About Mt Surprise

Mt Surprise is an historic railway town on the Cairns to Forsayth Railway, and has a population of 65 people. It is at the crossroads for those travelling between Cairns, Karumba and Townsville being 319km southwest of Cairns, 375km northwest of Townsville, and 485km east of Karumba on the Gulf of Carpentaria.

The Mt Surprise area comprises open forest with pockets of black ti tree and vine thickets. It is rich with protected species of flora and fauna, many of which are listed as rare or endangered. The Forty Mile Scrub National Park, to the east, is one of the largest vine thickets in Australia. The thicket includes bottle trees and giant fig trees as well as possums, gliders, wallabies and a large number of birds usually associated with rainforests. A stand of the rare "Mt Surprise Blue" Cycad is found to the north of the township.

Numerous lizards and reptiles abound, including frilled-neck lizards, and approximately 130 species of birds, including migratory birds, can be found in the area at various times of the year (bird list). The Mt Surprise area also has more species of mammal than any other in Australia, including a large population of the Rufous Bettong rat kangaroo, and 14 bat species, many of them rare cave-dwellers, are found in and around the Undara Lava Tubes.

To the east of Mt Surprise is the toe of the lava flow which originated from the 164 volcano craters of the McBride Plateau. The lava flows spread down the western escarpment of the Great Dividing Range and are the youngest volcanic system in Australia at only some 190,000 years old. The volcanic system also includes basalt lava tube tunnels, some of which run for up to 160 kilometres underground. The Lava tubes can only be accessed through Savannah Guide Stations located at Bedrock Village Caravan Park in Mt Surprise, or at the Lava Lodge in the Undara Volcanic National Park to the east.

In Mt Surprise itself, heritage signage will give you an understanding of the history of the area which dates back to the 1870's. The oldest building in town, and in fact the oldest in the Gulf Savannah, is the Telegraph Post Office which was built in 1870. It is located next to the Police Station and across the road from the Railway Station where there is a display depicting the railway history of the area. This is not to be missed.

Whether you are interested in history, birdwatching, rare plants and animals, fossicking, or you simply want to admire the landscape, Mt Surprise has plenty of interest for all visitors.

The History Of O’Brien’s Creek

Back around the mid 1800's tin was discovered in the O’Brien’s Creek area, 42km northwest of Mt Surprise, and it soon became a needed commodity well worth mining. Small companies opened up employing groups of men who worked through most of the winter months as long as water was available to run the machinery. Haulage roads were soon cut and many claims were pegged throughout the area. Topaz and other gem stones were a nuisance to them. They got caught up in the jigs which slowed the operation down.

It wasn’t till the mid 1900’s that gem stones were thought to be worth collecting. Claims were pegged everywhere and Topaz became popular. Blue Hills was the place to get good blue’s with patches of aquamarine being found as well. Many pounds of stones were found in the early days with a good percentage of them being large pieces that you didn’t even have to sieve for.

Today a lot of digging is done and still good pieces of Topaz along with Aquamarine, Smoky Quartz, Citrine and Cassiterite are found. A large area has been declared open for public fossicking. That hint of a gamble (a healthy gamble that is), just can’t be ignored. After all you just might stumble over the big one. Even though many areas get dug year after year there is still a lot of stone coming out as it gets tumbled through many miles of creeks, finally falling into catchment areas. Some very large pieces have been found one weighing about 3790cts.

Most of the leases and claims are long since gone with only a handful of homestead leases and claims left. The majority of residencies around the field are now treated as bush retreats even though many hold great histories and have wonderful stories locked away.

a Big Hearted Town!