The Barwon Highway is one of the more obscure state highway

Highway

A highway is any public road. In American English, the term is common and almost always designates major roads. In British English, the term designates any road open to the public. Any interconnected set of highways can be variously referred to as a "highway system", a "highway network", or a...

s of Queensland

Queensland

Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...

. It joins the Leichhardt Highway

Leichhardt Highway

The Leichhardt Highway is a major transport route in Queensland, Australia. It is a continuation northward from Goondiwindi of the Newell Highway....

 a few kilometres north of Goondiwindi

Goondiwindi, Queensland

Goondiwindi is an Australian town of approximately 5,629 people. The town has an annual population growth of 1.4 percent. The name Goondiwindi derives from an Aboriginal word meaning "the resting place of the birds".-History:...

 and travels west for a couple of hundred kilometres until it reaches the Carnarvon Highway

Carnarvon Highway

The Carnarvon Highway is a state highway of Queensland, linking Moree south of the NSW/QLD border, via the town of St George, eventually to the township of Rolleston. North of Roma it is known as the Carnarvon Developmental Road. National Route 46 runs from Moree to St George...

 at Nindigully

Nindigully

Nindigully is a locality in south west Queensland, Australia. The locality is in the Shire of Balonne local government area and on the Moonie River, south-west of the state capital, Brisbane....

, 44 kilometres south of St George

St George, Queensland

St George is a town of approximately 2400 people in south-western Queensland, Australia. It is the administrative centre for the Shire of Balonne. It was named by Major Thomas Mitchell who crossed the Balonne River on St George's Day, 23 April 1846. At the 2006 census, St George had a population of...

, and then terminates. Route 85 continues north-east of Goondiwindi as National Highway 85's Gore Highway

Gore Highway

Gore Highway is a highway in Queensland running from Goondiwindi to Toowoomba. Together with Goulburn Valley Highway and Newell Highway, it is a part of the National Highway's Melbourne-Brisbane link. It is signed as ....

.

It was named after the Barwon River

Barwon River (New South Wales)

The Barwon River flows through New South Wales, virtually as a continuation of the Macintyre River / Border Rivers system, before joining with the Culgoa River to form the Darling River...

, which travels in the same general direction as the highway, but further south, where it forms part of the border between Queensland and New South Wales.

This highway is part of State Route 85, which extends for over 570 kilometres (354 mi) from Bribie Island to Nindigully, duplexing with the Brisbane Valley Highway

Brisbane Valley Highway

The Brisbane Valley Highway is a state highway in Queensland. It leaves the Warrego Highway near Ipswich and travels in a northwesterly direction, following the Brisbane River until it reaches the D'Aguilar Highway about south-east of Moore, where it ends...

 (National Route 17) from the D'Aguilar Highway

D'Aguilar Highway

The D'Aguilar Highway is a two-lane highway linking the Bruce Highway near Caboolture with Kingaroy in the state of Queensland, Australia. Major towns along the route include Woodford, Kilcoy, Yarraman, Nanango and Kingaroy...

 to Esk

Esk, Queensland

Esk is a town in the West Moreton region of South East Queensland, approximately 90 km northwest of Ipswich on the Brisbane Valley Highway. It was named after the River Esk in Scotland and England. It is the administrative centre of the Somerset Region...

, the New England Highway

New England Highway

The New England Highway is a highway in Australia running from Hexham near Newcastle at its southern end to Yarraman near Toowoomba at its northern end. At its southern end it connects to the Pacific Highway and at its northern end it connects to the D'Aguilar Highway. It traverses the Hunter...

 (State Route A3) from Hampton

Hampton, Queensland

Hampton is a town located in the Darling Downs region of Queensland, Australia. The town is located west of the state capital, Brisbane At the 2006 census, Hampton and the surrounding area had a population of 477...

 to Toowoomba, the Gore Highway

Gore Highway

Gore Highway is a highway in Queensland running from Goondiwindi to Toowoomba. Together with Goulburn Valley Highway and Newell Highway, it is a part of the National Highway's Melbourne-Brisbane link. It is signed as ....

 (National Route A39 - formerly 85) from Toowoomba to the Leichhardt Highway

Leichhardt Highway

The Leichhardt Highway is a major transport route in Queensland, Australia. It is a continuation northward from Goondiwindi of the Newell Highway....

, and the southern 19 kilometres (12 mi) section of the Leichhardt Highway (also National Route A39) to Goondiwindi.

Stock route

Like many Australian roads, the Barwon Highway follows a declared stock route

Stock route

In Australia, the Travelling Stock Route is an authorised thoroughfare for the walking of domestic livestock such as sheep or cattle from one location to another...

. The road reserve for most stock routes is wider than for other roads (up to 1600 metres) When seen from the air (or in the Satellite view of Google maps) the substantial width of the western end (from Nindigully to Talwood) can be clearly seen due to the difference in colour between roadside brigalow scrub and adjacent cropland.

See also

• Highways in Australia
  Highways in Australia
  This is a list of highways in Australia, listed alphabetically along with each highway's route number and location. Note that some highways service more than one state or territory.-Route numbering systems:...
  
  
• List of highways in Queensland
• Brigalow Belt