With the Simpson Desert behind us, we were now heading North towards Cape York before the heat, humidity and rainy season really begin. Single same highways most of the way up.
Quick stop in Mt Isa to re-stock on food and drinks!
Interesting drive through the ghost town of Mary-Kathleen and what was left of the old uranium mine.
Stunning free camp that night in Clem-Walton Park, right by the river and far away from all the caravans :D
We've made it to Karumba, all we did here was sit in the pub haha!
The Queenslanders were all very excited about a sunset over the ocean.
Oopsie daisy, pretty sure we want the coolant IN the radiator not out.
This was on the road side somewhere between Karumba and Musgrave Roadhouse - in other words Woop-Woop. Quick repair with some metal putty which was somewhat difficult to do with no shade.
That night at Musgrave, keeping busy with the horses whilst contemplating our next move. Tried very hard to get here before 5pm to watch the crocs being fed but they didn't seem to that day :(.
We decided to detour 500km South to Cairns to get a new radiator!
Showered with rocks and we copped some damage the size of a 50 cent coin.
First views of Cairns as we came over the mountain. We were hopeful that the repairs wouldn't take long.
Five nights in this spot wasn't too bad!
A new guard knocked up by a local guy I'd met through fb, this should stop the same thing happening again.
Whilst waiting to get the new radiator we had some spare time - today we were sight seeing via Cessna!
Great Barrier Reef from above was spectacular! Managed to see a turtle and some fish too.
You know you've made it in life when you can fly your own helicopter to an island!
Also managed to capture the bloke in the background who made me feel very nauseous throughout the flight with the most pungent body odour I'd ever come across.
Car fixed, on the road again! Tonight Rox started practicing her ukulele again.
It was worth covering Rox in bull-dust for this shot!
Plenty of bush fires going on, never easy to tell up here if it's back burning or arson.
A few river crossings on the way down to the beach via rainforest.
Arrived at Chilli Beach, our camp for the next 2 nights - fortunately sheltered.
Beautiful morning for a stroll along the beach.
The wind was a constant 40 km/h whilst we were here, which apparently is a below average for this time of year!
Many hours spent relaxing here after the big drive up.
Risking it (not really) to wash off some of the sweat, stickiness and grime - croc country means not many chances for a swim! Instead we decided to do a walk to the creek which ended up being 6km away (12km return).
Channelling my inner monkey.
And the reward, a fresh coconut!
Time to leave Chilli Beach behind, heading back to the Peninsula Developmental Road (PDR) via the Frenchman Track. This was the entry into the Pascoe River, the photos just don't quite capture how gnarly this was.
Reasonably straight forward crossing followed by a steep, rocky exit.
We've made it to the start of the Old Telegraph Track!
First challenge, Palm Creek. This one did quite a bit of damage to the Pajero in front of us.
Barramundi for dinner, my new favourite fish!
The next morning we arrived at Gunshot Creek, this entry was a big fat "nope" for us. As you can see, its a vertical drop.
We found a less intense entry, but we found the creek to still be relatively deep.
A hilux that followed us through gunshot gave us a very dramatic exit out the other side.
Stopping for lunch at Cockatoo Creek, absolute bliss here.
Quick dip at Fruitbat Falls.
And another at Eliot and Twin Falls. Getting a bit chilly now with all this swimming! Which believe it or not was actually a very welcome feeling after the sweltering heat we've been in.
Canal creek was pretty low, so we were through quickly.
On to Sam Creek which had a spine tingling 'metal on rock' noisy entrance.
Cannibal Creek, another fun entry. 180 degree bend through the creek, with an exit providing plenty of wheel lifts.
Cypress Creek log bridge, had Roxc guiding the way.
Camped up at Logan's Ford for the evening.
Early in the morning, time to cross and continue North.
Final obstacle of the track, Nolan's Brook.
One of the more expensive ferries in Aus. $100 for the 40 metre journey!
Spent the arvo recharging our batteries at Seisia.
In the morning we had a cheeky visitor. This didn't stop Rox doing some of her morning workouts.
The DC-3 plane wreck, unfortunately not much left anymore as it appears to be slowly getting pinched by collectors.
On our way to the tip and we're back into rainforest.
The views on the 15 minute walk to the top.
A few detours along the way but we made it! Just about as far as we can get from Perth without leaving the country.
This entry's route. It's been a lot of driving but we finally reached the cape before the wet season. Now we can slow down as we make our way South along the coast.
As always, cya next time!
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