Go get 'em, cowboy

Queensland cowboys, also known as stockmen or ringers, have been around since the early days of settlement, when the huge, unfenced sheep stations needed people on horseback to tend the flocks.
Indigenous Australians made excellent cowboys alongside the new immigrants, and played a key role in running the early livestock properties — feeding, watering, mustering, droving, branding, castrating, ear tagging, weighing, vaccinating and dealing with predators such as dingoes and wild pigs.

Rodeos have been around almost as long as stockmen. By the 1890s, there were many Wild West shows travelling the country. The travelling rodeos showcased daring displays by rough riders and buck jumpers, riding bucking horses and bullocks, whip-cracking and rope-spinning.

While the Great Depression of the 1930s saw a decline in interest, many Queensland towns held rodeos to raise money for returned soldiers from World War II, triggering a rodeo revival — and the tradition of donating proceeds to local charities, service organisations and sporting clubs.

Today in Far North Queensland, the rodeo circuit is alive and bucking. Here are the big local events that you can plan in for your next stay in Port Douglas.

Mossman Bullride

The Great North Bullriding Series will be stopping in nearby Mossman in September. It’s a family-owned and run bullriding series that promotes bull riding as a sport, partnering with local clubs and charities throughout Queensland to raise money for those doing it tough.

Expect plenty of great bullriding action, giveaways, merchandise and a variety of food and licensed bar. An afterparty with a country DJ will keep the family entertained once the dust has settled on the competition. 

Mt Garnet Rodeo
Deep in fossicking country about 240km southwest of Port, Mt Garnet is an old tin-mining town with a population of 532. Each year in May, numbers swell to around 3500 when visitors from all over Australia flock to its annual racing carnival and rodeo. Launched in 1938, the event boasts horse racing and fashions on the field on day one, with professional bull-riding atop the playbill on day two. 
When: May 1 and 2, 2026
Where: LD Lucey Memorial Park, Mt Garnet

Laura Rodeo and Campdraft
Campdrafting is a horseback sport where a rider has to cut out a single beast from a mob of cattle, then guide it through a course of pegs in a figure-eight pattern and finally through a gate. It’s the highlight event at this long-standing bush get-together that draws a crowd from across Cape York and beyond. The weekend’s family-friendly festivities also include bull rides, bronc rides and barrel racing, as well as horse racing, live music, bars and food stalls.
When: June 2026, dates TBA 
Where: Laura Races and Rodeo Grounds, Laura

Mareeba Rodeo
An hour’s drive from Port Douglas, the Mareeba Rodeo dates back to 1949. Festivities begin with a parade through the town centre at which the Rodeo Festival Queen is crowned. Then follows two days of top-level competition and entertainment, including bull riding, saddle bronc, barrel racing, roping, and steer wrestling. Outside the ring, you can wander the agricultural show, fairground, food trucks and sideshows. Camping is available on-site for those wanting to make a weekend of it.
When: July 11 and 12, 2026
Where: Keribee Park, Mareeba

Meet the rider

Leith Malone, 24, lives in Mossman, where he combines running his own plastering business with his alter ego as a bull rider and rodeo bull fighter. Last year, he took out the Australian Bushmen’s Campdraft & Rodeo Association (ABCRA) Far North Queensland Zone’s rookie bull riding title, and this year, he’s currently leading the open bull riding title race.

“I got on my first poddy calf when I was five years old. I kind of grew up around the rodeo with my extended family all involved. I compete in the annual open bull ride event, and I bullfight at most rodeos, as well. 
There are plenty of challenges with riding bulls and bullfighting — the injuries are inevitable, and there are also mental challenges along the way. But I love so many aspects of rodeoing, whether it be the people you meet, the places you get to see and the accolades you gain along the way. So far this year, I’ve made over $10,000 in prize money riding bulls throughout Victoria and Far North Queensland.
If people are travelling in the area, I’d highly recommend they buy a ticket and come experience a slice of what we get to experience, whether it’s the little fellas strapping these mini bulls, or the big boys trying their guts out to last the eight seconds on the mean, bred-to-buck sons of guns! If you’re lucky, you might even see a bullfighter get thrown in the air as he’s putting his life on the line to try to save a cowboy. It’s like nothing you’ve ever seen before.”