Dawes Range Tunnels, Qld

The building of the narrow gauge branch railway line from Byellee to Monto involved the construction of six tunnels, taking the railway under the Dawes Range. Built after World War I, their lengths are: No.1 – 100m, No.s 2 and 3 – 105m, No. 4 – 130m, No. 5 – 155m and No. 6 – 170m. Tunnel No. 6 still has the railway line through it, and the original ‘hogback’ sleepers in place. One tunnel is significantly curved so that it is dark upon entering but after a short distance light starts to appear from the other end, so torches are not essential but may be helpful.



The single track tunnels are a feature of the newly created Boyne Burnett Inland Rail Trail. The 26 km Dawes Range section, where the tunnels are located, offers mountain views, with an array of National Parks nearby. The Gayndah to Mundubbera section will open in the near future and will follow the Burnett River, which offers canoein. The whole closed corridor from Targoola to Gayndah is 270km long, so potentially could be Australia’s longest rail trail. Camping available along the rail trail.

Byellee to Monto Branch Line

The Byellee to Monto Branch Railway began in the Boyne Valley west of Gladstone in Queensland, Australia. However, the Boyne Valley region was predominantly a dairying region and a railway had little justification. However a branch was justified in 1906 on the basis of large traffic in timber, fuel, limestone and flexing ores. Progressively opened between 1910 and 1931 the line branched from the North Coast line at Byellee a short distance west of Gladstone and struck a south-westerly route via Many Peaks and Mungungo to Monto.

The last regular train ran in 2002, and the final train on the line was a steam special run from Monto to Maryborough in 2005. From 2012, conversion of the corridor to a multi-use rail trail was discussed, and Boyne Burnett Inland Rail Trail Inc. was formed in July 2018. The first section of trail comprising 32 kilometres from Builyan to Kalpowar was opened on 11 September 2021.


Boyne Valley Junction (Byellee). Photo: Weston Langford

The first section from Byellee (previously known as Boyne Valley Junction) to Many Peaks was opened on 25 July 1910 and sidings were established at Beecher, Burua, Talaba, Calliope River (now Calliope), Taragoola, Barmundu, Boynedale, Wietalaba, Nagoorin, Ubobo, Hellens, Littlemore and Builyan. Governor Fitzroy named Calliope after HMS Calliope which was anchored in Port Curtis (now Gladstone) harbour in 1854. The line was built to transport low grade ore from Many Peaks to Mount Morgan for processing. A train of copper flexing ore ran to Mount Morgan daily and a mixed train to Gladstone and return ran four days a week. Cream and agricultural goods provided the major source of revenue when the Many Peaks mine closed in 1918.

The next stage took the line via Golembil to Barrimoon on 17 August 1926. Although there was a sixteen-year gap in building, the route traverses steep mountainous country. A ten-kilometre (six-point-two-mile) section beyond Golembil required the construction of six tunnels totalling 730 metres (2,400 ft) to negotiate a 239-metre (784 ft) climb of the Dawes Range.


Remnants of the line at Monto

On 7 July 1930, the line was opened via Kalpowar, Dakiel, Bancroft and Crana to Mungungo (then known as "Waratah" ) only 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) from Monto. It was announced that Waratah would be the terminus, but settlers insisted that Monto must be linked with Gladstone. Kalpowar was a timber milling settlement en route to Monto.

On 6 July 1931 the line finally reached Monto via Bukali thus completing a semi circular inland link between Maryborough and Gladstone via the already completed line running north west from Mungar Junction through Biggenden, Gayndah, Mundubbera and Eidsvold. The line was suspended from use in 2002. It awaits the possibility of coal transport from the Monto region to Gladstone port.


Chowey Bridge near Biggenden, 1905. Photo: State Library, Queensland.

Mungar Junction to Monto Railway

The Byellee to Monto Branch Line is a branch of the 267 kilometre Mungar Junction to Monto railway line. Progressively opened in eleven stages between 1889 and 1928 the line branched from the North Coast line at Mungar Junction a short distance west of Maryborough and followed a westerly route towards Biggenden and Gayndah before turning north via Mundubbera and Eidsvold to Monto. It is also known as the Gayndah Monto Branch Railway.

The first section from Mungar Junction to Brooweena was opened on 29 July 1889 and sidings were established at Pilerwa, Yerra, Thinoomba, Hunter's Hut and Aramara. Originally called Teebar and later known as Clifton and then Woocoo, Brooweena (perhaps an Aboriginal word for "crab" or "crayfish") acquired that name in 1890. Brooweena has always relied heavily on the local sawmill and the railway provided ready transport of timber.


Disused railway crossing near Aramana

Opened on 1 March 1891 the second stage brought the line a short distance to Boompa and, on 13 April 1891, via Lakeside to the larger settlement of Biggenden. The fourth stage saw the line opened a short distance west of Biggenden to Degilbo (then known as Woowoonga) on 1 April 1893. A very busy railhead thrived and goods were reconsigned by wagon to the likes of Gayndah, Mundubbera and Eidsvold.

The next two stages were opened to Wetheron on 21 December 1905 and to Gayndah on 16 December 1907. The line passed through small sidings at Muan, Chowey, Didcot, Gooroolba and Byrnestown en route to Wetheron and at Mount Lawless, Dappil and Ideraway en route to Gayndah. Gayndah apparently takes its name from the local Aboriginal word for "thunder" and is at the heart of a large citrus growing area. It is Queensland's oldest provincial town and was once favoured to be the state capital.


The heritage-listed Deep Creek Railway Bridge is between the Muan and Chowey sidings, near Gasyndah. It was designed by William Pagan. Built in 1908, it was the first cast concrete bridge in Queensland.

Some six years passed before the seventh stage to Boomerang was opened on 1 November 1913 passing through Banapan, Dirnbir, Mount Debatable and Humphery. The next stage saw the opening of the line to Philpott Creek and Mundubbera on 3 February 1914. Freight transport increased as two sawmills consigned timber east and frequent shipments of cattle and pigs occurred.

The balance of the line to Monto was opened in three stages – to Ceratodus on 26 April 1924, to Mulgildie on 20 June 1927 and finally to Monto on 15 September 1928. Stops were established at Lacon, Riverleigh, O’Bil Bil, Malmoe, Grosvenor and Eidsvold en route to Ceratodus as part of stage nine. Ceratodus takes its name from the lungfish (neoceratodus forsteri) an air-breathing fish which inhabits the nearby Burnett River. The Archer brothers settled the Eidsvold region in 1848. Although of Scottish origin, they later moved to Norway. Eidsvold is named after a small Norwegian town where that country's constitution was signed. Sidings were built at Jirette, Cynthia, Abercorn, Anyarro, Kapaldo and Selene when stage ten to Mulgildie (spelt "Mulgeldie" until 1945 ) was completed. The eleventh and final stage saw the line terminate via Three Moon at Monto.

The journey from Brisbane to Monto by mixed train took some fourteen hours, and three times a week a sleeping car connected with the mail train at Mungar, taking twenty-one hours.


Mundubbera-Station

In addition to the Mungar Junction to Monto line, the Queensland government decided to construct two other lines to Monto. The first is the branch line from Byellee (near Gladstone) that travels south-west to Monto, opened between 1910 and 1931. Completion of that line thus provided a semi-circular inland link between Maryborough and Gladstone. Because light track was laid between Mungar Junction and Mundubbera, the route was never an alternative when floods or derailments blocked the North Coast line.

The other planned line to Monto from Rockhampton was commenced but never completed. A line from Rannes and Thangool (the Callide Valley Branch Railway) terminated at Lawgi when construction ceased as a result of the Great Depression.

The line no longer has a passenger service, and goods traffic is mainly timber and agricultural produce. Coal has been discovered near Monto, but will likely be railed to Gladstone if a mine is developed. The Gladstone - Monto line has been out of service since 2002 but is being maintained to preserve it for mineral transportation in the future. The railway line from Maryborough to Monto was maintained and once a week a goods train went to Monto and back carrying timber and sometimes molasses but gradually loads were being refused and eventually the trains ceased and the railway line became completely unused after the last train, a celebratory journey on an old steam train, came through from Monto to Maryborough in 2005.