely value visiting for the caves, however the surrounding panorama incorporates a wealthy variety of natural world, with the tubes serving as a novel habitat for varied species, together with micro bats that roost throughout the cool, darkish environments of Barkers Cave.
To study extra concerning the geography of the realm, you too can take bush walks via the area to see the stays of the volcano and stroll round Kalkani Crater rim, which uniquely acts as a pure wind tunnel and remains to be shaping the atmosphere round it.
The way to Get to Undara Lava Tubes
Undara Lava Tubes is a part of the Undara Lava Nationwide Park, which is dwelling to 164 volcanoes, cones and vents. They’re nestled a couple of 4 hour drive alongside the Savannah Means, west of Cairns.
To succeed in the Undara Lava Tubes, you’ll need to drive because the location is distant. The closest main airport is Cairns Airport (CNS), situated roughly 280 kilometres to the northeast. (see rental automobiles right here if wanted)
From Cairns, you’ll be able to take the Nationwide Route 1 for 239 km, then flip onto Undara Rd in Mount Shock.
From Mount Shock, observe the Undara Lava Tubes Street for about 30 kilometers, which is able to lead you on to the doorway of the park.
If you wish to break up the journey, I like to recommend a pit store in Atherton to admire the Atherton Tablelands and cease off on the many lookouts.
The drive to Undara provides lovely views of the Australian panorama, so you should definitely cease off and take pictures and never rush the journey.
The Undara Lava Tubes Expertise
The Undara Expertise is designed and produced by the Collins household, the earliest white settlers on this locality whose cattle grazed within the space since 1862.
The Collins household proposed the Undara Volcanic Nationwide Park be created across the caves on their property and they’d enable entry by way of excursions from the lodges that may be managed by the household.
They wished guests to find out how this historical land was shaped by pure forces over a whole lot of thousands and thousands of years and protect its rugged magnificence.
As talked about earlier, the park is not only concerning the caves, there’s a whole lot of wildlife and geography to discover, and the Undara Lava Tubes Expertise provides one of the best of all that.
Listed here are our highlights of the Undara Lava Tubes Expertise.
The Archway Explorer Lava Tubes Tour
A ribbon of inexperienced emerges from the bottom under – strangler fig, pandanus palms and ferns present a fertile rainforest atmosphere in the midst of the dry savannah panorama and a marker for the course of the lava tubes.
It’s a captivating exploration of the time volcanoes lorded over the panorama in Far North Queensland.
You first respectable a collection of stairs, after which stroll alongside the boardwalks into the caves under.
I cherished strolling via the tube sections and caves studying about how they had been shaped – and your children will love carrying their head torches as you make your means via the darkness.
You’ll be able to see up shut how the lava tubes had been shaped when giant lava flows ran via valleys. We discovered how when the skin of the lava crust cooled it created a tunnel for the remainder of the lava to circulate via.
Over time a few of the roof sections have collapsed, revealing the tubes and creating caves and open areas that proceed to help a rainforest habitat.
It’s a really lovely to see the patterns and ledges shaped by the cooling lava dribbling down from the ceiling and whirl pooling in sections the place multiple tube met.
A wildlife sundown tour
As talked about earlier, the park is not only well-known for the caves, it’s additionally an space of excellent magnificence and wildlife.
Nightfall is a good time for wildlife viewing. The wildlife at sundown tour options sightings of quite a few kangaroo and wallaby species, with because of the information of our information I discovered so much about macropods that I by no means knew. Together with the phrase macropod.
They’re all of the totally different kind of kangaroos, wallaroos, and wallabies – and there may be so many!
Another Australian wildlife you may encounter within the park are pythons and brown tree snakes, bats, owls, in addition to your standard Aussie bugs.
To complete off the expertise, take pleasure in a glass of champagne paired with cheese and crackers because the solar units after which stroll to the doorway of a lava tube cave to observe for the emergence of hundreds of tiny microbats from the tube.
It was a fairly cool web site to see particularly simply inches over our heads. The women thought it was fairly cool. Others not a lot!
Get pleasure from a bush breaky surrounded by wildlife
You don’t simply have to go to for a day, you too can camp within the park. When staying on the onsite campground, bush breakfast is served each morning on the Ringers Camp.
Who doesn’t love a superb bush breaky together with your billy tea or freshly brewed espresso, toast cooked over the fireplace – a favorite exercise with our youngsters – and scorching breakfast of bacon, sausages and eggs to begin your day?
Benefit from the early morning air and being surrounded by bouncing kangaroos, wandering cattle and swooping ravens, kookaburras and kites (look ahead to the meals swiping!).
Be entertained across the campfire at evening
Each night at 8pm, a campfire is lit and one of many Savannah guides leads an exercise like trivia, bush yarns, or folks songs.
For the primary evening we skilled a little bit little bit of poetry studying and the second night the information shared with us fascinating details about some Australian wildlife, the moon, and ingesting wine.
At first I believed it was going to be boring, however the information was truly fairly hilarious. It was so entertaining we stayed your complete hour as an alternative of sneaking off after 10 minutes.
Bike or stroll the numerous trails
There are many strolling trails surrounding the Undara Resort, a number of of which go to lookout factors.
They had been a little bit too lengthy for us to stroll so we took our bikes for a trip beside the swamp, which was empty of water.
We cycled out to the Heritage Hut used in the course of the days, however the panorama didn’t change a lot so wasn’t notably thrilling by way of sight seeing however value it to get out on the bike and simply trip via the outback.
Sleep in a railway carriage
There’s the chance to sleep in fantastically restored railway carriages, which in fact our youngsters had been thrilled about.
The carriages are set alongside the unique Cobb & Co coach highway underneath the shade of tall bushes surrounded by Australian Native wildlife.
There isn’t a whole lot of area within the carriage so go away your garments in your automobile. It’s a novel expertise and one to do in the event you love trains, and was good to get out of our camper trailer for the evening..
You may also camp with your individual caravans on the Undara resort or keep in cabins or safari tents.
Stroll across the rim of Kalkani Crater
A few 13 kilometre drive from Undara Lava tubes is Kalkani Crater.
There’s a little bit of an uphill climb to get to the summit of the crater, however then it’s a simple 2km stroll across the rim and an ideal perspective of the volcano dotted panorama off within the distance.
The one disappointment was the shortage of signage to level out Undara Volcano, I might have cherished to have seen it. Be sure to look under to see the curving free ribbon indicating the lava tubes.
Suggestions for Visiting Undara Lava Tubes
- The Undara Expertise is fairly superb and distinctive, however it may be a little bit costly while you add up the excursions. So be selective which excursions and actions you do in keeping with your finances.
- Undoubtedly the Archway Explorer Tour was a spotlight, and at 2 hours in period it wasn’t too lengthy to maintain our two children (6 and a pair of yrs on the time) entertained.
- Attempt to take your individual meals because the restaurant costs are fairly excessive, though we extremely advocate you eat there one evening because the meals was good, and the setting unimaginable! We stayed within the railway carriages and didn’t have any cooking services, so wore the price of the dinner.
- In case your finances permits, completely advocate making an attempt out the bush breakfast expertise!
- Our guides had been educated, pleasant and useful. BUT, we did discover the reception employees within the workplace fairly impolite, and I don’t imply on one event however constantly impolite, so I believe they should work on the customer support on that aspect of issues.
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