Chinchilla Things to Do

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A lovely gallery and I was surprised to find so many nice exhibits.

Apparently these change monthly and the exhibitions showcase a variety of paintings, pottery, sculpture, etc by professional artisans and local talent.

A beautiful old building on the edge of the main shopping street. Well worth a visit for a 'coldie' or meal. The food is really good, you can eat inside or out in the beer garden. Lunch and Dinner are available from Monday through to Saturday

Attached to the hotel is The Central Motor Inn but I wasn't staying the night so didn't look into the typre of accomodation. It looked OK though.

There are so many of these museums on the Road to Charleville that it was a hard decision whether to have a look at this one as well as the others. This visit was worth it.

There are some lovely displays of machinary, buildings, and motor vehicles.

There are cottages and a blacksmith's and old saw mill and lots more.

If you are a plane buff the first ticket issued by Qantas is also there.

There are plenty of costumes and housewares, lots to see for all the family.

There's also a very cute cactus garden which was full of great plants which obviously thrive in the weather out there.

I can't remember how much entry cost was but I'm sure it was only a couple of dollars.

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We went to the Chinchilla weir for the "free camping", but not only that, the Chinchilla weir is a lovely area for many other things.

Chinchilla, is located in a warm area of Australia, so in Summer, it is nice to be near water. Here at the weir, the grass is cut and the picnic area well maintained. There are shelters with tables & chairs, wood bbq's [check for fire-bans before lighting] Toilets and a Boat ramp.

The Weir is good for fishing,...Remember, if you catch Carp or Talapia, then these must be destroyed, not thrown back into the lake, or used for bait, as these are "Pest Fish."
Water sports, like water skiing and others are allowed on the Lake.

There were Kangaroo's in the paddocks next to it, and plenty of Parrots and birdlife, what a nice area this was!

As usual, when we are coming into Town, [even one we have been to a few times before], we look for the Information sign that leads us to the Tourist Information Centre.

A stop here, and we found out how to reach the Chinchilla weir where we were to spend our night. The lady gave us directions, and a map of how to find our way there.
Jars of home-made Jam were for sale, so I bought a "Fruit Salad" jar of Jam, mmm.....Quite nice, and different!

For those that haven't seen Cotton in its raw state, The Centre had a bucket with some in it. Cotton harvesting was just about finished....[June 2010]
We didn't go, but there are some places of interest, like the Chinchilla Historical Museum and the Pioneer Cemetery.

Also........Every two years, Chinchilla hosts a Melon Festival,
http://www.melonfest.com.au/
the Grandfather Clock Camp Draft, Arts in the Park and the May Day Cultural Festival.

Chinchilla is about a 3.5 hour drive from Brisbane

The Chinchilla Visitor Information Centre is open.............
9 - 5 pm DAILY
Located on the Warrego highway in Town.

"Chinchilla Sands" is one of the three most highly significant fossil sites in Australia.

Molluscs, frogs, fish, birds, reptiles including fresh water turtles, crocodiles, skinks, geckos, snakes, goannas, extinct Kangaroo's, Lions, Tigers and many more members of the mammal families all have been found here.

RED WINE.....You ask?..........NO...........RED PETRIFIED WOOD!

Probably something that you and I did not know, is that Chinchilla is a prime location for finding a lovely red coloured Petrified wood.
[petrified wood is.. wood turned into stone]

From information at the Visitor info centre, it evidently occurs in abundance around Chinchilla, and people come from around the world to find it.
A large piece of Petrified wood is located at the entrance to the Visitor Info Centre.
To see some more examples, visit the Museum, or in the main street of town next to the Library in Fuller Park

It was different to other Petrified wood I have seen, as it was very red. When this is cut, the patterns can be seen, and no two pieces of wood are the same. You can buy some, as they are made into all sorts of decorative pieces.

There have also been finds of fossilised Pentoxlin trees, a rare tree where each branch grew separately from the tree roots.
The only other finds of these fossilised trees has been in Peru.

I have not done this, but you can go fossicking for Petrified wood in this area.
You do need a fossickers licence and must comply with the conditions of “general permission” given by landowners for entry at all times.
OR............
It can be found on the sides of the road, you may only take what is on the surface, not what is buried.
You can get your licence [FEE] from the Visitor Information Centre.

You may also find............agate, quartz, and jasper in the area.

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The climate in Chinchilla is dry on most days with cool evenings below 25 deg C. Starry starry skies and peaceful surroundings. It takes a BBQ to jazz things up. Meat, sausages etc is cheap and easily available at the local supermarket, IGA.