Forty Mile Scrub to Undara

The road

The loop from Mt Garnet through Forty Mile Scrub National Park to the Undara Lava Tubes covers 120 kilometres of inland North Queensland that most visitors to the region never see. Forty Mile Scrub is a relic - a patch of semi-evergreen vine thicket (dry rainforest) that has survived since Australia was part of Gondwana. The vegetation is dense, dry and ancient, looking nothing like the wet tropical rainforest an hour to the east. The track through the national park is narrow and winding, with the vine thicket closing in on both sides. Bottle trees, native figs and dry-adapted species form a canopy that filters the light differently from the coastal forests. The transition from this ancient scrub to the volcanic country around Undara is dramatic. Undara's lava tubes formed 190,000 years ago when the Undara shield volcano erupted and sent a river of basalt lava flowing 160 kilometres to the north. As the outer surface of the lava flow cooled and solidified, the molten interior drained away, leaving hollow tubes up to 20 metres in diameter and extending for kilometres underground. The tubes are accessible only by guided tour from the Undara Experience lodge. The Kalkani Crater, a small volcanic cone near the main tube system, is accessible by a short walk and gives a sense of the volcanic scale of the area. The landscape between the two parks is open savannah woodland with scattered cattle properties - the kind of empty, quiet country that defines inland North Queensland.

The region

The Atherton Tablelands and Gulf Savannah meet in this country. Mt Garnet sits on the western edge of the Tablelands, where the wet tropics give way to dry savannah. The transition happens fast - within 30 kilometres the landscape changes from tropical green to dry gold. Undara is in the McBride Volcanic Province, one of Australia's youngest volcanic regions. The last eruption was around 13,000 years ago. The town of Mt Surprise, near Undara, has a pub, a service station and the Undara Experience lodge.

Before you go

Fuel at Mt Garnet and Mt Surprise. No fuel between the two. The Undara Lava Tubes are only accessible by guided tour - book through Undara Experience. Tours run daily in the dry season and less frequently in the shoulder months. The road is graded gravel and suitable for 2WD in dry conditions, but high clearance is recommended for the Forty Mile Scrub section. After rain the clay sections become slippery. No mobile coverage between Mt Garnet and Mt Surprise. Carry water - this is hot, dry country from April to November.

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