Blogs from Cape York, Queensland, Australia, Oceania - page 8

We drove at 7.30 in the morning to get to Eliot Falls to get a good campsite. We arrived just before lunch. We went for a swim in Twin Falls. We sat in the waterfall. Dad and I climbed up to the top of the waterfall. When we got to the next level, we walked over and sat under the waterfall. It almost washed Dad’s shorts off his backside. We went for a drive down the OTT (Old Telegraph Track). It had a lot of bumps, creek crossings and steep muddy banks. We went North to South which is the hardest way to go. When we got to Gunshot Creek, we had a look. Dad said we would only look and not go up, but Dad ended up going up the Chicken Track and managed with ... read more

As soon as I got back to Cairns from Cape Trib after the festival, I got on the computer and made a load of signs to put up in hostels asking for a lift up the Cape York Peninsula. The next morning I got up early and prepared myself for a day of walking round the city in circles, forgetting where I had already been and desperately looking for some shade from the midday sun (I don't really like walking around Cairns much)! It would be a long day, and maybe a frustrating wait for a reply, but I knew it would be worth it if I found someone. 30 minutes of hard work and 3 hostels later, I got to the place I usually stay in Cairns, and someone had put up a notice offering ... read more

Our day trip to Thursday Island was another trip highlight. We were lucky to strike a calm day, as it had been pretty windy other days and the strait is well known for being a bit choppy. It takes about an hour to cross to the island and we were entertained along the way with a video about Torres Strait and one of the crew even came around with a map and a personal description of the area! A 90 minute bus tour of the island is included in the ferry ticket and this provides a good look around as the island is only about 3 square km. It is the main island of the more than 100 islands in the group, but is one of the smallest in size! The islands are part of Queensland ... read more

Now, you know you’re something pretty special when folks start referring to you by just the one name. Thus we have such luminaries as Madonna and Kylie, The Queen, Britney and Elvis, doubly special as he’s also just The King. No-one ever interrupts mid-sentence to ask “I’m sorry, Jesus Who?” And then there’s the Big Man himself. As far as I’m aware, God doesn’t even have a second name, making his initials simply “Gee”, particularly apt if you happen to be from the Bible belt. Such was the case with the first destination on our intrepid travels, known in these parts simply as The Cape. For those not in the know its full name is Cape York, the triangular pointy bit on Australia’s north-east corner. It’s a pretty big place, but as nobody really lives there ... read more

We left Port Douglas full of high expectations and bravado and we have not been disappointed - although the bravado did disappear somewhat at our first challenging creek crossing on the OTL (local buzz term for the Overland Telegraph Line). Before reaching the start of the OTL, we bush camped at a few spots. The first was just inside the Lakefield National Park at Six Mile Lagoon - a very pretty lily covered lagoon with abundant bird life including the very shy, Jabirus. We had the whole place to ourselves. It was here that a big dose of bush camping reality set in with a thud - no toilets (apart from our shovel and a toilet roll), no showers & no running water and with temperatures of 28-29 degrees & 90 % humidity this was not ... read more