Mareeba is the dry side of Far North Queensland. The town of about eleven thousand lies on the Atherton Tablelands, a plateau behind Cairns, but it sits in the rain shadow, and so the lush rainforest of the coast gives way to open eucalypt woodland, grassland and cattle country. The change is dramatic when you ride up the Kuranda Range from the coast: in an hour you go from wet tropical forest to red earth and dry savannah. The country here was long a tobacco-growing district, and the old kilns are still visible in places, but today the crops are coffee, mangoes, sugar cane and tropical fruits.
The town has a strong frontier flavour. It hosts a rodeo every July, one of the best known in the north, and its main street has a mix of pubs, cafes, a heritage museum and rural supply stores. Coffee is a local pride, and a number of plantations around town offer tastings, which make a good excuse for a stop. The Mareeba Wetlands, a few kilometres outside the town, are a conservation area where jabirus, brolgas and other birds gather in the dry season. Visitors can walk or take a boat on the lagoon.
For a rider, the roads around Mareeba are wide, smooth and fast, with long curves through bushland and rolling hills in the distance. The Kuranda Range Road from Cairns is a winding, forested ascent, and is busy with trucks, but the Tablelands loop is calmer, with plenty of overtaking opportunities, though you should keep to the speed limits. Heat is the main enemy. In the summer wet season, from December to March, storms and humidity dominate, and the roads can flood, while in the dry season, from May to October, the days are warm and the nights cool.
Mareeba has everything: fuel stations, supermarkets, motels and a good selection of cafes. If you are riding the Tablelands loop, it is the sensible place to fill up and eat before heading into the quieter parts. Kangaroos and wallabies are active at dusk and dawn, and they are a real danger, so avoid riding late in the evening. Carry water, and wear a vented jacket, since the air can be fierce.