How North Queensland graziers are feeling coming into the new year

Temperatures are forecast to be well into the 40s in North Queensland, which is rough for those working outdoors. See how graziers are managing PLUS the forecast for the first week of the new year.

Artie Moore, 5, and Mick Fletcher cooling off in scorching conditions over the Christmas holidays at Strathfield Station near McKinlay. Picture: Heather Moore.

North Queensland graziers are playing the ‘waiting game’ by avoiding working in the heat of the day, with excessive temperatures ranging in the late 30s to mid-40s coming into the new year.

But they are satisfied with grazing conditions in the past year, with decent cattle prices and rainfall, and were optimistic with more to come with monsoonal rains in the next two months.

Bureau of Meteorology has identified weather across the North West as “excessive” this week, with temperatures forecast to be 44 degrees in Julia Creek in the next two days.

The weather was slightly cooler for grazier Anthony McMillan, from Corella Park Station, 30km west of Cloncurry, where it was forecast to be 42 degrees.

While he was used to the heat, Mr McMillan said the trouble was the peak temperatures had been continuous throughout December.

The scorching temperature at Roxborough Downs Station near Boulia.

And at his family’s station Roxborough Downs at Boulia recently, the gauge had recorded 46 degrees.

“It’s best if you’re not doing cattle work when it’s over 40, like sometimes you’ve got to, but it's best if you don’t have to,” Mr McMillan said.

“No one keeps indoors, you’re still working, but you’ve just got to make sure that everything’s got a drink, and if you have to muster cattle, you’ve just got to have a 4 o’clock start and try and get as much done by lunchtime.

Artie Moore, 5, Rupert Moore, 6, and Mick Fletcher cooling off on Christmas Day. Picture: Heather Moore.

“Because after lunch, you want to be sitting under a tree.”

Mr McMillan was looking forward to the wet season but had been heartened by a “really good start” of about 120mm in the area and buffel grass growing well to support cattle, and he said prices had increased in recent months to about $3.30 per kilo “for a good steer”.

Grazier Heather Moore, who lives at Strathfield Station 25km west of McKinlay, is also set to be facing temperatures above 40 degrees this week.

“We stay indoors in the airconditioning through the hottest part of the day, of course, and we water in the later hours of the day, trying to keep gardens alive,” she said.

On Christmas Day the family celebrating with friends from nearby stations outdoors later in the afternoon with inflatable pools and a slide for the children.

Mrs Moore said the focus in December while waiting for the monsoonal rain was to check on fences and on water supply.

“Our dams have got water in them but quite often, if things are getting dry, people have got to keep their dams checked if they’ve got cattle watering at them, because when they can go in and get bogged in their dams.

“You don’t do much stock work at this time.

“It’s just too hot.”

“And our ruling is if we don’t get rain by March we de-stock, we start to get rid of stock because you don’t know what is ahead of you for the year after March, whether you’re going to get any rain at all.”

Charters Towers is forecast to reach a top of 37 degrees on the final day of December, with possible storms for the first two days of the New Year.

On the coast, Townsville is expected to reach a maximum of 32 degrees for the last day of 2024 and the first day of 2025, with showers possible for the whole week.

Originally published as How North Queensland graziers are feeling coming into the new year