Mt Isa is The Gateway to Incredible Outback Experiences..
We’d seen the Mt Isa stacks in the distance for many kilometres but when we came over the last rise and saw the town, the stacks and the surrounding hills, we knew that this trip was going to be different.
That was our experience over 40 years ago and we still get that same feeling even today and we’ll wager that you’ll feel something similar on your first visit.
When you’re heading west from the plains near Cloncurry, the 350 million-year-old hills give you an insight into the ruggedness of this country and how difficult it would have been for the early settlers and miners.
Just 60km west of Cloncurry, right beside the highway, is a handy free camp called Fountain Springs with toilets, bitumen areas, covered tables, a shed and enough area to park about 20 caravans. Check out the information signs and pictures and you’ll be amazed that the hills just south of you have old mines, abandoned railway tunnels and shafts … and a waterhole and a cliff where spring water trickles down the side all year round. That’s the real Fountain Springs.
For the adventurous, drop your van at the rest area and take the 27km graded road trip to Fountain Springs and spend an hour or two just sitting in the shade with a cup of tea and admiring the waterhole.