Cunninghams Gap | |
---|---|
Cappoong [1] | |
Elevation | 787 metres |
Traversed by | Allan Cunningham |
Location | Tarome, South East Queensland, Queensland |
Range | Main Range |
Cunninghams Gap is a pass over the Great Dividing Range between the Darling Downs and the Fassifern Valley in Queensland, Australia. The Gap is the major route over the Main Range along the Great Dividing Range, between Warwick and Brisbane. The Cunningham Highway was built to provide road transport between the two regions.
It is situated in Main Range National Park, between the peaks of Mount Cordeaux and Mount Mitchell. On a clear day the pass forms a distinct break in Main Range's profile as seen from Brisbane. It is located in Tregony in the Southern Downs Region immediately beside the boundary to Tarome in the Scenic Rim Region local government area.
The highway itself is a scenic drive although steep with an 8-degree grade on the descent.
The Indigenous name for the location is Cappoong, though the meaning is unknown. [1] The local Indigenous people have a legend about the creation of the gap. In the dreamtime, the Yuggera people rounded up all the kangaroos in the area and fenced them into the valley west of Minto Crags (Whinpullin) to prevent other tribes from catching them. However, an old woman set them free. As they stampeded across the Great Dividing Range they tore a gap between Mount Mitchell (Coonyin-nirra) and Mount Cordeaux (Niamboyoo). [2]
In 1827, Allan Cunningham set out from the upper Hunter River, to explore west of the Dividing Range, exploring the Darling Downs; returning in 1828 from Brisbane to explore Cunninghams Gap. [3] He was aware of the economic benefits that a link between the coast and pastoral lands to the west would provide. [4] Cunningham travelled on the right hand side of the Gap whereas the highway today runs on the lefthand side from Aratula.
On 3 July 1909, Cunninghams Gap was declared a national park. [5] This new park, which originally consisted of 3,100 acres, was located on the western side of the range and included Gap Creek. [6] Walking tracks were constructed in the 1930s and 1950s. [5]
On 11 June 1927, the 100-year anniversary of Allan Cunningham's exploration of the Darling Downs, the new road through Cunningham's Gap was officially opened by the local Member of Parliament, Sir Littleton Groom. [7] Although the road, which was built entirely by volunteers, was officially open, travelling along this new route was inadvisable, especially on the portion west of Aratula. [7] The road was plagued by problems during this early embryonic stage with the Royal Automobile Club of Queensland announcing that the road was closed, less than one month after it was officially opened. [8] The new sealed road through the gap was eventually opened in November 1949. [9]
Cunninghams Gap is part of the Cunningham Highway, a federally funded highway managed by the Queensland Department of Transport and Main Roads. [10] Between December 2010 and March 2011, the Gap experienced over two metres of rainfall and it sustained an enormous amount of damage. [10] The cost of repairing this seven kilometre stretch of road is projected to be $40 million. [10] [11] Work is being undertaken by the Department of Transport and Main Roads in partnership with engineering firm Coffey. [11]
The Great Dividing Range, also known as the East Australian Cordillera or the Eastern Highlands, is a cordillera system in eastern Australia consisting of an expansive collection of mountain ranges, plateaus and rolling hills, that runs roughly parallel to the east coast of Australia and forms the fifth-longest land-based mountain chain in the world, and the longest entirely within a single country. It is mainland Australia's most substantial topographic feature and serves as the definitive watershed for the river systems in eastern Australia, hence the name.
The Main Range is a mountain range and national park in Queensland, Australia, located predominantly in Tregony, Southern Downs Region, 85 kilometres (53 mi) southwest of Brisbane. It is part of the World Heritage Site Gondwana Rainforests of Australia. It protects the western part of a semicircle of mountains in South East Queensland known as the Scenic Rim. This includes the largest area of rainforest in South East Queensland. The park is part of the Scenic Rim Important Bird Area, identified as such by BirdLife International because of its importance in the conservation of several species of threatened birds.
Mount Lindesay Highway is an Australian national highway located in Queensland. The highway runs southwest from Brisbane, where it leaves Ipswich Road in the suburb of Moorooka, to the Queensland – New South Wales border and is 116 kilometres (72 mi) in length. For most of its length it is roughly aligned with the Sydney–Brisbane rail corridor. At its southern end these transport routes take different passes over the Scenic Rim into the Northern Rivers region. It is designated National Route 13.
The McPherson Range is an extensive mountain range, a spur of the Great Dividing Range, heading in an easterly direction from near Wallangarra to the Pacific Ocean coastline. It forms part of the Scenic Rim on the border between the states of New South Wales and Queensland. Further west of the McPherson Range is the Main Range. Towards the coast the range continues into the Border Ranges and other mountainous terrain formed by the Tweed Volcano.
The Darling Downs is a farming region on the western slopes of the Great Dividing Range in southern Queensland, Australia. The Downs are to the west of South East Queensland and are one of the major regions of Queensland. The name was generally applied to an area approximating to that of the Condamine River catchment upstream of Condamine township but is now applied to a wider region comprising the Southern Downs, Western Downs, Toowoomba and Goondiwindi local authority areas. The name Darling Downs was given in 1827 by Allan Cunningham, the first European explorer to reach the area and recognises the then Governor of New South Wales, Ralph Darling.
Spicers Peak is a mountain in Australia. It lies roughly 120 km west of Brisbane in the middle of the Main Range National Park. It is just south of Cunninghams Gap and Mount Mitchell. Its summit height is approximately 1,205 metres (3953 ft).
Mount Cordeaux is a mountain near Brisbane, Australia and rises 1,135 m. It lies to the immediate north of Cunninghams Gap in the Main Range National Park. It is known to the Aboriginal People as Niamboyoo, however, the meaning is unknown. It appears that early usage on names for the mountain varied, as a 29 September 1897 report in the Warwick Examiner and Times, refers to "the well-known Cunningham's Gap, with its twin sentinel peaks, Coonyinirra and Niamboyoo".
Mount Mitchell, is a twin-peaked volcanic mountain with an elevation above sea level of 1,168 metres (3,832 ft), located in the Main Range, is about 100 kilometres (62 mi) west of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia and immediately south of Cunninghams Gap.
Spicers Gap is a mountain pass that is located 100 kilometres (62 mi) west of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, and was the original route over the Great Dividing Range in the area around Brisbane. Today it is included in Main Range National Park and is a popular destination for campers and bushwalkers. To the south of the gap is Spicers Peak. To the west of the mountain pass is Spicers Gap State Forest. Both the state forest and national park are part of the Gondwana Rainforests of Australia.
The Spicers Gap Road Conservation Park is a protected conservation park located within the Main Range National Park in south east Queensland, Australia. The park is part of the Main Range group World Heritage Site Gondwana Rainforests of Australia inscribed in 1986 and added to the Australian National Heritage List in 2007.
The Cunningham Highway is a 327-kilometre (203 mi) national highway located in south-eastern Queensland, Australia. The highway links the Darling Downs region with the urbanised outskirts of Ipswich via Cunninghams Gap.
The Gore Highway is a highway running between Toowoomba and Goondiwindi in Queensland, Australia. Together with Goulburn Valley Highway and Newell Highway, it is a part of the National Highway's Melbourne-Brisbane link. It is signed as National Highway A39.
South East Queensland (SEQ) is a bio-geographical, metropolitan, political and administrative region of the state of Queensland in Australia, with a population of approximately 3.8 million people out of the state's population of 5.1 million. The area covered by South East Queensland varies, depending on the definition of the region, though it tends to include Queensland's three largest cities: the capital city Brisbane; the Gold Coast; and the Sunshine Coast. Its most common use is for political purposes, and covers 35,248 square kilometres (13,609 sq mi) and incorporates 11 local government areas, extending 240 kilometres (150 mi) from Noosa in the north to the Gold Coast and New South Wales border in the south, and 140 kilometres (87 mi) west to Toowoomba.
Aratula is a rural town and locality in the Scenic Rim Region, Queensland, Australia. In the 2016 census, the locality of Aratula had a population of 532 people.
Fassifern Valley is a valley of the Scenic Rim in South East Queensland. Towns found in the valley include Harrisville, Kalbar, Roadvale, Warril View and Aratula. Fassifern Valley is known as a carrot-producing area, as well as for growing potatoes, onions, pumpkins and melons. It is one of four vegetable-producing regions in southern Queensland, the others being the Lockyer Valley, the eastern Darling Downs and the Granite Belt.
Maryvale is a rural town and locality in the Southern Downs Region, Queensland, Australia. In the 2016 census, the locality of Maryvale had a population of 303 people.
William Allan (1840—1901) was a pastoralist and politician in Queensland, Australia. He was a Member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly and a Member of the Queensland Legislative Council.
Spicers Gap Road is a heritage-listed road at Spicers Gap Road Conservation Park, Tregony, Southern Downs Region, Queensland, Australia. It was built from 1859 to 1865. It is also known as Spicers Gap Road Conservation Park and Spicers Peak Road. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 23 July 1999.
Tregony is a locality in the Southern Downs Region, Queensland, Australia. It is one of the major gateways to the Darling Downs from the Queensland coast.
Morwincha is a rural locality in the Scenic Rim Region, Queensland, Australia. In the 2016 census, Morwincha had a population of 30 people.
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