The rain got heavier and heavier, we couldn't do much and went to bed very early, it was pitch black, the river was roaring and the rain heavy......around 8.00pm a vehicle approached and the driver said that they had come from the opposite direction on the track we were travelling and it was not in good condition from the wet. The men stayed the night with us and offered to travel out with us the next morning to go back the same way we came in. After a sleepless night we heard their car starting up early in the morning thinking they were leaving with out us, but no they waited for us and assisted us to cross the river that was rising to around 1.2m. It was a slow, difficult but challenging return to the Daintree Village. Brett stayed behind on the track as he had lost his recovery bag off his rear wheel somewhere on our journey out, but thank god it was retrieved thanks to some young honest trail bike riders. Brett joined us later at the Laura Roadhouse Campground where we have camped for the night.
click on the photo to see the slide show
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| Daintree, National Park, Queensland |
After our adventures on the CREB track the group rolled on corrugations and all along the Developmental road staying overnight in Laura. Early start and back to more corrugations but firstly visiting Split Rock Aboriginal Art for a short stroll up a tiring a rocky hill. Some made it to the interesting rock paintings others chose to turn back and wait to see the photos. It was time to move on as Weipa was our nights destination, we passed through Musgrave and on route to Coen rain set in and the track turn into a slippery clay base surface giving all our vehicles an instant two tone orange colour respray. In fact every vehicle parked in Coen was the same colour. A late Lunch was had at the famous Archer River Roadhouse and some of the party tasted the infamous Archer River Burgers. As night fall approached we arrived in Weipa for an amazing sunset over the water, set up camp and prepared dinner.
Next day we were off to explore Weipa, firstly we boarded a bus for a tour of the mining town then on to the famous Rio Tinto (Bauxite) mining tour. The group found this very interesting and informative.
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| Laura - Weipa |
After lunch it was time to move onward towards the Cape, passing through Bativa Downs, stopping briefly at the Moreton Telegraph Station and finally setting up for the night at Bramwell Junction, excited and ready to begin our journey up the Old Telegraph Track (OTT). Just on Sunset we had the pleasure of a visit from a Helicopter refuelling at the roadhouse. It was interesting to see how others travel around this country his destination was also Cape York which would take him only one hour to arrive (We still had three days of travel ahead).
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| Bativa Downs, Moreton, Bramwell |
Early start as the group was eager to conquer the OTT, two of the group decided to take the Bamaga Bypass road and meet us for the night halfway on the track at the beautiful Elliot Falls. Not very far up the OTT we met our first river crossing challenge, “Palm Creek”. This creek had a very steep slippery entry, deep river crossing and steep rutted climb out. Surprisingly this turned a lot of other vehicles away from doing the OTT which kept the traffic on the track to a minimum. The following river crossings were all very challenging and different. As we drove along the track we all had thoughts of how hard it must have been for the people who originally transversed this terrain back in the mid to late 1800’s to build Australia’s first telegraph link overland to the tip of Australia connecting our country’s communications to the rest of the world via under sea submarine cable.
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| Old Telegraph Track |
As midday approached we finally made it to the infamous Gunshot Creek crossing. The crossing had many spectators waiting for victims to attempt the crossing which from talking with others were very few and far between. The original Gunshot entry was steep, infact almost a 90 degree drop off falling approximately 4 metres into a deep muddy rutted pool of sludge. Therefore we decided to explore the other options, there were at least 4 or 5 other entry points which were also not real passable. Kim went missing and was later found at the bottom of one of the tracks stuck up to the door sills in smelly, sticky black mud. There was no way we could assist him out of this mess other than for himself to winch his cruiser out and also de-rooting a few trees along the way. Meanwhile Brett found a scenic new route that dropped sharply into Gunshot creek and followed the creek in crystal clear waters for a short time, Gabriel also followed this track and we all conquered the Infamous Gunshot creek without too many issues.
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| Gunshot |
Back on track it was time to hit the beautiful water falls that are found about halfway up the OTT. We set up camp for the night and hit the falls for a relaxing refreshing swim. There are five water falls in total. Fruit Bat Falls, Elliot Falls, Twin Falls, Indian Head Falls and the Saucepan with water that is crystal clear and approximately 26 degrees. Next morning was also spent at Elliot falls relaxing. The bushland around the falls were inundated with bats nesting in the trees and flying around in the skies. The scent there from the bats was strong, but the falls were fantastic, powerful and refreshing providing us with the opportunity to swim up under the falls and also leaping from the rocks into the rapid waters of the river.
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| All the falls |
After lunch it was once again time to move on and complete the OTT. More river crossings of various depths, challenging entry and exits and different sandy, muddy and rocky terrains. Rosario was very impressed with the spectators at one particular river crossing who were having a ball by scoring each vehicle crossing and holding up score cards. Our group performed extremely well scoring 9 out of 10.
Next we made it to the log bridge crossing, which is the only way to cross Cypress creek. The bridge was negotiated successfully by our team although some logs were dislodged and moved by our vehicles so it was necessary to re-postion the logs for the next vehicles to cross.
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| Log Bridge |
Something worth making mention of was that we saw along the OTT a bus load of 80+ year old retiree’s touring the track in a 4WD Bus. They were getting out and walking to each river crossing for a quick look, It made us all wonder where and how these travellers were being accommodated each night.
We finally made is to the end of the OTT where the track meets the mighty Jardine river. (The largest river on “The Cape”). We camped on the southern side of the old crossing made famous by “The Gall Boys” who on one of their DVD trips bogged their Kedron Caravan while crossing this deep, fast flowing Saltwater Crocodile infested river. The crossing is rarely attempted these days as there is a vehicular ferry further up the Jardine River which is operated by the local indigenous people.
“Happy Hour” sitting by the river having a few drinks, Rosario commented on how nice the lily pad flowers look on the other side of the river and would like to see one up close. Suddenly Brett disappeared and was later found walking back across the Jardine River with a lily in one hand and a kitchen knife in the other, everyone ran to the river’s edge in disbelief that he had actually crossed the Croc infested waters and returned safely. The lily almost cost him an arm and a leg. Later in the evening we enjoyed a nice camp fire shared only with our OTT travelling friends made on the track.
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| Jardine River |
After celebrating the achievement of completing the OTT the night before on the Jardine, the group had “The Tip” well in its sights. They boarded the Jardine River Ferry for the 90 second trip across the river and headed on up to Seisia via Bamaga to refuel and top up their supplies from the local supermarket. After a short visit it was back on the road heading directly north to Punsand Bay “Camping Resort”, our base camp for the next three nights. A quick camp set up was made and later in the afternoon the excited travellers all headed “To the northernmost point of the Australian Continent”. It was time to celebrate our achievement by having some drinks and photo’s together on the rocks near the iconic sign. Peter even tried his luck at fishing by casting a line in at the top to see if he could catch the allusive “Barra” (Barramundi). After visiting “The Tip” we all purchased some souvenirs from “The Croc Tent” (a Cape York souvenir shop) located not far from our camping ground.
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| The Tip |
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| Croc Tent |
Next day was a free day for “The Capers”, some made the most of the day around camp and others went exploring the sights & tracks around “The Cape”. Two highlights of the surrounding area worth a mention were the spectacular “Somerset” Eastern coast line and the amazing DC3 and World War II aircraft wrecks. For the nights entertainment and as a final celebration for reaching the top of Australia, a themed “Cape Night” was organised. Everybody dressed in a Caped Character and a fun late night was had by all.
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| Punsand Bay & Surrounds Cape York |
A tour of the Torres Strait islands, Thursday Island (TI) & Horn Island was scheduled for the following day. We departed at 7:00am by boat to TI, and a bus took us on a tour of the island. We then went for lunch to Horn Island, followed by a browse through the World War II museum and a bus tour of the World War II relics around Horn island. Our return trip by boat back to Punsand Bay was very, very rough. We passed by a monument on an island where Lt Captain Cook birthed his boat “The Endeavour” back in 1770.
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| thursday Island & Horn Island |
It was time to leave “The Tip” and head back down “The Cape” to explore other areas of the Cape York Peninsula. But before leaving a few of the group decided to try their luck at Sports Fishing and chartered a half day tour with a local Seisia Fisherman named Tim. Tim took us up the Jackey Jackey Creek into the Mangroves where we sighted our first Crocodiles of the trip. We saw three Crocs in total and then tried our luck at fishing. Mal (Brett’s father) was the first to land a fish, catching a nice “Cod” although undersize in QLD. Rosario was next, catching a fabulous Bream. We all had many bites and hits at our lines throughout the day but just before leaving with the help of Tim, Brett caught the illusive “Barra” (Baramundi). Gabriel unfortunately did not catch anything, but he had a great time just feeding the fish.
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| Fishing Trip |
After our fishing charter we headed downwards from “The Cape” towards Captain Billy Landing stopping at the northern side of the Old Jardine River Crossing for a quick look and then on to Fruit Bat Falls for a quick swim and a bath in the falls. We were amazed to arrive there and have the entire falls to ourselves. We arrived at Captain Billy Landing on the east coast of the Cape York Peninsula at night fall for dinner then an early night to bed.
Early start, headed down to Bramwell Junction for refuelling before hitting the Frenchmans Track. The Frenchmans Track is a narrow track that passes through some amazing terrain and crosses two main river systems, The Wenlock & Pascoe Rivers. The track was challenging and the river crossings were rocky and ruttered, but we were able to tranverse them successfully. We travelled onwards through the Iron Range National Park to take a peep at Lockhardt River. This town is an alcohol free Aboriginal community with the local residents being out numbered by the K9 community. Our nights camp was right on the beach at Chili Beach under the enormous Palm trees. Upon setting up our camp we noticed the tide was on the way in and there was a Crocodile warning sign right next to our camp site. So we sat back for happy hour and waited for the resident property owners to arrive.
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| Frenchman's Track |
Next morning we visited the Portland Roads Cafe for a nice Brunch, Prawn salad rolls, beautiful plunger coffee and a selection of cakes. Back on the road heading for Archer river we stopped by the Wenlock River crossing to search for the Batavia Downs Goldfields. After a little bit of driving around a number of tracks in the area we found the remnants of the old gold mining fields. Here there were old steam traction engines, rock crushers, an old truck and many other mining machinery. After a short stroll around we moved on to Archer River Roadhouse to indulge in their massive burgers for lunch and refuel. Next stop was Coen for the night, staying at Charlie’s Mine. This is an ex miners property who he has set up as a campground for passing travellers. A very interesting place to stop at, and very funny. He also has beautiful hot showers.
**Trip Photos to be posted shortly, as we are way too busy having happy hour**
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| Portland Roads |
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| Archer River Road house |
Next morning at Charlie’s Mine & Camp was an experience; he is full of stories and is a joker. He has lots of crazy signs and statues around his property that he has made himself; he also has a gold mine stamper that he made out of junk from the rubbish tip that even works. After saying goodbye to Charlie and thanking him for our stay we travelled onto Musgrave for refuelling and then made a left hand turn into Lakefield National Park. We arrived at Saltwater Creek to see the camp sites that we would have stayed at if we hadn’t stopped at Charlie’s Mine for the night. As we pulled up next to the bank of the river we saw a medium sized crocodile slide into the river and disappear. Apparently this is the same location that a man was eaten alive by a Saltwater Crocodile just last year. We waited for him to reappear, but he was nowhere to be seen. We moved on to Low Lake, this is a very scenic lake with lots of white lilies and a lot of bird life. After Low Lake we drove across a large plain with thousands of termite mounds on to an old abandoned property called Breeza. Just pass Breeza we stopped at Red & White Lilly Lagoons, these were amazing to see. As we approached the southern section of Lakefield National Park we entered the Old Laura Station. Here there was an old Homestead, Blacksmith shed, a butchery shed, cattle yards and a rusty old WWII Blitz truck. It was getting late in the afternoon so it was time to find our camp for the night. The group chose Lake Emma right at the Southern Eastern section of the Lakefield NP. Our camp was a bush camp not far from the lake where we watched the sunset, and listen to the abundance of bird life in the nearby trees.
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| Charlie's Mine Campground |
Early morning the bird life alarm clock went off so all the weary travellers were up very early for a beautiful Pancake breakfast kindly prepared by Brett for all the group. Back on the road again we passed through Battle Camp Station, then on to Isabella Falls for a short break. It was then on to Hopevale then out to Elim Beach where we were to camp at Eddie’s Campground. Eddie is an 84 year old Aboriginal who runs a beautiful shady beach front bush camp right on Elim beach near the coloured sands. Everyone setup camp by midday had lunch then all went for a short drive around the area and came back for a well deserved shower. In the afternoon they all sat around talking to Eddie and listening to all his wonderful stories of the area and his life. Just on dusk a little friend payed a visit. A lot of the group thought it was a setup joke, but upon closer inspection it was real. “OMG” (Oh My God) it was a Diamond Head Python also known as a carpet snake. Brett & Rosario picked up the snake and had a little play with it for a quick photo. Dinner time was drawing near and an early night was on the cards for the Cape Yorkers 2nd last night together which has taken them to some amazing places so far.
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| Lakefield NP |
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| Eddie's Camp |
Beautiful sunrise on Elim Beach, we said our goodbyes to Eddie and thanked him for our stay. We left Elim Beach but not before first stopping at the coloured sands gorge for a quick look. It was then back to Hopevale and on to Cooktown. It was a busy Saturday morning when we arrived in the main street we stopped by a bakery cafe for morning tea and then did a short walk of the historical town. We saw where Captain Cook first docked his ship the Endeavour while discovering Australia in 1770, we also saw a statue of Captain Cook and his monument. We stopped by the famous Cooktown Hotel for a quick drink and a light lunch before setting off to the Grassy Hill lookout which has spectacular views over the whole of Cooktown and the Endeavour River.
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| Cooktown |
Time to leave Cooktown and move on to our night’s destination, “The Lion’s Den Hotel”. On our way to The Lion’s Den Hotel we stopped by the strange looking Black Mountain. This mountain is made up of large black granite boulders all stacked up to form a massive mountain, very unusual! The group arrived at The Lion’s Den Hotel to set up camp for their last night together. After paying for camp sites and driving into the camp area they saw some large onsite tents up on poles off the ground. Gabriel & Brett looked at each other and said, “Let’s get one of those tents for the whole group for the night instead of setting up our tents”. So it was back to the hotel bar to upgrade to the luxury accommodation. We named this “The Croc Tent”. Happy Hour was had on the balcony of “The Croc Tent” and then we all met up in the Hotel for a beautiful dinner. Yesterday was Kim’s birthday so we had a small birthday celebration for him in the pub area, mud cake all round for dessert. Everyone had fun writing little messages on the Hotel walls as a memento of being there, this involved donating a gold coin to the Royal Flying Doctor Service. After a few more drinks it was time for everyone to retire to their beds, ready for the return journey tomorrow to Cairns via the Bloomfield Track.
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| Lions Den Hotel |
On our last night at Lions Den Hotel we did not mind the rain, we had a very good sleep in a comfy bed in the safari tent, and early morning we had breakfast at the veranda. Brett and Gabriel reorganized their roof racks because Brett kindly offered to bring back home the no more needed camping gear. The group had the last photos and we headed back to Cairns through the Bloomfield track. We arrived at Cape Tribulation, had lunch and continued our journey to Mossman where we stopped and pumped up the tyres, we took the opportunity to say goodbye to everyone.
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| Cape Tribulation |
We would like to thank Brett for helping us writing this section of our travel blog and for organizing the Cape York Adventure.
