Rinyirru National Park – Hann Crossing Campground

13 – 16 August 2024

We set off from Hann River Roadhouse, confident we had enough battery power to get us through the next few nights. We stopped again to search for the Red Goshawk and then stopped at the lagoon on the Nifold Plain, within the National Park. While there we ran into our birding friend who we had arranged to meet at the campground. Of course the two birders shared stories before we continued on to set up camp.

We had booked our site, in advance as required, and were very happy with what we found there. We had a very large, open site, but with some shade, right on the river. We positioned the camper trailer to take advantage of the shade, but where we could also set up the solar panels.

As expected, it was hot, and there were flies, but nothing we couldn’t handle. It is such a peaceful spot, with neighbours far enough away that we couldn’t hear them most of the time, and we could only see them from the very back corner of our site. We were also far enough away from the access road to the other campsites that we weren’t troubled by traffic.

We settled in for a relaxing few days which included a couple of birding excursions, as well as visits with Paula who was camped across the river. We drove over to her camp late one afternoon and so she and Mick could do some night birding. 

Sunrise over the Hann River - simply stunning.
It was worth getting up in the dark
just to watch the sun come up.

Because Mick wanted one more try to get to perfect Goshawk photograph, we packed up and left very early on our final morning before continuing our further north. At least we didn't need to worry about disturbing the neighbours so early.

We stopped at the Goshawk spot then continued on to the Peninsula Development Road and a short stop at Musgrave Station Roadhouse.

 

Hann River Roadhouse

12 – 13 August 2024

Because of some issues with our 12volt system we decided that we should return to the Hann River Roadhouse where they have powered sites. One night on power would get the batteries fully charged again, which would allow us to spend the three nights we had planned back in Rinyirru National Park. Musgrave Station Roadhouse was closer but they don’t have powered sites.

We made the most of the drive – Mick searched, successfully, for the Red Goshawk he had been told about. We made a quick stop at Musgrave and then continued south to Hann River Roadhouse.The campground is quite spacious and even has some green grass. It is, as its name suggests, on the Hann River.

Definitely no swmming in the Hann River

The roadhouse caters to all kinds of travellers, including the road crew working on the bridge over the river nearby. Even though the season was drawing to an end, there were still plenty of travellers heading north to the Cape. We would be among them once we finished our stay in the National Park.

Rinyirru National Park – Kalpowar Crossing Campground

11 – 12 August

We left Maryfarms and took the Battlecamp Road into Rinyirru (Lakefield) National Park. We’d camped in the park before but not at Kalpowar Crossing. We stopped to collect firewood before we entered the national park and then at the old homestead where we had lunch. From there we continued on to the ranger station and had a look at the lagoon.

We made our way to our booked site at Kalpowar Crossing and set up camp. Kalpowar Crossing is a well laid our campground with very large sites suitable for all types of campers. There are toilets and access to the river – although swimming is definitely not permitted. There were a few people fishing while we were there.

You can walk down to the crossing - but beware of crocs

We had been having some issues with our solar set up and also discovered that our batteries hadn’t been charging properly while we drove. We were booked for two nights at Kalpowar but decided to just stay for one so we could go back to the main road and a powered site for a night. We had another three nights booked at Hann River Crossing, and had arranged to meet a birding friend there so didn’t want to have to cut that short due to lack of power.

We enjoyed a nice night at Kalpowar, and would probably stay there again, even though it was a mmuch busier campground than the stretch of isolated campsites at other spots within the national park.

 

Maryfarms - West Mary Campground

9 – 11 August 2024

We have stayed at Mount Carbine and driven down the Maryfarms Road before, to look for birds, but had never stayed at the campground there. We had read good reviews and decided that we would book in for one night, and extend if we liked it there. We were greeted very warmly on arrival and chose a site with some shade, some sun for solar and not too far from the amenties. The creek was just a short walk away and looked very inviting, but still too cold for us to swim.

Late in the afternoon, the communal campfire was lit and we gathered with fellow travellers to have a drink and a chat while we watched the sun set over the hills. The farm horses also come in at this time and some of the children fed them carrots as a treat (for both horses and kids).

The horses know when it's time to come in for a treat

We made the decision to stay an extra day and relaxed around the camp, with lots of short walks to explore the creek and surrounds. We had to move on as our next few nights would be spent in National Parks, which had necessitated booking ahead.

We've camped in Rinyirru National Park a couple of times so had booked to return to Hann Crossing, where we'd stayed before, as well as a  Kalpowar Crossing where we'd never been. 

Rifle Creek

8 – 9 August 2024

Rifle Creek is a very popular free camp just out of Mount Molloy where we have stopped many times for coffee or lunch, but we have never stayed there. There are well maintained toilets and cold showers, as well as a dump point. It's not really the sort of place we'd want to stay bt many caravanners set up there for a few days at a time. It's close to the main road, busy with people coming in to picnic and use the amenities, and not all that attractive as a campground. The attraction for us, however, is the proximity to a favourite birding spot – Abattoir Swamp.

There is a bird hide at the end of a boardwalk
at Abattoir Swamp

We hadn’t travelled far from Mareeba, so decided to visit the swamp to have lunch and a look around before returning to set up camp later in the afternoon. The campground fills up through the afternoon but we were able to get a good spot. There is a bit of road noise during the night but it was still a fairly peaceful night. Mick was up early to go back to Abattoir Swamp while I started the packing up.

Once again we had our sights set on a camp not too far away so there was no need to hurry. Our next stop would be at  Maryfarms, just south of Mount Carbine.

Granite Gorge

4 – 8 August 2024

Granite Gorge has been a favourite of Mick’s for some time and we have visited quite a few times. The setting is lovely and there are lots of good birding opportunities, but unfortunately the caravan park itself is not fabulous. The facilities are seriously lacking so not inviting for any longer than a few days. Despite that, we enjoyed a break from the rainy weather while we talked to builders on the Tablelands, and considered our next steps.

We did enjoy walking in and around the gorge and seeing the Mareeba Rock Wallabies. We found the caged birds, on the other hand, were quite distressing.

There are lots of walking tracks around the gorge

After several quite stressful weeks trying to decide on a builder and house design we came to the conclusion that we needed a break and a trip “up the Cape” would be ideal at this time. We spent some time thinking about where exactly we would go, and how long we could be away. We couldn’t leave until after Mick’s follow-up appointment with his surgeon, so we made that our starting point.

We packed up a lot of our cooler weather gear and other items we wouldn’t need for the Cape leg of the journey and left them with a friend in Mareeba. We filled the empty spaces with necessary supplies and prepared the car for the remote trip.

We left Granite Gorge, stopped at Coffee Works for morning tea while Mick had his tele-health appointment then headed north, with our first stop not far away, at Rifle Creek.

Cairns – Lake Placid

24 July – 4 August 2024

Finally it was time to get serious about finding a builder to build our new home in Atherton so we headed to Cairns for at least a week – and ended up extending when we realised we needed more time that we had thought.

In addition to visiting display homes and talking to builders, we made a number of visits to The Esplanade for its wonderful birding, as well as Catanna Wetlands and a few other favourite birding spots. We also enjoyed a visit from a friend who lives in Mossman.

We always have to visit The Esplanade

Who would have thought the old cemetery
would be such a good spot for birding

The weather wasn’t in our favour and the drizzling rain had started to have us thinking about moving on, even though we were still a long way from being able to select a builder. We decided that a move to the dry part of the Atherton Tablelands was in order so we headed “up the hill” to Granite Gorge, just out of Mareeba.