Chinchilla

Chinchilla is a town in the Western Downs region of Queensland, with a population of 6,600 (2016).

It is 300 km north-west of Brisbane on the Warrego Highway. Don’t be fooled by how Chinchilla looks from the highway – the town actually lies across the railway bridge. There is plenty to see and do, and some really interesting local history.

Chinchilla is probably most famous for its biannual |Melon Festival, and its 'Chinchilla Red' petrified wood.

Understand
Heeney Street is the main street of Chinchilla, and runs perpendicular to the highway. Most of the shops (and pubs) can be found along this street, although the main grocery store, and a complex with a few other shops and cafes, is on nearby Middle Street.

The Chinchilla Visitor Information Centre, on the Warrego Highway, is a good place to make your first stop. The friendly staff can provide you with maps, pretty much any brochure you could wish for, and local knowledge. You can also relax on their lovely verandah with a Devonshire tea with freshly-made scones.

History
Chinchilla was first recorded by Friedrich Wilhelm Ludwig Leichhardt in 1844 during one of his expeditions out west, and there is some debate over where the name ‘Chinchilla’ came from. There is a town named Chinchilla in Spain, or a small rodent called a Chinchilla (the fur of which was a valuable commodity - and early settlers in the Chinchilla area trapped possums for their fur). However, most agree that it came from the local Aboriginal word for the Cypress Pine, Jinchilla. Local legend says that when the application for land was made in 1846 by the first white settler, Matthew Goggs, the Sydney Registrations Office changed the name from Jinchilla to Chinchilla.

However, Chinchilla was surveyed and established in 1877. Its main industries were agriculture, timber and dairy. Today the main industry is agriculture, and Chinchilla is famous for its melons (which are delicious) – the town supplies approximately 25% of Australia’s melons.

In the 1890s, the prickly pear pandemic arrived in Chinchilla and everything they tried to remove the pear failed. In 1925 the government introduced Cactoblastis cactorum, a moth from South America. It lays its eggs on the plant and when the larva hatches it eats its way through the plant, eventually killing it – it was so effective that it brought the pandemic under control after just one year. The Boonarga Cactoblastis Hall was built, and is the only building in the southern hemisphere to honour an insect.

By car
Chinchilla is an easy 300 km (a four-hour drive) from Brisbane, straight along the Warrego Highway, and two hours from Toowoomba.

By bus
The bus stop is on the Warrego Highway, a short walk across the railway bridge to Heeney St (the main street of Chinchilla).

Greyhound Australia has 2-3 daily bus services between Brisbane and Mount Isa via Longreach and Charleville, and 3 buses a week between Toowoomba and Rockhampton, along the Dawson Highway.

By train
A train comes through Chinchilla twice a week, on its way between Brisbane and Charleville. The train stop is on Chinchilla St, a quick walk across the railway bridge from the main street of Chinchilla.

By plane
Chinchilla has an air strip, and a modern airport terminal, but it is only used by charter planes, crop sprayers, business or private users, and other services such as the Royal Flying Doctor.

Get around
There is no public transport in Chinchilla. There are one or two taxis operating within the town. Most of the attractions in Chinchilla are easily accessible by foot. However, if you want to see the Barakula Forestry, fossick for petrified wood, or visit any of the smaller towns nearby, it is recommended that you bring your own car, or hire one (Budget, Avis and Thrifty all operate in the town).

The Chinchilla Visitor Information Centre can provide you with various maps of the region, town, and surrounding areas.

Buy
The local speciality is, of course, melons. When they are in season, there are various carts which sell watermelons by the side of any number of roads around Chinchilla. Souvenirs and local arts and handicrafts can be bought at the Visitor Information Centre – from local honey, jams and chutneys to paintings and dolls.

The Visitor Information Centre also hosts markets on the 3rd Sunday of every month.

Eat
There are plenty of bakeries and cafes in Chinchilla, most located on Heeney St, although some are in the complex on Middle St. There are also various eateries in some of the fuel stations on the Warrego Highway.



Tourist and caravan parks

 * Free caravan and motor home accommodation is available for two nights at Chinchilla Weir. There are powered and non-powered sites, covered areas, toilets and barbeque facilities available (but no showers).

Connect

 * Free internet may also be available at the Library on Heeney St.
 * The Post Office is on Heeney St, cnr Bell St.
 * The Post Office is on Heeney St, cnr Bell St.

Cope
There is a coin laundry on the corner of Villiers St and Wambo St, opposite the Cypress Pines Caravan Park.

Fuel stations

 * BP, Warrego Hwy (entering Chinchilla from Dalby)
 * Caltex, Warrego Hwy (exiting Chinchilla towards Miles)
 * Chinchilla Roadhouse, Warrego Hwy (opposite the railway bridge)
 * Freedom Fuels, Chinchilla-Tara Rd

Caravan and motor home facilities
Park St has a sewage dumping facility.

Potable water is available at the Visitor Information Centre.

Parking for large vehicles is available at the Visitor Information Centre, or for somewhere more central, on the corner of Middle St & Heeney St. You can't park there overnight, though.

Gas is available from the BP fuel station on the Warrego Hwy.

Go next

 * The Bunya Mountains National Park is a beautiful day trip or next stop, although the winding road up the mountain really isn’t suitable for caravans. Camping and bushwalking are spectacular here.
 * Jimbour is both a small town and an estate, about an hour away. The house is heritage-listed, and was built in 1876. Although it is still a private residence, you are welcome to wander through their beautiful gardens or take their "Living History Walk".