THERE'S something quite mesmerising about watching and waiting for one of Nature’s most curious oddities, the platypus.
Crouched by the water at Broken River within Eungella National Park, 85km west of Mackay, we wait, eyes glued to the greenish water reflecting the thick rainforest on either side.
Turtles bob in the water. “Sorry: not what we’re here for,” a collective thought is telepathically conveyed as eyes continue to rake the river banks and water.
Bubbles appear followed by concentric circles, and then a brown furry creature emerges. It’s a platypus.
Camera shutters click furiously and there’s a collective exhalation – as though we’d all been holding our breath in anticipation.
Over the next half hour, at two other sites along the river, we are rewarded four times. Little wonder Broken River is recognised as the world’s most reliable location to observe platypuses in the wild.
Back at the Broken River Visitor Information Centre, Oskar Krobath beams: “You are lucky. I tell visitors you are guaranteed sighting at dawn and dusk. At other times, you must be patient.”
Oskar’s tree-change to the Mackay hinterlands coincided with an upgrade ofEungellaNational Park’s facilities four years ago.
A professional cook fromAustria who had spent the previous 15 years as Queensland Parliament’s resident chef in Brisbane, Oskar took on the lease for both the information centre and cafe, establishing Platypus Lodge Restaurant and Cafe with its alfresco rainforest and riverside dining.
“I have always loved the outdoors,” he said.
“Now I enjoy it every day. And there’s something of this place that reminds me of Austria.
“When I drive through the cane fields in the valley, I am reminded of corn fields; here on the range there are rolling hills and a few dairy farms, which are further reminders.
“Now I feel like the custodian of something very special – a curious creature in a beautiful playground.
“And the nightlife is wonderful. I much prefer the sound of paddymelons foraging to parliamentary bells ringing!”
If you go...
Eungella is about one hour’s drive west of Mackay along the sometimes very steep and windingMackay-Eungella Road.
Eungella and the rainforest can be as much as 10 degrees cooler than the coast.
