I do love a sunburnt country. Those are the words on my lips as Mount Mulligan comes into view, red and dusty on the horizon. You might have just said ‘I do’ but be prepared to say it again when you’re honeymooning at Mt. Mulligan Lodge. Here’s “Rural Romance: How To Honeymoon In The Outback” for The Country Issue.

Image: Wilson Archer

Not even thirty minutes ago we jumped into a helicopter in Cairns, the vast blue of the Great Barrier Reef at our backs, the lush rainforest and rolling hills of the Atherton Tablelands ahead. In minutes we’ve left the neat rows of apple trees behind, replaced by endless bushland polka dotted with scrub. Mount Mulligan is a ridge along the horizon in Djungan country, almost ten times the size of Uluru and carpeted in eucalyptus trees. Soon we spot the namesake lodge at its base. From above, Mt. Mulligan Lodge is a cluster of buildings around a billabong, a tiny blip on a 66,000-acre cattle station. On the ground, we leave the helipad by golf cart, and in less than a minute we’re sipping bubbles under the exposed beams of a lodge that’s the stuff outback dreams are made of.

Image: Lisa Perkovic

Image: Lee Besser

One of the Luxury Lodges of Australia, Mt. Mulligan Lodge has all the key ingredients a honeymoon can offer. Intimate and remote, there are just 20 guests in pavilions or glamping tents. All-inclusive, with fully stocked mini bars in your room and large fridges in the lodge, you can sip a Margaret River rosé or a Tasmanian sparkling as it pleases. Fine dining where local produce shines, but the setting is laid back enough for hiking boots or flip flops under the table. And a eucalypt tree-ringed infinity pool at the heart of it all that has double day beds calling my name.

But beyond the buildings, it’s the bush that truly steals the show. Clever design means you’re surrounded by bush wherever you go, it’s at arm’s reach ready for you to experience on your own terms. The infinity pool looks straight out at the weir, a manmade billabong home to water birds, turtles, barramundi, and more lily pads than you can count. You can be paddling on a kayak in under 30 seconds or you can settle on a day bed with a good book. Fishing rods are at the ready if it looks like the fish are hungry, but the chefs are on hand if you haven’t caught lunch. They keep us well-fed, with drinks and meals included.

Image: Lisa Perkovic

Image: Elise Hassey

Image: Lee Besser

Image: Wilson Archer

The bush is your playground and the Lodge team is keen to get you acquainted with it. We take ATVs down dry river beds, washing off the dust in water holes before refueling with scones and gin and tonics on the sand bank. We spend one morning in a fleet of ATVs touring the abandoned mining town that’s steeped in history and heartbreak, but also offering a glimpse into life out in the bush back in the day. You could rise before the sun and work up an appetite for breakfast on a sunrise hike, or go stargazing before bed. We compromise and do a little bit of everything.

Images: The Rambler Co.

Images: Lisa Perkovic

An early morning starts out on the weir rewarding us with wallabies and their joeys along the banks, a chorus of birds hooting, chortling, and chattering away and the buzzing of bees on the waterlilies that seems to reverberate across the water. Breakfast is a decadent refuel, with fluffy hotcakes, mango and coconut smoothies, hearty shakshuka eggs, and coffee. Soon we’re in the pool, nipping up to the lodge for freshly baked ANZAC biscuits in between swims. Each day there’s always time for a soak on the balcony of our Outback Room, where a deep corrugated iron tub is hands down the best way to wind down towards the evening.

Images: The Rambler Co.

Images (L-R): The Rambler Co. / Elise Hassey

Image: Jason Ierace

You can stay in the tub for sunset, or head over to the firepit for sundowners, but for honeymooners, the private trip to Myra-Myra Ridge Lookout is a sunset to remember. Starting with a soak in a waterhole, lovebirds are taken up to the ridge where a hammock and picnic blankets mean you can watch the sun sink in style. Add French champagne and canapes, and you might never want to leave.

Images: The Rambler Co.

Images (L): Elise Hassey

But dinner awaits. We drink South Australian shiraz with wild mushroom truffle tortellini and lamb fillet ratatouille as the stars start to come out. Dessert is a deconstructed delight of coconut, passionfruit, and white chocolate.

Image: Jason Ierace

Walking back to our room, with Mount Mulligan watching over us, we tip our heads back to the stars and vow this won’t be our last visit to this special place.

Lisa was a guest of Luxury Lodges of Australia and Mt. Mulligan Lodge.

About Lisa Perkovic: Lisa has spent the past decade travelling the world writing for Australia’s leading newspapers, magazines, and blogs about all things travel. Her own honeymoon was her pièce de résistance – an epic journey to the Maldives and South Africa. Now she loves nothing more than sharing destinations and tips to help other newlyweds work out how to have the honeymoon of their dreams.