Burketown
Burketown is a major outback township on the flat plains of the Gulf of Carpentaria, close to the Albert River near the Gulf's most southerly point. Burketown hosts the World Barramundi Fishing Championships.
Location: 418 km north of Mount Isa; 429 km North of Cloncurry via Gregory Downs; 942 km West of Cairns; 197 km East of Northern Territory Border; 15 metres above sea-level.
Burketown has given itself the tag of 'The Barramundi Capital of Australia' and to prove its point, Burketown hosts the World Barramundi Fishing Championships every year. This leaves little doubt as to what the draws people to one of the most isolated communities in Australia.
Natural features: Gulf of Carpentaria; Albert River; Gregory River; Leichhardt River; Nicholson River
Heritage features: grave of Frederick Walker (71 km south); Old Boiling Down Works (1866); Post Office (1887)
A spectacular propagating roll cloud which frequents the sparsely populated southern margin of the Gulf of Carpentaria, is one of the world's most exotic and interesting meteorological phenomena. Morning Glories are frequently observed during the spring months near dawn over the southern Gulf area between Sweers Island and the remote community of Burketown in northern Queensland. They often appear in the form of one or more, rapidly advancing, rather formidable roll cloud formations which extend from horizon to horizon in a long arc as far as the eye can see.
The cloud is usually about 3000 feet in depth with a base at about 300 metres above the surface. On occasion, the base of the cloud may lie below 100 metres AGL and the depth may exceed 2,000 metres. The leading roll cloud in Morning Glory disturbances tends to be very smooth along the front and turbulent along the back. Subsequent cloud formations, if present, are nearly always turbulent and often appear only in the form of scattered lines of irregular cumulus.
There are other attractions in the region, however, such as Lawn Hill National Park (246km south) and the Riversleigh Fossil Fields - and you haven't seen a spectacular cloud formation until you've seen Morning Glory.
Adels Grove near Lawn Hill National Park was established by French botanist Albert de Lestang in the 1930s as an experiment in the growing of tropical fruits and trees. It is now a bush settlement offering accommodation and tours to travellers. Visitors have the option of Camping or enjoying our dinner, bed and breakfast accommodation in either furnished river tents or rooms.
Adels Grove was originally gazetted in 1904 as a Miners Homestead Lease. In 1920 Albert de Lestang took up the property as an experimental Botanical Garden (hence the name Adel arose from Albert s initials). Albert planted many species of trees and shrubs and supplied the Botanical Gardens of the world with the seeds produced by his nursery.
Riversleigh Fossil Fields (55 km south-east of Adels Grove), which include huge flightless birds and other fossils dating back 20 million years; now in the Mt. Isa Riversleigh Fossils Display.
One of the first Europeans into the area were explorers Burke and Wills, the former being the source of the town's name. They reached the coast near Normanton in 1861. Frederick Walker, who was one of the many explorers who went looking for Burke and Wills, and in so doing, he opened up the whole Gulf area. It was Walker who found Camp 119, the last Burke and Wills camp before they turned south on their return journey. Walker's grave is located 71 km south of the township on Floraville Station. Nat Buchanan was among the pastoralists to take up holdings on the Gulf. Burketown's population was decimated in 1866 by Gulf Fever (possibly yellow fever, typhoid or dengue). Most of those who did not die moved to Normanton.
Origin of name: honours Robert O'Hara Burke of the Burke and Wills expedition which arrived here in 1861.
