Jan 28 2008
Stockmans Hall of Fame
What is the Outback ? A quick dip into Roget’s Thesaurus produces ‘backwoods, godforsaken place, the sticks,’ but the Outback is none of these. It’s as broad and varied as the vast distances between the remote communities and the ancient landscapes are unlike any other on the planet.
A place where the extraordinary fauna evolved in isolation over millions of years, the Outback is a remote, remorseless land of spectacular rocks, deserts and deep gorges with the oldest continuous Aboriginal culture in the world.
A telvision reality show brought outback images to the world in Outback Jack (something like Crocodile Dundee meets The Bachelor). A dozen city girls from the USA prepare themselves for a luxurious holiday, only to discover that they’re heading for the Outback. But many Europeans did give up the comfort of coastal settlement to carve a new life in the interior and the Australian Stockman’s Hall of Fame in Longreach is dedicated to the story of these men and women.
Longreach in central western Queensland was once a drovers stop beside a large waterhole, the ‘long reach’ of the Thomson River. The popularised drovers and stockworkers are not the only members of the outback story. The Australian Stockman’s Hall of Fame and Outback Heritage Centre celebrates the shopkeepers, nurses, saddlers, hawkers, shearers, telegraph and telephone operators, posties, pilots, teachers, miners, fencers, truck drivers and all workers of the Outback.
The building, in sweeping curves of sandstone and slate, reflects the red and purple found in the western sunsets. The original information centre, a restored sandstone cottage with hand adzed timber and black marble floors, houses the library collectione. There are five themed galleries with a mixture of objects, images, audiovisual presentations and open displays, The Australian Stockman’s Hall of Fame and Outback Heritage Centre records the fast disappearing culture and history of rural Australia, the spirit of survival & success in an outback environment.
How to get there
By Car
Longreach is about 1200 kilometres from Brisbane, a comfortable drive along major fully sealed highways.
By Train
The Spirit of the Outback train leaves Brisbane on Tuesday and Friday evenings, travels along the eastern coastline to Rockhampton and then inland to Longreach where it arrives the following evening. Enjoy sleeping compartments, dining cars and the amazing scenery on the Spirit of the Outback.
By Coach
Express Coaches leave Brisbane in the evening and arrive the next morning. Travel in an air-conditioned coach with on-board movies and meal breaks at towns along the way.
By Air
There are daily return flights from Brisbane to Longreach - the trip takes about 2 and a half hours
