There is a cute little 60 year old rail car that runs between Normanton and Croydon and has been doing so for the past 120 years. It is called the “Gulflander”. The line originated when in 1885 gold was found at Croydon - a gold rush ensued and Croydon became a rich booming gold mining centre and a way was needed to transport the gold to the nearest port of Normanton.
An engineer who had worked as a surveyor in the area came up with the idea of using steel rails and sleepers which were laid flat on the ground so that the line wouldn’t be destroyed by the floods which are a regular event in the area. The flood waters run over the top of the track and when the waters recede the track is still there. Some 120 years later the train is still providing a weekly QR service running on the original tracks between the two towns.
Today we had a ride on the Gulflander, a 2 hour trip to Critters Camp and back.
On Wednesday we head for Karumba.
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