Cattle on the move as graziers give up on wet season in drought-stricken Queensland

There is an exodus of cattle leaving drought-stricken parts of western Queensland as graziers give up on seeing a wet season, two months before the rains are usually due to finish.

Mr Elliott waters his horses at sunset while out on the road, north of Winton.

Richard Simpson, 55, a stock agent in Longreach with 30 years' experience in the region, describes his client base as mature — with one grazier aged in his mid-80s.

Mr Simpson said neither of them had seen the region facing a total destocking of sheep and cattle as it was now.

"This region will be destocked ... I reckon you can put a zero on it — probably the worst you want to see," Mr Simpson said.

He predicted if there was no rain by the end of the summer, all cattle in the region would have been moved out and sheep would follow in the winter.

Read the ABC News story by Nicole Bond - “Cattle on the move as graziers give up on wet season in drought-stricken Queensland.”

Drought-stricken Queenslanders cultivating big business ideas

Julie Brown photographs family and friends
 dressed in her swimwear designs.

In western Queensland, where drought has dominated most lives during the past five years, the small seeds of big business ideas have started to grow.

A dusty sheep station in the grip of drought is not the most obvious place to start an online swimwear business, but Julie Brown from Ilfracombe in western Queensland did just that.

At the height of the drought in 2015, with no formal business experience behind her, Ms Brown put her life savings and every second of spare time she had into developing an online, sun-safe swimwear business.

"We had no control over the weather but I felt that if I worked really hard on Coola Cozzies, I could have an element of control on that, I could make a difference," Ms Brown said.

Her husband, Adrian Brown, said he was proud of his wife's hard work.

Read the ABC story - “Drought-stricken Queenslanders cultivating big business ideas.”