Western Downs Area

Chinchilla calls itself Australia's melon capital, and when the festival rolls around, it proves the point with watermelon skiing and melon bungee alongside the more usual stalls. Away from town, Lake Broadwater protects genuine bushland and some of the clearest night skies anywhere in the region, wildlife carrying on much as it always has. Miles keeps its own history intact at the Historical Village, a whole street of relocated heritage buildings gathered in one place. Out through the district, big sky and flat plains stretch further than the eye can properly follow. It's the kind of place where the sunsets really do seem to last longer.