July 2021
I have had some catching up to do as I have been having so much fun I forgot to blog some stories. This is a long one folks, but given so many of you are in lockdown perhaps you will enjoy it.
Day 1 & 2
We weren’t entirely sure how things were going to develop on the NT/WA border, so we decided to spend a little more time in QLD and shot up to Cape York. We packed up and said our goodbyes to Cate and Peter and headed back to Laura, where we could store our van for free in a gated paddock. The Peninsula Development Road (PDR) consisted of 100s of kilometres of bone jarring corrugations, potholes, dips, shallow culverts and dust. Did I mention the dust? OMG the dust!!! It took us 3 days to drive the 1000km stopping at Archer River Roadhouse (~300km) where we swum in the shallow, but refreshing river and Elliot Falls at Jardine National Park (260km). As we arrived to set up the tents it inevitably started raining. The usual routine began which involved putting up the tents in record breaking time. Thank god for the beach cabana, which works fabulously as a rain umbrella for about 30 minutes until the rain eventually soaks through and drips. We spent the afternoon swimming in all the remarkable water holes - these are so appreciated right now, given we cannot swim in the bloody ocean due to Crocodiles (it is killing me!). Fruit bat falls were our favourite where you could climb up the falls to swim in the little holes above. We also swum in Twin Falls and Elliot Falls – all rather pleasant but much smaller than Fruit Bat. The night involved some spotlighting where we succeeded in spotting a Papuan Frogmouth.
Day 3 & 4
We set off north towards Loyalty Beach (~100km) via a section of the Old Telegraph Track. Most people head to the Cape to do this road. The Track follows the original telegraph line through the Peninsula, and for much of the Cape’s history was the only available route. The Overland Telegraph Line was once the only method of communication for those living on the Cape York Peninsula. We tackled a few creek crossings including Canal Creek and Sam’s Crossing. Canal was so deep the water came up to the bonnet and with an uneven bottom we had to walk it first. Every creek crossing included a small crowd, but Craig pulled off the crossings well and we came out unscathed. The 12km section took us 1 hour so it was slow going. Mali was squealing ‘go Yokel!’ most of the time and giggling in the back. We arrived at Loyalty Beach and it was about 35 degrees and rather humid. Naturally, I became cranky and hot and bothered as you can’t swim in the aqua coloured water due to crocodiles. I was determined to see a Crocodile to justify why I was not swimming. As I was on my early morning walk Mali and Craig spotted one 100m off-shore, but I missed it – still not entirely convinced I cannot swim. In the middle of the night I heard the clop-clop of horse feet and awoke to 4 wild horses sniffing around our camp, 2m from my flyless tent. It was unreal!!
Craig fished every day and every night but still did not catch a Barramundi, so we had fish and chips at the beachside restaurant next door and a few sunset drinks whilst Mali made friends with the other kids running around the beach.
The Tip (Pajinka) was another 37km up the road (see pics above). The car park was crowded when we got there and 15 minutes later along a gradual rocky climb, we arrived at a queue of people lining up for a photo at the sign. We figured we had come 1000km to see the tip so we may as well queue too (Craig couldn’t have cared less for the photo). For some reason reaching the tip wasn’t the hallelujah experience one might expect. We were glad we did it and met some awesome people along the way and we were relieved the car was still in one piece. We heard stories of destroyed engines, chassis and one brand new, off-road van had experienced serious internal damage with the stove falling through the floor and cupboard doors falling off. I suspect we would not have had a functioning caravan had we taken it north. Besides, camping made us appreciate our luxurious van when we did return.
Day 5 & 6
The trip back was much of the same – more corrugations and dust. If you found yourself behind another car you would have to either precariously overtake or slow down to allow the dust to settle. We stopped in at Moreton Telegraph Station (260km south) which was a lovely spot with a plethora of bird life, big shady trees and a walk down and along the river and through the property. Our last stop on the PDR was Musgrave Station (300km south) and guess who we bumped into? – The Coopers!! They had just spent a week in Weipa visiting family and were also heading back south. We saw some freshwater crocodiles in the swamp behind us and the Coopers shared some fresh mud crab and Blue Tusker caught in Weipa – what a feast!!!
We drove the final 120km back to Laura to pick up the van, did a quick visit to the Cultural Centre where I learnt about Quinkans and their knob-like penises (among other things). We also visited the Laura Rock Art site ‘Split Rock’ (which is listed by UNESCO as being among the top 10 sites in the world) where we saw rock painting of the Quinkans and many other creatures.
Day 6 – 8
About 160km North-west of Laura we stayed at a lovely place just out of town called Endeavor River Escape which is a working cattle station and passionfruit farm. For $25 a night the amenities were awesome, and all powered by solar. There was a Saltwater Crocodile living in the river behind us as one small group of campers discovered one night – it leaped out of the water right in front them whilst cast netting.
We explored the James Cook Museum, the Captain Cook Monuments and the Botanic Gardens. The three of us could have happily lived in Cooktown. It had a lovely vibe and was surrounded by gorgeous bushland, rivers and the ocean. After 3 days we set off for Mareeba as we wanted to explore a bit of the Tablelands west of Cairns before heading west to the Northern Territory.
We have been fortunate to learn a lot about Indigenous culture, especially in Far North Queensland. The visit to Laura’s Split Rock was breathtaking. It was hard to imagine Aboriginals standing where I was painting these artworks tens of thousands of years ago. Mali started asking why the Aboriginals were not dead. I was quite embarrassed but then realised she was wondering how these indigenous people who painted the art so long ago were still alive. I explained to her the people here today are their relatives – they didn’t paint it themselves. The concept of ancient cultures and the timescale was difficult for her to comprehend but her questions really blew me away. The Quinkan Cultural Centre (Laura) and the James Cook Museum were a wealth of information. What astounds me is that we have visited so many interesting monuments that emphasise the success of the ‘First White Settlers’ who conquered the land and opened it up for tourism or farming, etc. This is the history I keep reading about. What is so often forgotten is the incredible knowledge and diverse and complex culture that the Aboriginals had. I know the issues around this are complex, but I believe if we all become more educated on Aboriginal history and Aboriginal culture, we might just learn the truth, and from what I have learnt recently we were never told the truth.
Day 9
The last day of our Cape York trip ended rather badly. We conked out about 90km south of Cooktown on a hilly bend. We waited 5 hours on the side of the road for a tow truck who, gratefully, towed us 200km to Mareeba. Craig tried to diagnose the problem and thought it must be the fuel pump, filter or bad fuel. The tow truck driver, who picked us up, was a grumpy old thing. Okay, it was a Saturday, but he was on call and he got $1300 for the tow. We were so relieved when he got there but spending two hours with him in the front cabin of the truck kind of destroyed the elation we felt. We were dropped off in Mareeba in the dark and the whole family who owned the caravan park greeted us. Almost everyone we spoke to had a breakdown story to tell. After days of phones calls and enquiries we finally got the car booked into Atherton Toyota and 3 days later they called us to inform us that unleaded fuel had been put into the fuel tank. The damage wasn’t extensive, and we got the car back a day later. The Cooper kids have been making a list of ‘Craigfails’ and thought this whole ordeal rather funny – stay tuned for the next one.
Craig, Corrine and Mali
Wow, great experience guys. I was just wondering how you guys travelling with the current situation, but looks like it doesn't affect you. Enjoy the trip and stay safe~~~