The drive out to Wiepa was interesting, lots of dirt and water. We were very lucky to get the last two sites on the campground, with caravans arriving as we booked. It was a bit packed and not what we like but there are no free camps in this area. We were put right next to two permanent caravans, one was friendly and the other we knew he/she was in but did not see anyone for the duration. I understand that for some people it is all they can afford but I certainly could not do it, using public facilities every day and having people coming and going all the time.

We tried to book to go out for a meal but everywhere was full. So we decided that the “restaurant” at the campsite had good reviews and it was served on first come first served and if all tables are full we would just bring it back to the vans. There were tables out all over the grass overlooking the beach and you made your order at the hatch. So once we were all settled in and Jock, Scott and I had had a quick drive around to see what was about we headed over to the tables and luckily got one. By the way, the little drive about we took, it was definitely little, Wiepa is far smaller than I had expected. We ordered our meals and I have to say the reviews were spot on everything was very nice. As it got dark the lights came on, it looked really nice with them strung between trees, just those string of clear bulbs but very effective. We saw the sunset, had an ice cream for desert and headed to bed.

The next day Jock and Scott went for a fish, unfortunately did not catch anything, its the same story all over, wrong time of year! We looked into fishing trips but once again all booked up. There was a beach he was told to go out to but it was a fair drive and he was not in the mood to go. We went to the shops and posted a couple of cards and had another little drive about but no, we could not find anything else to see in Wiepa. We are glad we drove out there but we all said it is somewhere we don’t ever need to go back to.

Next morning we packed up and headed for Bramwell Station to pick up the caravans. Good job we did not need any fuel at Bramwell as the traffic was backed up from the service station out the gate and up the road out of sight. Apparently they had run out of fuel and more was on its way. We got in to our van to an awful smell, I knew what it was straight away and stepped straight back out of the van. I told Jock I was sorry but I would leave him to that! The fridge had failed, the batteries had failed so all contents of the fridge and freezer had to be bagged and binned and a quick clean of both fridge and freezer. YUK! Luckily there was not too much in there. We grabbed a bite to eat and got back on the track.

Next stop was Archer River, you may remember we stayed there on the way up and had said another stop was a must as Michelle, Emma and I wanted to have a dip in the river because when we passed it last time it looked so inviting. Once we were set up we headed over to the river and got in, it was so nice a great way to cool down and the water was so clear.

There were two girls playing near to us, they were taking it in turns to ride the “rapids” on a big tube. After about the third round one of the girls came up to us and said there was a croc!!!!! OMG I stood up so fast and was about to get out. Michelle asked, is it a freshie, yes it was a freshie and it was hiding in the side of the river bank. Oh thats ok then!!!!! Really??? Michelle convinced me we were ok, so we headed over to take a look. The girls parents were by now over there taking photos, I climbed back up on the bank and looked over but couldn’t quite see it. It’s better viewed from the water the father exclaimed………..yeh right!!! I stayed put, Michelle and Jock got in for a look and to get photos. Fresh water crocodiles are somewhat smaller than salt water crocs and they do not attack unless you corner them or aggrivate them. So leave them alone and they will leave you alone. We took our photos and then went back to enjoying the water but to honest I could not fully relax knowing he was so close by.

We left our mate the freshie to his water hole and headed back over to the campsite ready for a fire. Not as many campers here this time so we were not all crammed in. We had our generator going for a while to top up the batteries, they are playing up terribly. It wasnt long before we smelt a terrible smell, Scott reckoned it was coming from our van. We sniffed, smelt an awful off egg smell but could not work out what it was. Our neighbour came over and said our batteries were frying, they were over heating!! So, that’s it the batteries are buggered. A bit of a pain when it comes to the fridge in the van, thank goodness we have a fridge in the back of the car. Until we can get the batteries sorted we really need to be on campsites with power which is a bit of a pain as we like free camps.

Once again the roads were terrible and definitely getting worse, we had made the right decision coming up a bit earlier with all the traffic that is about. By the time we got off the barge it was not long before we saw the sign for Fruit bat Falls, Michelle had also found an overnight stop for us just about 10k up the road from the falls. So we had asked Scott if he wanted to go to the falls, he didn’t, so we parked up at the entrance to the road and Scott stayed in the car with the dogs. We jumped in the car with Michelle and Trevor as this is one of those places that does not allow dogs. The falls were not far down the track and after we had parked up we walked the short walk out to them, Wow! They looked just lovely and people were in swimming so we decided we were definitely getting in too. We had worn our swim suits here just in case. Emma and I were put off a little as Jock spotted a snake, it was swimming along the edge of the rocks. Trevor kept an eye on it as we got in, he said it was busy hunting the falls banks. I was also aware that there were most probably fresh water crocs in there too but the water was so clear surely I would see one if there were! I was being very brave!!

Who could resist that hey? The water was cool but not cold we easily walked into it, getting out would prove harder. Michelle, Emma and I got in first and swam over to the falls themselves. Jock followed and Trevor finally gave in and got wet too. What a beautiful place, thank goodness the fellah at the campsite told us about them. The men were first out of the water, us girls just wanted to stay there and we did for as long as we possibly could. I reckon this was one of the highlights of our trip.

Alas all too soon we had to leave with plan of maybe coming back in the morning. But first I had to get out of the water!!! You know I can’t kneel, well it was some job getting out. Michelle, Jock and Trevor got me out eventually, how? Well lets just say, “what happened at fruitbat falls, stays at fruitbat falls”. Would I do it again? Hell yea! Our camp for the night was just up the road in a gravel pit. We were soon set up and sat by the fire talking about our adventurous day. Emma and I had smors, a flame grilled marshmallow squished between two chocolate biscuits, yum. All of us were very tired and crawled in to bed early ready for another day on the road tomorrow.

We got up early and packed everything into or onto the car and started up to the tip of Cape York, it is the most northerly point of Australia. The plan is to go to the tip then start back down to pick up our vans at Bramwell Station. The track out to the tip was not bad at all, through rainforest and a couple of water crossings but that just adds to the fun.

The drive out to the tip really was not too far and luckily we got there when it was just on low tide which enabled us to walk some of the way on the beach before a climb over the rocks. It was just beautiful up there we took a little time looking at our surroundings and taking photos. As we started the climb up the rocks I was thinking, no way am I going to be able to do this, I actually gave Jock my camera and said I would wait where I was.

Michelle and Scott walked ahead and came back and told me its not too much further and encouraged me to do it. I am glad they did although not too much further was fine but the rocks between and steep parts were not! Scott let me hold on to his shoulders which helped my back no end as I could lean forward to alleviate the pain. The Dream team got me there, everyone helping and encouraging. We had to wait for photos as we were there with a large group, I didn’t mind as I could get my breath back and sat on a rock for a while. Michelle and I attempted live facebook but I don’t think it worked very well we could not see the screen for the glare. But there we were at the tip, the whole point of our trip and the dream team stood proudly with their t-shirts on and had our photo taken.

We had a sit on the rocks and watched others arrive and take photos, we are glad we did as we witnessed a proposal and one young man chucking a moonie next to the sign. We all had a laugh and he quickly pulled up his daks. Now it was time to negotiate the rocks back down to the beach! Of course by now I was in terrible pain but had to get back to the car. Scott once again helped me a lot and before we reached the bottom of the rocks Jock made his way back to the car and drove it over the beach to the rocks. I was so pleased I managed it but oh so pleased I was once again sat in the car. On the way back to the Bamaga we saw The Croc Tent famous for it’s souvenirs, Jock and I went in but it was packed I was soon out of there. We did manage to buy a couple of croc. t-shirts for the boys.

Once back in Bamaga we started back towards the barge over the Jardine river. As we left Bamaga we saw lots of the wild horses that roam these parts. Some are in a good state but the odd one looks terrible but so many of them. We were told by someone we had camped by that we should visit Fruitbat falls on our way back to Bramwell Station, so now we were on the lookout for the sign for the falls.

Thank goodness we left the vans! The roads were terrible, the worst we had come across yet and with the amount of traffic I am sure they will be worse on our way back down. Some corrugations were so big we really did have to slow down for them, normally we ride on top of them but no way could you do that with these. On occasion we used the dirt at the side of the main road as it was nice and smooth. We still encountered the idiots that think once you hit the dirt its a race and how they can see whats coming in among our dust I don’t know. We had been told it was a long wait to get across the river on the barge but I reckon we only waited about 20 minutes, once over we only had about another 50km to go to get to Bamaga. The roads were just as bad this side although it was not too long before we were on some bitumen.

We had planned to stay in Bamaga but when we got there, well, it was not what we were expecting!! Don’t really know what we were expecting really but certainly thought it would be bigger than it was. No sooner we were in Bamaga we had come out the other side. We all decided we would continue on and go see what Seisia was like, we had had lots of people telling us to go and stay there as it was lovely. We drove towards the Jetty and as we pulled in to the car park there we all just said, “Wow”. It was stunning, a lovely wide beach that went for miles and an island in view. We saw some people camping at the back of the beach but could not see how they got there as there were bollards stopping cars from entering. Jock went and asked one of the campers and we went about booking a site. Set up didn’t take long and we got the perfect spot at the beach with a covered table area that we could use, perfect. As we sat there looking out to the sea and all the scenery we could not believe our luck a few days here would be just the ticket.

We spent three glorious days at Seisia, Jock mostly fished, not much was being caught as it is not the right time of year. Emma went over with Jock a few times, all Jock was catching was bait fish which he used to try to catch the bigger fish. There was only one decent fish caught there in the time we stayed and it was not Jock that caught it! The pier got closed for 24 hrs as ship came in and was offloading supplies and reloading. We sat watching the whole process, it was quite interesting and surprising just how long it takes to unload and reload.

Our no caravan set up worked well for us, we have our awning tent with stretchers and our toilet tent for me. Now I know we will be just fine when we go on our Canning Stock Route trip without our caravan. When ever that may be? We have heard that Covid is spreading in Victoria again and NSW. I am glad we are up here away from it all, we are being careful with washing hands and keeping to ourselves.

We all had a great rest here actually we were sad to leave. Lovely views, lovely people and thankfully for me me cool nights. The sunsets were fantastic I will try to pick out my favorite pictures but there are so many you couldnt help but keep clicking as the colours changed. Tomorrow we will be going to the tip, so looking forward to that and then heading back towards Bramwell Station to pick up the vans.

Lots of very bad big corrugations and dips in the road saw us arrive at Bramwell Roadhouse before the crowds. We had pick of a site, we pulled up right by a huge termite mound and a little covered area for Scott to put his swag under. It started to rain but was short lived and to be honest it was lovely having it on our skin cooling us down. I am so glad it cools down at night I can handle the heat if I can get a comfortable night. The roadhouse actually does an alright coffee, all my coffee’s so far have been pretty shit I wish I had brought my machine along with me. On our way here we drove through a little fire at the side of the road, there is a lot of burning off going on around here.

Oh dear, not sure it was such a good idea to pull up by the termite mound as there are so many kids that want to come and get a picture by it and with the kids come the parents. Oh well, surely by dinner time they will have all been over for a visit! It was lovely to sit by a fire again and know that we were not moving the next day. Tomorrow we will pull everything out of the car and repack ready to be using our tent as we are leaving the caravans here, everything has to be re-organised. Once the re-organisation was finished we all relaxed for the rest of the day looking forward to some more adventure on our way up to the tip.

We dropped the vans off at the storage area first thing in the morning. We decided to leave the vans for the rest of the trip up to the tip on advice from other travelers who have said the roads get very bad as we get higher up and corrugations get bigger. We feel this is the best option for us so as not to completely wreck our vans. Also, we have decided this a great opportunity for us to try out our tents etc in preparation for our trip on The Canning Stock route which will hopefully happen next year dependent on Covid.

Our destination today is Coen we took the road through Mareeba and stopped off at Coffee works for a cuppa and lunch. The dogs were able to come with us to Coffee works as they have tables at the front with dog beds and water, my kind of people. The dogs all loved the attention they got from the passers by. Michelle and I went in and had a look around, lots of lovely mugs and all at good prices, of course I bought myself one. They sold all sorts of coffees and coffee liqueurs, the liqueurs were a bit too exy. We did get to taste them, the young waitress brought us over a taste of all of them.

We did not quite make Coen, we stopped at Lakeland opposite the pub, it had been a very long day and we all went to bed early. We have hit dirt tracks and the corrugations are really bad which we were expecting but still it shakes you about a bit and makes for a tiring drive for Jock. We pulled in to the Hahn River Roadhouse for a break, here they have a resident Emu called Aussy. There is a warning for the campers that he likes to pinch shoes left outside caravans. Jock got stories of a man catching lots of fish here so we will be coming back to stay on our way back down

Archer River Roadhouse

The road went between tarmac and dirt, there were lots of picturesque creeks to cross, some with a fair bit of water on the road and others with a trickle but still it was a bumpy ride. Our stop for the night was at Archer River Roadhouse, we got there a little late but still managed to get a good site down the bottom away from the crowds. We kept smelling this awful smell and could not work it out, we had the generator on trying to charge the batteries in the van they have been playing up. It was a while until Jock realised it was actually the batteries themselves causing the smell, they were bubbling. Thats all we need in this heat, no battery power going to the fridge and freezer. This was just an overnighter for us our aim is to get up to the tip as soon as we can and do anything else on our way back down.

On our way out the next morning we saw people swimming in the river, some of the waterways here are safe to swim in, others not. So we all decided this had to be a stop on our way back down so we could relax in the river. But for today we were heading for Bramwell Roadhouse.

After Innot springs we made our way to Cairns to the free camp in Gordontown it is just next to Edmonton the suburb that Carol lives in. It is probably the best free camp we have ever been to, lots of facilities including showers. The drive to Cairns was great through the cain fields all the flowers were on top of the cain and the sun made it look all silvery. Looking out to the hills we could see some spectacular waterfalls in the distance.

The first night we were invited to Carols for dinner, we met her family and had a good evening. We planned to go out for a meal the next night at an italian restaurant in Cairns itself, we would go and pick up Emma first from her flight from Toowoomba as school holidays have begun. Emma arrived without a hitch and we headed straight to the restaurant to meet the others. Scott stayed back at camp to mind the dogs for us. The meal was absolutely lovely but unfortunately we had to wait a long time for the table that we had booked. Emma and I snuck off from the table after our meal and headed to cold rock for a sneaky icecream.

Next day we booked into a campsite in Edmonton to enable us to do some washing and go about town for a few errands. The campsite was ok but being used to free camping we find it very squashed in these paid sites. We ran about town, did all we needed to do and caught up on all our washing. The last day there I woke up with a terrible bought of vertigo, so bad I asked Jock to take me to the hospital. I have had vertigo twice before and the last lot took 8 weeks to clear up properly. I had blood tests, ECG, brain scan to rule out stroke and it was my urine test that showed I had a urine infection. Thank goodness for that, easily sorted with antibiotics and stemtil until the vertigo cleared. We all had had visions of being in Cairns for a long time.

The next day I was ok and ready to set off, we were all hyped up to start out on our adventure up Cape York.

The first thing that comes to mind when I think of Innot Springs is lazing in the pools with Janice and Geoff on our trip here with them. There really wasn’t much to see on the road today, a couple of little townships but nothing exciting. We got to Innot Springs camp ground about 3pm. We have great sites close to everything, the hot stream is just across from us, we are right next to the amenities block and right next to the hot spring pools. We decided we would have dinner and then go to the pools in the evening before bed. That was to be a great idea, not many people in the pools and a great nights sleep after soaking in the hot water. We chatted in the evening about having an explore the next day out and around Atherton. No fire tonight, we could have had one down by the stream but decided on the pools instead.

Atherton Tablelands

Next morning we were up and out and on our way to Atherton. Trevor took the lead, the drive there was lovely and we past through so much scenery and all so green. Lovely rain forests and quaint towns. Jock had asked for us to visit the Avenue of honor but first we stopped in Atherton to have a look around, first of all taking in the Chrystal Caves. I bought myself some Garnet earrings, there was a ring I liked but thought I would get the use out of the earrings. We got back to the car to find a note on our windscreen, it said someone had hit our car and they had seen it and got a picture of that car for us if we ring and give them our mobile number. Jock went up to the police station and Scott and I waited in the car. Before Jock could get to the police Scott was ringing him to tell him someone else had hit us in the exact same place!! Unbelievable. Conclusion, people in Atherton are shit drivers. We were certainly eagre to leave the town. We headed out to the Avenue of Honor, we had been there before too but Michelle and Trevor had not. It really is in a lovely spot, absolutely perfect.

We all sat and reflected on the peoples names on the plaques and the thoughts/poems written on other ones around the Rosemary bushes. It is a place I am glad not to have any name I know written on a plaque but I certainly felt for the Wives/parents/mothers/sisters/brothers of the names I did read.

We drove out to Lake Barrine, Michelle showed us the lake and walk through the rain forest, it was all so picturesque. There were fish in the lake but no fishing allowed. A few people were swimming in there, not something I fancied.

Our next stop I have forgotten the name of but as soon as I saw it I remember bringing the boys here many years ago in 1992. All the driving around here and the stops we made are well worth a visit, so much to see and the scenery is brilliant.

Milla Milla falls was our last stop for the day and although I have been here twice before I still love these falls. Scotts last visit here was again back in 1992, he sort of remembered them! Our drive back to camp was again scenic and we made a little stop off in Ravenshoe for a meal at the local hotel/pub. Their pub is the highest pub in Queensland and we were told we would get a good feed there and we did, it was lovely and very friendly and welcoming of us and the dogs. We even got ourselves a fire going in the area out the back.

This really had been a great day and we were all too tired to go to the pools. Oh well there is always tomorrow.

Michelle and I had a morning in town (Ravenshoe) by ourselves just to look about the very few shops they have. We enjoyed a leisurely coffee and a look around the gift shop before doing the grocery shopping. I visited the bakery before we left to pick something up for Jock, god forbid if I tell him there was a bakery and not take anything back! After lunch Jock played crib with Trevor and Michelle and I sat chatting. I got a message from Julia and Harvey who were also on the road asking where were we as they had just left Ravenshoe!!!!!!! I sent a message back quickly and said turn around and they did. We have not seen Julia and Harvey for over 15 years and here they were just up the road to us. They booked in to our camp site and we spent a lovely afternoon and evening catching up. It really was good to see them.

On leaving our free camp we were looking for our next spot to stop after we had visited Croydon. We had been told there was lots of history to Croydon and well worth a stop. They had a whole street area called Historical Croydon it was lovely, so much to see and so much to read. Boy was it hot 31 degrees when we got out of the car and rising. We took some time to wander around the sights and go to the information centre. Took so many photos here, some to read later as it was too hot to stand about reading.

I don’t know how long we were there for but I know it was some time. The town has done a great job for us tourist to come and see and of course to keep their history alive. By now it was lunch time so we saw a sign for a dam a couple of K’s back so we headed there to have lunch by the dam. It was lovely but bloody hot! Luckily there was a little breeze so we sat in their picnic shelter and took in the scenery. On our way back down the hill we could see Croydon in the distance and stopped for a photo at the top of the hill.

There are so many little towns we have come across like this in the middle on no where. I wonder really what work there is for them, what do the teens do entertainment/jobs. This was one of the most tidy towns we had come across in the outback.

Cumberland

We had read about a free camp that we would pass by, it is on the site of an old mining town, a chimney had been left there to commemorate the town. We decided it would be point of interest and a chance to check out how good the free camp was for future reference. We didn’t want to stay there this time as we wanted a few more K’s under our belt today before we stopped. As it was Cumberland was lovely but all good spaces already filled. It is the site of an old mining town and the chimney has been left to commemorate the town.

We drove on further down the road and finally stopped for the night at Einasleigh River Bridge a free stop just off the main road. The fire was set we had dinner, fire and an early night ready to head for Innot Springs in the morning. At my request we will be staying at Innot Springs for at least two nights, I love the springs there and want to make good use of them.