Mike & Carol's Bushtracker Adventures Around Australia: August 2005

Wednesday, August 31, 2005

CAPE YORK TRIP - 2005

Goodbye to Cape York
Sunday 21 August to Sunday 28 August

We had a very quiet week spent relaxing in Seisia and we are almost part of the local scene. We had to wait a week for the parts for our van to arrive and had to endure long walks on the beach and beautiful sunsets with time to read and watch the boats coming in and out of Torres Straight. A most difficult time.

The van was finally fixed on Friday and was test driven on corrugated roads to see if everything worked. Mike came home a happy chappy on Friday night and we went to our 3rd and final Burgers and Beer night at the Seisia Fishing Club and spent a great night with John and Lou who had fixed our van and people that we have spent time with over the past 2 weeks in Seisia.

We set off excited and a little apprehensive early Saturday morning, and drove the 483km to Coen, some of which was on the worst roads we have travelled on so far. We stopped at Bramwell Station for lunch. A most beautiful spot. The grounds are well groomed and the day was grey and rainy, giving it a very mystic feel. As we arrived we were greeted with, “Well you finally made it and are all the problems fixed on your van!!” The bush telegraph works well.

On arrival at Coen, Mike inspected under the van only to discover that one of the shock absorbers had given way. Same basic problem of the badly designed suspension but as each repair holds strong a new problem is consequently generated.

People up in the Cape are fantastic. Mike rang the welder in Coen, Bob Mackay, on Saturday night and made arrangements to see him early Sunday morning. This could only happen in the country. Bob is amongst many other things a part time gold miner and a most interesting and eccentric character. He couldn’t help us in the end because the shock absorber itself was damaged beyond repair.

We had a very careful drive for the 308km still left on dirt roads.

The scenery is so beautiful and is ever changing. As difficult as it is to travel on the unsealed roads you get a sense of freedom that is lost on the bitumen. The massive dry river beds, the big and small dips and the beautiful trees are etched into our memories. It is hard to imagine ALL of the rivers in full flow in the wet. We had a most special time at Cape York.

As we drove through Mt Carbine and Mt Molloy the temperature outside was a lot colder than we have experienced for the last 5 weeks, there was some rain, the air smelt quite different. The vegetation was the bright green of cultivated areas, and there were banana plantations and sugarcane again, the cattle looked fat and healthy. We are now camped along the Barron River in Mareeba. A new place to explore.

Blurry, final sunset at Seisia

One of three entry gates on the 10km drive into the centre of Bramwell Station

Bramwell Station - Bar and Restaurant

That mystical feeling looking out at Bramwell Station from the restaurant under a huge mango tree

Oh Oh a DIP sign, what does this mean?

This is what you see after the DIP sign, a huge drop in the road to a creek or stream crossing - one of hundreds between the TIP and Cooktown

Bob Mackay checking out the busted shock absorber on our van - at his home / office / distillery

Bob Mackay, welder, gold miner, a most wonderful human being who also makes great rum

This is the Hahn River - no water

See the Jabiru (black bird) centre back of this photo at one of the many rivers we crossed

It is hell to drive on but just so very beautiful

...and then there was Bitumen

The Barron River behind our Caravan Park in Mareeba

Sunday, August 21, 2005

CAPE YORK TRIP - 2005

The Northern Most Tip of Australia
Saturday 13 August to Saturday 20 August

Our caravan position at Seisia Caravan Park had the most fantastic view of the Endeavour Strait and the Torres Strait Islands. We spent some quiet time on Saturday just doing mundane housework and relaxing. We have really learnt how to relax. There is no rushing any more.
Sunday we took a day trip that included magnificent Punsand Bay, a beautiful beach and caravan park.

From there we headed further north to the Croc Tent, which is a compulsory shopping stop and of course we bought the compulsory T shirts but were not allowed to wear them until we had actually “made it to the TOP”.

We then took the short cut to the top after being told that the road was not too bad and the trees blocking the track had just been cleared.
Our time at the top was spectacular. From the car park it is a 15min walk through rainforest which leads to a white sand beach.

The tide was out, which enabled us to walk to the top on the sand and we walked up the cliff to get the view from the top, on our return journey. The pictures tell the story.
We opened and drank the bottle of Asti Spumante when we got there. Just a small glass each, sharing it between the 6 of us.

Then we put a piece of paper in the bottle saying where we were, who we were, the longitude and latitude and our satellite phone number, pushed the cork back in and threw the bottle into the Torres Strait.

We then took the sand beach road to a place called Somerset which was the site of the first Government station on the Cape established in 1864. Very little is left and these places are very poorly marked but we managed to find it.

Monday was spent on a day trip by ferry to Thursday Island. What a fantastic place. It is now the centre for many Australian Government Departments, quarantine, defence etc. A small community where everyone knows everything and everybody but VERY friendly and a lot of employment opportunities for the locals.

One of three guns protecting the shipping lanes at Green Hill Fort (built in 1891) on top of Thursday Island.

Monument to all divers lost off Thursday Island diving for mother of pearl shells.
The hospital and schools cater for all the islands in the region. We had a great day having lunch at the Federal Hotel.

Our next day trip was to a place called Muttee Heads, south west of Seisia, where the mighty Jardine River enters the Endeavour Strait. More fantastic beaches with white sand and beautiful blue water.

No swimming is possible anywhere because of the salt water crocodiles. Muttee Heads is where the military had a major radar tower and a couple of gun pits during WW2.
There is also the remains of an old WW2 wharf.

We then drove to the wreck of a DC3 aircraft, then to the wreck of a Beaufort Bomber near Bamaga Airport. We drove past old WW2 44 gallon fuel dumps. It was creepy.

By Thursday we packed up and said our farewells to the TOP and headed south. We got 110km along our journey when we struck suspension problems in our caravan and had to hobble back to Seisia Caravan Park. Our co travellers continued on their journey south. We are now here until parts arrive and the repairs are done. Seems like “Ground Hog Day” to me!!!

We are enjoying our fantastic spot on the beach and have almost become locals. Our second Friday night at the Seisia Fishing Club burgers and beer night and we spent a fantastic Saturday at the Bamaga Show, which is the event of the year. Everything runs on local time; it will happen when it is ready. The mud car races, the Bamaga Horse Race and Rodeo were great fun to watch.

Watching the locals with their kids was just as much fun for me. Sometimes you felt you were looking at a Pro Hart painting.

The local island children are just beautiful.

We were most pleased when Mark, the mechanic fixing our van won the mud races. We already knew many of the faces!!

Fellow Bushtracker friends that we had to leave behind in Coen while they waited for parts have now arrived in Seisia so there are still 3 Bushtracker caravans here and we seem to spend quite a lot of time together.