Hann River Roadhouse

26 – 27 August 2024

The drive from Lockhart River to Cairns is about 800km so I decided that it would be best if I did it over two days. The road is mostly dirt, sometimes very rough, and has a couple of tricky river crossings so would take much longer than the same distance on bitumen. I was a bit nervous about a couple of the river crossings on the first section of road – we’d passed a truck stuck at the Wenlock River when we drove in a few days ago.

It was a long, lonely drive on my own

There was no option but to set off on my own, take it easy and takes lots of breaks along the way. My aim was to get to Musgrave Station Roadhouse where I could get a room for the night, before continuing on the next day.

The first leg of the journey was from Lockhart River to Archer River and I made it to the junction without incident, despite my nerves about the Wenlock River. There wasn’t much traffic along the first stretch but I knew there would be more once I joined the Peninsula Development Road just north of Archer River Roadhouse.

I listened to podcasts as I drove, and stopped at each opportunity along the way – Archer River Roadhouse, Coen and Musgrave Station Roadhouse. Because I was making good time, I decided to press on to Hahn River Roadhouse. Even though it was still only mid-afternoon, I figured it was best to stop there so that I could get to my final destination early in the day.

I had managed to call Mick a couple of times, before and after his surgery and was relieved to know that it had all gone well. I checked into very basic accommodation at the roadhouse and started to make some plans. Mick would need some time to recuperate from surgery and that would probably mean we would have to find alternative accommodation to the camper trailer. After discussing it with him, I booked a week in a caravan park cabin in Atherton, where we could store the trailer while we stayed there.

I was up early the next morning and ready to set off for Atherton, and then to collect Mick from hospital.

Lockhart River – The Greenhoose

24 – 26 August 2024

Mick had long wanted to stay at The Greenhoose, near Lockhart River, so we booked 5 nights as part of this Cape trip. It is a well known base for birders and offers basic accommodation with a communal, but limited, kitchen space available for those who choose not to dine in. We had frozen a number of meals so that we could self cater, and planned to have at least one meal in the restaurant.

On arrival we were shown to a spot where we could park the trailer and leave it plugged in to power which was very much appreciated. It was a long way to our room and we had to make a number of trips to transport the essentials (including camera gear, personal items, some food etc). While we were doing that we chatted to staff and some fellow guests and Mick teed up a couple of outings to go birding the following morning.

We settled into our room which was small, but air conditioned, with an ensuite. A large verandah outside made for a lovely space to spend time relaxing. We were right on the edge of the rainforest which we both enjoyed.

After a quiet dinner and a couple of drinks we settled in for the night, looking forward to some great birding in the morning – but it wasn’t to be. Mick woke in the early hours extremely unwell. I monitored his symptoms until daylight when I determined that he needed medical attention. After speaking to one of the staff at The Greenhoose about how to access the medical clinic in Lockhart River after hours (early on a Sunday morning), I bundled Mick into the car for the drive into town.

On arrival I summoned the nurse on duty who took one look at the patient and helped him inside the clinic. The two nurses on duty immediately did what was necessary to stabilise him, and stop the vomiting, while getting as much information as possible. A number of phone calls to the Royal Flying Doctor Service doctor on duty in Cairns to relay symptoms, test results and vital signs resulted in more medication and finally a decision to transport Mick to Cairns as soon as possible. I drove back to The Greenhoose to pack the essentials (toothbrush, phone charger, clean clothes) that he would need for an overnight stay in hospital.

Fortunately, a scheduled transfer of a non-urgent patient was due late that morning, and was already on its way via Weipa, for another patient pick-up. About three hours after arriving at the clinic, Mick was at the airport waiting to be transferred onto the plane. At that stage no-one was saying what was actually wrong, but all indications were that it was appendicitis.

Without a firm diagnosis and not knowing what would happen, I decided to stay at The Greenhoose for the night. It is an 8 hour drive to Cairns, and I was very tired for the sleepless night so I didn’t really want to set off just then, and there was always the chance that whatever was wrong might be fixed with medication and Mick would return the next day.

The RFDS provides a vital service
 in rural and remote parts of Australia

It wasn’t until late that evening that Mick called to say that he would be having his appendix removed first thing in the morning. I had figured that would most likely be the case so had already packed up ready to head off early. The staff at The Greenhoose had been so helpful and caring, making a very difficult and stressful time, much less so. In the morning, I was given help to hitch up the trailer and set off for the long, lonely drive to Cairns.

Kutini-Payamu National Park – Cook’s Hut Campground

21 – 24 August 2024

We travelled back down the Peninsula Devemopment Road (PDR to locals) and turned off towards Lockhart River and Kutini-Payamu  (Iron Range)National Park. Cooks Hut Campground is fairly small, and nestled in the rainforest so we were fully aware that we might get rained on. We had been there before, so had a good idea which spot to book.

Not much sun for the solar, but a still a great spot

When we arrived we were the only ones there, but later in the afternoon a large group arrived and set up camp in the space in the middle rather than in their designated campsites. This resulted in less privacy than we could otherwise have expected from the site we had booked. This seems to be a common occurrence with many people travelling in large groups, with little regard for other visitors.

Despite the somewhat crowded campground we did have a good time at Cooks Hut, with both daytime and nighttime birding excursions. Also camped there was a group of young people who were on the hunt for reptiles, but who were also interested in birds. Lots of information was shared with these young men.

The clear skies on our last day allowed the canvas to dry off before we packed up. It had rained a bit, just as we had expected. Because we only had a short distance to travel to our next destination, we took our time and stayed in the campground until after lunch. We then drove towards Lockhart River and The Greenhoose and five days of comparative luxury - or so we thought.

Weipa

18 – 21 August 2024

The weather was getting hotter and we were glad to be in Weipa where there is a swimming pool at the caravan park, as well as some nice sea breezes. Each afternoon we took our chairs down to the beach and sat under a shady tree to escape the heat. We also went for a couple of drives looking for birds, including an evening excursion to see the Frigatebirds. We had the headlight fixed and it turned out to be just a blown bulb.

We treated ourselves to dinner at the onsite café but, although the food was good, there was only one item of local seafood – not a good look in a town known for its fishing industry. Having said that, dinner of fish and chips, byo, at a table by the beach, was certainly a pleasant way to spend an evening.

We enjoyed some stunning sunsets 
over the Gulf of Carpentaria

Weipa is a service town so we were able to stock up on supplies and get things ready for the next week or so. While we were doing some more forward planning, we decided to cancel one of our National Parks bookings. We had planned on camping at Eliot Falls but decided it wasn’t worth the drive at this time – it’s the most beautiful spot and one we definitely want to go back to, but the heat was really making conditions unpleasant. We figured that once we are living on the Tablelands, the Cape will be a much easier trip.

We would have a few of nights at Cook’s Hut in Kutini-Payamu National Park so set off ready for a rainforest campsite. It would still be hot, but not as bad as Weipa, and there was the chance of rain.

Merluna Station

16 – 18 August 2024

Leaving Rinyirru National Park early we stopped again to photograph the Red Goshawk, then continued on to Musgrave Station Roadhouse before making our way to Coen. We had noticed that one of our headlights wasn’t working so we called into the mechanic to see if they could have a look at it for us. Unfortunately we would have had to wait a number of hours, just for someone to have a look so we opted to continue on and try to get it sorted in Weipa.

We have stayed at Merluna Station a couple of times and enjoyed the quiet, relaxed atmosphere, so decided to spend a couple of days there before heading into Weipa. We were on a bit of a timeline due to some more National Parks bookings but had a few days to fill in.

Merluna is the sort of place where you end up chatting to fellow travellers and we met a couple who live at Ravenshoe. It turned out they may be in need of housesitters so they took our contact details on the off-chance we may be able to help them out.

Fiiday drinks at Merluna - a great place to meet people

We really didn’t do much at Merluna, just hung out, did some chores and relaxed. We headed off to Weipa, having booked a site at the caravan park. Weipa is really popular and gets very crowded so we wanted to make sure we wouldn’t be turned away.

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.