Ye Olde Telegraph Track

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Ye Olde Telegraph TrackTime to get out of Chili Beach before we lose the tent -the winds would not abate. Its a shame though its really beautiful On leaving we took the right fork instead of left and explored the little bays and inlets around the area. People try to build lives out here in these remote places but you can see that the weather reclaims everything. Across a channel of about 900 metres is Restoration Island. Bligh named it when he was cast adrift by the Mutineers on his Bounty. There are dwellings on the island all on the sheltered side. The rock formations on the beaches are huge. I imagine kids would happily play and climb all over them if it were any beach on the Gold Coast.

Portland Roads posh name for a place that has one road (actually its the best dirt road in Queensland which leads to six houses) is on the sheltered side of Cape Weymouth. It's a sleepy little fishing village where the midgees will pick you up and fly away with you. I made us brekky here and we got away as fast as we could.

Back through Tozers Gap .... the scenery was more magnificent because the weather was fining up. We were running low on fuel.... Up here that means we had about 150 kilomettes left in the tank. To reach the PDR we had to take Frenchmans Track which also meant crossing the fast flowing Pascoe River.

On the track we met the German tourists we encountered back when Wayne rescued the truck. We followed behind them to watch how they tackled the Pascoe crossing. Driving through the heathlands there are shallow canyons of red and white which just pop up unexpectedly. B2climbed down the steep and rocky approach to the Pascoe. The other travelers had climbed out of their cars and waded through the creek to check depths and to choose a line to take. The creek bottom was rocky (that's good) the water was fast flowing (not so good) the depth was ok. I videoed this fom inside the cabin. All of us made it across easily. We took off the German's watched us cross so we were in front now so we took off for fear of being stuck behind the German guy who insisted on telling us via the radio what gear he would use and why for each section of the track we drove.

We reached a bend in the track where the track headed due west for about 40 kilometers. My god this track was boring and very slow going. Finally after a couple of hours we were back on the bitumen and headed to for Moreton Telegraph Station then onto Bramwell Junction to fill up B2 eat the best hamburger ever, and get a shower. It was time to tackle the telegraph track. Wayne was getting excited now. This trip is 20!years in the making. This is his Mecca this is every 4wd enthusiasts dream trip.

A good looking blond driveway attendant at petrol bowser told us which tracks to be careful of. We had lunch and noticed the average age of traveller was closer to 60. This does not appear to be a young persons adventure. At Bramwell Five bucks for a delicious hot shower and then it was the big drive up ye olde Telegraph Track
(OTT).

There are some things you've gotta understand about the OTT . It represents one of the ultimate four wheel drive challenges in the world. And once you have done it my son you are a "man" (tongue in cheek). It represents the pioneering spirit of building a communications channel to keep our remote continent in touch with the rest of the world. . It breaks cars, it breaks peoples spirit and it brings with it the palpable unlimited kindness of humanity when someone makes a mistake and come a cropper in one of the creeks. Mind you if you -----do come acropper then you are the object of kind hearted derision and entertainment for the rest of your trip especially if yours is the car in trouble and you end up traveling with the same groups of people.

The track on google maps looks dead straight. Anything but dead straight, is how you would describe this vision of 4wd wonder. It's so rutted out that you spend more time on the diversion tracks it's more like a dizzy weave. Along the track the old metal telegraph poles are twisted in all directions but if you can see them in the bush you know you are heading in the right direction.

At the 4 kilometre mark we reach Palm Creek crossing which looks like a steep drop of about 6 metres with a bump in it. B2 loved it, he climbed down there really easily. A couple of young cow cockies with a troopie and a trailer with a quad bike on it and a boat on top of that decided to attempt the palm creek "cliff". On going over the edge the boat slid straight into their rear window, smashed the window through. Then he got out to look at the damage and the trailer (with boat) started pushing the car without him in it down bank. He managed to jump back in but not before the boat managed to do more damage to the car. He looked a little shell shocked but also keen to get the car and boat through but he wasn't going anywhere least of all backwards.

Then B2 went on to do Ducie, North Alice and Dulhunty crossing. Dulhunty was where we camped for the night. Dulunty was a brilliant camping place with beautiful creek and waterfall and our only neighbours were about five hundred metres away.

Ye Olde Telegraph Track

Time to get out of Chili Beach before we lose the tent -the winds would not abate. Its a shame though its really beautiful On leaving we took the right fork instead of left and explored the little bays and inlets around the area. People try to build lives out here in these remote places but you can see that the weather reclaims everything.

Across a channel of about 900 metres is Restoration Island. Bligh named it when he was cast adrift by the Mutineers on his Bounty. There are dwellings on the island all on the sheltered side. The rock formations on the beaches are huge. I imagine kids would happily play and climb all over them if it were any beach on the Gold Coast.

Portland Roads posh name for a place that has one road (actually its the best dirt road in Queensland which leads to six houses) is on the sheltered side of Cape Weymouth. It's a sleepy little fishing village where the midgees will pick you up and fly away with you. I made us brekky here and we got away as fast as we could.

Back through Tozers Gap .... the scenery was more magnificent because the weather was fining up. We were running low on fuel.... Up here that means we had about 150 kilomettes left in the tank. To reach the PDR we had to take Frenchmans Track which also meant crossing the fast flowing Pascoe River.

On the track we met the German tourists we encountered back when Wayne rescued the truck. We followed behind them to watch how they tackled the Pascoe crossing. Driving through the heathlands there are shallow canyons of red and white which just pop up unexpectedly. B2climbed down the steep and rocky approach to the Pascoe. The other travelers had climbed out of their cars and waded through the creek to check depths and to choose a line to take. The creek bottom was rocky (that's good) the water was fast flowing (not so good) the depth was ok. I videoed this fom inside the cabin. All of us made it across easily. We took off the German's watched us cross so we were in front now so we took off for fear of being stuck behind the German guy who insisted on telling us via the radio what gear he would use and why for each section of the track we drove.

We reached a bend in the track where the track headed due west for about 40 kilometers. My god this track was boring and very slow going. Finally after a couple of hours we were back on the bitumen and headed to for Moreton Telegraph Station then onto Bramwell Junction to fill up B2 eat the best hamburger ever, and get a shower. It was time to tackle the telegraph track. Wayne was getting excited now. This trip is 20!years in the making. This is his Mecca this is every 4wd enthusiasts dream trip.

A good looking blond driveway attendant at petrol bowser told us which tracks to be careful of. We had lunch and noticed the average age of traveller was closer to 60. This does not appear to be a young persons adventure. At Bramwell Five bucks for a delicious hot shower and then it was the big drive up ye olde Telegraph Track
(OTT).

There are some things you've gotta understand about the OTT . It represents one of the ultimate four wheel drive challenges in the world. And once you have done it my son you are a "man" (tongue in cheek). It represents the pioneering spirit of building a communications channel to keep our remote continent in touch with the rest of the world. . It breaks cars, it breaks peoples spirit and it brings with it the palpable unlimited kindness of humanity when someone makes a mistake and come a cropper in one of the creeks. Mind you if you -----do come acropper then you are the object of kind hearted derision and entertainment for the rest of your trip especially if yours is the car in trouble and you end up traveling with the same groups of people.

The track on google maps looks dead straight. Anything but dead straight, is how you would describe this vision of 4wd wonder. It's so rutted out that you spend more time on the diversion tracks it's more like a dizzy weave. Along the track the old metal telegraph poles are twisted in all directions but if you can see them in the bush you know you are heading in the right direction.

At the 4 kilometre mark we reach Palm Creek crossing which looks like a steep drop of about 6 metres with a bump in it. B2 loved it, he climbed down there really easily. A couple of young cow cockies with a troopie and a trailer with a quad bike on it and a boat on top of that decided to attempt the palm creek "cliff". On going over the edge the boat slid straight into their rear window, smashed the window through. Then he got out to look at the damage and the trailer (with boat) started pushing the car without him in it down bank. He managed to jump back in but not before the boat managed to do more damage to the car. He looked a little shell shocked but also keen to get the car and boat through but he wasn't going anywhere least of all backwards.

Then B2 went on to do Ducie, North Alice and Dulhunty crossing. Dulhunty was where we camped for the night. Dulunty was a brilliant camping place with beautiful creek and waterfall and our only neighbours were about five hundred metres away.

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