Cape York

Well, it is time to reflect on our nine days touring the Cape York Peninsular, all the way from Cairns to the The Tip, Thursday and Horn Islands and back to Cairns. Sitting under the shade of my awning with a cooling breeze wafting through the palm trees, with a strong black espresso trying to stimulate some brain cells and memory, I am struggling to make a start. Luckily Jenny has kept notes and also posted regular updates on her Travelling Langs Facebook group, so I have a, what do you call it these days… a “scaffold” to structure this blog post. (You can probably tell it is a bit of a struggle!)

Day One was a very early, pre-dawn start – something a bit unusual for me. I tend to get my mind into gear around midnight, though it has a very short window of activity. There was the faintest glimmer of sun as we moved our vehicles into a storage area for safe-keeping while we were away on tour. Eventually our tour vehicle arrived to pick us up, driven by an enthusiastic and voluble Lawrence, or “Loz” as he liked to be called. Such enthusiasm has no place in human engagement until at least midday. We went on to pick up another couple for our vehicle, and then connect with another 4WD, so that our total group had 12 passengers plus the two drivers/guides. The other driver was Darryl, or as he preferred, “Barnsey.” Loz has just resumed work from a year or two off brought about by treatment for kidney disease, including a kidney transplant. This seems to have kick-started his love of life and we all appreciated his zeal and his passion for this part of the world.

Barnsey was Loz on steroids. He was born and raised in this part of the world, and his encyclopaedic knowledge covered local history, Indigenous culture (he has Aboriginal heritage), flora and fauna, and bush tucker. Barnsey knew tracks and off the beat spots that few people know of, and we gained a lot in have this knowledge in our group.

The trucks were 79 series Landcruisers, built with an eye to functionality rather than comfort, so the prize seat was the front passenger seat. The Landcruiser was ideal for traversing this part of Australia, as there was some pretty rugged country, with many river and creek crossings.

Our travelling companions in our truck were a Gold Coast couple, though they had spent many years in Canberra, and seemed to have some mutual acquaintances in the educational field – with Jenny at least. Clive and Jeanene were the type of folk who seem to have been most places in the world, and done most things, and were never stuck for a story to share, even when the relevance to the rest of us was a bit oblique. Jeanene was also the type who was general a bit late in getting to things, or startling us with exclamations such as “I think I left my phone in the toilet!” necessitating a quick trip back to the roadside loo. Another one was “Stop the truck, I need to pee!” Despite this we all got on pretty well, though Anne is quietly cussing that Jeanene seems to have passed on a cold.

The first part of the trip was the southern part of the peninsular, first to Daintree and on to Cape Tribulation where we stayed our first night. Cape Trib had very comfortable lodges set discreetly among the lush tropical forest, and this spoilt us for the remainder of the trip. Daintree crossing was much as we visited it some 45 years ago. Things have been upgraded a bit with sealed roads and a range of craft cruise the river banks in search of crocodiles. We saw several crocs on our cruise, though none of the bigger ones we were warned about.

Cape Trib to Cooktown was along the Bloomfield Track which was of variable quality with many river crossings, but our drivers took many opportunities to divert up minor tracks in search of crocodiles, birds and various flora. Weary Beach was remote and spectacular. Eventually we arrived at Cooktown, checked out the local museum and the AFL at the local RSL. By chance it was Cats (my team) and Tigers (John’s team) with the Cats coming from behind to pull off a miracle win in a tight game.

We had to be up early for the drive to Coen via Battlecamp Road, Lakefield Road and eventually along the PDR (Peninsular Development Road.) Battlecamp and Lakefield were isolated, and we did not see any other vehicles along these long stretches. Perhaps people are put off by the ritual of having to open and close gates. One of the highlights was the old and deserted Laura Homestead with the original home and outbuildings in very good condition, probably because they were built with the local and virtually indestructible ironwood timber. Not far along from Old Laura, we came across some beautiful wetlands and brolga dancing trying to impress their friends. It was a long drive of over 400 kilometres to get to Coen, but we seemed to pack in an awful lot with many pauses along the way. Coen is, well… struggling for a description. Let’s just say it is a small hamlet with a pub (The Sexchange Inn), a couple of stores, a guesthouse where we stayed for the night for the opportunity of testing their lumpy mattresses. It was State of Origin Night and the locals were assembled in the pub to watch the game. No doubt they were all disappointed as NSW overcame expectations and won the game.

In yet another early start, we headed off the next day for Lockhart River, an Aboriginal township on the Eastern side of the Cape. From Coen, it was North along the PDR, then Northeast along Portland Road and back to the coast. The PDR had long sections of bitumen and some more under construction, but the rest of the way was dirt, (but good dirt!) numerous creek and river crossings as we drove into the higher country of the Iron Range, then back down to coastal rainforest. It is stunningly beautiful countryside, and for me, I think this was the most memorable part of our journey. We stayed at a small retreat called The Greenhoose, a collection of dongas and converted shipping containers. As you can imagine, there was not a lot of room, but the environment made it worthwhile. The retreat is favoured by bird lovers and butterfly collectors and it was not unusual to see middle aged men leaping along brandishing a long pole with a net to catch a new specimen. It was most restful to walk through the rainforest with the air as damp as the earth and every sense alive to the sounds, smells and sights of the forest.

There was a little bit to see at Lockhart, but the highlight was the gallery where Indigenous artists learn their craft. The artists have attracted a lot of attention and produced some wonderful art. Aunty Irene was sprawled on a table on a huge painting she was creating. It was the only way she could reach the centre of the piece. It looked pretty ordinary – just splotches of pale green and a light mauve. But her style is to create a series of layers, building the image which would eventually represent the rainforest with light peaking through the canopy. She showed us some finished pieces which were extraordinary – and which sell for great sums of money. Irene’s daughter is Rosella Namok who has received acclaim with her art exhibited in major galleries around the world.

From Lockhart on the East coast, we headed West for Weipa, the largest town on Cape York Peninsular. It was just an overnight stay as we then headed North along the Telegraph Road for The Tip. The Jardine River has a small ferry that takes vehicles across. It is a very successful enterprise as the cost for a car for the 30 second journey is $120 – and there a lot of cars needing the service. I guess the success of the ferry is one of the reasons the local council is unlikely to build a bridge. Once over the Jardine, and through the village of Bamaga we stayed at a beachside campsite at Loyalty Beach, a very beautiful location with views into the gulf and across to Prince of Wales Island, Horn Island and a sliver of Thursday Island between PoW and Horn. It was just a 15 kilometre drive to the Tip from where we walked along a beach, scrambled over some rocks to reach the landmark top of mainland Australia. It was great to celebrate the moment – even if only for a few moments, as there were quite a few others waiting for their special moment as well.

Saturday was the last of our nine-day Cape York tour. We took the ferry across to Thursday Island, had a brief tour (which is just about all you need, as there is not much there), another ferry across to Horn Island from where our flight would take us back to Cairns.

There are a few negatives on a trip such as this. For one, in a 7-seater Landcruiser, you only get a proper view from the front seat, the road can be a bit harsh when you are roaring along some severely corrugated road, and you are stuck with the same travelling companions for nine days. Fortunately, our fellow travellers were folk much like ourselves – intelligent, fit and remarkably good looking, and we all got along very well. But whatever negatives there were, were far outweighed by the good things – the experiences along the way, pausing many times to soak up the widely diverse environment and landscape and experience a part of the world where remoteness and isolation makes it so special.

Barnsey, the driver of the other vehicle had a deep personal knowledge of the whole area as well as of the Indigenous and European history. Barnsey had two narratives that unfolded as we went along, of the Kennedy expedition that ended in tragedy, and of the Jardine family who perpetrated horrific murders of Aboriginal people.

Since returning to Cairns we have pushed on to Port Douglas and from here we begin our journey South – and towards home. I am sorry this post is so long – there was a lot to cover, and there was not much opportunity to do much while travelling Cape York. I hope I have not lost my readers. I value you both very much.