Queensland Adventuring
Jowalbinna Bush Camp
By Dale Leatherman
While technically part of the Outback, Jowalbinna Bush Camp (25 miles north of Laura), can be reached fairly easily from Tropical North Queensland, and it's worth the effort.
Ancient aboriginal rock art and bush living are why intrepid travelers make the trip. Several walks fan out from camp, enough so that a person could hike every day for three months and not view the same Aboriginal rock painting twice. The surprisingly vivid figures etched into sandstone depict tribal lore (with quinkans, or spirit figures) and daily life. Sadly, the descendants of the tribes that created these drawings were nearly wiped out during the Gold Rush of the 1870s.
Every day brings a different piece of aboriginal art.
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The Brady Creek Circuit, an easy, full-day trek, has good swimming holes, spectacular views, and a variety of art sites. A place called Emu Dreaming, about a four-hour walk away, includes some big paintings and some very old artworks, plus a good billabong (wide place) on the Little Laura River to swim while your guide builds a fire under the billy (pot) for tea. Yam Camp and Yam Dreaming on Shepherd Creek is a short half-day excursion to an archaeological dig and a ceremonial fertility site.
Jowalbinna is also a great place to see critters—dingoes, feral cats, giant lizards, and many species of birds. Guides teach bush medicine, including the uses of the Ironwood (or sterility) tree, which native women used to induce miscarriages. You can also find two kinds of termite mounds in the area, both full of squirming little termite grubs. Eating one kind supposedly cures constipation, the other diarrhea.
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