The tiny Queensland town of Rolleston is often referred to as the gateway to Carnarvon National Park, but it has a lot more to recommend it than its proximity to an iconic gorge.
With a population of around 300, the settlement sits at the junction of the Carnarvon, Gregory and Dawson Highways about 140 kilometres south of Emerald, and 330 kilometres west of Gladstone.
The town is named after early pastoralist, Christopher Rolleston, who arrived here in the 1860s. It was a wild and woolly place back then, and this is the area in which notorious bushrangers Patrick and James Kenniff plied their trade.
Back in 1902, the pair murdered Constable George Doyle and cattle station manager Albert Dahlke in a spot which now lies within Carnarvon National Park.
Rolleston's Beazley park. PIC: Central Highlands Regional Council / Nathan White Images
The best way to get a feel for the place’s fascinating past is to take the local Heritage Walk. Guides are available from the Rolleston Library, which incidentally boasts a superb mural depicting the area’s history. The original state school was built in 1871, and All Saints Anglican Church in 1934.
The wooden St Theresa’s Catholic Church on Orion Street is also well worth a look. Purbrook Hut, which has been re-sited was restored from pieces of a homestead originally built in the 1860s, sits in Beazley Park. Memorabilia of the area is displayed inside.
The historic Purbrook Hut. PIC: Central Highlands Regional Council / Nathan White Images
Also in Beazley Park is the historic post office building which is now used as an art gallery. The park is also a great place to take a picnic and perhaps check out a screening at the outdoor cinema. A Coffee Cart operates in the park from April to September. The settlement sits on the scenic Comet Rover and it’s not a bad spot for grey nomads to throw in a line.
For such a small town, Rolleston boasts a decent level of services. The Rolleston Hotel Motel is a pleasant enough little pub, and the pet-friendly Rolleston Caravan Park has powered and unpowered sites and space for larger rigs.
There is also a lovely free camping spot at Lions Park in Springsure, about 70 kilometres to the north west. Although this is very much an agricultural area, there is a large coal mine 13 kilometres to the west.
And then, of course, there is Carnarvon National Park 100 kilometres south of town with its stunning gorges, sandstone cliffs, and magnificent bushwalks. A little less well known but also well worth a visit is Lake Nuga Nuga National Park, 75 kilometres south-west of Rolleston.
Lake Nuga Nuga is the largest natural water body in the Central Queensland Sandstone Belt and attracts a wide variety of water birds, and is truly stunning when covered with waterliles.
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