Our Fords epic adventure

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Well the route for the 2010 Camp Quality esCarpade has been announced and it looks like the Booger Mobile is in for an epic adventure. So if you are in the area be sure to drop by and say hi and check out the Booger Mobile.



esCarpade 2010 - Tamworth to Warialda via the Sunshine and Fraser Coasts

The 2010 esCarpade course is a combination of the last two years with some fantastic winding roads mixed with the occasional stretch of open dirt. Exciting features this year include the possibility of a beach run (conditions permitting), the half dozen state forests we wind our way through and the crossing of the Great Dividing Range on several occasions.

And the attractions aren't just confined to inside the car. The range of meal venues and other organised activities will keep our esCarpade entrants engaged from go to whoa. School visits with the McDonalds puppets, day trips to Fraser Island or petting dolphins in Tin Can Bay are all on the agenda.

So buckle up and have a look at where we're heading this October.

Saturday 16th Day 1: Tamworth - Armidale - Inverell (411km)

After a boot scootin' start in Australia's country music capital Tamworth, esCarpade winds its way north east up over the Moonbi Range through Walcha to Armidale for lunch at the Wicklow Hotel, the New England region's oldest hotel built in 1852. The afternoon session continues north through Bundarra, over the Nandewar range before cruising into Inverell via Lake Copeton.

Sunday 17th Day 2: Inverell - Tenterfield - Warwick (436km)

We exit Inverell to the north before turning east for a stunning drive past abandoned arsenic mines and through the gold rush towns of Emmaville, Tent Hill and Torrington. After lunch at the Rail Museum in Tenterfield the long and spectacular afternoon journey follows the Rocky and Clarence Rivers north to Warwick.

Monday 18th Day 3: Warwick - Crow's Nest - Mooloolaba (455km)

After breakfast on the banks of the Condamine River in Federation Park, we depart Warwick heading north running parallel to The Great Dividing Range. We scramble over the Range at West Haldon, south east of Toowoomba before continuing north through White Mountain State Forest, over the dam wall at Lake Perseverance to yank on the handbrake for lunch at Crow's Nest. The afternoon section is a real adventure driving through state forests, rocky creek beds and climbing up over the Conondale Range before dropping into Mooloolaba on the Sunshine Coast.

Tuesday 19th Day 4: Mooloolaba - Rainbow Beach - Hervey Bay (334km)

Our departure from Mooloolaba is via Maroochydore and Woombye before diving into the Blackall Range State Forest behind Nambour. We then continue on to Tewantin where we cross the Noosa River and drive the beach 80km north to Rainbow Beach (conditions permitting). From Rainbow Beach we take spectacular state forest roads almost all the way into Maryborough and through to Hervey Bay.

Wednesday 20th Day 5: Hervey Bay (0km)

Yippee! A day off. No time to pull the car apart because the region has so much to offer. Our entrants will explore Fraser Island, see the dolphins at Tin Can Bay, check out the Big Pineapple at Nambour, Steve Irwin's Australia Zoo at Beerwah or the macadamia and ginger plantations in the area.

Thursday 21st Day 6: Hervey Bay - Goomeri - Dalby (453km)

We say farewell to Hervey Bay and the coast as the esCarpade course heads inland through state forests and down winding regional QLD dirt roads to our lunch destination, the small town of Goomeri. The afternoon track continues south with a spectacular climb up over the Great Divide's Bunya Mountains (1200m) before dropping into Dalby for our second last night.

Friday 22nd Day 7: Dalby - Inglewood - Goondiwindi (387km)

Our route from Dalby to Inglewood is quite long (253km) and adventurous. After weaving our way through Western Creek State Forest, we pass through Millmerran and follow Mosquito Creek Rd to the Cunningham Highway and Inglewood. The afternoon run into Goondiwindi is short (134km) and gentle, allowing for an easy and relaxed drive to our final overnight destination. The final 40km of the journey follows the Dumaresq River - the NSW / QLD border.

Saturday 23rd Day 8: Goondiwindi - Warialda (174km)

The half day Saturday is a new addition to esCarpade and this year takes a homeward direction for a majority of the field. After breakfast in the centre of Goondiwindi we head south, passing through Boggabilla. We then hop onto the dirt visiting Croppa Creek, Painters Bore Camp and Crooble before skirting around Bullala State Forest and forming up for a parade down the main street of Warialda. After a quick bite of lunch the esCarpade entrants will wave good bye to each other and set tracks for their own way home.

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