Palmerville Station 1873

Palmerville Station established 1873, is approximately 331,000 acre (134,000 hectare), 1340 square kilometres (517 square miles) cattle station located in lower Cape York within the established beef cattle breeding area of North Queensland.

Neighbouring and nearby properties include the recently transacted Bellevue and Nychum Stations and Spring Hill Station. Adjoining and nearby properties include Karma Waters, CPC owned and operated Wrotham Park, Mount Mulgrave Station, Fairlight and Fairview Stations and Maitland Downs Station.

 

Access and location

Access to Palmerville is available from Mareeba via 142km of the Burke Development Road to Wrotham Park and then along the Council maintained 80km Palmerville Road. This access is suitable for trucking of cattle including doubles and triples; however access can be cut off during the wet season.

Access to the north is also available via Fairlight along 35km Palmerville Road, (maintained dirt road), 64km of gravel formed and bitumen road to Laura and the sealed Peninsula Development Road.

Access to the east is available via the Whites Creek Road turnoff and 45km (Council maintained) Maytown gravel road off the Mulligan Highway near the Palmer River and provides access to Port Douglas tourist area in 2 hours 45 minutes from the Cannibal Creek Camp Grounds and Palmerville Tourism precinct.

 

Property Description and features

Property Address - Palmerville Station, Palmer, QLD 4892

 

Real Property Description

Rolling Term Lease: L14 on SP250040

Tenure Reference: PH 14/5422

Title Reference: 17666154

 

Total Area

 134,000Ha (approximately)

 

Local Government

Cook Shire Council (Majority) Mareeba Shire (Partly)

 

Zone

Rural

 

Traditional Owners

Western Yalanji

 

 Property Description and features

The property features a mix of perfectly watered valleys between undulating ridge country comprising broken ranges associated with the Great Dividing Range through the northern section and The mineral rich Palmer Fault Line Mountain range, intersected by numerous permanent creeks extending to the south across plains with the main feature being the 70km double frontage to the Palmer River.

Two Rivers, the Palmer River featuring a 70km double frontage and the North Palmer River featuring double frontage flow through the property eventually flowing into the Gulf, putting Palmerville Station outside of the Great Barrier Reef catchment area associated impacts.

 

Cattle Breeding Operations

The property has been reported as previously carrying up to 6000 head on an adult beast equivalent basis. (An adult beast equivalent is defined as a 450-kilogram non-lactating beast).

No management of the livestock had been carried out for nearly 10 years prior to the station purchase and renewal program commenced in 2019.

Over 4,000 clean skin and branded beasts have been mustered on the property to date and 35% of the property still to be mustered.

Approximately 1,500 grey Brahman heifers were introduced to the station and have been progressively breeding up. Heard progeny have benefited from genetics from industry leaders Yenda Brahmans, and bulls from Raglan Brahmans from central Queensland.

With over 2,500 breeder units and 600 heifers and more claves from the 2022 season, older cows are being replaced each year with younger superior females.

The capital works program is designed to cater for 5,000 to 6,000 breeder units plus progeny on the property.

 

Water on Palmerville

The "River of Gold" is the name history gives the Palmer River, however, it is the water resource that is now gold. Palmerville Station has an extensive network of historical mining dams, some with over 1 gigalitres of impoundment are spread across the property, along with a multitude of fresh water springs flowing from mountains and natural spring pools and complimented with the occasional solar powered bore and tanks and troughs (bore depth average 35 metres), providing a extra level of water security.

An estimated 20 gigalitres of impoundment in dams across the station, with multiple dams approved for irrigation purposes.

The planned Palmer River dam for the Lakelands Irrigation Scheme, providing irrigation to the safe from cyclone northern banana market at Lakelands, is located 20km upstream from the eastern boundary of the property.

Permanent water allocations in this irrigation scheme are likely to achieve similar values to the Mareeba / Dimbulah water scheme that is located south of the station.

 The average annual rainfall recorded in Palmerville is stated at 1,033.2mm* (Bureau of Meteorology March 2018 – March 2019 annual total).

The spring fed permanent Limestone Creek (pictured above) meanders through 27km of fenced paddocks providing flowing water year round.

 

 

Fencing and Paddocks

An extensive capital works program has been carried out with 51,000 acres fenced and divided into 10 paddocks. Each paddock is designed to provide permanent water at 2.5 to 3km intervals with many paddocks with significant oversupply of water. A further works program has been designed linking the paddocks via laneways.

Further plans include enclosing a further 48,000 acres adjoining the 51,000 acre existing paddocks, with cliff faces enclosing the north, existing fencing securing the west, fencing securing the south and a 15km fence required to enclose the east of the paddock.

These yards and water points are planned using FarmMap4D satelite mapping platform and access can be provided to the platform and maps.

The fenced paddocks are being progressively aerial seeded with seca-stylo and a northern mix.

 

Diversification of Income Streams

Income is generated through a cattle breeding operation, eco tourism, carbon farming by way of a savanna burning ACCU program, mining compensation agreements, water supply contracts, gold fossicking income as well as substantial income from wet hiring plant and equipment and accommodation and food services to publicly listed mining companies carrying out exploration and drilling activities.