Week 29, Monday 27 September – Sunday 3 October 2010

To Cape, or not to Cape, that was the question. We'd been debating whether or not we'd make the trip up to Cape York pretty much since the day we set off from Sydney. Our original plan had been to travel up there with MaznAlex, but they rather inconsiderately decided to get pregnant, so Cape York with Tin Fish was off*. Our back stop was to go with the Patrol Club who were going in August, but as we didn't actually make it to Queensland until the end of September, that too was tricky.

The ideal time to do Cape York seems to be August/September towards the end of the dry season, when the water in the numerous creek crossings has dropped a bit – still challenging, but less likely to be vehicle wrecking. October is normally fine too, but this year there was a general consensus that the wet season was coming early, and October may be leaving it a bit late. Especially for two Pommy girls on their own!

We were still debating whether or not to go as we left Cairns to head north to the Daintree and Cooktown, and had decided to talk to as many people as we could on route about it, and to keep an eye on the weather. Before leaving Cairns we did some chores, shopping, filling the gas cylinder and getting two new tyres for Priscilla in case we did opt to head up to the Cape (another $680, ouch!) While having the tyres fitted we popped into the Opposite Lock 4wd store next door and had a chat to the manager there. Like most people who've been to the Cape, he was more than happy to get his map out and share his experiences with us. He was of the view we'd have no trouble and should do it. We were edging closer...

That afternoon we did the coastal drive north and stopped at Ellis Beach for the night, a lovely little spot with palm trees fringing the beach, and lovely warm waters – my first swim in the ocean since Broome!



The next morning we continued north to the Daintree, taking the car ferry over the river, and exploring the area in Priscilla. Unfortunately the weather was pretty grey and moody, so we didn't get the best impression of the rainforests or the beaches here (note the name, we were a bit slow on the uptake about the “rain” part). We did see our first Cassowary though, a bizarre big bird, similar to an emu. Unlike the emu though, we've been told it can be very aggressive to humans! Next time we see one we might not be hassling it for photos quite so much!



We had a very, very wet night in the Daintree, totally soaked. The amount of rain made us wonder if the wet season had come early. Numerous locals though pointed out that the Daintree is a rainforest, and what did we expect?! Two guys with a ute and baby caravan came over to chat and said they were planning to head up to the Cape in mid-October, and they weren't worried about the weather conditions. The general Aussie consensus we were getting in the face of our procrastination about the Cape seemed to be “you'll would be fine, grow a pair why don't you?!”

That day we took the Bloomfield track up towards Cooktown. This used to be a hardier 4wd track, but despite the rain the creeks were pretty low, and the tough uphill climbs have been concreted, so it wasn't much of a challenge for Priscilla. Nice drive though, with a fantastic waterfall (Wujal Wujal) at the end – not the biggest we've seen, but incredibly powerful.



Just before you hit the bitumen road to head into Cooktown after the Bloomfield, there is a fantastic pub called the Lion's Den. Everyone seems to pass through on their way back from the Cape to write on the walls about their exploits. There's pleasant camping out the back so we decided to stop the night and have a few beers. We left the car to head into the pub at about 6.30pm, and returned about 9pm to be reminded of the old Thursday morning's at Glastonbury – having put the tent up in relative solitude, we found ourselves completely surrounded by tents and 4wds (ok, not so many 4wds at Glasto!) A large group from Brisbane had just made their way back down from the Cape and had set up around us in the dark. They'd had a good trip, had all been down the famous Gunshot Creek, and seemed to think we'd have no troubles up there.... More encouragement for Claire. Jen and Priscilla I suspect were less enthused!

Jen was very happy though on two counts.

1. in Cairns we'd found a replacement pair of her favourite shoes, the Santa Cruz Crocs! Her first pair were actually a much, MUCH brighter green. Can you guess which ones are the new ones???



2. we found the prettiest green tree frog in the shower block at the pub. Meet Jen's new best friend, later idenified as the Dainty Tree Frog:





On Thursday we headed to Cooktown where we'd decided we would make our final call on the Cape. We discussed the trip with the helpful chap in the Visitor Information, who said we should be fine, but shouldn't leave it much longer. We decided to head off the next day. Cape York is one of “The” Australian 4wd trips, and the truth is I was desperate to do it. I think its fair to say that Jen wanted to do the trip, but was less willing to risk life and limb to do so.... But the idea of it was under my skin, so Jen raised her eyebrows and agreed and Priscilla sighed at the prospect of 2000 more kilometres of dirty corrugated roads and off we set. Me with a rather large grin!

We travelled about 700kms from Cooktown to Archer River on Friday, about half way up the Cape. The roads were generally fine, red dirt, some corrugations, but nothing too sinister. The worse part was the first section of dirt road immediately after Lakeland, which was rocky and unpleasant. Pretty surrounding landscape though, with forested hills dropping into the plains surrounding us in the distance, and plenty of banana plantations. We passed through Laura, opting not to stop for the aboriginal artwork on the basis we'd see it on the way back through. We were trying to get to the tip of the Cape where we knew we could get phone signal by Sunday night so we could try to get Glastonbury tickets online – nothing like a deadline to make a 4wd trek more interesting! So we passed through Laura, stopped for fuel at Hann River, drove by Musgrave Roadhouse without stopping, tried to fill up on fuel unsuccessfully at Coen (the shop had just closed!) before stopping the night at Archer River (where we had to pay an extra 30 cents per litre on the already expensive $1.50 per litre price at Coen!).

It was a pleasant camp spot, but there was some terrible screaming and bawling from the local aborigines down by the river that night – rather unsettling. We found out later that there had been a funeral so there was a large gathering for “sorry business”. Unfortunately fuelled by alcohol, it sounded more like Saturday night pub closing time on Vicar Lane in Leeds... Not ideal.

The next day we continued north on fairly good dirt roads passing the turn off west to the mining town of Weipa, stopping at Moreton Telegraph Station to use their loo (where Jennie managed to slam her finger in the car door somehow, resulting in some tears,a nasty swelling and blood) and onto Bramwell Junction where we stopped for fuel before starting on the Old Telegraph Track proper. This track is the 4wd enthusiast's bounty. It follows the path of (you guessed it) the old telegraph line which was put in during the 1880's, and linked (via a submarine cable) morse code communications between Thursday Island and Brisbane. Some of the old telegraph poles are still standing, although most have been bent over and pillaged by said 4wd enthusiasts for their ceramic caps.



First up of the many creek crossings was Palm Creek. We'd been warned by a number of people that this was actually the worst one on the track, and had met one couple who opted to take the longer, but far safer, bypass roads avoiding the creek crossings after seeing this first one, only a couple of kilometres in. Having heard of such horrors, we were pleasantly surprised to find a severely washed out, reasonably steep, but dry crossing. Jen guided and Priscilla clambered down the slope comfortably.



Next came the Ducie River, South and North Alice Creek and Dalhunty River crossings, all of which were fine. We were beginning to enjoy ourselves! Huge termite mounds here



and here's an telegraph pole that hasn't been pulled down!



Then Bertie Creek, which was really pretty. For this one we entered down a washed out sandy-bank, then hung a sharp right along the rocks with the creek flowing next to us on the left, crossing it about 20 meters further along. It was easy enough, though lots of potholes to watch out for, so Jen guided Priscilla across. Once again, pretty easy, not deep at all, and the water was crystal clear to see any obstacles (e.g. holes!)





Not long after we had a choice to make – carry on up to Gunshot Creek 12kms further on, or take the chicken route round through Heathlands Ranger Station. We decided we had to at least take a look at Gunshot to decide whether we could do it or not, so pushed on up the increasingly narrow and rough sandy track. By the time we reached Gunshot, we had little appetite for heading back down the rough track we'd been on to get there! We had the radio on scan, and heard a group chatting (two vehicles we'd seen earlier in the day who had gone around the chicken route and were approaching Gunshot from the north). We clapped our hands with glee – we were desperate to see someone else tackle Gunshot first. But it soon became clear they weren't planning on doing it themselves, but were more than happy to encourage us to so they'd have some sport to watch!

There are a number of different approaches to Gunshot, the worst a vertical 10 foot white muddy drop into a murky looking pool at the bottom. The easiest route is to the south, still a 10 foot drop, but not quite vertical, and with a muddy bath at the bottom rather than a deep pool! We checked it out, the mud was only ankle deep, and although steep, the descent was probably not much worse than some of the things we'd done with the Patrol Club. With the Aussie gang egging us on, we decided to give it a go. And this is what it looked like (enjoy the sympathetic Aussie commentary!)...





I should note that Jen contributed to Priscilla's success in negotiating this tricky little obstacle by pushing her hand hard against the ceiling to stop us from toppling over! Scary as anything (honestly, it looked a lot worse in real life than it does when on the video, certainly from inside the car!), but a hell of a rush once we'd done it!

Exhausted and in severe need of a beer, we decided to stop the night at Cockatoo Creek 10kms further up the track with the friendly Aussies who'd kindly talked us into Gunshot! We had our own little private spot near the flowing creek, very pretty. Jen fed our resident brush turkey and we drank a couple of cold ones before sleeping rather heavily that night.






Sunday morning we awoke early for the next section of the OTL track up the Jardine River. Crossing Cockatoo Creek was no problem, the water no more than tyre deep, but once again we had to watch out for rock holes and shelves. We passed Sheldon Lagoon, a bizarre patch of water in the middle of the red desert



before heading on to cross Sailor Creek via a small wooden bridge, and stopping for a swim at the really lovely Fruit Bat Falls. A great reward for some tricky driving!



A few kilometres further up the track are Elliot Falls and Indian Head Falls – again, both really lovely. Unfortunately we didn't have these to ourselves, so Fruit Bat remains our favourite!





Just north of these picturesque little stops is Canal Creek, which was probably the worse crossing we made. It had a rough, washed out approach, a potholed and rocky (though not deep) water crossing, and a steep, rough washed out exit! Jen guided Priscilla and I through, and we took a bit of time, but made it in and out without any dramas.

Then we crossed Sam/Turkey Creek, which was deeper, but fine (and very pretty).



Then we came to an escape route from the rest of the OTL. We'd been warned that the creek crossings north of here were very deep, in particular Nolan's Brook at the northern end. Priscilla's drive belt was already squealing whenever wet and we were a bit nervous about getting stuck on our own (we had hoped to team up with someone for the whole of the OTL track if truth be told, but the only people we saw heading north were the Aussies we met at Gunshot, and we just weren't on the same timetable). These factors coupled with a need to get to Seisia by 6pm to start the Glastonbury ticket frenzy made up our minds - we decided that the last section of the OTL track up to the Jardine would have to wait until our next trip..... Along with quite a few other attractions!

So we took the exit route off the OTL track back onto the Northern Bypass Road, and followed that up to the Jardine Ferry Crossing, where we paid our $90 to travel about 20 metres across the (at this point) shallow river. People still cross the Jardine up at the top of the OTL track, but it sounds totally bonkers – much deeper than at the ferry crossing (up to 1.4 metres deep), 140 metres wide, fast-flowing and inhabited by saltwater crocs! This alternative made the $90 ferry ticket money well spent!

At Seisia, we found a nice little camp-spot complete with beach hut and sink, and settled in for the Glastonbury rush... We had no luck at all getting through as the internet site crashed again and again.... Thankfully Harn Crumbley (yes, she is indeed crumbley in name as well as nature now) got through and got tickets for us, so it was all worthwhile! Thank you Harn!



More from the tip of Australia in our next instalment, love to all,
Claire, of Jen and Claire Fame

* This blog is dedicated to Lexi Annabelle Towns - welcome to the world! We hope you'll see the whole of this beautiful country one day as we have - preferably in a 4wd! Were it not for you though, young lady, we would have had your parents for some moral and physical support on this little jaunt - next time, you're coming with us! xx