An iconic outback national park, made famous by a Super Bowl advertisement, has closed indefinitely due to severe damage from floods earlier this year.

Boodjamulla National Park (Lawn Hill) in the Gulf of Carpentaria captivated international audiences during the 2018 US Super Bowl with the $36 million Tourism Australia campaign Dundee: The Son of a Legend Returns. 

But in March this year, the park's emerald waters and lush bushland were decimated by floodwater after more than 500 millimetres of rain fell in less than 36 hours.

Gregory River at Riversleigh, near Boodjamulla, reached 18 metres high, shattering the 1971 flood record of 10.8m.

As rangers work with structural and flood engineers to repair the important site and traveller hotspot there are concerns that Indigenous cultural heritage sites have been damaged.

Meanwhile, communities across north-west Queensland are feeling the flow-on effects of the park's closure amid an already stagnant tourism season.

Damage to cultural sites

Images show shredded trees and vegetation blanketing the park.

"The vegetation surrounding the river has been severely impacted," said principal ranger Dave Wood.

"We've lost a lot of the palms and the paperbarks. We've lost a lot of topsoil."

A rockslide has impacted the pristine Indarri Falls, creating instability along one of the park's most popular walking tracks overlooking the picturesque gorge.

The park is not just a popular spot for campers. It includes the Riversleigh World Heritage Site, described by UNESCO as one of the world's greatest fossil sites with specimens dating back 30 million years.

Rangers are concerned about the damage of cultural heritage sites of the Waanyi people representing 30,000 years of Aboriginal history on the land.

Entire region suffers

The knock-on effects of the park's closure are already being felt across the wider north-west Queensland region.

Located a four-hour drive away, Mount Isa is a popular spot for caravanners, campers, and large tour groups on their way to Boodjamulla to stop for a few nights.

At the height of outback Queensland's tourism season, Mr Turner is worried about the closure's impact on other tourist providers' bottom lines.

"We're so isolated. It's a long trip to get here on a bus if there's nothing to do other than the mine tour or the fossil tour [in Mount Isa]," he said.

Ranger Wood estimated Boodjamulla would be closed until at least mid-2024.

"We're closely discussing the closure with the Waanyi people and they're as keen to get the park open as soon as we possibly can," said Ranger Wood.