The Kennedy Highway is a highway in northern 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...

, Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

. It runs for approximately 250 km from Smithfield

Smithfield, Queensland

Smithfield, about 15 km to the north of Cairns, Queensland, Australia that was first established in 1876, was a rival for dominance of the area to Cairns at that time...

, on the northern outskirts of Cairns, to the Gulf Development Road in the vicinity of Forty Mile Scrub

Forty Mile Scrub National Park

Forty Mile Scrub is a national park in Queensland , 1342 km northwest of Brisbane....

 and Undara Volcanic

Undara Volcanic National Park

Undara Volcanic is a national park in North Queensland, Australia and is notable for its lava tubes and gem fossicking. Minerals found there include topaz, moonstone, peridot, aquamarine, garnet, quartz and gold...

 national parks, about 40 kilometres south of Mount Garnet. South of this junction, the road continues as the Kennedy Developmental Road (State Highway 62) via Hughenden

Hughenden, Queensland

Hughenden is a town in Queensland, Australia situated on the banks of the Flinders River. It was named after Hughenden Manor, the home of former British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli. At the 2006 census, Hughenden had a population of 1,154.-History:...

 eventually to Boulia

Boulia, Queensland

Boulia is a town in Central West Queensland, Australia. It is located approximately by road south of Mount Isa, and lies on the Burke River, which was named after the explorer Robert O'Hara Burke who passed through the area with the Burke and Wills expedition in 1860. The township was gazetted in...

 nearly 1000 kilometres away; National Route 1 and the Gulf Developmental Road

Gulf Developmental Road

The Gulf Developmental Road links the Cairns and Normanton regions in northern Queensland, Australia. It is the only sealed road linking these two regions....

 head west to Normanton

Normanton, Queensland

-External links:****...

 via Georgetown

Georgetown, Queensland

Georgetown is a town on the Etheridge River in Far North Queensland, Australia. The Gulf Developmental Road passes through the town, linking Cairns - 412 km to the east - and Normanton - 301 km to the west...

.

From Smithfield, the highway climbs up into the Atherton Tableland

Atherton Tableland

The Atherton Tableland is a fertile plateau which is part of the Great Dividing Range in Queensland, Australia. It is located west to south-south-west inland from Cairns, well into the tropics, but its elevated position provides a climate suitable for dairy farming. It has an area of around...

 before heading in a general south-westerly direction to the aforementioned junction. The highway is mostly two-lanes. Major towns on, or just off, the Kennedy Highway include Smithfield

Smithfield, Queensland

Smithfield, about 15 km to the north of Cairns, Queensland, Australia that was first established in 1876, was a rival for dominance of the area to Cairns at that time...

, Kuranda

Kuranda, Queensland

Kuranda is a town on the Atherton Tableland in Far North Queensland, Australia, it is 25 kilometres from Cairns, via the Kuranda Range road. It is surrounded by rainforest. At the 2006 census, Kuranda had a population of 1,611.-History:...

, Mareeba

Mareeba, Queensland

Mareeba is a town on the Atherton Tableland in Far North Queensland, Australia. The town is above sea level on the confluence of the Barron River, Granite Creek and Emerald Creek. The town's name is derived from an Aboriginal word meaning meeting of the waters...

, Atherton

Atherton, Queensland

Atherton is a town on the Atherton Tablelands of Far North Queensland, Australia. At the 2006 census, Atherton had a population of 7,068.-Roads:...

, Ravenshoe

Ravenshoe, Queensland

Ravenshoe is a town on the Atherton Tableland in Far North Queensland, Australia. It is located south west of the regional centre, Cairns. At the 2006 census, Ravenshoe had a population of 910....

 and Mount Garnet. Past Mount Garnet, the Kennedy Highway is mostly single lane bitumen.

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