Charters Towers - QLD < Aussie Caravanning Lifestyle

Charters Towers (Charlies Trousers as some people call it affectionately) is a town with quite a lot of history and character. It was late in the day by the time we arrived in town so we did a quick stop at the local supermarket to pick up a hot cooked chicken for an easy dinner. We then headed straight to the Dalrymple Tourist Van Park.

Brad and his wife Tanya run a great park with lots of character. On Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday nights you can purchase a home cooked meal which Tanya prepares for you to enjoy at the camp kitchen and fire pit area.

The park also offers:

• Free Wi-Fi
• Telephone and TV reception
• Grassed, slab and drive-thru powered sites
• Large camp kitchen
• Swimming pool
• Jumping pillow
• BBQ’s
• Two amenity blocks
• Dump point

There are also self-contained cabins and ensuite sites available. We had a great site which was not far from the chook pen and each afternoon they would come and visit us around the van. You can also enjoy some of the fresh herbs being grown in the vegie garden.

The next day our first port of call was to find Bridgestone Tyres to see what they could do for us in regards to replacing two of the tyres on our van. Wow the service was wonderful. They came out to the caravan park and jacked up the van, removed the wheels and were back with new tyres fitted within the hour. Next we organised to have the van’s wheel alignment checked by a company who specialise in road trains and trailers on the day of departure. Again another job well done with great friendly service and we were happy that we were safe to travel further.

Shopping in Charters Towers is quite good and I loved the department store Tilley’s which first opened its doors in 1926. There are lots of great old buildings with period architecture in the town like the Stock Exchange which was built in 1888, the Post/ Telegraph Office with its tall clock tower built in 1898 and a Bank building established in 1886.

The Stock Exchange was a busy place in its hay day. Three cattle calls a day, six days a week and the buying and selling of gold mines or their licenses. Today it houses a few businesses including a great café. Next door you will find the Visitor Information Centre where you can sit and watch the informative videos about the history of the town.

We took a drive to Towers Hill which gives you a wonderful view over the town. If you are feeling very energetic you can actually take the new 800m walking path up to the top of the hill. Along the way there are several information boards which tell you the history of the area. Otherwise you can drive up to the small parking area beside the viewing platform to enjoy the spectacular view.

Charters Towers is renowned for the discovery of gold early in the 1870s. It also hosted a major air fleet during World War II and there were 30 little concrete bunkers constructed on Towers Hill to store bombs, ammunition, and other explosives. They were strategically positioned so none of the bunkers faced each other because if there had been an explosion in one, it would not set off a chain reaction. This was a great education about the town’s connection to the war and we loved the interactive audio and video features inside two of the bunkers. Truly awesome.