The 10 secret missions of Mission Beach

It’s a slice of Queensland the way it used to be, in both a modern and ancient context, where two World Heritage areas just happen to bump into each other.

Silently chilling out on the unspoiled coves and beaches between Cairns and Townsville, Mission Beach harbours a few secrets you’ll want to discover, from uncrowded encounters with the Great Barrier Reef to chance meetings with the almost fabled cassowary. Here are 10 missions you’ll want to accept when this petite paradise inevitably pulls you in.

1. Go cassowary spotting

Cassowary Mission Beach rainforest — Take your time, cross your fingers and you just might bump into a cassowary around Mission Beach (photo: Elise Hassey).

Mission Beach is the self-crowned capital of these funky flightless birds, the punk rockers of Australian birdlife. There’s around 100 of them stomping around here, but don’t expect them to be parading down the main street for your benefit. Check out the Mission Beach Cassowaries Facebook page for recent sightings and pester locals for hotspots (such as the Beachcomber Coconut Holiday Park, South Mission Beach, in the late afternoon). The more you get out in nature (see below), the more chance you have of seeing one.

2. Walk in the rainforest

Right on Mission’s backdoor is sumptuous Djiru National Park, which harbours pockets of the most diverse lowland and beachfront rainforest in Australia. A nice introductory walk is the Dreaming Trail, which can be accessed from El Arish Mission Beach Road (the trail head is on the left, as you drive out of town). Add on Musgrave Link Track for a little more cardio. Aside from upping your chances of seeing ‘the bird’, you also have the privilege of walking under huge pleated-leafed palm forests, past fruiting quandong and Davidson’s plumb trees, and being serenaded by a tropical bird chorus supplied by the likes of the woompoo pigeon.

3. Go for a Dunk on the Reef

Meanwhile, on Mission’s front door, sits Dunk Island, a very approachable introduction to the Great Barrier Reef. Mission Beach Dive offers plenty of aqua options from its simple taxi service across to Dunk, so you can explore the island as well as day trips to the Outer Reef. A morning of snorkelling off the MV Reef Goddess followed by an on-board barbie with a side of fresh prawns should sate most of your reef desires. If you’re looking for a calm place to get your scuba qualifications, Mission Beach may be your PADI paradise.

4. Worship at the temple of conservation

A few kilometres north of Mission, at the end of a long shady driveway in Bingil Bay, is heritage-listed Ninney Rise, former HQ for some of Australia’s most crucial environmental campaigns. A posse of environmentalists, headed by mercurial John Büsst, used the house as a base for the original fight to establish the reef as a Marine Park plus wave after wave of save the rainforest battles. Apparently, then Prime Minister Harold Holt wrote one of his budgets on the verandah here. For some thoughtful and rare reads, browse the Margaret Thorsborne Library, recently opened after being salvaged from Cyclone Yasi’s grasp.

5. Accept the café mission

Bingle Bay Café Mission Beach courtyard seafood laksa — Hippy vibe, bushy-courtyard and great seafood laksa: Bingle Bay Café (photo: Elise Hassey).

Thankfully, Mission’s isolation ensures a reasonably franchise-free village with a handful of character-filled, tasty and distinctly local dining options. The lunchtime pick is Bingil Bay Café for its hippy vibe, bushy-courtyard setting and its seafood laksa. Other reasons to like this place include live music (on Sundays) and its cool (literally and figuratively) punkah-wallah, an Indian-style verandah-length ceiling fan. Closer to the town, Mission’s cute little Village Green hosts more relaxed food and beverage possibilities from the veggo-friendly Pepper Vine to nautical-themed Joey’s cafe for your wake-up coffee.

6. Have a beach all to yourself

Secret Garners Beach Great Barrier Reef — The utterly undeveloped Garners Beach (photo: Elise Hassey).

If the barely crowded strip of white sand that fronts the length of town isn’t personal enough for you, a further 10 kilometres’ drive north will deposit you at utterly undeveloped and palm-tree free (they were introduced) Garners Beach. Here the rainforest actually makes it all the way down to the beach and, if you’re lucky, and up early, you may catch a cassowary snacking on a crustacean in the dawn glow. Don’t let the beauty lull you into a swim, however, because the odd crocodile does cruise past.

7. Embrace the Indigenous side of the story

The dramatic clash of dark volcanic rock with the azure Coral Sea waters at Clump Point marks the most significant land formation in the area for traditional owners, the Djiru. Information boards here help decipher Djiru stories, which naturally feature that local star, the cassowary. Heading out of Djiru country, for a hands-on Indigenous perspective of the tropical landscape, head 45 minutes west to the town of Tully, where Ingan Tours’ ‘Spirit of the Rainforest’ guided day hike explores “the Aboriginal trading routes" of the Jirrbal People.

8. Castaway(s) for a cocktail

Island vibe ashore: Castaways Resort & Spa, Mission Beach (photo: Elise Hassey).

It’s sleek, chic and great-value, but the best thing about Castaways Resort & Spa is just how effectively the all-rounder channels the island ambiance from on shore. Slowly sip some bubbles or a mixed berry frappe by the pool, stare out through criss-crossed palms from your private balcony, and then tuck into the refined yet hearty menu in low-lit and airy Bibesia Restaurant. Alternatively, spend some time re-balancing with an Ocean Rhythm treatment at onsite Drift Day Spa.

Pool cocktails Castaways Resort & Spa, Mission Beach — Bubbles or a mixed berry frappe by the pool? Castaways Resort & Spa, Mission Beach (photo: Elise Hassey).

9. Play cassowary-cult bingo

Even if you don’t manage to spot that elusive cassowary in real life, you will not miss the cassowary cult that colonises this Cassowary Coast Spot a giant cassowary statue, a street named after the bird, and head down to Village Green for cassowary-specific arts, crafts and fashion at the Helen Wiltshire Gallery. And if this doesn’t fill your cassowary cup, then visit here in June during the Mission Beach Community Cassowary Festival when locals dress up as you-guessed-what, and parade downtown, serenaded by local musicians amongst a sea of other paraphernalia.

10. Revisit your youth and sweet tooth: Charley’s Chocolate Factory

Literally, the sweetest afternoon you can spend at Mission Beach is out at Charley’s Chocolate Factory (10 minutes’ drive from town along El Arish Mission Beach Road). This is no theme park, nor is there a bubbling chocolate fountain, but this is a working chocolate farm (a banana plantation up until 2012). During the Cocoa Tree to Chocolate Bar Experience you can help out making some chocolate, wander through trellis-grown beans and, naturally, try some of the farm’s award-winning dark chocolate including the macadamia and roasted coffee flavours. You may have noticed the spelling doesn’t match the Roald Dahl book and film; it’s named after the dog (chocolate standard poodle) in John Steinbeck’s Travels with Charley. (Open: Thursday, Friday, Sunday, subject to demand).

Want to discover more in from Queensland? Check out:

– The Queensland fairytale castle you’ve never heard of

Under wide-open outback skies, discover a fossicking gem that’s managed to slip under the radar.

While the name Clermont may feel new to even the most intrepid traveller, its gilded history stretches back centuries. You’ll find it just off the highway, humming quietly under the hazy veil of Queensland’s outback sun. It’s here, hemmed in by mountains and perched atop soil heavy with the earth’s treasures, that one of Australia’s most accessible outback adventures awaits.

Thanks to deposits of gold, copper and gemstones – souvenirs left by exploding supernovas and the heave of tectonic plates – Clermont became a centre point of Queensland’s Gold Rush. And now? Australia’s fossicking capital is yours to discover.

Getting there

car driving along Capricorn Way in queensland — Take a drive through Queensland’s Mackay Isaac region. (Image: Sean Scott/ TEQ)

You’ll find Clermont in Queensland’s Mackay Isaac region. To get here, it’s an easy three-hour drive over sealed roads from Mackay. Or, if you’re heading from the Sapphire Fields of Emerald, the drive will carve out just over an hour from your day.

Whether you’re road-tripping through outback Queensland or just tracing your way through all that Australia has to offer, Clermont is remote but easily accessible.

Best accommodation in Clermont

Theresa CreekDam in clermont — Camp by Theresa Creek Dam. (Image: Riptide Creative/ TEQ)

All accommodation comes with a generous helping of country hospitality here. The choice is yours between modern hotels, parking up the camper or pitching a tent.

Theresa Creek Dam lies just outside town. Begin each day with crisp country air and bright outback sunrises. Spend the night under the sparkling country stars and your days out on the dam fishing or kayaking. Even if you aren’t camping, be sure to save space in your itinerary for an afternoon on the red dirt shore.

To stay closer to town, opt for a central hotel to base yourself between exploring and fossicking, like Smart Stayzzz Inn and Clermont Country Motor Inn .

Things to do in Clermont

three people on a tour with Golden Prospecting — Join a tour with Golden Prospecting.

One does not visit Clermont without trying their hand at fossicking. There are strict rules when it comes to fossicking, so stick to areas dedicated for general permission and make sure you obtain your license beforehand. Try your luck at McMasters , Four Mile , Town Desert, McDonald Flat and Flat Diggings . To increase your odds, sign on for a tour with the expert team at Golden Prospecting . They’ll give you access to exclusive plots and expert advice along the way.

Once you’ve tried your luck on the gold fields, head to the Clermont Township and Historical Museum . Each exhibit works like an archaeologist’s brush to dust away the layers of Clermont’s history. Like the steam engine that painstakingly relocated the entire town inch by inch to higher ground after it was decimated by flooding in 1916. See the tools that helped build the Blair Athol mine, historic fire engines, shearing sheds and all sorts of relics that make up Clermont’s story.

The historic Copperfield Chimney offers a change of pace. Legend has it that fossickers found a solid wall of copper here, over three metres high, kick-starting Queensland’s first-ever copper mine.

Bush Heli Services flying over clermont queensland — See Clermont from above with Bush Heli Services. (Image: Riptide Creative/ TEQ)

For hiking, nearby Dysart is the best place to access Peak Range National Park. Here, mountainous horizons stretch across the outback as if plucked from another world. Set off for a scenic drive along the Peak Downs Highway for access to countless geological wonders. Like the slanting rockface of Wolfang Peak. Summit it, and you’ll find yourself looking out across a scene surely conjured up by Banjo Paterson. Dry scrub dancing in the warm breeze, grazing cattle, eucalypts and the gentle creak of windmills. Don’t miss visiting Gemini Peaks, either, for one of the park’s best vistas, and a blanket of wild flowers after rain.

Then, take to the skies with a scenic helicopter tour with Bush Heli-Services . Shift your perspective and cruise above all the sights from your trip. Spots like Lords Table Mountain and Campbell’s Peak are best viewed from the skies.

Before you head home, be sure to explore the neighbouring townships. Spend a lazy afternoon in the shade of Nebo Hotel’s wrap-around verandahs . The hotel’s 1900s dance hall has since been replaced with one of the area’s biggest rodeo arenas, so consider timing your trip to line up with a boot scootin’ rodeo. Or, stop by a ghost town. Mount Britton was once a thriving town during the 1880s Gold Rush. It’s been totally abandoned and now lies untouched, a perfect relic of the Gold Rush.

Best restaurants and cafes in Clermont

meal at Commercial Hotel — Stop into the Commercial Hotel Clermont.

Days spent fossicking, bushwalking and cramming on history call for excellent coffee and hearty country meals. Luckily, Clermont delivers in spades.

Lotta Lattes Cafe is beloved by locals for a reason. Start your days here for the best caffeine fix in town and an impeccable brunch menu.

For a real country meal, an icy cold beer and that famed country hospitality, head straight to the town’s iconic hotel: the Commercial Hotel (known endearingly to locals as ‘The Commie’). It’s been a staple in Clermont since 1877. The hotel even survived the flood of 1916 when it was sawn in two and moved to higher ground.

Naturally, time spent in the outback must include calling into the local bakery. For delicious pies and a tantalising array of sweet treats, make Bluemac Bakehouse your go-to while in town.

Discover more of The Mackay Isaac region, and start planning your trip at mackayisaac.com.