Karen and Michael's Big Trip
A 'warts and all' record of Karen and Michael's 12 month lap of Australia.
Featuring Baby Ebby
Thursday 23 July, 2009 - 15:52 by Karen and Michael in travel journal
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11 to 20 July (day 114 to 123)
Lake Placid Caravan Park, Cairns via Coen (1 night)
We were excited to be heading for Cairns for 2 reasons – catching up with Laura and little Ebby and having a ‘city fix’. We stopped for one night behind the general store in Coen and on then decided to continue through to Cairns a day early.
I had a lovely time in Cairns spending most of it with Laura and the baby. He is a really good natured and very bright baby so I totally fell in love with him. Laura is coping really well and is very devoted to him. When she was a teenager she swore she would never have children but she is clearly a natural at it (much more so than I was). Michael and I babysat one day so that Laura and Ebaia could go out for lunch and the movies. I took heaps of photos. Here’s a few:
Michael used most of the time to shop for fishing gear and other bits and pieces and doing some minor maintenance stuff. We had the car serviced (the third time since we left Canberra). The car and camper survived the trip to the Cape really well. The only damage were a missing bolt from the steering mechanism (which hadn’t caused a problem), a slow leak in one of the tyres as a result of bark getting lodged between the tyre and rim and the bolts holding the winch controller in place had fallen out (fortunately its lodged firmly behind the bull bar so it was still in place).
20 to 24 July (day 123 to 127)Undara Resort, Undara Volcanic National Park, Qld
Leaving Cairns was especially sad as I won’t see Laura and Ebby again for several months. But we were excited to be finally heading west and towards the Northern Territory. We are travelling along the Savannah Way which goes all the way to Broome. Our first stop was at Undara. This is the site of a large number of volcanos and the world’s largest lava tubes. The Undara volcano erupted over a million years ago spewing out enough lava to fill Sydney harbour three times. As the lava cooled a tube over 160kms long was formed. The outer surface cooled (a bit like the skin on heated milk or custard) and stayed in place. Some of the tube has collapsed over time leaving a series of tubes (like caves) in place. You can only see the tubes by doing a tour so we opted for the full day tour so we could see as much as possible. On the tour we walked around the rim of the Kalkani volcano – it was like walking around the edge of a large ‘bowl shaped’ grassy hill. We then walked through four of the tubes that varied in length and height. Most of them were very long and dark so it was hard to take photos that show what they are really like. The photo below is of the shortest one we visited.
We had a tour guide who was a bit of a character who made it a really fun day. The Resort in itself is quite nice. We are in the caravan park section. The more upmarket accommodation is provided in refurbished train carriages dating back to the 1880’s. There’s a bar, restaurant and pool. An hour of entertainment is provided in the evening around a campfire. We have been to a slide show on the wildlife in the area and a bush poetry reading which was really good.
There are a number of bushwalks around the area and we have done three of them. The best was around a swamp that had heaps of birdlife around it. Here is a photo of the swamp – which actually looks more like a lake as a result of a big wet season.
Here is a photo of one of the Pretty Face Wallabies we have seen:
We are leaving tomorrow (Friday) heading towards Karumba which is towards the bottom of the Gulf of Carpenteria and then to Boodjamulla (Lawn Hill) National Park which think (based on what everyone has told us) will be a real highlight of our trip. We will be fairly remote for awhile so I’m not sure how long it will be until our next blog entry.
We made it to 'The TIP'
Friday 10 July, 2009 - 12:07 by Karen and Michael in travel journal
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Its been several weeks since our last blog as we have had limited phone and internet reception.Its been a really interesting experience travelling the Cape on our own and at a much slower pace than when we did the 6 day tour in 2007. There have been lots of people up here - almost like Bateman's Bay at Christmas. We keep running into the same groups of people at different places which has been really nice as you tend to form a small community of travellers swapping stories and experiences. The demographic has been different too - until we left Cairns it was mostly grey nomads and some younger families. Up here it has been a real mix of young familes and couples of all ages.The car and camper have survived the trip really well - we are very happy. The corrugations have been pretty bad in some places and you sometimes feel that everything (including your own body) is going to be shaken to pieces. Michael has been regularly retightening bolts etc, checking the mechanicals and clearing the dust out of the air filter. The weather has been devine - mostly high 20's and low 30's every day but cooling down most evenings. The sun doesn't go down until about 6:30 so it has often been 8pm before we are having dinner.Here is the detailed account of our travels on the Cape since our last blog entry. 18 to 22 June (day 91 to 95)Kalpowar Crossing Campground, Lakefield National Park After leaving Cooktown we travelled through the towns of Lakelands and Laura before turning off the Peninsula Development Road (mostly unsealed) into Lakefield National Park. There are lots and lots of campgrounds scattered through the park. We chose Kalpowar Crossing as it is almost in the middle of the park and has toilets (only one other camping area has toilets). When we got to the camping registration board we were surprised by how busy it was going to get. By the time we left the camp ground was full. It was quite nice having so many people coming and going as there were lots of people to talk with and compare notes about their travels. The campground is perched above the Normanby River and long causeway that crosses the river.
Here’s a photo of the campsite.
You can see the left edge of the causeway in this photo.
A pair of Nankeen Night Herons and their chick along with a pair of Rajah Shelducks lived by the causeway. Here is a photo of the Night Heron which is a rather funny looking bird.
From Kalpowar we explored most of the highlights in the park including the White Lily Lagoon and Red Lily Lagoon. There weren’t a lot of the lilies in flower but the lagoons were very pretty and we saw heaps of birdlife including several brolgas at the red lily lagoon. We also visited the Low Lake which we had been to on our trip in 2007. It’s like a very large lagoon, covered in lilies and lots of birdlife too. Here is a photo.
On the way to the Low Lake we drove across the Nifold Plain – flat grasslands covered in termite mounds. Here is a photo Michael took from the back of the ute.
We also spent time here to just relaxing. We met a young couple from Bundaberg who were on their honeymoon and we had ‘happy hour’ with them a couple of times. We were also able to have a fire so we were able to BBQ and use the camp oven and just sit by it in the evening. Michael had a few goes at fishing and caught an Archer fish that was big enough for lunch. We had already seen one croc in the river and Michael saw his second while trying to retrieve the lure he had snagged by the bank – consequently he left the lure where it was (along with two others that were snagged in branches overhanging the water). It ended up being quite an expensive fish lunch.22 to 24 June (day 95 to 97)Coen General Store and Post Office, Coen After leaving Lakefield National Park we rejoined the Peninsula Development Road at Musgrave Roadhouse. The road was quite good as it has recently been graded and it is early in the dry season but there still a few sections with a lot of corrugations. We decided to make our next stop Coen so that we could pick-up groceries, fill up our water tank and recharge the batteries. Coen is the second largest town in the Cape, after Cooktown. It has a main road with 2 general stores and petrol stations, a pub and a small guest house. We stayed in a small campground behind one of the general stores. It was pretty basic but filled up each evening with other travellers. We got our first really good look at the Blue Winged Kookaburra in the campground.
While we were at Coen we talk a trip to Port Stewart which is on Princess Charlotte Bay. We were hoping to see the Bay but there wasn’t any access to the coast. We had a few attempts at fishing but there were only a couple of spots that felt very croc friendly so we didn’t stay very long. There were also heaps of mangroves so it was a bit smelly in places. 24 to 28 June (day 97 to 101)Chili Beach Campground, Iron Range National Park We left Coen early as we had heard from a number of people that Chili Beach fills fairly quickly each day. There are no advanced bookings taken so you have to cross your fingers that you can get a good spot when you arrive. We drove from Coen to the Archer River Roadhouse and then left the Peninsula Development Road for an almost 3 hour trip to Chili Beach. Again the road was great. While it is unsealed the road is constantly being repaired and regraded so much of it was like driving on a well maintained country road apart from the creek and river crossings (which we lost count of). We crossed the Wenlock and Pascoe Rivers easily but could see how they would be impassable in the wet season. We managed to get a great site just behind the palm and coconut trees that line the beach. The trees provide shade and shelter from the wind. The beach is quite lovely especially when the sun is shining on the water. At the northern end of the beach is Cape Weymouth and Restoration Island where Captain Bligh escaped to when the crew of the Bounty mutinied. Cape Griffith is at the southern end. The beach is very calm as it is sheltered by the Great Barrier Reef. There is a small rocky island just off the beach that we have been able to walk to at low tide. Unfortunately there are crocs here so even though the water was very inviting we couldn’t swim. The beach is also strewn with plastic litter (lots of bottles and thongs) that blows in from the Phillipines. Here is the view down the beach:
We also drove 5kms on the beach to the entrance of Chili Creek. Michael caught a 48cm Giant Trevally here that we had for dinner. He caught 3 others but his knots let him down and they got away.
Again the campground is packed. In the small area we are in there are 9 vehicles. A few people leave each morning and then from about lunchtime it just keeps filling up. It almost feels like Bateman’s Bay at Christmas time. While we are very remote there are a couple of communities nearby. Lockhart River is an aboriginal community with a population of about 800. We drove the 40kms to Lockhart River one day to get some fresh bread and a few other things. We refuelled there and paid $1.88 a litre (this is 40 cents more than the next highest price we have paid for diesel). On the way we stopped at the Lockhart River airport (well its an airstrip and shed). It was built in 1942 by American soldiers. We were surprised that up to 50,000 US and Australian military personnel were stationed there for a period during WWII. A smaller village – Portland Roads is about 10kms away. It is situated on a tiny little bay and there are about a dozen homes overlooking the bay. Surprisingly (because we are so remote) there is a little café overlooking the bay. We thought we would stop for morning tea but ended up having a prawn lunch there instead. We had prawns for two (a kilo of prawns) with salad and bread for just $24. Our first ‘casualty’ occurred here. As Michael got back into the car he was stung 3 times by native bees that were in a small shrub next to the car. While we were at Portland Roads the community was preparing for a celebration to mark the native title determination for the Kuuku Ya’u people. Its quite historical as it is the first native title decision where sea has been included as well as land. We didn’t attend the ceremony as we felt it would be intrusive but understand that the Federal and State ministers were there. By the time we left we had met many people stopping for one or two nights. On one night the campground was so full it looked like a parking lot. Here is a photo of from our campsite. There are tents pitched behind each of the vehicles.
28 to 30 June (day 101 to 103)Eliot Falls Campground, Heathlands Resource Reserve After leaving Chili Beach we headed back to the Peninsula Development Road and then turned north on to the Telegraph Road travelling past Moreton Telegraph Station. We had intended to spend the night at Bramwell Junction but the because the road was so good we arrived by lunchtime and decided to push on to Eliot Falls. At Bramwell Junction many people leave the better road and head up the Old Telegraph Track. We had decided not to do it because we travelled it in 2007 (on the tour we did) and we didn’t want to risk any damage to our vehicle and camper. While it is only about 130kms long it is very rough and has lots of difficult creek crossings. We are glad we decided not to as we have now heard lots of stories about the vehicles that have come a cropper. One of the worst is of a family with a couple of small children whose 4WD stopped in the middle of the crossing. They waited 40 minutes before another vehicle came along and pulled them out and by this time water was coming in the windows (which you have to open so that your car doesn’t float away). They had to camp by the river for 4 days while they dried out the engine. During this time of the year up to 100 vehicles travel the track each day. Apparently the track is a bit of mess and very chopped up. We drove up the Bamaga Road which is a much easier drive but is mostly red dirt. You have to stay well behind any other vehicles ahead or you can’t see the road for the dust. We then travelled 7kms of the Telegraph Track to reach Eliot Falls. Just doing the 7kms was enough for us as the corrugations were really bad and we got stuck behind someone travelling very slowly– you have to keep the speed up so that you ‘float’ across the corrugations. One creek crossing was much deeper than we expected and was a bit of a worry for a moment but we got through ok. Eliot Falls is a beautiful spot and has been one of the highlights of our trip. In the area is Eliot and Twin Falls and a big swimming hole called the Saucepan. There are no crocs here. By the time we had set up we were really hot (it was probably over 30 degrees) so we cooled off in the rock pool at the Twin Falls. This was another spot that was packed with people but we managed to have a swim the morning after we arrived without anyone else there. We took lots of photos as it was so picturesque. Here is a photo of Twin Falls and the pool we swam in:
This is Eliot Falls:
On the drive out we called in to Fruit Bat Falls which were even more stunning.
30 June to 5 July (day 103 to 108)Punsand Bay Camping Resort, The Tip of Australia We left Eliot Falls very excited about getting to the northern most point of Australia – ‘The Tip’. It was a fairly uneventful trip until we did the last 11kms to Punsand Bay and were almost shaken to pieces by the corrugations. This road was awful with heaps of washouts and large holes. The campground is situated on Punsand Bay which about 10kms from the The Tip. Our site was just above the beach overlooking the Torres Strait. Here is the view from our campsite:
From the beach we can see The Tip and many of the islands. Here is the view at sunrise.
The beach is quite lovely and the water is that beautiful aqua blue – but once again you can’t swim. While the camping ground is pretty basic is does have a bar and restaurant where we have had a few quiet drinks and also had the Saturday night seafood feast which included heaps of fresh prawns, lobster, crab, barramundi.. We made the obligatory trip to The Tip on the first morning following a shortcut on the mud map provided at the campground. It was a pretty treacherous track with heaps of large puddles (up to about 25 metres long). We pulled one couple in a rented 4WD out of one of the puddles. They had been stuck for about ½ an hour when we arrived. They had chosen the wrong side of the track and discovered a great big hole. It was the first time we got to use our recovery point at the rear of our car. The final walk to The Tip takes about 15 minutes on an unmaintained boardwalk through rainforest, across the beach and then up and along the rocks. It was a bit sentimental as this is where Michael asked me to marry him in 2007. Once there the spot is marked by a small sign (which is surprising considering the number of people that make the pilgrimage to this spot).
On the walk back we saw a Sacred Kingfisher on the beach. On the drive back (we didn’t take the shortcut this time) we stopped at the Croc Tent. This a souvenir shop in a tent about half way along the road to The Tip. We got little Ebby a cute t-shirt with a croc on it. We did some fishing at the beach and Michael caught 4 whiting that we had for dinner. It was really yummy –the best tasting fish we have caught so far. One morning as we walked along the beach a small shark swam along the water’s edge for about 500metres with us. We also explored the surrounding area with the highlight being the trip to the mouth of the Jardine River. To get there we drove an unsealed road that was built by Americans in WWII out to a place called Mutee Head which had really beautiful views over to the Torres Strait Islands. From here we spent ½ an hour travelling a 4km long sand track to the mouth of the Jardine. When we got there we were the only ones there and it was just magic.
The mouth of the river was much wider than we expected, the sand was lovely and fine and there were great views across the Strait. We had a quick fish here but didn’t catch anything. On the drive back we had to stop for a Little Kingfisher in the middle of the road. We decided not to go to Thursday Island (which most people do) as we did a tour of it in 2007. On our last day we ‘babysat’ Angus, a Jack Russell Terrier, with the people camping next to us so that they could go to Thursday Island. It gave me a bit of a ‘dog-fix’ to be able to take him for a walk and play ball with him. 5 to 11 July(day 108 to 114)Weipa Camping Ground, Weipa via Moreton Telegraph Station (1 night) After Punsand Bay we planned to stay at Weipa on the western side of the Cape. We stopped for 1 night at Moreton Telegraph Station on the way. Moreton Station was part of the Overland Telegraph Line built in the 1880’s to provide communications between Cooktown and The Tip. Its situated on the Wenlock River so Michael tried his hand at fishing once we had set-up. The next day we continued our journey to Weipa taking a 40km shortcut through a property called Batavia Downs. This road turned out to be one of the best we have driven. As we drove into Weipa we got on to the first long stretch of bitumen road we have seen in awhile and also came to the first traffic light since we left Canberra. The lights are where the road intersects a haulage road for the mine. Weipa is a mining town with a population of about 3500 people. Its very neat and tidy and quite pretty as there is little sign of the mining in the town itself. Its situated on small peninsula between the Mission and Embley Rivers. The town is ‘owned’ by Rio Tinto who mine the bauxite that was discovered here in the 1960’s. Its taken from the ground through a process called strip mining. Essentially they remove the top soil then remove about 1 to 3 metres of the bauxite. Once the bauxite is removed they put the top soil back and hand plant seedlings. Some of the land that has been mined has now has small housing developments on it. A few years ago the land became freehold so people have purchased many of the homes owned by the mine and have built new ones. Like most mining towns it is very dear to live here (an average house is $500k and rent for a 2 bedroom townhouse has dropped from $1000 a week to $600 due to the financial downturn). We did a bus tour of the town and mine. Due to safety regulations we weren’t allowed out of the bus but we saw the huge haulage trucks and front end loaders. It has been a bit of a luxury being here after ‘roughing it’ for several weeks. The campsite has green grass, we have power (which we have only had for 2 nights since we left Cairns) and there is a small airconditioned shopping centre with a Woolies, butcher and bakery. Woolies is stocked every Thursday by a barge that comes all the way from Cairns. The sunsets here are magic. The sun starts to go down at about 6:15pm and the sky stays deep shades of pink and orange until well after 7pm.
The camping ground is on a bay at the entrance to the Embley River so we have sat on the beach most evenings and watched the sunset. Michael has taken heaps of photos. The main past-time here is fishing. One of the highlights of our trip has been a visit to Pennefather River to the north. It was quite an adventure to get there as it took about 1.5 hours on a very rough unsealed road followed by an 8km drive up very soft sand along the beach to the entrance to the river. The beach and entrance to the river were really stunning. Unfortunately this photo doesn't do it justice.
We were able to drive along a large sand bar and stop to fish. I caught 22 fish (all bream except for a baby flathead) in a space of about 1.5 hours. Michael was using different tackle and caught a couple. We kept 4 which we had for dinner and lunch the next day. As we fished we saw a sting ray jumping out of the water (we have never seen this before). Weipa has been a great place for birdwatching. We have seen a couple of Black Necked Storks (nee the Jabiru) as well as lots of other breeds that we haven’t seen before. 
There are heaps of Red Winged Parrots in the camp ground. Over the course of our trip we have now seen and identified over 80 types of birds that we haven’t seen before. We are planning to do a couple of overnight stops on the way back to Cairns. We’ll stay in Cairns for a week so we can catch up with Laura. I am really excited about seeing little Ebby again as he will have changed so much. Once we leave Cairns we will head along the Savannah Way with the intention of reaching Broome by the end of October (before the wet season). We are really looking forward to heading west as this will largely be unchartered territory for both of us.
Croc Country
Wednesday 17 June, 2009 - 12:26 by Karen and Michael in travel journal
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6 to 10 June (day 79 to 83)Noah Beach Campground, Cape Tribulation, Daintree National Park We farewelled Laura, Sarah, little and big Ebby on Saturday morning. It was really hard to say goodbye. Consequently I felt pretty sad and very homesick for the first few days after leaving Cairns. We didn’t travel very far – across the Daintree River on the ferry to Cape Trib. We stayed in a national park campground which was nestled in rainforest just 50m from the beach. We had forgotten it was a long weekend so all 15 sites were full.
The beach was lovely with beautiful views of the mountain ranges. Here is a photo of me walking along the beach and one Michael took of the sunrise:
We explored most of the area visiting all of the beaches and doing all of the boardwalks through the rainforests and mangroves. Here is a photo from Cape Trib across the bay:
At our campground we met the Orange-footed Scrubfowl for the first time. They are much nicer than the brush turkeys. We had a pair visit us each morning. We tried to catch some fish at the entrance to Noah Creek. We only managed to catch a lot of small Yellowfin Bream which we threw back so there was no fish for dinner. We were a bit disappointed with Cape Trib for a number of reasons. There are other places that have much nicer beaches and aren’t as touristy. Despite the fact that it is a big tourist destination the locals didn’t seem particularly friendly or welcoming and we hadn’t really experienced this until now. They charged exorbitant prices for everything despite being just up the road from Cairns. I think our experience was also marred by one night when our neighbours (a group of young blokes) played loud heavy metal music late into the night. When we went to ask (nicely) if they told us to rack off in a very abusive and quite threatening way. In the end we were quite happy to move on despite being a bit anxious about driving the Bloomfield Track. 10 to 13 June (day 83 to 86)Haley’s Cabin and Camping, Ayton (at the entrance to the Bloomfield River) Our drive up the Bloomfield Track was a bit nerve wracking but nowhere near as scary as we thought it might be. The track is about 35kms long and was built in the 1980s after a lot of controversy and protest. It meanders through the range along the coast and has a number of very steep hills (up to 33% gradient) and creek and river crossings. This is one of the smaller creek crossings:
We had decided the stop at Haley’s as we had lunch there in 2007 when we did the six-day tour of Cape York. Ayton is just north of the Bloomfield crossing and the Wujal Wujal community and is along Weary Bay. It has a lovely feel and Haley’s is like a little piece of tropical paradise. We had a great campsite with a fire ring so we were able to use the campfire. The couple who have been managing the place during the wet season were very friendly and made us feel very welcome. We tried some fishing on the boat ramp, at the entrance to the Bloomfield River which is at one end of Weary Bay and also the entrance to Plantation Creek at the other end of the bay. We had no luck but did spot three crocs along the banks. Here’s Michael fishing near the boat ramp on the Bloomfield:
And of a female croc we spotted (the big male as he slid into the water before we could take a photo of him):
And driving along Weary Bay:
The highlight was a trip to Roaring Meg (a huge cascading waterfall). We travelled with a few others that were staying at Haley’s and visited the Bloomfield Falls and then into the mountains through Aboriginal land to Roaring Meg.
Here is the Bloomfield Falls:
We were told that Meg was an orphan white girl taken in by the local tribe. Meg had three children who all died. The roaring sound of the falls is Meg crying for her children. Because of the falls significance to the aboriginal people we were asked no to take photos. A little up from the falls we had a swim in a lovely rock pool (no crocs here).
13 to 18 June (day 86 to 91)Endeavour River Escape, Cooktown After leaving Haley’s we headed up the unsealed road to Cooktown. We stopped in at the Lion’s Den Hotel at Helenvale (just before the bitumen road starts about 30kms out of Cooktown) for morning tea and also at Black Mountain.
Black Mountain is quite amazing as it is made up of lots of rocks/boulders that appear to have just been left there in a huge pile. The rocks are granite but are black as they are covered in lichen. Apparently there is some mystery associated with the mountain as people and livestock have gone missing there and never found.
We are staying at a Clydesdale and Brahmin stud about 15kms out of town.
We spent a day visiting some of the sights we hadn’t seen last time we were here in 2007. We spent some time at Keatings Lagoon (named after a local family – not our ex-PM). There was a bird hide and we managed to spot another Comb-crested Jacana walking on the waterlilies and several pairs of the Green Pygmy-goose.
This is the view of the Endeavour River from Grassy Hill:
Yesterday we did a guided tour of several rock art sites with one of the local aboriginal elders. We have seen a fair bit of rock art but have never had the chance to have it interpreted by an aborigine. The elder, Willie Gordon who runs Guurbri tours of the Nugal rock art sites in the hills above Hope Vale. As well as enjoying Willie’s stories and thoughts the highlight was a visit to a birthing site which had a painting representing a women giving birth.
After the tour Michael and I continued on past Hope Vale to Elim Beach where there are coloured sand dunes similar to those on Fraser Island.
It was an amazing drive through bright white dunes covered that are partly covered in scrub.
Tomorrow we head further north into the Lakefield National Park. We are intending to stay at Kalpowar Crossing in the park for a few nights so we can explore the rivers, waterholes and lagoons and maybe do some fishing. We are hoping to go on to Cape Melville National Park but this may be unlikely as the road is still closed because some people went up there too soon after the wet season and the road has to be repaired. We are now ¼ of the way through our journey. In some ways it has gone very quickly but it also seems like a lifetime since we left home. There are some days where we would love to be at home enjoying its comforts (especially when its raining) and our family and friends but we are enjoying ourselves so much that we manage through this. We have met a lot of people along the way from lots of different places. Its really pleasant having a chat about where they have been and what they have done. We have picked up lots of tips about where to go and what to see. I also manage to get a ‘dog fix’ every now and then as a lot of people travel with their dogs so I get to have a pat and a chat to their pooches. We have now done 10,421kms and have already had the car serviced twice. The car and camper are holding up well (except for the ute tray which we had to have reinforced with steel beams while in Cairns due to the weight of the camper). We have come in under budget for all but 2 weeks which is great. We have spent a lot less on camping fees and fuel than expected but our spending on ‘other’ or extras has almost always been over what we budgeted.
Family Time in Cairns
Friday 05 June, 2009 - 17:49 by Karen and Michael in travel journal
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20 May to 6 June (day 62 to 79)
Lake Placid Caravan Park, Cairns
Much of our time in Cairns has been spent with Laura, Sarah, Ebaia and baby Ebbi.
Laura and bub left hospital on Monday and both are doing well. Ebbi is now 4kg and is getting bigger each day. Laura and Ebbi are coping fairly well with the interupted sleep so far.
Yesterday Michael and I had a day on the Great Barrier Reef. We went to Michelmas Cay with Ocean Explorer cruises. The trip was a wedding gift from the girls and their partners. The cay is a small sand island east of Cairns. Its also a bird sanctuary with 20,000 birds on it (Common Noddies, Sooty and Crested Terns and Brown Boobies). We had 2 good snorkelling sessions on the reef which is just a few metres off the cay's beach. We saw lots of tropical fish and different corals.
Here is a photo of us:
And of the cay and some of the birds:
Tomorrow we head off for Cape York. It is going to be hard to say goodbye to the girls. Sarah is staying in Cairns for another week with Laura.
Our first stop is Noah Beach in the Daintree National Park for 4 nights. We are then planning to stop at a little place called Ayton on our way to Cooktown. We expect to be on the Cape for about 5 or 6 weeks before returning to Cairns and getting ready to head west. Most places on the Cape are fairly remote so I'm not sure when our next blog entry will be.
