CAPRICORN

Hinterland and Gemfields

Whether it's the Peak Range of Capella or the gorges of the sprawling national parks, the Central Highlands & Sapphire Gemfields region of Capricorn has something to offer everyone.

There’s Blackdown Tableland National Park with its 600 metre sandstone plateau with lookouts and picturesque Rainbow Falls. And don’t forget the Capricorn Caves, where tours of Bat Cleft are available at Mt Etna in summer. There’s also Kroombit Tops National Park and Mt Scoria, the mountain that rings like a bell and Byfield National Park where you can see beautiful rainforest, visit local artisans or hire a canoe on the Byfield River.

Visit the thriving regional centres of Biloela and Emerald, hubs to the surrounding agricultural districts. Then head further west to the Sapphire Gemfields where you can enjoy the experience of fossicking for sapphires. This area is famed for cattle-rearing and home to some of the state's largest cattle stations. It's also mining country, from the former gold workings of Mt Morgan to the mighty open cut coal fields near Moura.