Rubyvale Caravan Park in The Gemfields was the travel destination for us today on our first day of our Outback Queensland Road Trip.
And we were all pretty excited about it!
We had stayed up late getting all the gear ready to pack into the camper trailer in the morning.
The car was filled with petrol the day before too so this didn’t have to be done when we are trying to get away on time.
The morning ran smoothly with the load up, loading up the kids, getting them to agree on a movie, and then setting off.
Travel time from Biloela to Rubyvale was a bit longer than we expected.
My friend Google Maps said it was over a four hour drive to get to Rubyvale Caravan Park.
It took us just over six hours to drive to Rubyvale.
In hindsight I’d say the reason for the difference clearly would be driving without towing a camper trailer.
And also driving without kids as we have to stop a little more frequently with them.
Some of the main towns we passed through on the way were, Banana, Baralaba, Wooribinda (little sidetrack off the highway), Dingo, Emerald, Sapphire, and finally Rubyvale.
The first stop was in Banana to get some morning tea out of the eski.
I took the opportunity while the kids were getting sorted to take a quick few photos.
Banana is a little town in the Shire where we live, the shire also shares the towns name, the Banana Shire.
The irony about the Banana Shire, and also the town Banana is that banana’s aren’t grown here!
The name of the town comes from an old bull that was named Banana by local stockman there.
Banana the bull used to help them herd cattle into the yards.
The town was named in the early 1860s and there is a statue of Banana the bull in a park in town so you can stop and take photos if you want.
The first toilet stop of the drive was at a little town called Baralaba.
If you turn left instead of right and head down towards the Baralaba Fire Station you will see the toilets in front of the RSLA building.
After this the next stop was Dingo for lunch.
I stopped off at a Puma Service Station just before Dingo to check the tyre pressures were alright, and also for a quick toilet break for the kids too at the same time.
Dingo is another small town in Queensland, it is in the Central Highlands Region and was named after Dingo Creek which is nearby.
Ben Hunt is from Dingo originally too.
We couldn’t find a picnic table and chairs in Dingo so we sat on the seats next to the ANZAC Memorial which is also next to the Dingo statue on the rock.
When you get off the A4 onto Anakie Sapphire Road you go through Sapphire to get to Rubyvale.
When you drive through Sapphire it looks like you are driving into a Chinese Marketplace, it is all over the place.
There are hand painted signs everywhere as the road winds around, so many signs and information that you don’t really know where to look.
The feeling is that everyone wants a piece of the tourist action, and the only way they can get this is by putting up a sign on the side of the road.
In between the businesses are all the houses, converted caravans, tents, old mining machinery, and whatever else people can live in or use while trying to strike it rich on their claim.
We were thinking if Sapphire is like this, what is Rubyvale going to be like?
Thankfully Rubyvale was a little easier on the eyes and once you got into town we felt a bit more settled.
Funny how it changes from one town to the next.
The Rubyvale Caravan Park was easy to find once we got to The Gemfields too.
All I had to do was put up the Jayco once we got there, so I booked us in for the night and got stuck into it.
I didn’t bother putting up the annexe or poles as we were only camping for one night.
Rubyvale Caravan Park was a great little park to stay in.
There are new owners who have only been in there for three weeks when we arrived and they were very friendly and hands on coming around and talking to all the campers.
The facilities were adequate and within easy walking distance from all of the camp sites, and there is a swimming pool if you are travelling to Rubyvale through summer.
The new owners had also put an area down in one corner of the caravan park with a fire running every night so the campers and travellers can gather there with their chairs and have a chat about their travels and experiences.
This area was full the night we stayed here with plenty of talk and laughter.
The area during the day is used for fossicking where you can have a crack at fossicking without leaving the park if you want to.
We had soup and buns for dinner, had showers, and settled in for sleep after a big day travelling.
Liked reading this?
Read about Day 2 here, Outback Queensland Road Trip Day 2.
Or head back to the start of our trip here, “Outback Queensland Road Trip”
What did we do or see today?
We drove from Biloela to Rubyvale.
We only stopped a few times for tyre pressure check, morning tea, toilet breaks, and lunch.
These were in Banana, Baralaba, Dingo, and of course, camping in Rubyvale.
Where did we stay? Rubyvale Caravan Park
Rubyvale Caravan Park
16 Main Street
Rubyvale Qld 4702
P 07 4985 4118
What distance did we drive today?
Biloela to Rubyvale
Total distance travelled = 395 km
Tally of roadkills spotted for Outback Queensland Road Trip = 8
Liked reading this?
Read about Day 2 here, Outback Queensland Road Trip Day 2.
Or head back to the start of our trip here, “Outback Queensland Road Trip“
Website looking good ow, trip looks good as well