Advertisement
We left Cobbold Gorge and headed north west to the Undara Lava tubes. It never ceases to amaze us that we run into so many road works even here away from the city! We arrived at Georgetown and stopped for lunch and a few supplies.
The lava tubes was a great camp spot. The amenities were excellent and we camped side by side and enjoyed a great fire at night. It is quite cold at night and the wind had picked up so we were glad of some extra warmth. We had an owl staying in the tree right outside the tent and the kids loved watching him during the day and at night he took off right over Gavins head! We also had a visit from a little Batong (a small pottaroo) on the first night. It was soooo cute - it looked like a big spinifex mouse!
The first day at the tubes we took the kids for a walk to The kalkani crater. This large crater is dormant volcano. The walk circled around the top of the volcano. It provided some interesting information about the area on the way and some really beautiful views. We were
surprised how many old inactive volcanos there are in the area and you could see them dotted along the horizon. After lunch we went for another walk to a ocal lookout. The kids are doing really well with all the walking we have been doing. This walk was a 3.5km round trip and they walked it no worries. When we got back Gav took them to the swimming pool for a well deserved swim. Boy did they sleep well that night - in fact every night the kids are soooo exhausted that they gladly fall in to bed and we don't see them again before 7.00 in the morning. One morning Luke didn't surface until we woke him at 8.00!!
Day two at the tubes we did the early morning lava tube tour. The kids absolutely loved going into the big caves and they really are a sight to behold. The beautiful colours on the walls of some of the caves were really pretty. Luke got abit scared when the guide turned off her torch to show us how dark the caves are but all the kids (and grown ups) really enjoyed this day.
Next day we packed
Kalkani crater view
I included this stick photo just for you Darren!! ( inside joke, he will know what I mean)up and headed for the coast! After a week and a half inland we were hoping the rain had gone and were looking forward to seeing the each again!
Well, the best laid plans don't always eventuate. Originally we were heading to Innisfail to go down to Tully to do some white water rafting however, none of us were really that keen. ( the water is bloody freezing!), so we decided to head to a little spot that mum found in the free camp book called Granite Gorge.
As we pulled into this place we weren't too sure about it. It looked abit scary to be honest! We are so glad that mum picked this spot - it was just gorgeous! I would definitely recommend this hidden away spot to anyone, the caretakers couldn't do enough for the guests and the scenery was beautiful.
We got one powered site and one non powered so we could charge batteries and things. There was the resident turkey who spent the whole time following the female around displaying his tail and "gobbling" to try to entice her - quite a funny site to see! There were lizards, parrots and even
a talking cockatoo. The highlight though was the rock wallabies that the kids could hand feed and the gorge itself was spectacular!
We took the kids for a walk through the gorge. This involved a lot of rock climbing and I have to take my hat off to Mum, with some help from Gav, she made it through all the rock climbing with no worries!
That evening we headed down to the rocks overlooking the gorge and watched the sunset with wine, beer, biscuits and cheese. It was a beautiful sunset in a beautiful place.
While we were there we took a run into Mareeba. It's not a bad little town, bigger than I thought.
We left Granite Gorge and began our way back to the coast. We headed out through Kuranda and stopped off for a look and a wander around the town. It's a pretty little town right in the rainforest. From here we planned to cut through a 4wd track called Black Mountain track. We approached the start of this track to be faced with a road closed sign, so it was with great excitement that we completely ignored it and kept going!
We didn't get very far when we came face to face with a massive semi trailer totally blocking the track. Long story short - the bridge had collapsed and we couldn't get through. Bugger! We were all looking forward to this track but the trip down the mountain via the main road still provided some great views over the coast.
So, we are now staying approx 40 kms north of Port Douglas. Staying here for four nights. We have a beautiful spot 50 metres from the beach. We have just enjoyed a big feed of meatballs and are about to head over to watch the state of origin - go the maroons!!
Thanks to all those who have posted comments, we love to hear your feedback. Miss you all lots to. We will be in touch soon.
PS Don't forget to scroll right down to the bottom of the page - there are more photos!
Advertisement
Tot: 0.194s; Tpl: 0.012s; cc: 6; qc: 46; dbt: 0.1492s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb
jacqui willis
non-member comment
Im sooo jealous, looks lovely sounds like you are all enjoying it