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When we were making enquiries about traveling to Cape York and Cooktown we were given many different descriptions of the condition of the roads but we were told by a couple we ran into at Mt. Uncle Distillery who had just returned from Cape York that the inland road from Cairns to Cooktown was completely sealed but they did say it was a very boring drive. Neither Robb nor I are keen to drive on unsealed roads, we have made some short attempts at this and it gives us no pleasure whatsoever, also it is not good for the car. We took the inland road and I found it quite a good drive, the road itself was good but the changing landscapes intrigued me. We stopped at Lakeland to refuel at the roadhouse and then drove to the Lakeland Pub for lunch. We arrived in Cooktown around 3.30pm and we were quickly set up. As we always do now we asked when we checked in about sandflies and we were told they are pretty bad here and we were told of a gas device sold at the local hardware store that seems to work to keep them away from your immediate proximity. We already have every personal insecticide known to man and anti-itch creams and sprays and even anti histamines so thought we would drive to the hardware store and pick one of these up. We had a quick look around town before returning home.
Today we were to take a scenic flight up to Cape York but unfortunately the company couldn't find fuel for the plane so we thought we would take a wander around Cooktown. We started with a visit to Grassy Hill Lookout which offers outstanding views around Cooktown, it's oceans, rivers and mountains. From here we drove down to the wharf for a wander, we watched a fishing boat unpacking crayfish before having a better look around. Cooktown has lots of information boards and statues around the streets, we read a few of the more interesting ones and I took a few photos of the statues. We visited the Cooktown History Centre where you can read the complete history of the area commencing with the Indigenous groups that originally inhabited this area onto Captain Cook Landing, the discovery of gold at Palmer River which is why the town of Cook was built and on through the two wars to current day. It was interesting but there was a lot of information and we found we only read part of it. After that we walked up and down the Main Street looking at the interesting buildings. We walked down to the kiosk for a thick shake before returning home.
We had a bit of a drive ahead of us today to the Split Rock Gallery a collection of Sandstone caves and overhangs where there is a spectacular Aboriginal Rock Art Gallery, the gallery is just before the town of Laura 133kms away from Cooktown. There is a 500mt walk up to the art but what we weren't told was that the walk was on a path that was no more than a goat track and we had to scramble over rocks to get there, luckily we did have handrails to help us up and down. Thankfully there was a seat at the top so that we could sit and admire the work which is listed on the National Heritage List and UNESCO has listed them as being amongst the top 10 rock art sites in the world. The age of the work hasn't been determined yet but it is believed they are between 10,000 to 40,000 years old.
After yesterdays exertions we thought we would have a calmer day today and chose to take a drive to a couple of local waterfalls. The first one was to be Endeavour Falls but when we arrived where they should be there was a caravan park there but we couldn't see the falls, we decided to drive to the second one Isabella Falls and come back to see if we could find them later. The water from Isabella Falls is running over the road, probably to do with the amount of rain they have had up here, we drove through and then parked on the other side in the parking area and walked down to the falls. It wasn't very difficult so we walked down as close as we could and I took a few photos, you are able to swim here and there is a lovely little beach area, it looked very appealing. We drove back to the caravan park and enquired about Endeavour Falls, it turned out that they were at the back of the park and you had to walk through the park to reach them so we parked the car and took off in the direction we were told too. They were easy to find but there was a bit of a slippery walk down to them, once again across rocks. It wasn't a long walk and we both managed ok, we didn't stay long because you are unable to swim here and we thought it was probably related to the sign that said beware of crocodiles. I looked at the path back and thought a crocodile will be able to negotiate that much quicker than me so I was keen to get back to the top. Our last stop on the way back was to be Keating's Lagoon which is in Keating's Conservation Park. We parked the car and I was going to walk through the gate to the Lagoon when I noticed there was a sign to say there had been a recent crocodile sighting there, and I didn't want to be that tourist who ignores the sign and then gets eaten so we drove back to town for fuel, a gas bottle and some shopping.
I had quite a dramatic start to the day by tripping on a damaged parking strip outside the chemist stubbing my big toe and wrenching my shoulder. Unfortunately my shoulder, which I had been having trouble with but was greatly improved, is now back to square 1 minus 5, I didn't even feel my toe the pain in my shoulder was so bad. We were heading towards the chemist to have prescriptions filled, so we went in and asked if they had something I could stem the bleeding from my toe and they were very helpful and caring. While we were tending to my toe the chemist filled the prescriptions and Robb found a sling for me to use to help with the pain. We had intended to continue onto the National Trust James Cook Museum but in the circumstances Robb wanted me to go home and rest but I couldn't see any reason to change plans, it's not as if it would help my shoulder. The anchor from the Endeavour is in the museum and that is the main attraction for me, it is huge and in the front window of the museum, it was really difficult to find somewhere to stand to take a good photo. The building the museum in is an old convent school built in 1889 and is quite beautiful. We had a look around the museum before following up on the few attractions around town we couldn't find on Wednesday, we found the majority including 'The Queen's Steps', 'Milbi Wall', Cooktown Railway Station', 'Leopard Tank at ANZAC Park', 'Gunpowder Magazine' and the cemetery. Before returning to camp we stopped for a drink at the 'Top Pub.
After lots of research about whether or not to drive ourselves up to Cape York we both decided to find a better more comfortable way to take the trip so we booked a flight with Air Tours Australia. We would be flying out from Cooktown Airport and landing at Bamaga where we would be driven the rest of the way to the tip. There has been a shortage of aircraft fuel on the mainland which meant we had to fly to Horn Island, part of the Torres Straight Islands to refuel for the trip, we didn't mind it was a bonus for us. We only stopped for a few minutes for the refuelling and then back in the air with only a short trip remaining to arrive at Bamaga. Outside Bamaga we stopped at the Croc Tent a souvenir shop out in the middle of nowhere that is full of everything 'Top End'. Just as an aside the staff here were lovely and Robb enjoyed a long chat with one of the girls while I shopped. There were three small planes to take all of the guests on the tour and we were lucky enough to be in the bosses plane which meant when we arrived the others had gone on ahead of us in a rickety old bus and the seven of us had a very pleasant drive in the Land Cruiser. Greg the boss obviously loves this country he lives in and regaled us with very interesting stories on the history and the earlier pioneers and he told a good story. We arrived at Cape York last and the others were waiting on the beach for us, the tide was on it's way out which meant we should be able to walk around the beach to reach the 'Northernmost Point' which is an easier trip than climbing over the mountain. We decided to have lunch first to give the tide a bit more time to go out. There was still a bit of water and at one stage it was nearly up to our knees but the area we had to walk through wasn't very big. We had to then climb over rocks to eventually reach the top, thankfully the lovely Aaron was on hand to help us with the climbing. The whole walk is only about 16 minutes but it was a bit of a struggle at times and it was quite hot so I was very happy to finally see that sign. This has been something I have wanted to do for awhile now because we live very close to the 'Southernmost Point' it intrigued me to be able to reach the other end. On the way back to the airport we visited a plane crash site, not sure that was a good idea when we had a 2 hour flight ahead of us but it was interesting. We arrived back at Cooktown at 4.30pm after one of the best days we have had on this trip. We would both highly recommend this airline, Greg the boss is a bit of a character but he obviously runs a good company, his staff seem to like him and the three men Greg, Aaron and Lachie were very attentive and obliging. We are so happy we decided to take this flight rather than drive ourselves, we flew low for the trip and when we saw the roads we would have been driving on there is no way we would have enjoyed that.
We didn't have much planned for today, we have had a good look around Cooktown already and we were looking to a quieter day after all the excitement yesterday. We thought we would take a visit to the Historic Lion's Den Hotel in Rossville for lunch, the hotel is about 30kms outside of Cooktown. There wasn't any rush to leave so we had coffee at home and then picked up groceries we needed before heading off. We stopped on the way at the Black Mountain Lookout, this mountain range has fascinated me and I wanted to have a closer look. The mountain range is made up on large boulders, granite I believe, and it looks like someone has just stacked up a very large pile of rocks. The range is considered to be Australia's Bermuda Triangle and both Indigenous and non-Indigenous groups claim people and herds of cattle have all mysteriously disappeared here in the past, I love a good mystery. We proceeded onto the Lion's Den and arrived just on lunchtime. This is a fascinating hotel in the same mould as the Daly Waters Hotel with rooms of items hanging from the roof, bar and walls, very quirky and rustic. There isn't much substance to the actual building with walls falling in and holes in the roof but somehow it just works. We sat outside on the deck and ordered a couple of share meals for lunch, Robb had a beer and I had a wine. The food was average but we weren't really there for the food it was more for the experience and we both had a good time, it is certainly worth a visit. We will be sorry to leave Cooktown it was much more than either of us expected it to be, tomorrow we will be driving to Wonga Beach where we have stayed a couple of times before. Wonga Beach is thirty minutes outside of Port Douglas and fifteen minutes from both Mossman and Daintree Village.
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