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Published: August 5th 2022
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Joseph Banks Journal - June 1770 10th June - but scarce were we warm in our beds when we were called up with the alarming news .... the ship being fast ashore upon a rock.
11th June - she leaked so fast that with all our pumps we could just keep her free... Fear of Death now stared us in the face.
12th June - at night came to an anchor...the fother keeping her almost clear...so that we were in an instant raised from almost despondency to the greatest hopes.
13th June - In the morn we weighed with a fine breeze of wind and steered along ashore among innumerable shoals...nothing was met with which could possibly suit our situation. The Pinnace that had gone far ahead was not returned, nor did she till nine o'çlock, when she reported that she had found just the place we wanted.
14th June - The Captain and myself went ashore to view the harbour and found it indeed beyond our most sanguine wishes: it was the mouth of a river.
We were receiving mixed reviews from fellow travellers about staying at Cooktown, but clearly they missed
the historical memo. We loved out stay in this northern Queensland town where Captain Cook and his crew nearly came to grief on the shoals of the Great Barrier Reef. The Council have done a great job not only preserving the history of Cook, but also preserving the pre colonial history of the local indigenous people. All along the foreshore of the harbour are signs detailing where and how key events unfolded.
We enjoyed the best fish and chips of our travels thus far (even better than Karumba), down at the wharf and met up with some friends that had stayed near us previously at Ravenshoe. We drove up to Grassy Head, where Cook and Banks had surveyed how they were going to sail out of the harbour, and navigate through the innumerable shoals. They despaired of their view and the prevailing south easterly winds, which could drive them once again onto the reef.
We walked through the Botanical Gardens, which contains an outstanding display of botanical specimens similar to that collected by Banks and Solander to take back to England, and then walked down to Finch Bay. We started to walk down to Cherry Tree Bay, but
decided to turn back after sighting a brown snake along the walking track. It seems there is no hibernation period up here in the north.
We drove out to Keatings Lagoon, where there had been a recent saltwater crocodile sighting, and then on to Black Mountain. Black Mountain is a unique series of mountains made up of huge boulders of grey granite, which they say groans due to the stress on the lower rocks. From there we drove to the historic Lions Den Inn, which dates back to the 1880's. The Inn looked more outback authentic than the Walkabout Creek Hotel of Crocodile Dundee fame.
The day was hot and steamy, and so we decided to check out the nearest waterfall, which was Home Rule Falls. We hiked 2 kms through a steep rainforest path, that opened out on to a magnificent waterfall. I had checked with the owner of the property that the falls were located on, to make sure there were no crocs up that high in the river. His reply was that crocs are like politicians - fat and lazy and they don't like to move too far for their next feed. I was still
a bit nervous as I swam in the falls, but it was refreshing.
That night we lined up for our third time of fish and chips at the wharf. I let the owner know that it was the best.
Cooktown is definitely worth the journey north.
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