Outback pub known for naughty emus hits the market

Gerry Gimblett says it has been a privilege to serve behind the bar at the Yaraka Hotel. (ABC Rural: Crispian Yeomans) A pub known for emus and scenic tours is being sold by the owner, a year after her husband died in a car accident. The Yaraka Hotel is nestled between the red-top ranges of central west Queensland, more than 1,000km from Brisbane. Publican Gerry Gimblett says she is looking for the right person to take over the pub. Link copiedShareShare articleWhen Gerry Gimblett finished her term as a school principal in the heart of Queensland, she never thought she would end up back in town as the publican. For 14 years, she and her husband kept the doors of the Yaraka Hotel open, after a chance phone call from the previous owners inspired them to buy the pub. "It was like jumping off a cliff," Ms Gimblett said, laughing. The town of Yaraka is home to about 20 people. (Supplied: Shel Turley ) Nestled in a sheep district on the "outer Barcoo", Yaraka's only pub captured global attention when it served a naughty mob of feathered customers a lifetime ban. In 2020, the hotel was forced to barricade its entrance to keep Kevin and Carol, the emus, out after they developed a taste for tap beer and began targeting tourists. The owner of the Yaraka Hotel says he doesn't really want the birds' patronage, because "when they get in, they behave a bit badly." But last year, everything changed when Chris Gimblett died in a car crash that Ms Gimblett survived. Ms Gimblett said owning the pub had been an unexpected and deeply rewarding experience, but one she had always shared alongside her husband. Chris and Gerry Gimblett with their son, Nick. (Australian Story: Brigid Donovan) A year on from losing him, she said the time had come to sell. "The ownership of the hotel was something that Chris and I did together, and it was very much a lifestyle option for us," she said. The Yaraka Hotel was built in the early 20th century. (ABC Rural: Crispian Yeomans ) Ms Gimblett said mourning her husband had been difficult because she did not experience the cycle of grief she expected. "He hit his head very, very hard and died immediately," she said. "I was in rehab in Brisbane and thought to myself, 'Girl, you haven't really grieved.' Standing on the balcony of the Yaraka Hotel as the sun melted behind the Messa Hills and ranges, she said she could feel her husband watching over her, "from the balcony of Heaven". Gerry Gimblett says she feels her husband with her. (ABC Rural: Crispian Yeomans) The hotel is more than 100 years old, built when the town of Yaraka took shape in 1917 with the arrival of a railway. Yaraka became the "end of the line" in western Queensland, but the station closed in 2005. Yaraka is about two hours from Longreach. (ABC Western Qld: Craig Fitzsimmons) For more than a century, the small pub has been the meeting place for locals who would go to town to collect supplies and mail from the train twice a week. The pub has also attracted the likes of country music singers Graham Rodger and Lee Kernaghan, as well as travellers from across the country pulling up for the night. Beyond the bar, the Gimbletts would invite patrons to climb on board a bus to watch the sunset from atop the red-top ranges on the outskirts of town. Ms Gimblett said the trip was a "pay-what-you-like" activity that kept tourists in the town longer and fundraised for the Royal Flying Doctor Service. Yaraka is near the popular tourist destination of Mount Slowcombe. (Supplied: Yaraka Hotel) A fireplace the couple installed when they first bought the hotel was another way they extended hospitality to local graziers and caravaners passing through. Yaraka grazier Susan Glasson, who has lived in the area for 64 years, said she hoped the pub would continue as the "meeting place" of the town. "We've had some longstanding great publicans at the hotel, and Chris and Gerry had been there for 14 years," Ms Glasson said. "They've been very passionate and hospitable, and they've kept it going under some extreme circumstances." Gerry Gimblett has run the Yaraka Hotel for 14 years. (Supplied: Yaraka Hotel) Ms Gimblett said she wanted to sell to someone who understood the important role the pub played in the community, for local graziers and tourists alike. "I don't want somebody to buy it as an investment because it's not that sort of business," she said, adding that owning the pub had been a "privilege". "It's a very, very special community and that's why I'm choosing to stay to live here because I really want to remain part of it." Copy linkFacebookX (formerly Twitter)PromotionTop StoriesTop-earning Australians make money very differently from typical workersTopic:Budget

Outback pub known for naughty emus hits the market

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