[4] Commencing from the Bruce Highway in Gordonvale the road runs south-west, following the Mulgrave River, to the foot of the Gillies Range.

It climbs the range by a winding route, generally westward, and then proceeds south through the Little Mulgrave National Park before turning west to ascend to the Atherton Tableland.

From here it proceeds west to Atherton, which it enters from the north, after passing the exit to Tinaroo Falls Dam Road to the north-east.

[12] It was proposed to name the Cairns Range Road (as it was then known) after him following his sudden death in February 1928 but it was not made official until March 1934.

[18] A project to improve safety on sections of the road, at a cost of $19.341 million, was scheduled for completion in December 2022.