Author Archives: Dearne and Rod

It has been a lovely four days in Mt Isa but it is nearly time to move on.  The temperatures here range from 32 to 35 deg C during the day and dropping to a cool 25 deg C !! at night. It makes going for a leisurely stroll during the day quite a challenge. We did not see too many other people out walking.

Mt Isa Mine in the city limits

We ‘drove’ up to the town’s lookout yesterday and in viewing the town from above it was easy to understand how the high temperatures are achieved. The Isa looks as though it has been built in a crater i.e. the town is in a lowland area and is surrounded by a ring of hills. It is almost ‘mirage like’ as the lowland is very green from above but the surrounding hills are red.  There is usually a little bit of wind each morning but nothing from about midday through to the next morning. It is quite impressive really. A few more shots of Isa HERE .

There were not a lot of places in Isa that we could take the motorhome. Many of the major attractions are on unsealed and soft roads that are only accessible with a largish 4WD. While we saw what we could, there were lots of other places we wish we could have got out to.  We travelled out to as much as we could in the little jeep but one had to be very careful on the roads. Perhaps another time on another day.

On Saturday night we took ourselves off to the local sports club to watch the All Blacks vs Australia game. There are plenty of Kiwi’s who work in the mines in Isa so it was more like being at the Ponsonby Rugby Club than the Mt Isa Sports Club.  We ended up by having dinner at the Club after the game and were made to feel very welcome by the other Kiwi’s there.

Dearne wandering the underground hospital

We made a visit to the Mt Isa Underground Hospital this afternoon for no other reason than it is a ‘must do’ when in Isa.  History has it that the Japanese bombed  Darwin in February 1942. It was feared that because of the rich lead deposits in the Isa region, that Mt Isa could be the next target. With this in mind, the Mt Isa Hospital Board decided an underground hospital would be needed to handle any casualties.  Mt Isa miners built the underground tunnels for the hospital.  The job was completed quite quickly and had surgical, medical and maternity facilities.  The hospital is exactly the same today as it was in 1942. More photos’ of the hospital HERE .

We have had a change of plan in our journey from Mt Isa. Some of you will know that we had intended to take the Diamantina Developmental Road from Mt Isa to Boulia and then the Kennedy Developmental Road from Boulia to Winton. We knew the route was single lane and that it was tar sealed. We had also been told that the unsealed road on either side of the tar seal was hard. Unfortunately (or fortunately whichever way you look at it) we were advised yesterday that the unsealed road on either side of the seal is now soft and we may have a ‘spot of bother’ with the weight of our motorhome should we have to move off the seal onto the soft sides of the road for another vehicle to pass.

Some of the decisions we have had to make on our journey have been made easy for us. Road conditions, weather, timing, parking availability, “do we feel like driving” and ‘must see’ spots all play a role in our day to day decision making.  So based on the new information and on leaving Mt Isa, we will now retrace our steps on Flinders Highway back to Cloncurry, hook a right just west of Cloncurry onto the Matilda Highway to Winton, then onto Longreach on the Landsborough Matilda Highway. Where we will overnight on the way is anyone’s guess or whereto after Longreach is still unknown. We will keep you updated.

Our departure from Charters Towers on Tuesday was with some regret. We had settled well into ‘resort’ lifestyle but the journey had to continue. Dearne has had no problems with driving the motorhome and continued her stint right through into Mt Isa.

Our planned free stopover at Campaspe River Rest on Tuesday night turned into a non-event. The stop was directly between both a busy main highway and an equally busy main rail route i.e. lots of overnight noise would have been the go. To top it off, with the drought that the area is currently experiencing, the river was dry i.e. no yabbies. We had our lunch there and then decided to carry on west unsure of where our next stop would be.

Dearne considering her next one at the Prairie Hotel

After consulting our Camp 7 book we decided to try a little place called Prairie (population 290 at the last census), another 60km further along the Flinders Highway. The book said that the local hotel offered free parking to motorhomes and caravans directly behind the hotel.  When we rolled up at about 2pm the hotel was closed but a note on the window told us to park anywhere around the back. We did. Over the course of the next two hours another five vans filled the park and after introducing ourselves we all met at the bar on its’ opening at 4pm. Great little country pub, great hospitality and a very genial publican – cheers Tom. A few photo’s of our Prairie visit HERE .

Wednesday morning we were the last to leave the Prairie Hotel RV park. As we have said before on the blog, we are useless at getting up early – a wee lay in with a coffee and a catch up with the NZ News on the ipad (good reception permitting)  is our normal morning routine. This morning was no different.

Dearne was in the drivers seat and we had decided that Richmond on the Flinders Highway was going to be our lunch break. As it turned out, the area has quite a significant history in the discovery of dinosaur fossils in Australia and our visit was a great adventure. Most of you will know of Rod’s opinion on global warning – the worlds climate is cyclical and flora and fauna evolve over millions of years to meet the constant changing conditions – anything else is fairy tales.  For instance, did you know that 200 millions of years ago, Australia and Antarctica were one continent where the area was ‘warm’ and there was ‘no’ ice.   Keep trading carbon credits if you can get them guys – it’s a ‘todays’ investment and the money is from the backs of loonies.

Sunset and Moon Rising at Maxwelton

We stayed Wednesday night at the Maxwelton free rest area. It is about 50km west of Richmond or about 350km East of Mt Isa. It has all the basic facilities albeit it was a little noisy as it was not far from the main road and the road trains passed through frequently through the night. We felt quite safe as there were four other travellers at the site.  We are loving these ‘in the middle of nowhere’ spots.

Thursday night was another free night at a small rest area called Fountains Springs Rest.  It is about 60km east of Mt Isa and a similar distance from Julia Creek.  The location was not as glamorous as it sounds as there were no Springs but it was pleasant all the same.  Lots of shady trees and good company.

Heading into Mt Isa

We arrived in Mt Isa yesterday afternoon and have booked into one of the local RV parks. The household chores need to be done, the odd bit of maintenance on the van, jeep and ourselves and we want to get out and explore the region.

We have had a couple of problems updating the blog as reception here seems very unreliable. Making phone calls is fine but using data can be ‘hit and miss’.

We will try and update the blog again prior to leaving here.

We have had a wonderful relaxing three days at Charters Towers staying at a Big 4 RV Resort with pool, free wifi, gold coin evening entertainment and absolutely nothing else to do.  Daytime temperatures are around 30 deg C dropping to 20 deg C at night. Tomorrow morning we take off for the first leg of our journey to Mt. Isa. The distance from Charters Towers to the Isa is approximately 800km but we have no intention of doing it in one drive. Dearne has planned the journey and I have been informed that our first stop is 98km away at a little free camping spot beside the Campaspe River – yabby opportunity!

Dearne is driving the 800km and me thinks she is a little nervous. This will be her first drive of the van with the jeep behind since arriving in Australia. I am sure she will do fine.

A number of people have emailed or phoned us asking why we are taking the Flinders Highway route to Isa instead of turning right at Mt Garnet and follow the Savannah Highway to Normanton then down to Isa. You are all quite right – we have taken the longer route but for a very good reason.  We have talked to a number of travellers in Cooktown and around Atherton who had recently made the journey along the Savannah. Almost all said parts of the road were atrocious and most had suffered some sort of vehicle damage.  Believe it or not, the difference in distance between the two ways is only 152km – our way being the longest. We are lucky that we have no time constraints.

In terms of cost, our reasoning for going the longer route was that we are currently doing 20.4 litres of diesel per 100km and the average cost of our diesel is A$1.50 per litre. That makes the cost of the additional kilometres approx. A$45.00.  From the stories we have heard, we would have probably done more that A$45.00 in damages to either the van or the jeep by going via the Savannah. Simple decision really.

The freezer, refrigerator and pantry has been restocked, the washing done, and we have ample wine, beer, Coke (Zero of course) and Coruba for the journey. Prior to heading away in the morning we will fill up with fresh water and diesel. We are not sure if we will be able to update the blog on Flinders – this will depend on our 3G-reception capability.  If you do not hear from us, it means we have no reception. We plan to get to Mt Isa by next Monday.

We have been unable to update the blog this week as we have had no 3G reception since Monday evening. We received our first ‘bar’ about 20km out of Charters Towers.

We started the inland leg of our Queensland journey south from Cooktown to Atherton on Tuesday. The trip was without incident even tho’ some of the roads are quite challenging. The roadhouses are well spaced and have plenty of room for parking so we always try and take a break every couple of hours.

With primarily travelling on the main highways, one bit of kit we are finding most useful is our UHF radio. Trucks and road trains generally operate on Channel 40 and they all give you plenty of warning when they are behind and want to pass. Interestingly, the roadside work gangs also work on Channel 40 so we are most times aware of the state of the roads long before we are held up at any works or incidents. Some caravans and motorhomes work on Channel 18 but we find Channel 40 the most informative. The black fern on the rear of our motorhome is the catalyst for many a UHF conversation with truckies, travellers and road teams.  I am sure there are as many kiwis over here than in New Zealand. We have heard from none who have any ambition to return home.

Atherton Tableland – stunning

On our arrival at Atherton we had to make a wee detour to the Atherton Hospital. Some of you will know that Dearne ‘fell’ out of the motorhome about a week ago.  We can assure you it was well prior to 5 o’clockers. Anyway, when she fell, she fell on her wrist and it has not been getting any better. We thought there may have been a break however luck was on our side and the diagnosis was a torn ligament.  There was nothing much that could done except to await the natural healing process. Suffice to say ‘we’ are stepping more carefully now.

Wednesday we had a good look around the Atherton region and it reminded us very much of New Zealand except for the temperature (27deg C today).  The Atherton Tablelands are situated approximately 600 metres above sea level. The grass and the bushland is very lush, they have a strong and healthy diary industry, abundant wildlife and super impressive wetlands. The region produces some of Australia’s best tea, coffee, milk, sugar, tropical fruits and cheeses.

A few photos of our Atherton visit HERE .

1923 1000 V Twin Harley Davidson (in running order)

Thursday we continued our journey south down the Kennedy Highway through Herberton and Ravenshoe (pronounced Ravens–hoe as we were kindly corrected) through to our free overnight stop just out of Mt. Garnet. While passing through Herberton we made a brief two-hour stop to visit the Herberton Historical Village.  We were aware that the Village was owned by the couple who sold the ‘Just Jeans’ franchise a little while ago for the princely sum of A$54M (approx.).  The Village has become their life’s project. It has more than 50 restored period buildings that house a broad range of Australian collectables including machinery and small engines, farming and mining history, motor vehicles, thousands of antiques from the chemist to the grocer. The biggy for Rod was the fully restored 1923 1000cc V-twin Harley Davidson. Unfortunately our visit did not coincide with a running demonstration. The village is said to be the most significant outdoor museum in Queensland.  We are certainly glad we made the effort to stop. A few photo’s HERE .

Ravenshoe, historically involved in the timber industry, is situated on the top of the Great Dividing Range and is the gateway to the East with the Atherton Tableland Rainforests and the coastal Great Barrier Reef.  It is the highest town in Queensland at 920 metres above sea level (Waiouru is 821 metres above sea level).  We find we are loving the Australian ‘inland’.  It is much different than the coast but equal in what the coast has to offer the traveller.  We made lunch while in Ravenshoe and took advantage of the free stopping area in the local High School grounds. Love these RV friendly towns.

We departed our ‘free camping spot’ on Friday morning after an exciting night. About 10.30pm last night we received a ‘knock at the door’ by the local ranger to say that a bush fire had started not far from us and there was a concern that should the wind change they would not be able to contain the fire if it came our way.  She asked that we park in the centre of the area so we had a good chance of getting out quickly if necessary. There were ten motorhomes/caravans at the site that night so it was a bit exercise waking everyone and getting vehicles moved. Luckily for us the wind did not change so we were never in any danger. As a consequence of being packed up and ready to move at a moments notice, moving in the morning was as simple as turning the key.

Lava Tubes found in the Undara National Park

We continued south and called in to the Undara National Park to take a look at the famous Undara Lava Tubes. Some 190,000 years ago a massive volcanic eruption caused lava to flow more than 90 kms to the north and over 160 kms to the north-east.  It is estimated that 23 cubic kms of lava, at the temperature of 1,200 deg centigrade flowed from the volcano at about 1,000 cubic metres every second. The result of this is the formation of huge ‘tunnels’ through the landscape. Very impressive and worth the short detour.

Friday night we set down in the small town of Greenvale – 203 km north of Charters Towers. In 1972 Greenvale was a thriving nickel ore town but the mine has since been since been exhausted and the towns population significantly reduced.  After Thursday nights ‘one eye open all night’ situation, we looked forward to a good nights sleep.

We arrived in Charters Towers this afternoon (Saturday) and will be here for a few days stocking up for the next leg of our journey to Mt Isa. We will update again before we leave Charters Towers.

One of the important lessons we have learned in our short time here is while it is advisable to heed local advise, at the end of the day the journey is ours. We must make the final decision where and when to go.

Enroute from Port Douglas to Cooktown

Prior to our deciding to visit Cooktown, much of the advice we received from other Australian adventurers is that “there is nothing there so give it a miss”.  While that could have been the case, we find we are at the end of a brilliant three days here.  Unless you are a 4WD enthusiast, the Mulligan Highway is the only way in and the only way out. From Cooktown it is north to the top of Cape York and definitely 4WD country. We are not attempting that journey at this time of year but may give it a go next April/May when the roads have been graded. Some might say the journey to Cooktown was boring, but we loved the scenery and the long winding roads.

We can best describe Cooktown as a town still in the 70’s and that’s where the locals appear to want it. When we arrived on Saturday there were very few shops open apart from the RSL, Bowls Club and the two hotels and the same on Sunday. There is a 7day flourishing tourism industry here but everything else was very quiet.  It was quite quaint actually – sort of like New Zealand before 24/7 trading.

Over the last three days we have been out and about seeing as much as we can. Much of Cooktown’s (and Cape Yorks) history appears to revolve around Captain James Cook’s discovery of the place in 1770, the Palmer Gold Rush of 1873, the decimated pearl industry and of course the 41 tribal nations that inhabit the Cape. A few shots of our Cooktown visit HERE .

On the track to Trevethan Falls

The little jeep got its first ever ‘4WD’ workout today. We were told last night that an excellent spot in the area was the Trevethan Falls some 18km south of Cooktown and about 12km inland.  It could only be accessed by 4WD. So off we set this morning (after filling up with petrol!!!) on our adventure. It was not too long after leaving the Highway that we discovered why it was 4WD territory. We had great fun in the little jeep albeit we were being thrown around ‘just a wee bit’. A larger 4WD vehicle would have made the journey just a little easier.

Trevethan Falls

However once we had arrived at the Falls, we could not have wished for a better destination. It was a beautiful place hidden in the middle of nowhere. We were the only visitors there and off course we had to jump in for a swim.  We had been advised before we left Cooktown that there were no crocodiles in the area.

On our way back to Cooktown we stopped for a late lunch at the Lions Den, a little pub out in a farming community about 30km south of town. The pub had been there since 1875 and many say it has not changed too much since then. There are no beers on tap and wine is out of a cask!

We are off out to dinner tonight at the local Bowling Club with a few of the other travellers in the Park. It will not be a late one tho’ as we have quite a long journey tomorrow (we want to head south and at least get to Atherton) so want to be on our way reasonably early. We are hoping to catch up with friends there who we have met previously in Port Douglas.

Our verdict of the Cooktown visit – if you get the opportunity, it is worth the effort to get here.

As with any journey, one or two surprises usually pop up. Our trip from Cairns to Port Douglas was no exception. We finally got away from Cairns at about 11am on Wednesday after calling into the ‘gold mining’ shop to ensure Dearne was well equipped with maps etcetera for her fossicking on our travels. The Mine Lab Gold Mining detector has yet to be used in anger but I am sure it will sometime in the future.

View from the motorhome window during our Ellis Beach lunch

On our way north we stopped for lunch at Ellis Beach. We were on a road siding above the beach and were the only ones there. As we opened the slide out we notice two couples on the beach pointing at us. ‘Nek minit’ the two men in the group started to climb the rocks towards us. As it turned out, both couples were from Blenheim and they recognised the motorhome’s Traillite brand. They were in Australia for a couple of months and caravanning at the Ellis Beach Park. It was great to catch up with a couple of Kiwi’s and swap notes on our respective travels.

Finally settled!!

Our booking at Port Douglas turned into a bit of a nightmare.  When we made the booking we were told there were no powered sites available. We were fine with that as we have plenty of power on board and did not need to be plugged in. However when we got to the site we found that it was under some very large trees and we were not going to get any sun either.  No sun means the solar panels cannot do their job i.e. dead batteries after a while. We went back to reception to politely raise the issue with them and to see if there was an alternative site. Their response was “did you request any sun when you made your booking? If you did not, no refund”.  Unfortunately for them Rod was getting a little weary by this stage of the day and they had definitely picked on the wrong person to try it on with.  Two very quick minutes later we had a full refund and were on our way!!!! We were lucky and found an alternative site about 7km out of town – nice and quiet with ‘free’ Wi-Fi.

Our day concluded by driving into Port Douglas and having a fish and chip dinner (accompanied by a lively savy blanc of course) at the local marina.

Now you know why we are steering clear of the water

On Thursday we headed 25km south and spent much of the day at Hartley’s Crocodile Adventures. It goes without saying there were plenty of crocs (fresh and salt water) but there was also a great variety of other Australian species.  We initially thought we would be there for about an hour or so but we found plenty to do and see and four hours passed quite quickly. Click HERE for their website if you are interested in having a look around the Park.

Main street Port Douglas

Today (Friday) is our last day in Port Douglas so we spent most of it exploring the local area. I know many of you have been here before and must agree it is a stunning coastline.  It’s a shame about the crocs and the box jellyfish that prevent you from getting into the water. We went for a walk last night from the camp to the bush line about 2km away. We crossed a number of bridges with small creeks running below. On each bridge there was a sign saying not to go near the water as crocs reside in the area. While we did not see any, we heeded the advice. More photographs of Port Douglas HERE .

We drive north to Cooktown tomorrow. It is some 300km so we plan to be on the road by about 7.30am.  As usual our journey is never a direct one.  We normally stop off here and there to see the sights so we are looking to take most of the day to arrive at our destination. We intend being there for about three or four days then start heading south and across to Mt Isa. Our plan is be in Isa by the end of August.

Our ‘free’ stop over at Tully Beach (or Tully Heads) on Thursday night was not all that was advertised. Since the printing of our ‘travel bible’, the local Council has done quite a lot of work on the beachfront and the free stay was no longer available. With having no Plan B, we decided to cruise the area to see what we could find.  We found anther low cost camp ($15.50 per night) but it was very dusty, no services and packed with other travellers. Not enticing at all.

We decided to move around to the next beach – Googarra. While there was no free camping, we did find a very well set up caravan park with a mix of permanents and travellers. The park had ablutions and laundry, diesel pump, LPG fill service and a full shop and café facility for the princely sum of $20 per night. To top it off, the local pub was just next door.  We joined our fellow campers for 5 o’clockers (actually started at 3.30pm!!) around a campfire and had a very pleasant evening. Funny how things turn out!

Friday we made our way to Cairns. We made a minor detour on the way to the coast to visit Mission Beach. We had been told it was a place worth dropping in to. While the beach and the little town were beautiful, again the water in this region is full of stingers and crocodiles so swimming in the sea is a ‘no no’.  There are plenty of written warning signs for would be swimmers.  We are sure the water hazards here must take the shine off owning a beachfront property. We finally arrived in Cairns late on Friday afternoon.

Beach front salt water pool, Cairns City

On Saturday we jumped into the jeep and did a tour of Cairns City.  The highlight for us was the waterfront Esplanade. It appeared very similar to that of the Gold Coast or Sunshine Coast (including the high rise apartments). There were restaurants and cafes everywhere and it was obvious the town was geared to tourism and the ‘younger set’. We loved the way much of the housing is set in a bush type environment. We understand the fire risk but they seem do a wonderful job of ensuring any building does not impact adversely on the environment. More photographs of our city visit HERE .

Dearne with eyes closed for the Skyrail journey

On Sunday we visited the Barron Gorge National Park. The Park incorporates 2820 hectares tropical rainforest and is one of several parks in Wet Tropics World Heritage area. We caught the Kuranda Scenic Railway from Cairns to Kuranda, a small art and crafts village 1000 feet above Cairns. The railway was opened in 1891, is 37 km long and includes 15 handmade tunnels, 55 bridges and 98 curves. The train trip takes 2 hours. We returned to Cairns on the Skyrail, a 7.5km cableway that operates above the forest floor from Karunda to Cairns taking 1.5 hours. Many of you will know that Dearne does not like heights so spent the first part of our journey back to Cairns with her eyes closed.  Worth a visit if you are ever up here. More photographs of our Sunday trip HERE.

A whale cruising past the stern of the ship while we were anchored

On Monday we completed one of our ‘must do’ things and that was to snorkel the Great Barrier Reef. It was a 7am pick up and our boat sailed at 8am. The vessel had recently been refurbished and was in top condition. While it was able to sail with 80 passengers, there were only about 50 on board so there was plenty of space. We snorkelled on two reefs – Hastings Reef and Breaking Patches Reef. Both were about 40km off shore and had excellent coral and fish life, including turtles.  To top the day off, a pod of whales passed our bow as we were anchored at Hastings Reef. We had a great day that was complimented by brilliant weather, smooth seas and perfect water visibility. We arrived back ashore at about 5pm. More photos of our day HERE .

We spent today stocking up on groceries and picking up the odd bits and pieces for the next stage of our journey.  We head north to Port Douglas tomorrow (Wednesday). We have prebooked two nights in Port Douglas as it is the high season and finding anywhere to park is difficult. We could not find any free camping spots in our book.  If we happen to run across one, we may go to Plan B. We will top up the van fresh water tomorrow before we leave just in case we are unable to get water in Port Douglas. From Port Douglas we intend going on to Cooktown, probably arriving this Friday.

For the fishers amongst you, the fishing so far has been abysmal. While the weather has not helped, I was told today that the best fishing up here is outside of the reef – some sixty kilometres from the shore. When we were talking to the guys last night, some had been fishing the area for some six weeks and had only caught a couple of decent fish.

Our first day in Townsville was spent visiting as much of the city as we could in one day. We headed off from the motorhome quite early on the Tuesday morning and made the 26km trek back into the city armed with the ‘must see spots’.

Our first visit was to The Strand. This popular foreshore icon stretches some 2.5km and provides stunning views across Cleveland Bay to Magnetic Island (or Maggie Island as the locals call it).  On the seaward side of The Strand are a number of saltwater swimming pools, plenty of walkways and grass areas.  On the city side of The Strand is a mix of early century buildings and very flash apartment complexes.

Criterion Hotel, Townsville

A building that took our fancy historically was the Criterion Hotel.  The first Criterion Hotel was built in 1865 from logs sourced along the edges of the Ross River. In 1869 the “Log Cabin” it was replaced with a more substantial two level timber building – still retaining the name Criterion Hotel.  In 1903 the hotel was severely damaged in Cyclone Leonta and it was decided to rebuild the hotel using more permanent materials. The current building was completed in 1904. There is a number of this type of architecture all around the waterfront in Townsville.

We made a visit to the Reef HQ Aquarium. There were some stunning fish in the huge tanks. While we try not to compare, we believe that the Kelly Tarlton Aquarium is right up there with the best. A different range of fish perhaps but it’s a different seascape. A few photographs HERE .

We did plenty of walking around the city today. Walked along the Ross River, across the Victoria Bridge, a bit of ‘inner city’ stuff so Dearne could look at a few shops and poked around the various spots of interest. A few shots of our walk HERE .

Paluma National Park to Halifax Bay

Today was spent in the Paluma Range National Park. The Park is about 60km north of Townsville, is at an altitude of 1000 metres and overlooks Halifax Bay. Paluma was first settled when alluvial tin was discovered in the Mt Spec region in 1875.  During World War II the area was recognised as strategically important.  A secret radar unit comprising around 50 American troops were stationed at the peak of the Park. The troops installed a radar unit that was used to detect and track Japanese bombers, then alert Townsville before any attack.

The Park consists of tropical rainforest, relatively easy walking tracks of different lengths, lakes, creeks, wildlife and any number of lookouts. Click HERE to see a few shots of our day.

What was the ‘take home message’ for the day? Make sure you have a full tank of gas before heading out in the jeep. When a local tells you the place you want to see is “just up the road” be aware that just up the road could 200km!!! While we didn’t run dry, our return home to the closest servo was a very nervous journey.

Tomorrow we head further north. While we could go the distance and get to Cairns, we have decided to stopover in the little place called Tully Beach. It is a freedom camping spot that ‘apparently’ is good for mud crabs.  We have the crab pots so will see what happens.

It was an uneventful 190km drive from St Lawrence to Mackay on Thursday.  We had one small stop on the way to grab a coffee and to stretch our legs. It was a lot of road and not too much really to see. We could have dived on down a side road to the coast but the wind had been blowing about 40kts so a coastal ‘stroll around’ was not too pleasant.

A frequent visitor into the van

We spent a bit of time on Thursday having a look around Mackay and the general area. Towards the end of the day we ended up on the Mackay wharf at the local fish market and managed to get a ‘fresh fish’ dinner. We still haven’t found a fish that measures up to our own snapper. The birds (feathered variety) at our Mackay stop were super friendly. Within an hour or so of our arrival, they sensed a pair of softies and were coming into the van for something to eat. Even the magpies were sitting on the inside steps.

We continued north again on Friday as we could only get one nights’ park over in Mackay and could not find any freedom camping areas close by. The public camps are being booked by ‘grey nomads’ travelling north as we are.  The difference appears to be that we are not bothering to book ahead as we are never quite sure where we want to end up at the end of each day. It’s all part of our ‘fredum’ to do what we want.

Rock Wallaby with Joey by the Motorhome door

On Friday we continued north and managed to luck in at an ‘almost’ free camping site called Camp Kanga. Camp Kanga is about 24km west of Proserpine and 200km north of Mackay.  It is well away from any town and as it turned out, it was a beautiful place with plenty of wild life.  There were about ten other travellers at the site. At sunset the rock wallaby came out of the bush and gathered around our camp. Even tho’ they are wild, they were still coming within a couple of metres of our motorhome door.  We are loving the freedom camping life – there is so much to see and do.

On Saturday we took a boat cruise to the Whitsunday Islands. We booked ourselves on the Whitehaven Express from Arlie Beach and sailed around Hayman Island, Hook Island, Whitsunday Island, Hamilton Island, Long Island and South Molle Island. We snorkelled on a coral reef at Mantaray Bay on Hook Island and were provided with a BBQ lunch at Whitehaven Beach on Whitsunday Island.  It was a stunning day even tho’ the sea was a bit choppy. Click HERE for more photos of our day.

Our Whitsunday Tour Boat – The Whitehaven Express

We departed Camp Kanga this morning at about 10am and made our way north. We could have made Townsville but we have stopped at the little place called Home Hill about 110km south of Townsville. It is a free camping spot in the middle of the town and directly beside the railway line. There are about twenty other vans or caravans here as well. With it being Sunday we are all hoping there will not be too many trains tonight.

Tomorrow we will really get to Townsville as we have booked into a low cost country park about 26km north of Townsville that is set on 55 acres of bushland. It has all the amenities we require, is close to the beaches and fishing spots, lots of wildlife in their natural environment plus they have a formal “5 o’clockers”.  Can’t be too bad.

We will spend the next few days exploring the area.

Our stay in the Rockingham region has been pleasant although the weather has not been that kind. We have had ‘off and on’ showers all day and the temperature got down to 19C.  We have spent most of the day in the jeep touring around.

We left quite early this morning with the intention of heading out to the coast on the Capricorn Coast Scenic Loop.  Our first leg of the journey was from Gracemere, through Rockingham and onto Emu Park on the coast. We first thought Emu Park was an actual ‘an emu park’ but it is in fact a small town. In between Rockingham and Emu Park we went past a sign that said “Crocodile Farm”.  So we did a u-turn and went to investigate.

Road to the Crocodile Farm

It wasn’t too long before we were off the blacktop onto a red clay road and transiting through mud flats and mangroves. We were grateful we had the jeep not the motorhome at this point. Six kilometres later we arrived at the farm. It was not the smartest “attraction” we have been to, but having made the effort to get there we decided to have a look around.  After a couple of minutes we had seen what we wanted to see but we decided to support the local industry and have lunch at the on site restaurant.  Crocodile was on the menu so we ordered crocodile kebabs’ for two. The bill came to just under A$70. When we questioned the price as the menu stated that each meal was A$19 we were told we had to pay an entrance fee on top of the meal price even tho’ we had not entered the farm. We walked without dining.

‘Customer service’ attitudes astound us here some times. In this case we would have spent A$38 for the meal, would have had a couple of beers, a wine and coffees to finish and would have spend around A$70 anyway.  “Wood for the trees” stuff if you know what I mean.

A couple more shots of the crocodile farm visit HERE .

Captain Cook Singing Ship Memorial

After the farm it was back on the road to Emu Park.  The township of Emu Park is situated at Keppel Bay, about 40km from Rockhampton. Keppel Bay was discovered and named by Captain Cook on 28 May 1770.  A ‘singing ship memorial’  (yes it does sing when the wind blows through the sails) has been erected on Keppel Bay point in his memory and the discovery. Emu Park also benefited with the purchase of our lunch!

From Emu Park it was back on the coast road through Kinka Beach, Causeway Lake, Mulambin Beach, Bluff Point, Double Head, Cooee Bay to Yeppoon.  We both decided it would be very easy to settle in Yeppoon.  It is a beautiful little town with everything one could want. The sun even came out while we were there.  From Yeppoon we drove back to Gracemere through Rockingham. As usual we crammed as much into our day as we could.

We leave here tomorrow heading towards Mackay.  Our Camp 7 book tells us that there is a very nice spot at a place called St Lawrence about midway to Mackay. We are planning to stay there tomorrow (Thursday) night.  Apparently cell phone and data coverage is very average there just in case family or friends call and cannot get hold of us.