If you’re chasing incredible, 4WD access camping that your family will fall in love with, today we’re sharing 10 locations in Queensland that are truly next level. We’ve been here for the last 6 months, exploring as many different nooks and crannies as we could find, and if you have a 4WD and camping setup, you’ll love these:
Blencoe Falls
If waterfalls are your thing, Queensland has dozens that you can get to and explore. They’re all amazing in their own little way, but one of our favourites is Blencoe Falls. The drive there is stunning, the falls are amazing, the camping is truly brilliant and its far enough away to avoid the hordes of crowds.
You’ll find Blencoe Falls off the Kirima Ranges Road, which winds its way up the mountain on a fairly narrow gravel road. You need to be mindful of the forecast, and any previous day’s rain as the track can get incredibly muddy and slippery.
We towed our Lifestyle Reconn R2 up, but taking caravans would not be a good idea. To return, you can either do the loop, or come back down the range. We always recommend taking a chainsaw, as the road frequently has trees down that can make your life particularly challenging.
The camp site is quite informal, with a number of spots along the creek, with stunning views. You need to book online through the National Parks camping before you go, as there is extremely limited Telstra reception at the top!
It’s $7.25 per person to camp here, and it’s worth every cent. You’ll find a drop toilet, and that is it.
Jardine Station
Heading inland to avoid the school holiday crowds, we stumbled across Jardine Station, which is a cattle property with one of the most amazing gorges you’ll ever get to. There’s a couple of places to camp here, and whilst you can sneak a 4WD into the first camp site, you are taking a big chance going any further.
The station provides access to a number of kayaks that you can paddle around in, which was truly incredible, and the kids spent the better part of a day splashing around. Sunset was nothing short of magic every evening, and we even came back a second time to enjoy it all some more.
It costs $10 per adult to camp here (kids are free), but bookings are not required. There are no amenities in the two 4WD camp sites, but toilets and showers on the camp site by the main road.
Miallo Creek
We love quiet, stunning camping areas, and Miallo Creek near Mossman is the perfect example of this. Located on a small but beautiful private property, your camp metres from a shallow and stunning little creek. The kids can splash about all day, or drift down on their boards whilst the adults kick back on the sand, or up on the grass above the creek bed.
This is a Hipcamp property and needs to be booked in advance on their platform. There are no amenities here, asides from a fire pit. It costs $30 per night to camp here.
Lake Tinaroo
We’ve camped at a bucket load of lakes over the years, and Lake Tinaroo is probably up there with the best. This is located close to Yungaburra and has a huge range of places you can camp at.
Whilst it’s not exactly 4WD only, the road around the lake can be in fairly average condition, and having one is very helpful if you’re driving onto any of the grassy sections (which there are plenty of) around the lake.
We spend a number of nights at Kauri creek and were blown away by the amazing views. You need to book in advance to stay here, and its $7.25 per night. You’ll find toilets at the national park camp sites, and views that are to die for.
Crystal Creek Beach Camping
Free camping is the ultimate win, and when it’s on a beautiful, big beach with a range of different camp sites it’s hard to beat. Crystal Creek is well known for the rockslides and stunning swimming options further inland, but you can camp on the beach where the creek comes out for absolutely nothing.
The camping is beyond the shacks, and either right on the edge of the beach, or under the trees, set about 50 metres off the beach. If you’re coming here, you should know that some of the tracks are very soft, and towing anything large requires a fair bit of experience and choice of track, or you’ll end up sunk to the chassis and ruining your visit.
You want to make sure the wind is favourable when visiting here too, as it can be very strong, and quite unpleasant. Bookings are not required.
Creek and Antique Camping
About an hour away from Mackay lies Creek and Antique Camping, which is a beautiful property with a stunning little gorge. There are camp sites metres from the water or set back a little on easy to access ground, or on big areas of grass within walking distance of the creek itself.
The drive in requires you to go through a decent water crossing, which would limit the camping to those with a decent amount of clearance, and ideally a snorkel. Of course, this is dependent on the weather level, so ring and ask if you are unsure.
You can do a 4WD track here to the top of the hill, and down to the dam before getting back to camp, which is worth a look. There are portable toilets here, and fire pits, with the cost to camp just $25 per night for every vehicle.
The Diggings
Eulunga is an extremely popular area that is stunning, and well known for its platypus watching. If you’ve got a 4WD though, you can head to one of the most amazing camp sites around, The Diggings.
This can be accessed from two different ways, both of which require a 4WD, and neither of which are suitable for towing anything larger than a well-equipped hybrid camper. If it’s been raining, forget towing anything in as it can get quite slippery.
There are three big areas to camp at The Diggings, with platypus in the creek that are as good of a chance of seeing one in the wild. We finally got to see our first wild platypus here, and it was breathtaking with great views, lots of room and at a fair price. It’s $7.25 per night to camp here, and you need to book online on the National Parks website.
Notch Point
In terms of free camps, Notch Point probably takes out our favourite in Queensland, and that’s a big call to make. This is a stunning camp site about an hour from Sarina, on a 4WD track that is suitable for towing larger caravans with clearance, if you are careful.
It’s fairly windy and bumpy, with lots of trees to navigate around, but when you arrive, you’ll see one of the most stunning places around. There’s green grass, amazing beaches, great rock formations and sunsets that are absolutely unreal.
The fishing is supposed to be very good here, and a lot of people come in and only leave to get water and empty their toilets! There is no need to book, its completely free and the only amenities are some fire pits around the place, and a rubbish bin at the start of the track in.
Cape Palmerston National Park
Not far from Notch Point lies Cape Palmerston National Park, which is equally as beautiful as Notch Point, and a great place to head out for the day, or for a few nights camping.
You can book the camp sites online on the National Parks website, with it costing $7.25 per night. The 4WD tracks around the National Park are nothing extreme, but the beaches, Cape Palmerston and the views in general are shockingly beautiful.
The Gorge
Last, but certainly not least is a beautiful camp site just over an hour from Brisbane. Whilst this is not technically 4WD access (you’d get most 2WD’s to most camp sites), it deserves to be on the list purely because of how beautiful it is.
This is a small, private property with a stunning gorge running through the middle of it. You can camp in a few places right next to the water, which although its freezing, is absolutely magic. There is a basic amenities block, with the shower a simple bucket of water that you fill, but the property itself is magical.
It’s $10 per night for adults with kids $5 a night, and you need to ring or text to book well in advance (particularly on weekends!)
If you’re looking for some new places to explore in Queensland, hopefully this post has given you some great ideas!
Cheers! Aaron Schubert, 4WDing Australia.
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