I have never been anywhere even vaguely tropical/subtropical. I live in the Riverina near the Vic border and the farthest north I have been is Newcastle.
Aside from light clothing, sunscreen and bug spray is ther anything else I should take with me/expect/deal with? (I’m hoping to bring back about 25kg of rock/mineral specimins for my collection so I want to pack light:p)
Edited to add: I can cope with heat. After some of the 45+ days the high 30’s area doddle. However heat + humidity is an unknown
As you know, Queensland is kind of big. For your question to be meaningful, you probably need to give us more information. There are rumours that there are discernable differences between Karumba and Thargomindah.
I don’t know that Thargamindah is tropical- just bloody hot. If yoiu are going tropical/ rock specimans are you going around Charters Towers or perhaps Emeral?
One thing I would suggest is good preotection against the sun in the form of adequate clothing, hat, sun glasses and sun cream. Don’t bother with the tiny tubes of sun screen- at most decent sized chemist shop you can buy a litre of SPF + 30 for around $15. Oh, and water bottles.
You’ll be surprised by the number of Queenslanders there are up there. Make no sudden moves and try not to use any technology that will get you burned as a witch - such as a watch where you can move the hour hand forwards as they think that this fades their cows or something.
As they said, it depends where you’re going. If wherever you’re going is hot, remember that loose, long-sleeved cotton shirts work wonders for keeping you cool, especially if you’re working, and wide-brimmed hats are more effective than baseball-style caps.
Been to Queensland quite a few times and loved it. I just took the same as I would take for a Victorian summer. And take a good camera - lots and lots to photograph.