Thargomindah, Queensland: Is the Burke and Wills Dig Tree the best attraction?

Thargomindah, Queensland, is an outback town with a couple of heritage museums. But it’s also the closest settlement to the Burke and Wills Dig Tree.

Thargomindah, Queensland, is frankly in the middle of nowhere. If you want to get technical about it, Thargomindah is in the Bulloo Shire of south-western Queensland. But it’s a long, long way inland from anywhere that might feature on a standard tourist itinerary.

It is, however, pretty much the last point where outback towns give way to pure, largely inaccessible outback. The Adventure Way from Brisbane finishes here. And somehow it has not one, but two caravan parks.

Things to do in Thargomindah, Queensland: Museums

But there is a strong heritage streak running through Thargomindah. The Old Thargomindah Hospital and Thargomindah Historic House are now museums, looking at how life in the outback once was.

Thargomindah Historic House in Thargomindah, Queensland. Photo courtesy of Tourism and Events Queensland.

Otherwise, the main attractions in and around the town itself are the rivers, creeks and waterholes. They’re good for swimming and fishing when there’s water in them, which is not always the case.

Less dry is the Bulloo River Hotel Motel. This is both the main accommodation in Thargomindah and the town’s pub. It’s a classic rough-and-ready outback pub, like the Nindigully Hotel further east. Expect to see most of the locals there in the evening.

The Burke and Wills Dig Tree from Thargomindah, Queensland

Thargomindah’s main strength, however, lies in its relative proximity to two key outback sites. Furthest away is Cameron Corner, where New South Wales, Queensland and South Australia meet. Considerably closer is the Napper Merrie Station on Coopers Creek. The Nappa Merrie Station plays host to the Dig Tree. This may look like just a tree, but the Dig Tree is the symbol of an extraordinary story, and plays a special part in the Australian psyche.

The Burke and Wills story

Coopers Creek was where ill-fated adventurers Burke and Wills left their party to continue their quest north. Their aim was to cross the continent, and they almost succeeded, coming agonisingly close to reaching the coast at the Gulf of Carpentaria. They turned back, and returned to Coopers Creek 18 weeks after leaving.

Burke and Wills arrived just hours after the rest of the party had left, having finally given up on Burke and Wills returning. They buried supplies, and marked the location with the word ‘DIG’ carved into a coolabah tree.

Burke and Wills fatally failed to add to the carving when they tried to make their own way back to Adelaide. Rescue parties showed up at Cooper Creek, saw no sign of Burke and Wills having returned, and assumed they were dead. They soon were dead, dying in the outback.

Things to do in Thargomindah: Where is the Dig Tree?

The Dig Tree is around 20km south-west of Thargomindah, Queensland, down a dirt track. The tree is surrounded by a protective fence. To learn more about the Burke and Wills story, read the utterly superb book by Sarah Murgatroyd – also called the Dig Tree.

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