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Double farewell trip to the Tip

Posted on 10 Sep 2014 | 16 comments

We decided that before selling Lara, and before leaving the country we wanted to do one final trip, a last (for now) holiday in Oz. And, when you live in Queensland, what better trip to do than Cape York? It’s on the list of many enthusiast 4WD-ers and many plan this iconic drive ‘up north’ for years before finally tackling the long kilometers to ‘the Tip of Australia’.

It’s a long way from Brisbane to the Tip – 2647km to be exact – but we were lucky to break up the journey north catching up with friends. First up were Jan and Jeanet. They were returning from their Cape York trip and were full of tips and recommendations. Places and creeks that didn’t ring any bells yet were scribbled down and many questions asked (and answered). We shared a fantastic first campsite with a lovely fire right next to the beach – the first of many.

Our first night on the road is spent with Jan and Jeanet in Eurimbula NP

Our first night on the road is spent with Jan and Jeanet in Eurimbula NP

The next day we caught up with Darren, Kirsty and Maya in Gladstone. Isabel was asleep so we’ll have to meet her next time. Unfortunately we only had time for a short stop, but we’d see them again on the way down so a quick catch up after three years was a good start. 24 hours later we were in Townsville where Jason was visiting family and friends for another quick ‘coffee stop’ on the Strand. We made time for a quick stroll along the Strand and a drive up Castle Hill for some good views.

short and long catch up with Darren, Kirsty, Maya and Isabel in Gladstone

short and long catch up with Darren, Kirsty, Maya and Isabel in Gladstone

catch up with Jason in Townsville

catch up with Jason in Townsville

Our destination for the night was Bartle Frere, which at 1622m is the highest mountain in Queensland and conveniently located only 8km off the Bruce Highway. Of course we had to hike to the top, an estimated 10-12 hour hike. Most people spend the night at the top, but we didn’t bring our hiking tent. It’s a great way to break up the long drive to the Tip, as we’d just spent more than 2 days in the car and had many hours driving still to come, only occasionally interrupted for a short boardwalk or beach walk, lunch on the beach or a paddle with our trusty kayak off Cape Tribulation.

a quick hike to the top of Queensland's tallest mountain - Bartle Frere at 1622m

a quick hike to the top of Queensland’s tallest mountain – Bartle Frere at 1622m

a lovely paddle at Cape Tribulation - where the rainforest meets the reef

a lovely paddle at Cape Tribulation – where the rainforest meets the reef

After the Daintree NP we hop on our first 4WD track – the Bloomfield Track. An easy track with some very steep climbs over the various mountain ranges it crosses. We spot our first big saltwater croc, visit the very impressive Bloomfield Falls and have a drink at Queensland’s oldest pub, the Lion’s Den.

a large saltie sunning itself on the bank of the Bloomfield River

a large saltie sunning itself on the bank of the Bloomfield River

the longest serving Queensland pub

the longest serving Queensland pub

We manage to find a beautiful campsite on a working station near Hope Vale so we can join the very informative and entertaining aboriginal art tour from Willy Gordon the next morning. Willy is quite a character and we were lucky to hear his stories first hand as soon he’ll hang up his hat and pass his story on to the next generation. That night we sleep at another perfect bush camp – Hann’s Crossing in Lakefield NP. It’s just us and the local croc hanging out by the river. Whilst we enjoy a good red and hang out by the fire beneath an almost full moon, the croc cruises up and down the river, occasionally splashing around when he catches another fish.

aboriginal rock art

aboriginal rock art

As we’ve heard good things about the Frenchman’s Track, we drive to Chilli Beach enjoying the many animals, birds and termite mounds on our drive out of Lakefield NP. Pretty Chilli Beach is rather smelly, windy, rainy and cold, but when we go for a walk at night we manage to spot a huge Tawny Frogmouth Owl and a few native rats. And thanks to the tips of Jan and Jeanet we are at least sheltered from the wind so we can enjoy another fire and some G&Ts this time.

we bump into this local on our drive in Lakefield NP - a beautiful yellow-spotted goanna

we bump into this local on our drive in Lakefield NP – a beautiful yellow-spotted goanna

Frenchman’s Track was fun and starts well with the crossing of the Pascoe River. We take our time scouting the entry and exit, bumping into 3 quad-bike riders from Weipa and just as we are about to cross 2 more vehicles turn up: our neighbours from Chilli Beach.

The crossing was deep with a few hidden rocks and plenty of boulders on the way out too. But Lara showed us how capable she is and cruised easily through and out. We did get a bit of water in the cab though! The rest of the Frenchman’s track was easy and we enjoyed the occasional creek crossing, sandy patch, gutted tracks and boulders along the way.

The Frenchman’s Track ends on the PDR – the Peninsula Development Road. We were going to see a bit of the PDR later on, including some of its horrid corrugations, but for now we just had 2km to drive on it before turning off to Weipa. Many times on our trip we told each other how happy we were that Lara was booked on the barge back from The Tip to Cairns, so we wouldn’t have to drive this car-wrecking PDR all the way back. The little bits we saw of it on the way up were enough!

Weipa sits on the west coast of Cape York and with the huge Gulf of Carpentaria in between it and Arnhemland in the Northern Territory we enjoyed something we hadn’t seen for a long time in Oz – a sunset over the ocean. Mother Nature put on a stunning show just for us as we were the only ones camped at the edge of the beach near the Pennefather River.

campsite facing west so we get to see a final sea sunset at the Pennefather River

campsite facing west so we get to see a final sea sunset at the Pennefather River

On day 10 we finally make it to the start of the Old Telegraph Track (OTT) at Bramwell Junction where we try to get our tyre swapped after an earlier puncture. No such luck. They can’t break the bead with their hand tools and we decide to plug it ourselves and not put the brand new spare tyre on the rim. After pumping it up to the right pressure it seems to hold so we set off on the actual OTT with fingers and toes crossed for not too many flats along the way!

plugging our first puncture ever with these tyres

plugging our first puncture ever with these tyres

After only 4km we come to the first creek crossing – Palm Creek. This one is almost dry, but deep with a daunting exit climb where we are supposed to winch ourselves out. With nobody else to be seen we opt for the chicken route – the first of many – and drive down the steep entry to the right. Lara seems to laugh at us as she easily drives straight out. One creek down, quite a few still to follow.

they have some huge termite mounds here

they have some huge termite mounds here

crossing one of many amazing creeks on the Old Telegraph Track

crossing one of many stunning creeks on the Old Telegraph Track

There are about 15 creek crossing along the OTT, and one of the most notorious is Gunshot with its almost vertical entry. Luckily it has another option for those who would like to keep their cars in one piece. Last up was Nolan’s Creek – the deepest of the lot – the level was ‘only’ up to the headlights. Lara did really well, not hesitating once, even though we had a few shaking hands and sweaty palms at times. We’re definitely gonna miss her!

entry to Gunshot Creek if you are game

entry to Gunshot Creek if you are game

the not so gnarly option at Gunshot Creek

the not so gnarly entry option at Gunshot Creek

Fruit Bat Falls - another perfect swim hole we had pretty much to ourselves!

Fruit Bat Falls – another perfect swim hole we had pretty much to ourselves!

Jon on the throne at Fruit Bat Falls

Jon on the throne at Fruit Bat Falls

stunning Elliott Falls - another great spot for a swim and not have to worry about crocs too much...

stunning Elliott Falls – another great spot for a swim and not have to worry about crocs too much…

we had amazing campsites on the whole trip

we had amazing campsites on the whole trip

a run on the Old Telegraph Track - this would be an awesome ultra run!

a run on the Old Telegraph Track – this would be an awesome ultra run!

Lara going for a swim

Lara going for a swim at Nolan’s Creek

a beautiful bee bird, they look like zorro from the front

a beautiful bee bird, looking a bit like Zorro

From the top of the OTT it’s only a short drive to The Tip. Getting to the actual tip of the country involves a short walk over the last headland. We enjoyed lunch there, whilst watching the many turtles and dugongs pop up their heads around us in beautiful turquoise water. The next morning we dropped off Lara at the loading docks in Seisia for her trip to Cairns on the container ship. We watched her being loaded and then drove out to Somerset beach where Hamish and Selena picked us up. Mick, a good friend, had put us in contact and it was the best possible end of our trip up the Cape. They run a brilliantly located fishing lodge on Albany Island and we thoroughly enjoyed staying with just the 4 of us on this tropical remote island. Amazing!

we make it to the Tip, Australia's most northerly point on the main land

we make it to the Tip, Australia’s most northerly point on the main land

Lara at the tip of Australia

Lara at the tip of Australia

Lara being loaded onto the container ship back to Cairns

Lara being loaded onto the container ship back to Cairns

little piece of paradise

little piece of paradise

We went for a run on the 5km track across the island, read our books, lazed in the hammocks underneath the coconut trees, ate some superb meals (the Queen Fish caught by Jon the second day!), watched a shark gathering and a croc cruise past from the jetty, shared stories around the campfire, cast a few lines from the boat, admired the billions of stars visible from this unpolluted part of the world and had some fun with the local spiders… if only we had more time to enjoy this piece of paradise…

Jon catches our dinner

Jon catches our dinner

Jon was convinced it wasn't a real spider as it is the size of his head!

Jon was convinced it wasn’t a real spider as it is the size of his head!

we will miss Australia's amazing night sky

we will miss Australia’s amazing night sky

When it was time to leave we realised the ferries to Thursday Island (TI) from Seisia don’t run on Sunday – a slight hiccup in our plans as we needed to get there on Sunday to ensure we would be able to connect to the morning flight from neighbouring Horn Island back to Cairns. So, we called the local taxi service, which just happens to be Cape York Helicopters. Our flight just happened to fly over the tip of Australia, its sensationally coloured blue waters with the many turtles and dugongs made for a memorable 15 min flight.

spending time with new friends - fantastic island, even better company

spending time with new friends – fantastic island, even better company

our taxi service from Albany to Horn Island

our taxi service from Albany to Horn Island

We made the flight after exploring TI and picked up Lara from the Seaswift depot in Cairns, before starting our long drive back to Brissy. Again we stopped in Gladstone to stay with Darren and Kirsty so we could have a slightly longer catch up with them this time plus another stop in Sandgate to catch up with Guy and Cheryl who have recently returned from their second year abroad with the Bee (their camper truck). Arriving home (Marjolein’s place) we began the unloading and sorting of gear for sea or air freight or storage… Not long now before we start our new chapter on a different continent. And of course Lara was given a good clean in preparation for her new owner.

catching up with Guy and Cheryl

catching up with Guy and Cheryl

Thanks Lara! You have been our baby, our rock, our lifeline and our amazing home for many years now. We will miss the Defender family we have been a part off for so long, but we will especially miss you! I hope your adventurous life will continue for many years to come…

a quick clean to try to get the red dirt off Lara

a quick clean to try to get the red dirt off Lara

16 Comments

  1. Enjoyed ready your blog as usual. It brought back many memories about a wonderful part of Australia.
    Happy birthday Jude. Good luck in Africa.

    • Thanks Cheryl! It was great to catch up with you before leaving! And we are hoping to see you on your travels next year! (or the one after) Big hug, Jx

  2. Hoi Judith en Jon, Als eerste VAN HARTE GEFELICITEERD JUITH! XXX Maak er een mooie dag van. En hartelijk dank voor het nieuwe uitgebreide verslag. We gaan woensdag voor een weekje naar Zuid-Frankrijk en ik heb het uitgeprint om dan rustig door te nemen. Hier verder alles goed. Dikke knuffels Gert-Jan, Simone, Indy & Jayden

    • dank je!! het was een zeer lange dag want we vlogen richting Afrika op mijn verjaardag (hij was 32 uur lang geloof ik :-)). Lekker hoor weekje er tussen uit! Hebben jullie nog vakantie (de kids bedoel ik)? Geniet van de vakantie en we vervolgen de blog met Afrika avonturen dus als je tijd hebt kun je lezen wat we hier allemaal gaan meemaken 🙂 En hopelijk zien we jullie ook een keer hier?! Zou super zijn! Ik ben al aan het uitzoeken waar de leuke dingen voor vrienden met kids zijn! Big hug terug! We mailen snel weer! Jx

  3. What a fitting way to say goodbye – have loved your blog!

    • Thanks Sean, glad you enjoyed it! Our new car doesn’t have a name yet, but I am sure we will have some fun adventures here with him / her too! It’s a Prado and we will first have to work out if it is a he or a she… 🙂

  4. Have absolutely loved following your journeys – some to places where we have been other to places we dream of going. (Have concluded that one will not live long enough to visit all the places that one would like to) Have really enjoyed your blog. I trust that as you start your new adventure in Africa that you continue to explore and enjoy. Thanks for taking us around the world with you.

    • Thanks Peter, and yes, we can never dream of visiting all places we would like to go to, but we can certainly keep making some of those dreams come true! We will do our best to explore, experience and enjoy Africa as much as we can, and we’ll have to get used to taking our new car (he/she has no name yet…) on our adventures with us!

  5. Hi guys,
    Looks amazing up there. Safe travels and look forward to hearing all about your new adventures.
    Kathy, Graeme, Sophie and Ben xx

    • Thanks!! Fancy a family holiday to Kenya soon? We’ve got 3 spare rooms 🙂 I am sure Sophie and Ben would love to see all the animals here 🙂

  6. Sounds like the grand finale. What a great trip. Stay safe in Kenya. We look forward to hearing more of your global adventures.

    • It sure felt like it! I’ll be following your progress and stories via the blog and FB too! big hug!

  7. Thanks for sharing more great story telling Jude.
    I would love to check out those water holes. Shame I couldn’t be there Saturday.
    Farewell to Lara, she’s certainly had a fabulous life with you guys. Xo

    • Pleasure, and sad we couldn’t say goodbye but I’m sure we’ll catch up at some point!

  8. Farewell Lara! Even those of us who never met you will miss you! 🙂

    But I am now looking forward to reading about African adventures.

    • Thanks! I hope you’ll enjoy the African stories too. It might be a little while before they start (few weeks :-))

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