MIDDLETON HOTEL TO LILLYVALE AND JUMP UP COUNTRY

 Waving goodbye to Val and The Middleton Pub was by no means the end of our outback Qld experience since the main reason for taking this route on Kennedy Development Road lies just 55 kms further on. Jules had excited all of us with her description of the Cawnpore lookout in the Lillyvale Hills and the spectacular scenery that we will experience. I must say that I began to doubt her judgement after the first few kms of desolate roadside views of  Mitchell Grass Downs and the Channel Country. That is, until we drew nearer to Lillyvale, where the scene began to morph into one of flat topped hills that seemed to rise at random from the surroundings. Then just after climbing a crest in the road we reached the Cawnpore Lookout and all became clear.
  Jules was certainly right, for before us, stretching almost to the horizon, lay the magnificent table top Mesas or Jump Ups as there are called out here. These beautiful red-brown formations are unique in Australia and South America, the only other place in the world where they are found. The Mesas are the remains of plateau country that resisted erosion from an inland sea 90 – 100 million years ago. Truly amazing and another must see part of our magnificent country.

(Click on a photo to enlarge)

The Road to Lillyvale

Cawnpore Lookout