Follow pre-historic footsteps

Over 100 million years ago, the interior of Queensland was not grazed by cattle and sheep like it is today, but herds of dinosaurs. Take Winton for instance - it’s the palaeontology capital of the Outback, home to the Australian Age of Dinosaurs Museum of Natural History, and the world’s largest collection of Australian dinosaur fossils. 

Follow the dinosaur trail north or south, leading to evidence that the now dry Mitchell grass plains of the Outback was once an inland sea, and underwater dinosaurs reigned supreme.

In the north-western town of Richmond, you’ll find Australia’s premier collection of marine fossils, frozen in time, 110 million years ago. 

The nearby Porcupine Gorge National Park makes Hughenden’s history look young, with 500-million-year-old fossils etched into its gorge walls.  

Further south on the paleo trail you’ll find Eromanga, a town which plays host to Australia’s largest dinosaur, a 95-98-million-year-old Titanosaur called ‘Cooper’. 

You can visit the museum or have your own palaeontology experience digging and dusting off dinosaur bones in a lab or onsite of a real dinosaur dig. 

Travel further north to Riversleigh's ancient landscape, part of the Australian Fossil Mammal Sites World Heritage Area, and one of the top 10 fossil sites in the world.

How often do you get to say you’ve been part of unearthing history? Our guess? Not many, until your visit to Outback Queensland.