Kalpower Crossing

Ray was really determined to go to Cape Melville. And having never been there before, we decided to go as well. We made a booking Kalpower Crossing for the night and several nights at Cape Melville. This was made possible by the self-serve booth at Lakeside Ranger Base.

The camsite is just beside the Normamby River, very tranquil and delightful with flushing toilets and cold water showers. You are allowed campfires as well!

Crocodiles are very active in the area and they live on either side of the wet water crossing at Kalpower.

Only 25 people are allowed into Cape Melville at a time. It is considered avery remote camping area and extensive recovery equipment is required.

The road is very difficult in places and we had to dig the car out twice. Ray got soo bogged that he had to winch out several times! He kept blaming his car and not the weight of the camper pulling his car into the sand.

It took 4 hours of driving from Kakooka to our campsite, a distance of 43 klms! We eventually arrived at Crocodile Camp to find a pristine and magnificent beach with wonderful fishing.

It became very hot during the day, so we were forced to seek shelter wherever it was possible.

Fishing beside the billabong meant keeping an eagle eye out for the resident crocodile!

Leaving Cape Melville was cobsiderably easier than going we didn't need to wait for Ray and Annette and we knew the road a little better, so only had to dig ourselves out once. The return journey was 2 and 1/2 hours for the same distance.

Another overnight stop at Kalpower, where a billy of hot water was prepared for a much needed hot shower!!

Mauwbray River

After spending time at the shopping plaza near the dentist, we set off to fnd somewhere to stay the night.

No vacancies in most of the caravan parks until Mauwbray River Caravan Park, just off the highway 10 klms short of Port Douglas.

Very busy Big Four caravan park and almost full. At $42 per night for a non-powered site and with over 200 spaces, this caravan park was pulling in a small fortune.

Our first sand fly bites were received here!!

By this stage Ray and Annette were on their way to Archer River. This seemed doable from Mauwbray River.

So a market stop for fresh fruit and vegetables at Mossman and then a ferry crossing.....

Into the Daintree National Park, up the Bloomfield Track and onto Archer Point....

To find that they had already left and were at Elim Beach, just north of Cooktown; "Not far", they said!

Eventually we arrived to find Ray had bogged his rig in the sand!

Our exclusive beachside campsite was beautiful!

Ray had brought his pressure pack of permethryn which he sprayed around both our campsites.

Here we received our second lot of sand fly bites!

Platypus Point

Having never really stayed in the Atherton tableland before, we decided to visit the crater lakes and stay in Danbulla National Park.

Mum has always talked about the terrapins on the Atherton Tableland. Interesting the the Visitor Information Centre knew nothing about them and neither did any other locals!

We drove through the two national parks of Barrine and Danbulla, to visit Eicham Crater Lake and Lake Barrine, another crater lake. Both beautiful, but not a terrapin or turtle to be seen. Did we miss the right lake to visit?

Our drive took us around Lake Tinaroo, where we had booked National,Park campsite at Platypus Point. We had campsite number 9, right on the water. It was a great campsite with bush on one side and very large.

It was that night that Peter discovered that the wire part of his temporary plate was missing. As he had had it in all day, we could only assume that he had swallowed it! What to do?

Wait-a-while!

And then off to Cairnes to see a dental prothetist. Booked for 11.00 am next day and plate was fixed by 3:00pm. Amazing!

Lakeside

Our drive took us the Atherton and from the local lookout, where we could see the following vistas.

Washing of clothes was necessary and Gary and Katherine had recommended Lakeside Caravan Park, beside Lake Tinaroo. Our position overlooking the lake was delightful.

Unfortunately the card in the camera began playing up, so no more photos for a while!

Dinner was at the Yungaburra Pub. Yungaburra is beautiful, a heritage town lined with baskets of flowering hanging impatients, so colourful and full of heritage buildings.

The pub was delightful, timber-lined walls, beautiful stained glass windows, huge dining room snd a ballroom as well as the bar. Here we met a German couple, Sabina, a teacher and Michel a university professor from Heidelburg University, who teaches students and is researching auto-immune diseases. He is particularly interested in auto immune diseases caused by ticks!

Innot Springs

It was lveltbto spend several hours at a time relaxing in the thermal pools provided by the Innot Springs campsite.

The river where the spring comes out is too hot to get into and you have to dig yourself a hole in the sand in which to wallow. Further down from the spring the water is cooler, but this time the little creek was green with slime.

So the alternative of staying at the caravan park and utilising their five separate pools was inviting. Whilst wafting around in the water we met a couple from the Goldcoast, Gary and Katherine. They had owned the largest explosives transport business in Australia. They were travelling in a beautifully fitted bus and towing a fully kitted 4X4 for off- road trips; a huge "rig"!

Our camping neighbours were odd!!! He (a huge man) slept in a tiny tent and she slept in the back of a Subaru! They were there for a long term stay! She kept jumping into the back of the car to do whatever, despite the lack of headroom and space. The behaviour of both was most peculiar!

Dinner was at the lcal pub, where we met up again with Gary and Katherine.

Greenvale

Three nights in Greenvale.

Greenvale used to be a flourishing nickle mining town of 3000 people. The houses and units are still here and many available for purchase. Now only approximately 150 people live here.

On our first day we walked the streets to look at the layout of the town.

Our stay is in the local caravan park, which is not frequented by many people. There is a springfed channel in the middle that serves as a green oasis and on which the ducks swim.

We found a nice shady spot near the channel and moved a fire bin to our site. Campfires are allowed here.

On every other Saturday night the local golf club has a meals night. So we walked up there to join the locals. It was fun! A large outdoor firepit was going with huge lovely warm fire and people chatting around it. A darts match was also set up.

Dinner was either rissoles, chicken schnizel or crumbed steak with chips and salad with dessert of passionfruit flummery or spongcake (both home made). Food not brilliant but the charm is in meeting the people who live here.

We were given the instructions for locating the Burdekin River, which we did the next day. A magnificent river in the midst of such dryness! We drove to two different sections, both had river crossings. At this first one we found a suitable hole for a dip.

Teresa Creek Dam and Charters Towers

Lake Maraboon was really low. Irrigation to surrounding properties is still occuring. The bottom of the dam wall was clearly visible!

Took on a few supplies from nearby Emerald as we intended to stay nearby at Teresa Creek Dam for a few days. The dam was built for mining ooerations in the district, but the maintenance of is is now supported by local businesses and interest groups in the area.

It is a great place to stay, providing you chose or a able to get a good location beside the dam. Many caravanners choose to camp close together on the hillside around and close to the amenities.

We were lucky enough to be able to have the same campsites that we've had for a few trips before! It's a tricky spot with a steep decline, so not accessible to many.

People with fish traps were endeavouring to catch redclaw, a type of fresh water marron. The weather had been so cold at Teresa Creek Dam that the meter-long barramundi and died. Many were floating near the dam wall and some lay in the mud on the edge. Fortunately no smell!

Our campsite at Teresa Creek Dam and with open fire being made by Peter.

From Teresa Creek Dam, we set off for Charters Towers, a historic gold mining town with lovely old heritage buildings (Queensland style). Too late to do anything other than a caravan park. A very pleasant surprise to find a beautiful and not jammed-in spot in the caravan park outside Charters Towers. A outdoor camp kitchen had everything and meant we didn't have to unpack the kitchen in irder to cook that night. Very quiet and relaxed, obviously not all caravanners go there. It seems most want to stay at the free camp site on Fletchers River with only one toilet; and cleaned only once a week! When we passed the free camp spot the next morning, the place was jammed-packed with caravans, very dusty and nit so clean!!

August 4 - 7 2018

Saturday 4 August began the way of each morning; getting up at 6:00am. Today we had a deadline departure time of 8.00am to set off to "who knows where?"

First overnight stay in a motel in Gilgandra. Clean and well presented but a really soggy bed! Back not wonderful as a result!

Was it dry on the way? Yes and no. There had been recent rain in the Lachlan Valley and around Orange. Grass only just really visible but a green tinge to everything and puddles.

Wagett and surrounding areas dry, dry, dry!! Not a blade of grass, green or otherwise. Bare paddocks with hoof prints in the dust. Huge semi trailers laden with hay and lucerne is being driven to this area.

Droving is occuring on all the roads at present with some cattle looking in better shape than others. We have met with road cattle trains right through the centre of NSW and Queensland. Some are being taken to feed lots and others ???

Second night, Roma in a motel, third night Fairburn Dam (Lake Maraboon) in a cheek-by-jowl caravan park and surprisingly quiet that night.