There were the grand events, of course - the openings of parliament by the Queen in 1954 and 1974, the opening of the Sydney Opera House in 1973, the opening of the new Parliament House in 1988.
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And there were less grand openings - the Australian Stockman's Hall of Fame in Longreach in the centre of Queensland in 1988 and Bonython Primary School in suburban Canberra in 1992. All were important.
But above all, there were the meetings with ordinary people in places far from the usual public eye.
There were the grand banquets but also the cups of tea in village halls. She felt the hand of Paul Keating on her back in 1992 and she felt the warmth of the welcome in country Australia.
The Queen went down a mine in Mount Isa and she walked down Macquarie Street in Dubbo. She opened the Australian Inland Mission Hospital in remote Kununurra in the far north of Western Australia and she stayed on a family sheep farm in Tasmania.
Surely no Australian can have been to so many parts of the country as the Queen did in 16 visits (1954, 1963, 1970, 1973, 1974, 1977, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1986, 1988, 1992, 2000, 2002, 2006 and 2011). On her first tour, she visited 57 towns in 58 days.
And it wasn't just about speeches and photographs. Sometimes she made a difference.
She went to Alice Springs in 1963 as central Australia was emerging from one of its worst droughts. "The drought had a huge impact on the vegetation of the Centre. Many people thought things would never recover," historian Stuart Traynor, author of the history of Alice Springs, said.
But the Queen made the contrast between the common view of "the dead heart of Australia" and her own view. "After this visit, no-one will be able to suggest to me that central Australia is a dead heart," she said.
"From now on, I shall always look upon it as a living heart, beating with confident energy."
The speech was "amazingly intuitive", according to the historian. "It was a game-changer. It raised perceptions outside Alice Springs and it gave confidence to people within Alice Springs."
People in Alice still feel that she bonded with them - "The Queen was a woman of competence, a horse woman, who - if she wasn't the Queen - would have probably been striding around the countryside in jodhpurs, not in skirts and crowns," as one put it.
The Queen often made her biggest impact in country Australia.
She visited Orange in 1970 and the memories remain. Ross Maroney was in his last year in primary school. "I have very happy memories," he said.
He was bused in from the bush to see the royal couple in both Orange and Bathurst. The children gazed in wonder at what seemed like the magic of royalty: "In those days, it was another world. It was incredible. It was a really big thing."
The royal couple were given a tour of the refrigerator factory which was then Orange's biggest employer. "They had to wear goggles like everyone else," Mr Maroney remembers.
The couple went down the main street - "Summer Street, from west to east", Mr Maroney recalls. "They drove through the school grounds." They met local dignitaries. "The Queen went one way and the Duke went the other. I think everyone was talked to."
There were glitches, according to Mr Maroney, who is a past-president of the Orange and District Historical Society. "Someone had painted 'Liz Go Home' on the road and that had to have sand put down to cover it," he said.
It's the small things - the detail - which often stick in the mind. When the royal couple visited Newcastle in 1988, Iris Nichols, an ardent monarchist, was in one of the groups they met. "The Queen had this magnificent emerald brooch, I couldn't take my eyes off it," she said.
Talking to people today, you realise how much effort was put into visits - a new road to the airport in Orange; upgraded roads to the Tasmanian farm, and no doubt many more improvements.
The royal couple got the Rolls-Royce treatment - and, in the first tour, the royal train treatment. Later, planes plus the Royal Yacht took over for the longer distances.
On the very first visit, the Royal Yacht was the steam ship Gothic (Britannia's maiden voyage was still some months away). In later tours, she flew around the country in a specially fitted-out Qantas Lockheed Constellation, powered by four three-bladed propellers. Later it became a Qantas 707, 747 and 777 as well as RAAF aircraft.
But the first arrival on February 3, 1954, was by royal barge, and in spectacular fashion. The whole of Sydney seemed to have been on the water to greet the couple. The then 27-year-old Queen stepped ashore in Sydney Cove and a nation stopped. It really did.
Those who couldn't get a glimpse could watch, though not immediately. Amalgamated Wireless Australia filmed the Queen setting foot on Australian soil and, after a lot of relaying and processing of film, the royal arrival became the country's first televised event.
A poll at the time indicated that 75 per cent of Australians saw her at least once in real life during the tour. The remaining quarter of the population could listen to the ABC's national coverage.
She always looked immaculate. She was, after all the Queen of Australia and she had to look the part even in the heat and the land of flies and "the Australian salute".
In Sydney, she was met at the height of summer by the prime minister, Robert Menzies, in top hat and tails.
The Queen wore gloves.
In fact, the Queen wore lots of gloves. According to one of the officers on the 1963 tour, she got her gloves dirty on the handrail coming ashore - but, not to worry, her lady-in-waiting carried six sets in her handbag.
Scientists also helped. From 1938, the CSIRO had been developing an aerosol to prevent sheep from getting bitten.
As CSIRO describes its achievement: "It took the visit of Queen Elizabeth II to Australia in 1963 for the repellant to become a household name. Although the Queen was meant to be sprayed with the repellent at a garden party held at Government House in Canberra, the aide responsible lost his nerve and the Queen was left madly swatting flies.
"The next day was a different story, when Government House staff made sure the Queen was liberally sprayed before heading off for a game of golf."
The schedules were punishing. Take just one day. On Friday, February 12, 1954, she was in Bathurst, Lithgow, Katoomba and Leura. The next day, it was Wagga. And so it went on, relentlessly.
In 10 days in New South Wales on that first tour, the couple attended 28 events, morning, afternoon and evening. They addressed 107,000 children. They watched life-savers in Bondi.
Everything was tightly scripted and timed - usually.
Occasionally, the Queen would go off-schedule. "The girl Queen, so young and lovely despite her staggering responsibilities, went straight to the hearts of the people, her radiant smile and waving small, white-gloved hand forever imprinted on their memories," The Courier in Ballarat reported.
"A stirring moment came when the Queen upset the carefully timed plans, and walked to the begonia house at the Gardens and inspected the blooms. The roar of appreciation which followed Her Majesty's unscheduled gesture hung in the air for minutes, and deepened as she slowly walked back to the Royal car."
The itineraries which are kept in the National Library of Australia are fascinating. They have a code: U1 is "uniform with sword and medals" but U2 is "uniform without sword and medals"; T: "Her Majesty wears a tiara".
I thank all Australians. I declare again that my admiration, affection and regard for the people of Australia will remain, as it has been, constant, sure and true.
- Queen Elizabeth II in 2002
You get a sense of the planning and support from the list of people who accompanied the royal couple, from "Footman" to "Travelling Yeoman" to "Lady Clerk to the Equerry to the Duke of Edinburgh".
The timings are exact. On March 7, 1977, at 11.45, "The Royal Aircraft - Qantas Boeing 707 - arrives at RAAF base Fairbairn. 11.50: "The front door of the aircraft is opened when quarantine procedures are completed".
Distances are stipulated: "Walk to Royal Car (100 m)."
In those 16 visits, Queen Elizabeth II walked countless kilometres. She touched the hearts of countless Australians.
And we touched her, too.
In 2011, she said at Parliament House: "Ever since I first came here in 1954, I have watched Australia grow and develop at an extraordinary rate. This country has made dramatic progress economically, in social, scientific and industrial endeavours and, above all, in self-confidence."
In 2002, she said: "I thank all Australians. I declare again that my admiration, affection and regard for the people of Australia will remain, as it has been, constant, sure and true."
Steve Evans
Steve Evans is a reporter on The Canberra Times. He's been a BBC correspondent in New York, London, Berlin and Seoul and the sole reporter/photographer/paper deliverer on The Glen Innes Examiner in country New South Wales. "All the jobs have been fascinating - and so it continues."
Steve Evans is a reporter on The Canberra Times. He's been a BBC correspondent in New York, London, Berlin and Seoul and the sole reporter/photographer/paper deliverer on The Glen Innes Examiner in country New South Wales. "All the jobs have been fascinating - and so it continues."
