Cape York - It never rains in the dry season

 I have just returned from my first tour to Cape York.  Nerves were working overtime as I haven't done a tour since leaving Oztours 3 seasons ago.  It was good to be back and I had 13 eager people to show off the Cape to.

I'll do a series of blogs on my Oztours travels this year with a few highlights each trip.

First day was from Cairns to Cooktown via the Bloomfield Track.  This controversial track was made in The Daintree Rainforest during 1983/84.  Protesters did their best to prevent this track going through.  Although the track finished up going through, the publicity highlighted drew the attention of scientific interest as well as that of the rest of the world. This ancient forest is now protected by World Heritage listing which was granted in 1988 as a result of the track and hence the protesters. 






Picturesque Woobadda Creek. a great place to stop and stretch our legs and take a few pikkies.

The Lions Den is a hotel named after a tin mine which was situated on a hill opposite.  The owner of the mine named it after a young stow-away named Daniel who was working for him.  One day when Daniel was sitting at the entrance to the mine, it reminded the owner of the story of Daniel and the Lion's Den.





The first night was spent at the Seaview Hotel in Cooktown.  We had the luxury of phone reception, electricity, TV and an ensuite all at the same time.  This isn't always possible on the Cape as there are very few towns and a limited number of places that have accommodation. 

Cape York Peninsular is almost the size of  Victoria. Tourism, mining and cattle stations are the main industries.  The beauty and remoteness of the pristine landscape and varied ecosystems draws more people to this area each year.  I was astounded at the road and accommodation improvements made during my 3 year absence. 

After leaving Cooktown the following day, we made our way to Lakefield National Park.  Our first stop was Isabella Falls.  

An interest feature along the way is the Old Laura Homestead which was run as a cattle station to provide meat to the miners of the Palmer river gold rush in the late 1800s.  

A rusted relic of bygone days, waits patiently amid old buildings for its final slow demise.

The pristine Wenlock forms a  corridor from east to west and brings with it a number of rare and unusual flora and fauna.  It is also home to many rare marine species, some of which are awaiting discovery yet.

Some of the cattle stations supplement their incomes by providing a few tourist comforts for the weary traveller.  






Palm Cockatoos are Australia's largest cockatoo.  They can only be found on Cape York Peninsular north of Princess Charlotte Bay.  They have large red cheek patches and long curved crest feather which distinguish them from their smaller cousins, the Black Cockatoos.  Their powerful beaks are able to crack the hard nuts of Pandanus.  They are usually found in rainforest and margins adjoining eucalypts, often following the corridors of riverine rainforest.


We were treated to a grand floor (tree) show by the iconic Palm Cockatoos at Bramwell.  I took a million photos.  Here are 3 of them.

This young brolga which was rehabilitating in a nearby paddock, gave me the opportunity to get a nice closeup.  They are usually not so obliging.





While others were enjoying a dip at Fruit Bat Falls, I stood guard protecting them from the numerous carnivorous plants which lurked in the area, waiting for some unsuspecting victim.

Pitcher Plants

Sundews

A new ferry returns my passengers from their Thursday Island trip to Seisia.

The following day, we go to "the Tip".  One more tick off the bucket list!

The following movie goes for 4.17mins and is 52.7mb.  

I will try to do a blog on each trip with different features each time.  As I will be away much of the time, some of these won't be done till the end of my season, mid Sept.  I now have to rush and do some speed research on a new trip for me to the Gulf.  I hope my passengers are as excited as I am to be doing this trip.

Unanswered questions - sometimes a question comes up during the trip that I can't find the answer to.  

Tony - the name of the shrub with the yellow flower which grows profusely at Kennedys Lost Camp in Heathlands is the Yellow Tea Tree (Neofabricia myrtifolia) 

To "The Tip" and beyond

We left Lizard Island on 30 July and had a short sail to Howick Island.  We arrived early afternoon which gave the great white hunter and his trusty assistant time to throw a line in.  Yippee!!!!!!!!  The assistant caught a fish of the smaller variety and decided to keep it for dinner.  Then the great white hunter showed her how it was done and caught a lovely Spanish Mackerel Which was big enough to feed us for a week.  The assistant threw her fish back in.

The next day we set sail for Flinders Islands.  We had the islands to ourselves, Ian couldn't believe there weren't half a dozen boats at least, moored there.




Sunrise at Flinders Is.












We got up early the next day, packed our cameras and snacks and were off exploring.  As usual, the first thing I look for is birds.  It wasn't long before Ian had located the source of the new birdsong we were hearing.

It was the Red-headed Honeyeater  which occurs  across the top of Australia from about Cooktown to Broome. It was exciting for me because I had been looking for one for a few years now.

We saw lots of lizard tracks and finally found a lizard.  It was a Sand Monitor.  It must have been what Captain Cook found and named Lizard Island after.


Flinders Island is quite steep and rocky.  We climbed almost to the top.  We needed the exercise and the view was worth it.  When we got to the bottom the great white hunter was at it again.

This time it was oysters.  They put up a good fight and he had to wrestle them to the ground, but lucky he had a knife with him.  

It was Oysters Kilpatrick when we got back to the boat.








We set out next on 2 Aug to Morris Is.  Not much wind today and we had to motor some of it, but the blue of the sky and turquoise water with an occasional sandy cay and light beacon gave the day an ethereal quality. 

Morris Island was a surprise because of the unusual vegetation.  From a distance it seemed to be bristly.  

The other thing is it was supposed to have only one tree. Someone must have thought it was lonely and planted another.

Although it was already 5 o'clock when we anchored, we couldn't resist a quick visit to the island because it was so unusual.  This photo shows the vast expanse of sand reef which seems to go on forever, off the end of the island.

 We found this little fellow dining on one of the plants (some sort of cactus thing with a large yellow flower head).  I thought it was a rat at first glance but it doesn't have a pointy face like a rat.  I've put 2 photos of him here in the hope that someone can enlighten us.

Ian found some really nice timber which he had to reluctantly part with when we went back to the boat.





The next day (3 Aug) we set sail for Shelburne Bay Which is even more spectacular than Cape Flattery for its silicon sand dunes.  As we passed Hicks Island, Ian spotted a huge flock of birds on the horizon.  As we neared, we saw thousands of Black Noddys all in a feeding frenzy.  At one stage they came straight past the boat.  The birds were after a small fish which we couldn't see, but we did see the larger fish which were hunting the small fish in competition with the birds.

The great white hunter once again set to work, but it was all in vain.  The fish weren't interested in a lure when the real thing was to be had.

To add to the excitement of the day, we had some fun company for a while.









The following night we anchored at Portland Roads, just north of Cape Weymouth where the early explorer, Kennedy, had to leave 8 of his men to make a dash for the north.  We didn't go ashore as the tide was too far out and we would have had to drag the dinghy over a large area of reef and mangrove sludge. Yuk!

Sun 5 Aug we anchored at the Escape River where Kennedy met his death but his trusty assistant, Jacky Jacky, managed to escape and finally reach the Ariel to be rescued.

We sailed out at sunrise to another beautiful day.

The following day, 6 Aug, we sailed up the last leg of the east coast and anchored at Mt Adolphus Island.  When Ian said that he wanted to go there (it's about 7nm northwest of Cape York Peninsular) I said "why do you want to go there?"








When we got there I was glad and couldn't think of anywhere else I would want to stay.  It was sheltered and lined with mangroves, sandy beaches and rocks in interesting segments.  It had hills (which we didn't climb) and it had Mangrove Robins!  I'd never seen these before either.  





Mangroves are beautiful, if you can withstand the midgies.     




















This little tuft of reeds found an unfortunate place to call home.  They are in a rock depression which gathered a bit of soil and must have held water long enough for them to take root.








7 Aug and we left Mt Adolphus Island to sail past "The Tip" and then south to Seisia.  First thing we did was gather up our laundry, grab some shampoo and towels and head over to the camping ground for some overdue scrubbing.  A bit of shopping for some fresh food and we had everything we wanted - almost.  

We had run out of wine two days ago and were having withdrawals.  Lucky, a friend of Jesses (Ian's daughter) lives at Bamaga and came to our rescue.  We couldn't get to Bamaga without a car and the only bottle shop was in Bamaga. Thanks Dan.

  

The next day was for walking and taking photos. It wasn't long before we saw the iconic Palm Cockatoo.  Ian wasn't as enthused as I thought he should have been.  When questioned, he said he thought they were really common and he was expecting to see them.  I explained that I have taken tours to Cape York with people whose main desire was to see a Palm Cockatoo, and they are not always to be seen. 

  Looking along the beach to Seisia jetty (around the corner).

Early morning fishing seems to be the order of the day in this part of the world.

 Ian can see this Striated Heron, which lurks along the foreshore, becoming a comic character.

 A White-throated Honeyeater gather some nice soft spider-webs for his nest. 

Tomorrow we leave for Darwin.  We're planning in going straight over the top without stops.