Discover Brooloo

Brooloo offers the Mary Valley Rail Trail, a recreational route that partly follows the former Mary Valley Railway. The trail leads into town. The Brooloo Bellbird Habitat is near the community. Nature watching, landscapes and arts and crafts are among the themes of a stay. If you’re looking for a holiday rental, consider whether outdoor activity, birdwatching or local community life should shape your stay.

Mary Valley Rail Trail: railway line and recreational trail

The trail runs from Imbil to Brooloo and partly follows the former Mary Valley Railway. In earlier years, Brooloo was the railway’s terminus; today, the section between Brooloo and Imbil is a shared recreational trail. The historic rail connection and its current recreational use offer two different perspectives on the same route.

The 4.7-kilometre section between the towns is open to walkers, cyclists, wheelchair users and horse riders; the trail is also considered suitable for mountain bikers. As a shared, unsealed road, it has water crossings. There is an access point in Brooloo on Sutton Street. Check current trail and access conditions before setting out.

A picnic shelter and a table setting were installed on the trail in Brooloo in December 2021. They provide trail users with a place to rest and meet before setting out; check the facility’s condition before visiting.

Landscape and birdlife along the trail

The old railway corridor passes through hilly terrain, although the trail as a whole is relatively flat. It runs through open, grassy woodland, hoop pine plantations, rainforest and farmland. The contrast between the hilly terrain and the trail’s relatively flat overall course describes two scales of the same route: the surrounding landscape is undulating, while the trail as a whole is relatively flat.

A bellbird colony lives year-round in the middle section of the trail. About 160 bird species have been recorded along the Mary Valley Rail Trail to date. The colony is in a particular section, while the approximate species count applies to the trail as a whole.

Nature experiences near Brooloo

The Brooloo Bellbird Habitat, officially known as the George Burtenshaw Feature Protection Area Bellbird Habitat, is near the community of Brooloo. Visitors can picnic there and hear the call of the Bell Miner. At the small creek in the habitat, birds can be watched bathing in the late afternoon. Nearby Imbil Forestry is considered a cool forest for drives, walks and horse rides.

Arts and crafts and choosing where to stay

Brooloo Arts & Crafts welcomes people from Brooloo and the surrounding area who are interested in art or craft. If you’d like to take part, check in advance on the current participation options.

For planning your day, the Rail Trail and the Bellbird Habitat offer quite different experiences: the trail is a 4.7-kilometre route, while birdwatching at the small creek in the habitat is specifically associated with the late afternoon. This comparison may help you tailor your holiday rental search to the kind of stay you want.

Discover more destinations: Butchers Creek, Kenilworth, Ravenshoe, Varsity Lakes, Amamoor, Bloomfield, Cannonvale, Annerley

For the broader travel overview: Queensland.