It may feel like its a million miles away from anywhere but picturesque Wetherby Cattle Station is just outside Mt Molloy and close enough to Cairns for bush campers to get a weekend nature fix.
For people who prefer the space and privacy of camping in the bush rather than holiday parks, camping on cattle stations is becoming more and more popular.
Apart from the fact that you can feel like you’re out in the middle of the bush, miles from anyone else, they also have the benefit of being dog-friendly (unless you’ve got a hunting dog).
It’s a win/win scenario for bush campers and it also brings in an extra income stream for the station owners.
wetherby station
Wetherby Station is one of the cattle stations in North Queensland that has accommodation on the property and allows camping.
It is owned by John and Kathy Colless who are more than happy to welcome responsible campers to their property.
We’d heard that they were super friendly but were still a little surprised to be invited to join them for tea on the verandah when we arrived.
They are delightful hosts and clearly very passionate about the land and sharing it with others. They run their cattle business using sustainable practices and since purchasing the property they have planted lots of new trees.
Here’s our video of our weekend:
Campsites
We camped at an area called the Crossing on Rifle Creek, which also had this beautiful billabong close by.
It has a nice big flat grassy area with plenty of trees for shade and a couple of good spots for bush toilets.
Its a short walk down to the creek itself so its close enough to be able to hear the water from your tent at night.
There are three creeks running through Wetherby – Rifle Creek, Spear Creek and Little Mitchell River. Bush camping is available at all three but check when you book whether you need 4WD to access them.
For those who prefer a few amenities, there are showers and toilets at the homestead. You can also camp near the homestead if you wish.
things to do
If you’ve got children you can assume they will be kept well and truly entertained by nature’s backyard. We had three children with us on our trip and hardly saw them the whole time we were there, perfect!
They were up before sunrise on the first morning asking if they could “throw in a line” and that kept them pretty occupied the whole time we were there.
They even managed to catch a couple of fish.
To be honest we didn’t do an awful lot on our weekend visit besides enjoying the peace and quiet and chatting with friends.
But we did go exploring along the creek, looking for dead branches for firewood and searching for the perfect marshmallow toasting sticks.
The creek isn’t really suitable for kayaking but there are a couple of pretty billabongs on the property near the homestead that are fairly shallow and safe for kids to paddle around in. Ask the owners about them when booking.
travel nq fast facts:
Wetherby Station is just on the east side of Mt Molloy – look for the signpost on your left if you’re coming up from Port Douglas- Dogs welcome (no pig dogs)
- Campfire are allowed (use fire rings that have been utilised before)
- There are showers and toilets at the homestead, otherwise take a shovel.
- Cabins are available if you want to enjoy the cattle station experience without camping. There is also one bedroom in the homestead for guests, which allows you to have the run of the whole house.
- Cost for camping is $25 per vehicle per night.
Looking for other cattle stations? Try this:
