Day 15 - Sun Sept 11th - Rockhampton zoo to Carmilla Sands

 Day 15 - Sun Sept 11th - Rockhampton zoo to Carmilla Sands 

We wandered the ‘esplanade-esque’ quarter, where the fancy, big buildings clumped along a few blocks of manicured paths, well behaved trees and landscaped terraced areas tumbling down to the wide brown river. 

We tried for a table at the boathouse, but, due to staff shortages, they were unable to offer dine-in. 

Walking the block to see what else was available, a more familiar regional town feel appeared, more relaxed, though closed-down businesses and empty shop fronts featured strongly. We found one cafe that looked promising, but it was also a tattoo parlour (the barista on duty was also a tattooist, and was inking at the time). The boathouse was revisited for takeaway coffee and croissant, and once again, our flexible grass table hosted the feast. 

https://boathouserockhampton.co

Rockhampton is the beef capital of Australia… so we thought we would visit a butcher. Turns out it’s more so the beef export capital of Australia, so we took the butcher's advice and got the hunter valley product instead. Shopping done, it was time for the Rockhampton zoo. 

For those unaware, the Rockhampton zoo is a bit of an anomaly - it’s free, it’s awesome, and it sits among an extensive park land with the botanical garden and playgrounds. Simply put, if you have a few hours spare, and you are in Rockhampton, visiting this space is top of the list. 

The entry is by the home of the meerkats, who were frolicking about and keeping guard in turn, with an option for an encounter, but we did not have time to explore this. The huge chimpanzee display is animal centred. Lots of leafy areas to hide, varied climbing set up, multiple sections to allow for individuals to be separated, or to separate themselves, and we got to see a 1 year old and a 3 month old literally learning the ropes. Other stars included ‘the Colonel’, a 6 metre estuarine crocodile, wombats, dingoes, native bees, otters, koalas, and numerous snakes and exotic birds. 

The huge aviary is being renovated, and the otters were getting a small remodel when we were there, but still well worth a couple of hours. Afterwards we had ice cream under the fig tree garden - a unique (mosquito-ridden, but stunning) alfresco set up that would take several hundred years to create. 

https://www.rockhamptonzoo.com.au/Visitor-Information

We pulled into Marlborough, a tiny inland place we dropped in on last time. There was a functional playground, and a tiny pool with a lifesaver on duty. The construction of the lions guarding the lions park was an exercise in making do with what you had. The letters were cardboard, painted black and attached with liquid nails, the plinths were sections of concrete drainage pipe, and the lions could well have been from a garden centre, but from 10 feet away, you would not be able discern these measures, as they were so well executed. 

Next stop was Carmila sands hotel, chosen as a midway point to cape hillsborough. 

The town's most prominent feature was a sprawling mixed business service station. It served as a break in the sugar cane, and had at least three small motels. We were greeted by the owner, who was also the cook, cleaner, builder, and a farmer. The place was neat, functional, had battery solar. We tried to catch some cute house geckos and dinner of “Rockhampton” (hunter) steak was bbqed.