Ravenshoe has Archer Creek Rest Area 16km to the west, with a beautiful creek along it.
Archer Creek Rest Area is 16 kilometres west of Ravenshoe. If you are heading west, this is a good place to stock up. This is probably the last large supermarket, hardware (Mitre 10 in town), and really good quality fruit and vegetable store you will see for some time. You may also have to rug up in winter, as this is the highest elevated town in Queensland, along with the highest pub and railway station. It also has the Millstream Falls, the widest waterfall in Australia. It is worth exploring the area as there is heaps to see.
The Archer Creek Rest Area, Ravenshoe is fine for all types of campers. It sits at the bottom of a long hill and is right next to the highway, making for traffic noise. The trucks roar through here at night, so it is best if you can find a spot on the creek side, rather than near the road.
The creek is beautiful and great swimming. This is the place to hang out with the other travellers until afternoon gatherings. The toilets are up one end and are ok. The fire pits on site are a nice touch.
We had a lovely time at Ravenshoe, meeting some very friendly people. The dogs enjoyed swimming in the creek with their new friends. If you sit around on the rocks for a while, it is amazing the amount of colourful critters that are flying, slithering and crawling about. The kids that were playing here had a ball. There was no getting them out, which was fine by the parents as this spot is as safe as much as it is fun.
Locals drop in cool down on a hot day and laze about the creek edge, sharing their knowledge of the area. Laid back is the speed here, just the way I like it.