Ahh finally a few fine days in a row and not freezing 😁
We spent a few nights at Calliope at the River on the south side. When we drove in we were a little shocked at the number of campers. We have stayed here several times and never seen it this busy, seems to be a trend.
There are 2 areas at the river you can camp at. The one we stayed out which is on the south side of the river, taking the turnoff for the Old Bruce Hwy. Lots of space, either right on the river if you are lucky enough or just back from it. There are bins and further up the bank in like the picnic area there are toilets and shelter tables and chairs. People also camp up here.
The second area on the north side is straight off the Bruce Hwy. Passing a Heritage centre and Kiosk day area, down the hill to the camp area. Lots of space here as well but the toilets have been closed due to people dumping cassettes into them.
There is a dump point in Calliope as well as drinking water. Council do patrol this area with a 48hr limit, and will move people on if they over stay.
There is an old bridge joining the two areas you can walk but not drive over. First time we stayed here you could drive between the two areas, in fact camping was pretty much on the south side.
People fish here but we never saw anyone catching anything. There are warnings of crocodiles in the area, so don’t go swimming.
It is only a short drive into Gladstone from here. Gladstone pretty well has everything you could need, things are rather spread out.
It was a beautiful day when we went to Gladstone and bought some Barra and chips at the local fish market. Price was a bit expensive we thought but it was really really nice so worth it. We ate them at the East Shores Precinct which was re developed in 2019. A really lovely area for families, to exercise with several Boot Camp type gym equipment setup around the place. Great place to walk around, have a picnic, sit and catch up with family and friends.
Outdoor cinema
HMAS Gladstone 2 a Fremantle class patrol boat name after the city of Gladstone. Formerly of the Royal Australia Navy, she was commissioned in 1984 and based in Cairns. She sailed with her company of 22 personnel for over 618,000 nautical miles in national and international waters for 22 and half years. The ship was decommissioned in 2007 and gifted on the same day to the Gladstone Maritime History Society.
Map of the park.
Outdoor Boot Camp.