Time for the Stagecoach Ride and River Cruise in Longreach

With the sun rising it was time for us to get ready for the Outback Pioneers Cobb & Co Stagecoach Experience, and then in the afternoon the Outback Pioneers Starlight’s River Cruise Experience which includes the Starlight’s Spectacular Sound and Light Picture Show / Stockman’s Campfire Dinner after the river cruise.

So todays day was going to be one of the biggest yet for us, and the second part of our Big 3 Pass in Longreach from Outback Pioneers.

We had to be in Longreach town by 8.30am for the start of our Cobb & Co Stagecoach Experience.

The morning starts a the Outback Pioneers new premises in town which is an old pub.

I also found out their website still has the old address on it which is a few doors down.

So if you Google the address of Outback Pioneers you might end up a little short as many of the search websites have the old address too.

I have to say here, this experience in the morning and the experience at night are so good I won’t be explaining them in too much detail.

There isn’t enough room and also I wanted to be in the moment more with these experiences as they are so good!

Just be prepared to be entertained for the whole time as they do such a great job.

Cobb & Co Stagecoach Ride

The morning starts with a lead into the Cobb & Co Stagecoach Ride, you gather out the back of the shop and wait.

Next is a few photos and you get split up into teams after a quick run down of what is happening for the morning.

If you are thinking of doing the Cobb & Co Stagecoach Ride soon, you better get in quick.

With the rising costs of insurance there may not be much time left for this experience, or so they tell us.

Who would know with this families yarn telling prowess 🙂

The boys take you through the town streets and then out onto the public land that surrounds Longreach.

You get up a fair bit of pace too at one stage before heading back into town as they get the horses and coach up to a gallop.

The boys are mic’ed up and you have headsets on too for the stagecoach ride.

They let you know a lot about the history of the area of Longreach.

Also you find out about the history of Cobb & Co too, the founder, stagecoach, and the horses.

So you get a real feel for what it would of been like back in the early days riding on the stagecoach from town to town.

You also learn facts like this on the ride, every street name in Longreach is named after a bird.

This fact doesn’t really stand out until it is mentioned to you, then you notice every street sign.

The streets running east-west are named after water birds, and the north-south streets after land birds.

Of course since the town has evolved there maybe a few that aren’t now, like Sir Hudson Fysh Drive where the Qantas Founders Museum is located.

When you get back to the Outback Pioneers shop after the bone rattling stagecoach ride you have morning tea.

You head inside into the tea rooms with the people you have been on the stagecoach ride with.

You can’t beat fresh scones with jam, cream, and a cup of tea!

This lead nicely into the movie which is classic Australian and is set in the times of dirt roads in a small outback town.

And of course, a movie means fresh popcorn.

The kids eyes lit up at the prospect of having an extra snack thrown in during the movie.

Then we were out and onto the grandstand for the Harry Redford Old Time Tent Show.

This was classic slapstick humour coupled with the dry wit we had already become accustomed too with the boys throughout the morning.

I remember at one stage looking across at Ol’ Man Kinnon, who was in the stands with the crowd watching the show.

One of the sons said the line “That reminds me of the old joke about blah, blah, blah”, “I might tell that one now”.

He then looked up at his Dad and got the shake of the head telling him no, and so he said, “Maybe another time then for that one” and carried on with the show.

In the shows you don’t know how much is choreographed and how much is made up or thrown in there on the spur of the moment.

This makes it a bit more exciting to watch than a normal stock standard show you would go and see at a Gold Coast Theme Park.

Again, even to this point the day was well worth getting the Big 3 Pass from Outback Pioneers.

We shot home back to the caravan park for a quick lunch and a short relax.

Captain Starlight’s River Cruise

Then it was time to get ready for the pick up outside the caravan park by the bus heading out for the Thomson River Cruise.

The bus was pretty big and it was the Ol’ Man Kinnon driving us out to the Thomson river for the Outback Pioneers Starlight’s River Cruise Experience.

This river cruise also includes the Starlight’s Spectacular Sound and Light Picture Show / Stockman’s Campfire Dinner after it.

Again, I won’t give too much away but the banter and stories he tells on the way out and the way back are great.

You learn a lot about the local area and what they have been through during the floods and also the droughts.

One thing about the whole Outback Pioneers Experience is that they have a story to tell, and it is a great story.

Every person I spoke to in the business has a story behind them, most of the animals used in the shows do too.

One great part of this trip to Longreach, and this will give you an insight into the Outback Pioneers story telling prowess, is that when we first drove into town we saw the Cobb and Co Stagecoaches go by.

There was a white horse behind one of the stagecoaches, not tied to the stagecoach, just following it.

I thought to myself, I bet there is a story behind that white horse.

And the funny thing is that in the order we did all of the Outback Pioneers experiences, I learnt a little more of the story behind the white horse.

Right up until the end of the night at the Starlight’s River Cruise Experience, where the story was completed for me and how it tied in to everything we had been doing.

I mentioned it to my wife that I had seen this white horse and wondered what was behind it.

So amongst the little yarns and stories through the whole day I was getting a story drip fed to me across the whole day.

Amazing and funny at the same time 🙂

Now back to the Thomson River Sunset Cruise.

A great cruise on the boat with nibbles and lots of talk too, and amazing sunset views.

You get to go up to the top deck of the boat too if you want.

The river cruise is just that, a cruise, so if you are prone to sea sickness or motion sickness it wasn’t that bad.

From the sunset photos above you can see how flat the water is in the Thomson, so motion sickness shouldn’t be a problem.

You can watch your trusty captain go through the motions then and know you are in safe hands for the cruise as you can see from the photo below 🙂

Then it was back for the nights entertainment, food, and also the Starlight’s Spectacular Sound and Light Picture Show as well.

You are in a sheltered area and sit down to hear some bush poetry recited, make sure you have your mobile phone put away during this time or you will be in some serious trouble.

The food is great!

They also cater for dietary requirements too if needed, you just need to tell them when you book.

The vegetarian meals were pretty good, and also the carnivore meal was superb.

Dessert was tasty and hit the spot as well.

Right up until the last part of the evening it left you wanting more, even if one of our kids was asleep already.

It was just an experience that kept on giving.

So they loaded everybody back onto the buses and we headed off back to our caravan park for the night.

Lastly, I’ll just say this, that the next morning the damper kept its word.

So if ever Ol’ Man Kinnon reads this or you have done the Starlight’s River Cruise Experience, you will know what I’m talking about.

It will be hard to top this day on our Outback Queensland Road Trip.

Thanks Outback Pioneers!

*Note –

You may see that I have added (Outback Pioneers) to the Kinnon & Co parts I have written about.

They have updated their name and branding leading into the new tourist season. So if you are looking to do the Big 3 Pass as we have done.

You can get it here at their new website, Outback Pioneers.

Liked reading this?

Head to Day 5 here, Outback Queensland Road Trip Day 5.

Or head back to the start of our trip here, Outback Queensland Road Trip.

What did we do or see today?

Outback Pioneers for the Cobb & Co Stagecoach Experience

Harry Redford Old Time Tent Show

Outback Pioneers

128 Eagle St
Longreach QLD 4730

P 07 4658 1776

You get picked up from your Caravan Park or Hotel for the below

Outback Pioneers Starlight’s River Cruise Experience

Starlight’s Spectacular Sound & Light Picture Show

Stockman’s Campfire Dinner

Where did we stay in Longreach?

Longreach Tourist Park
12 Thrush Road
Longreach Qld 4730

P 07 4658 0034

Liked reading this?

Head to Day 5 here, Outback Queensland Road Trip Day 5.

Or head back to the start of our trip here, Outback Queensland Road Trip.