Sunday September 1. Father's Day and the first day of Spring. Good for all those down South to be over winter!
Our last day in Townsville we spent sightseeing. We clocked up over 100 km just driving around - The Strand to start, the CBD to wander through the markets (which were very ordinary), the golf course, the Botanical gardens and the airport. We also tried to find a way up to the top of Mount Stuart. It's another stunning dominating feature of the landscape. Creating a natural Southern boundary to the suburban sprawl, its craggy, rocky peak rises sharply to a height of 584 meters. Despite programming in the location on the GPS and driving around the bottom edge of it for an hour we couldn't find a way up. Bugger! The views are supposedly spectacular.
Mt Stuart viewed from our van
The upside of our wanderings was that we got to see a large area of greater Townsville. There are a lot of new subdivisions on the outer fringes and the road network is terrific. Heaps of the more major roads throughout the suburbs are dual carriageway with lovely tropical plantations along the medium strips. The contrast between the old Queenslander style of home interspersed with some of the more upmarket designer houses makes for an interesting combination. There are areas of all new or all old, but either way the general order and cleanliness of the place, along with the wide roads and tropical vegetation make it really attractive. We hardly saw any graffiti or litter. So different to suburban Melbourne!
Sunset was at 6.04. We decided the best spot to view it would be at the top of Castle Hill. We were amazed at how many people were walking the road to the top. It must be a Sunday evening thing to do in Townsville. Without exaggeration there were hundreds of walkers heading in both directions all along the 3 or 4 kilometers of narrow, steep road to the top. It was quite difficult to get around them in some parts where the bends in the road were sharp or they were walking two abreast. The view of the sunset was gorgeous, complemented by fires burning in the distance which glowed as it got dark. An aircraft circled upward overhead to maybe 10,000 ft and dropped some skydivers out over The Strand. It was a beautiful evening and a lovely way to remember Townsville.
After a morning walk for James to a nearby shopping centre complex to get bread and post off a baby present, we managed to hit the road by 10am Monday. We were heading North with a few free camp options not far up the highway. Our aim was to get out of the burbs rather than cover distance. We had booked in at Paronella Park for Thursday night. It was only a couple of hundred kilometers away and we had four days to get there.
The first option was Saunders Beach, just half an hour's drive from Townsville. It was a tiny beach-side park and despite arriving early in the day, there was no room. Next we had a look at a large rest area beside a river a bit further on, but even though it was quite a way off the road with plenty of space, we gave it a miss. The Bruce Highway road noise travels far at night. Brian drove right past the turnoff to our third option, another beach-front park. It came up quickly with little advance signage and we had a dirty great semi right on our tail. Not to worry, we would check out Balgal Beach. It was only another 10 km on. This time we were ready for the poorly sign-posted intersection, turned right and drove into the little beachside holiday haven just ten minutes off the highway.
Balgal Beach is a really pretty place. The small camping area overlooks a lovely green park to a long, broad, sandy beach and the ocean. There is an adjacent boat ramp and quaint licensed kiosk/general store with an open-air eating area that hangs out over a river. It's truly idyllic. A shady beachfront spot had just been vacated, so we grabbed it. There were maybe a dozen vans and campers already in and room for only a handful more, so we were lucky. Our parking, however, did not go too smoothly.
The park in front of Balgal free camp
It was a tight fit for the van with a menacing overhead branch that we needed to squeeze up fairly close to. I directed Brian from the rear as he backed in. I kept the van as close as possible to the branch and we missed it by....mmm....a few inches. The van was not quite level so I put the ramps under the passenger-side wheels and signaled Brian to reverse up them. In the soft sand they moved a bit. Not good, but ok. There was still air between the top front corner of the van and the branch. I chocked the wheels. At that point Brian's phone rang and he sat in the Beast on speakerphone. I decided to put the jockey wheel in place and disconnect. Bad idea! As I wound the knob the wheel slid a bit sideways and all of a sudden there was no space between the branch and the van. They were connected. Bugger!
By now I had a bit of an audience. Brian was still on the phone. It was embarrassing. The van was quite unstable and pressing harder up against the thick branch right on the corner join. Brian kept talking. Very frustrating! When he eventually finished his conversation and got out of the Beast to look, he was not happy. To cut a long story short, with a half hour of tense maneuvering the van got re-positioned with - thank God - no damage.
The rest of the day was great. James was in doggy heaven, running along the beach in the warm water, no lead - woohoo! We had a nice long walk, chatted to our neighbours, read and generally relaxed. At 5 o'clock a circle began forming on the grass out front, so James and I joined with a chair and glass of wine. We had a lovely time. Brian read his book.
I'm free.......
A gale blew through in the wee hours of Tuesday morning. Brian launched out of bed and put the awning down, fearful that it would be destroyed. The wind was so strong he got wet from the spray of the waves, 100 meters or so away. By the time we stirred again it was daylight and quite calm outside, although the waves were still crashing on the beach with a loud roar.
Paluma Range National Park, the southern gateway for the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area was a short drive from our camp at Balgal, so breaky and chores done, we headed there. We turned onto the Mount Spec Rd which would take us to Little Crystal Creek then on to Paluma Village, just on 1000 meters ASL. The scenic 18 km of narrow, winding mountain road was scary, but just beautiful. It was built mostly by hand during the 1930's Great Depression, as was a stone bridge that crossed over Little Crystal Creek on the way. The bridge is a photographer's delight, spanning a gorge of deep pools and huge granite boulders bordered by tropical vegetation. The icy-cold, crystal clear water tumbles from a beautiful waterfall, cascading over and around the rocks and under the mossy stone archway of the bridge. It's apparently a popular swimming spot, though at 26 degrees I was not tempted to take a plunge.
Paluma Village sits atop the Mt Spec Range nestled in tropical rainforest. Once called 'Cloudy Clearing', Paluma is famous for the mountain mist that rolls in over the rainforest canopy most afternoons. When it's clear there are stunning coastal views. We walked a few kilometers through the lush forest to a couple of lookouts and despite a sea mist obscuring the islands, the panorama was still spectacular. We were hoping to get a coffee at the village, but nothing was open. Not that there is much at the village - picnic areas, a pottery, a couple of old tea rooms, a hall, some accommodation places and a few private houses for the 30 odd permanent residents. If you're into walking trails it would be a great spot. For us it lacked a cosy cafe or quaint pub.
At the bottom of Mount Spec Rd a five minute drive took us to (Big) Crystal Creek. Once again there were a couple of beautiful areas, one called The Water Slides with smooth boulders surrounded by deep pools. We could imagine in The Wet the water would flow over the rocks creating natural water slides. The Rock Pools was not far away with large deep swimming holes. There was a nice camping area beside the creek, but being a National Park dogs were banned. James had to sit in the car while we explored. Not happy!
On the way back we detoured through Rollingstone, a small town just off the Bruce about five kilometers from Balgal. It had a large, open free camp called Bushy Camp. There were heaps of vans in there, but they didn't have water views like ours. We toured around Balgal as well. It was surprisingly large with lots of houses, many of them new, throughout a couple of separate residential pockets. There was also a golf course. I made inquiries. We could play anytime Wednesday. Sounded like an idea! Late in the afternoon we pulled the bikes off the van and rode for miles along the beach on the hard sand of low tide. On the outbound leg we had a huge headwind which, even with a fair bit of input from us, depleted the batteries significantly. On the way back the wind assistance had us screaming along. I reckon we would have been well up in speed - maybe 30kmph or more. Fun!
It was too windy to sit out for drinks, so we wandered over to 'Fisherman's Launch', the nearby bar/cafe and bought a stubby of VB and a glass of wine for $6.50. They had 10 or so open casks of different varieties of wine in the fridge and it was a case of self serve. Great idea and good value. We sat overlooking the inlet and pontoon as the sun set.
The wind continued to blow through Wednesday. Willy Weather said wind strength would increase during the day from 10 knots to 19 knots by 5pm, with gusts to 32 knots. That was probably understating it. We wanted to get our golf game in, so planned for a morning round.
Mystic Sands is a pretty basic nine hole course in average condition due, no doubt, to the lack of water available. The long, wide fairways were dry and the greens rough, but it was an easy course to play with no hazards to speak of. We both parred a couple and blew out on a couple, but weren't too unhappy with our individual forms, especially given the gale blowing and how little we'd played in six months.
After lunch the sky clouded over and the wind intensified to the point where it was uncomfortable to go outside. James and I braved a walk along the beach at low tide only to get totally sandblasted. Yuk. We all confined ourselves to the van and spent most of the remainder of the day mooching and reading.
We had booked a powered site at Paronella Park, Mena Creek, for Thursday night. It was less then 200 km North. We left Balgal Thursday morning and drove through Ingham, Cardwell and Tully before taking an easterly detour to the coast to check out Mission Beach. It's actually made up of four beaches covering a 14 kilometer stretch where rainforest meets ocean. South Mission Beach, Wongaling Beach, North Mission Beach and Bingil Bay look out over Dunk Island, Bedarra and Hinchinbrook Island. There are quaint cafes and arty boutiques, and while it's touristy it retains a small holiday village atmosphere. No big high-rise buildings - just lovely places tucked into the lush vegetation .
It's an area hit by cyclones fairly regularly, the most recent being Cyclone Yasi which made landfall just near Mission beach in January 2011. We were surprised at how little damage was apparent. The most tell-tale sign was that most buildings had new roofing. Mena Creek was 16 kilometers northwest of the Bruce, heading toward tropical tablelands. There were new roofs all the way in! The wind had continued to blow a gale since our departure from Balgal and as we approached Paronella Park the rain started.
As soon as we pulled up in front of Paronella a friendly bloke by the name of Mark walked up to Brian's window and greeted us. They'd been expecting us. He handed us a map of where we were to set up the van gave directions on coming inside to register when we were ready. Great PR. He's the owner and does that for all campers. It's a fantastic way to build a positive impression, especially when the first night on a powered site is free with the $40 per person entry fee ($37 for Seniors) which, by the way, is a valid pass for two years. Not bad!
Paronella Park is one of those place you just have to see. Set on 5 hectares beside Mena Creek Falls, it was built in the 1930's by Jose Paronella, who had a dream to build a castle. A Spaniard, Jose was inspired by childhood memories of Catalonian castles. It took five years to complete and included a ballroom, theatre, a pavilion with turret-topped balconies, fountains, lakeside picnic areas, change rooms for guests, tennis courts, tunnels and bridges. He planted and landscaped the area with more than 7000 trees including an avenue of Kauris. It was opened to the public in 1935 and became an exclusive venue for the social set of the time, with parties and balls every Saturday night.
Over the years it suffered through floods, cyclones and fire. It stayed in the family after Jose's death in 1948 until 1977 when it was sold. It was in bad shape and continued to deteriorate before being bought by the current owners, Mark and Judy Evans in 1993. They re-opened it as a ruin to the public and they have an ongoing program of restoration and preservation. It's now Heritage listed.
It really is a beautiful, beautiful place. We spent a couple of hours going through it in the afternoon by ourselves, opting out of the half-hourly tours. The pathways that wind through the gardens are magical, as are the waterfall, fountain and moss covered ruins. The stream is abundant with fish, eels and turtles that come to the water's edge to be fed. At 6.15 we did a guided night tour that was stunning. The ruins and falls are lit up and look spectacular. We walked with torches through the network of pathways to hidden, moss-covered stairways and bridges, watching the Flying Foxes come alive with the night and learning about all manner of things relating to the history and environment.
After the tour finished we wandered across the road to the pub and had a scrumptious dinner. We loved the entire experience and didn't have to weather through too much rain until we were snugly tucked up in bed....then it poured all night!
We left Paronella Park in the mist and rain Friday to travel a little under 100 km North to Cairns, passing through Innisfail then on to the Bruce Highway. We drove through lush cane country with rainforest-covered mountains rising steeply to the West. Queensland's highest peaks, Bartle Frere at 1600 metres and Bellenden Ker at 1557 metres formed part of the range, making for some stunning scenery.
There was no free camping (that we were aware of) within 20 km or so of Cairns CBD so we'd booked at Cool Waters Caravan Park, about 7km West of the city. As it turned out we had chosen well. It was tropical and spacious and backed onto a creek at the base of the ranges fringing Cairns. We were allocated a site at the rear of the park facing right onto the crystal clear stream and rainforest, which was just perfect. James bounced out of the Beast and immediately assumed his 'Murray River' position, sitting on the bank overlooking the water. He was very happy, especially given the privacy of our spot meant he could go without a lead, as no-one could see him.
There's a river down there...
Our site was beside a 'permanent' dwelling occupied by a young man who filled us in on some local knowledge as we were setting up. The creek is home to lots of fish, turtles, water snakes and some very large eels - up to two meters in length. He sees the odd Brown Tree Snake, but while they are venomous they can't bite. Occasionally a large python will slither out of the rainforest, but the park owner removes them so they don't eat people's small dogs (shudder!). A Bandicoot named George comes to visit at night. He likes peanut butter sandwiches. Beside the creek there is a track that goes to a lovely park where dogs can have lead free time. There is also a great spot for them to swim in the river. Excellent info!
James and I went walking up to the park in the afternoon while Brian did some work. Around 4pm we all hopped in the Beast to have a look around. We drove into the city and along the Esplanade, where we parked. The Esplanade is no-where near as pretty as Townsville's Strand. There's a boardwalk, trees and a strip of lawn with a wall to hold back the sea. The tide was out, exposing huge mud flats. A temporary enclosure and stage had been erected around the water pools that are a feature of the esplanade. It was a hive of activity with people everywhere putting the final touches to a huge, beautifully set up, open-air dinner function. We found out it was Cairns Amateur Racing Carnival and the function was the Gala Dinner. The band practicing on the stage sounded great. You wouldn't believe it, but as we walked past the skies opened up and it began to pour. What a nightmare for the organizers!
We crossed the road to the restaurant side of the Esplanade. At 5pm on a Friday night it was alive. We walked along through the dozens of bars and eateries of all types that extended out onto the well-covered footpath. They were interspersed with tour operators displaying racks of colorful brochures for reef dives, sky jumps....heaps and heaps of touristy things to do. We grabbed an outdoor table at one of the big bars, had drinks and people-watched. There were tourists from all parts of the globe, old grey nomads (older than us!), young people, families, workers, race-goers, all wandering along or sitting at dining tables - just keeping out of the rain, which was bucketing down. It was still raining when we got back to the van after dark, and it was quite cool. We donned longs. With the Federal Election Saturday we got the TV out from under the bed and set it up so we could track results. Our first night in Cairns we spent in the van, watching TV. Too wet and cold for anything else. Can you believe that!
Saturday, September 7th. 2013 - Federal Election Day. From the get go it looked like Abbott would win...and he did! We had cast our absentee votes a few days before, whilst in Townsville, so we'd both had our say.
The showers of the previous few days continued to persist - sometimes heavily. Brian leapt out of bed at daylight realizing he had left the awning level when we set up, which meant no way for the water to run off. Sure enough we had a big sag in the middle of the vinyl. He dropped one corner and it sounded like a fire hydrant had burst. Gallons of water gushed onto the garden. It could have been a painful and costly mistake, but there was no damage - thank goodness!.
We both have to laugh at our geriatric moments - you know - brain fades, when things that you would normally do automatically, don't happen. We both have daily occurrences; the gas not turned off for travel, the bathroom door not snibbed, the fridge not turned over, the car not locked, the specs lost - it goes on and on. We give each other heaps about it and laugh. The joys of getting old! One thing we both love about this time in our lives is that it has presented us both with the opportunity to do what we are doing. We really couldn't have been Grey Nomads at any earlier stage. When I was younger I feared getting old and retiring. Now I love it.
Despite the showers, Cairns wasn't humid. The temperature was dropping to around 18 at night and up to 25 by day. It was quite comfortable. We had until Wednesday to explore the region. Thursday we'd be flying down to Melbourne for a week. There was a lot we wanted to see before then so we started the day by driving up to check out the northern beaches, just 10 minutes away. We had a look at Machan's (basically a residential pocket), Yorkey's Knob (a bit more upmarket residential) and Trinity Beach, which was full of attractive, low-rise, beachfront tourist apartments. Unlike Cairns city which fronts onto mudflats, the northern beaches are sandy. Trinity's waterfront was pretty with Palm trees and colorful tropical plants landscaped into the pathway along the beach. There were a few quaint, shabby-chic cafes opposite, so we had morning coffee.
From the coast we headed inland, driving up through the ranges behind Cairns to Kuranda, 25 km from the CBD and nestled into dense tropical rainforest. At a couple of spots on the way the road went under the Skyrail Cableway. It carries 114 suspended gondolas over 7.5 kilometers of rainforest and gorges to Kuranda. Apparently the scenery is spectacular. Kuranda is famous for its extensive markets, local arts and crafts, cafes and sanctuaries. It has a sort of 'hippy, alternative' feel. We wandered around, James receiving lots of attention, browsing the colorful array of merchandise. Brian had a Chinese massage to relieve lower back pain before we sat down for a gourmet pizza lunch and glass of chardy at shabby cafe. The three of us were intrigued by some large lizards that inhabited the restaurant and its surrounds.
Beside our table
Above our table
Just up the road from Kuranda is Barron Falls. It's a spectacular gorge cut by the Barron River as it makes its descent from the Atherton Tablelands to the coast. It only has big water flows in the Wet. Access to the viewing platform is via a walkway that runs, in places, several meters above the forest floor. It's a beautiful walk. The falls are stunning, with water cascading over the rugged rock face to deep pools and on to the gorge floor.
Barron Gorge with its 'Dry' flow
View from the tablelands - vis was not great
We stopped at a couple of lookouts while up on the tablelands to enjoy the views over Cairns and the northern beaches. Unfortunately visibility wasn't all that good, so my photos were a bit disappointing. James was a bit on the green side by the time we arrived back at the van. The very windy descent from Kuranda got to him. Poor bugger!
Our last day in Townsville we spent sightseeing. We clocked up over 100 km just driving around - The Strand to start, the CBD to wander through the markets (which were very ordinary), the golf course, the Botanical gardens and the airport. We also tried to find a way up to the top of Mount Stuart. It's another stunning dominating feature of the landscape. Creating a natural Southern boundary to the suburban sprawl, its craggy, rocky peak rises sharply to a height of 584 meters. Despite programming in the location on the GPS and driving around the bottom edge of it for an hour we couldn't find a way up. Bugger! The views are supposedly spectacular.
Mt Stuart viewed from our van
The upside of our wanderings was that we got to see a large area of greater Townsville. There are a lot of new subdivisions on the outer fringes and the road network is terrific. Heaps of the more major roads throughout the suburbs are dual carriageway with lovely tropical plantations along the medium strips. The contrast between the old Queenslander style of home interspersed with some of the more upmarket designer houses makes for an interesting combination. There are areas of all new or all old, but either way the general order and cleanliness of the place, along with the wide roads and tropical vegetation make it really attractive. We hardly saw any graffiti or litter. So different to suburban Melbourne!
Sunset was at 6.04. We decided the best spot to view it would be at the top of Castle Hill. We were amazed at how many people were walking the road to the top. It must be a Sunday evening thing to do in Townsville. Without exaggeration there were hundreds of walkers heading in both directions all along the 3 or 4 kilometers of narrow, steep road to the top. It was quite difficult to get around them in some parts where the bends in the road were sharp or they were walking two abreast. The view of the sunset was gorgeous, complemented by fires burning in the distance which glowed as it got dark. An aircraft circled upward overhead to maybe 10,000 ft and dropped some skydivers out over The Strand. It was a beautiful evening and a lovely way to remember Townsville.
After a morning walk for James to a nearby shopping centre complex to get bread and post off a baby present, we managed to hit the road by 10am Monday. We were heading North with a few free camp options not far up the highway. Our aim was to get out of the burbs rather than cover distance. We had booked in at Paronella Park for Thursday night. It was only a couple of hundred kilometers away and we had four days to get there.
The first option was Saunders Beach, just half an hour's drive from Townsville. It was a tiny beach-side park and despite arriving early in the day, there was no room. Next we had a look at a large rest area beside a river a bit further on, but even though it was quite a way off the road with plenty of space, we gave it a miss. The Bruce Highway road noise travels far at night. Brian drove right past the turnoff to our third option, another beach-front park. It came up quickly with little advance signage and we had a dirty great semi right on our tail. Not to worry, we would check out Balgal Beach. It was only another 10 km on. This time we were ready for the poorly sign-posted intersection, turned right and drove into the little beachside holiday haven just ten minutes off the highway.
Balgal Beach is a really pretty place. The small camping area overlooks a lovely green park to a long, broad, sandy beach and the ocean. There is an adjacent boat ramp and quaint licensed kiosk/general store with an open-air eating area that hangs out over a river. It's truly idyllic. A shady beachfront spot had just been vacated, so we grabbed it. There were maybe a dozen vans and campers already in and room for only a handful more, so we were lucky. Our parking, however, did not go too smoothly.
The park in front of Balgal free camp
It was a tight fit for the van with a menacing overhead branch that we needed to squeeze up fairly close to. I directed Brian from the rear as he backed in. I kept the van as close as possible to the branch and we missed it by....mmm....a few inches. The van was not quite level so I put the ramps under the passenger-side wheels and signaled Brian to reverse up them. In the soft sand they moved a bit. Not good, but ok. There was still air between the top front corner of the van and the branch. I chocked the wheels. At that point Brian's phone rang and he sat in the Beast on speakerphone. I decided to put the jockey wheel in place and disconnect. Bad idea! As I wound the knob the wheel slid a bit sideways and all of a sudden there was no space between the branch and the van. They were connected. Bugger!
By now I had a bit of an audience. Brian was still on the phone. It was embarrassing. The van was quite unstable and pressing harder up against the thick branch right on the corner join. Brian kept talking. Very frustrating! When he eventually finished his conversation and got out of the Beast to look, he was not happy. To cut a long story short, with a half hour of tense maneuvering the van got re-positioned with - thank God - no damage.
The rest of the day was great. James was in doggy heaven, running along the beach in the warm water, no lead - woohoo! We had a nice long walk, chatted to our neighbours, read and generally relaxed. At 5 o'clock a circle began forming on the grass out front, so James and I joined with a chair and glass of wine. We had a lovely time. Brian read his book.
I'm free.......
A gale blew through in the wee hours of Tuesday morning. Brian launched out of bed and put the awning down, fearful that it would be destroyed. The wind was so strong he got wet from the spray of the waves, 100 meters or so away. By the time we stirred again it was daylight and quite calm outside, although the waves were still crashing on the beach with a loud roar.
Paluma Range National Park, the southern gateway for the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area was a short drive from our camp at Balgal, so breaky and chores done, we headed there. We turned onto the Mount Spec Rd which would take us to Little Crystal Creek then on to Paluma Village, just on 1000 meters ASL. The scenic 18 km of narrow, winding mountain road was scary, but just beautiful. It was built mostly by hand during the 1930's Great Depression, as was a stone bridge that crossed over Little Crystal Creek on the way. The bridge is a photographer's delight, spanning a gorge of deep pools and huge granite boulders bordered by tropical vegetation. The icy-cold, crystal clear water tumbles from a beautiful waterfall, cascading over and around the rocks and under the mossy stone archway of the bridge. It's apparently a popular swimming spot, though at 26 degrees I was not tempted to take a plunge.
Paluma Village sits atop the Mt Spec Range nestled in tropical rainforest. Once called 'Cloudy Clearing', Paluma is famous for the mountain mist that rolls in over the rainforest canopy most afternoons. When it's clear there are stunning coastal views. We walked a few kilometers through the lush forest to a couple of lookouts and despite a sea mist obscuring the islands, the panorama was still spectacular. We were hoping to get a coffee at the village, but nothing was open. Not that there is much at the village - picnic areas, a pottery, a couple of old tea rooms, a hall, some accommodation places and a few private houses for the 30 odd permanent residents. If you're into walking trails it would be a great spot. For us it lacked a cosy cafe or quaint pub.
At the bottom of Mount Spec Rd a five minute drive took us to (Big) Crystal Creek. Once again there were a couple of beautiful areas, one called The Water Slides with smooth boulders surrounded by deep pools. We could imagine in The Wet the water would flow over the rocks creating natural water slides. The Rock Pools was not far away with large deep swimming holes. There was a nice camping area beside the creek, but being a National Park dogs were banned. James had to sit in the car while we explored. Not happy!
On the way back we detoured through Rollingstone, a small town just off the Bruce about five kilometers from Balgal. It had a large, open free camp called Bushy Camp. There were heaps of vans in there, but they didn't have water views like ours. We toured around Balgal as well. It was surprisingly large with lots of houses, many of them new, throughout a couple of separate residential pockets. There was also a golf course. I made inquiries. We could play anytime Wednesday. Sounded like an idea! Late in the afternoon we pulled the bikes off the van and rode for miles along the beach on the hard sand of low tide. On the outbound leg we had a huge headwind which, even with a fair bit of input from us, depleted the batteries significantly. On the way back the wind assistance had us screaming along. I reckon we would have been well up in speed - maybe 30kmph or more. Fun!
It was too windy to sit out for drinks, so we wandered over to 'Fisherman's Launch', the nearby bar/cafe and bought a stubby of VB and a glass of wine for $6.50. They had 10 or so open casks of different varieties of wine in the fridge and it was a case of self serve. Great idea and good value. We sat overlooking the inlet and pontoon as the sun set.
The wind continued to blow through Wednesday. Willy Weather said wind strength would increase during the day from 10 knots to 19 knots by 5pm, with gusts to 32 knots. That was probably understating it. We wanted to get our golf game in, so planned for a morning round.
Mystic Sands is a pretty basic nine hole course in average condition due, no doubt, to the lack of water available. The long, wide fairways were dry and the greens rough, but it was an easy course to play with no hazards to speak of. We both parred a couple and blew out on a couple, but weren't too unhappy with our individual forms, especially given the gale blowing and how little we'd played in six months.
After lunch the sky clouded over and the wind intensified to the point where it was uncomfortable to go outside. James and I braved a walk along the beach at low tide only to get totally sandblasted. Yuk. We all confined ourselves to the van and spent most of the remainder of the day mooching and reading.
We had booked a powered site at Paronella Park, Mena Creek, for Thursday night. It was less then 200 km North. We left Balgal Thursday morning and drove through Ingham, Cardwell and Tully before taking an easterly detour to the coast to check out Mission Beach. It's actually made up of four beaches covering a 14 kilometer stretch where rainforest meets ocean. South Mission Beach, Wongaling Beach, North Mission Beach and Bingil Bay look out over Dunk Island, Bedarra and Hinchinbrook Island. There are quaint cafes and arty boutiques, and while it's touristy it retains a small holiday village atmosphere. No big high-rise buildings - just lovely places tucked into the lush vegetation .
It's an area hit by cyclones fairly regularly, the most recent being Cyclone Yasi which made landfall just near Mission beach in January 2011. We were surprised at how little damage was apparent. The most tell-tale sign was that most buildings had new roofing. Mena Creek was 16 kilometers northwest of the Bruce, heading toward tropical tablelands. There were new roofs all the way in! The wind had continued to blow a gale since our departure from Balgal and as we approached Paronella Park the rain started.
As soon as we pulled up in front of Paronella a friendly bloke by the name of Mark walked up to Brian's window and greeted us. They'd been expecting us. He handed us a map of where we were to set up the van gave directions on coming inside to register when we were ready. Great PR. He's the owner and does that for all campers. It's a fantastic way to build a positive impression, especially when the first night on a powered site is free with the $40 per person entry fee ($37 for Seniors) which, by the way, is a valid pass for two years. Not bad!
Paronella Park is one of those place you just have to see. Set on 5 hectares beside Mena Creek Falls, it was built in the 1930's by Jose Paronella, who had a dream to build a castle. A Spaniard, Jose was inspired by childhood memories of Catalonian castles. It took five years to complete and included a ballroom, theatre, a pavilion with turret-topped balconies, fountains, lakeside picnic areas, change rooms for guests, tennis courts, tunnels and bridges. He planted and landscaped the area with more than 7000 trees including an avenue of Kauris. It was opened to the public in 1935 and became an exclusive venue for the social set of the time, with parties and balls every Saturday night.
Over the years it suffered through floods, cyclones and fire. It stayed in the family after Jose's death in 1948 until 1977 when it was sold. It was in bad shape and continued to deteriorate before being bought by the current owners, Mark and Judy Evans in 1993. They re-opened it as a ruin to the public and they have an ongoing program of restoration and preservation. It's now Heritage listed.
It really is a beautiful, beautiful place. We spent a couple of hours going through it in the afternoon by ourselves, opting out of the half-hourly tours. The pathways that wind through the gardens are magical, as are the waterfall, fountain and moss covered ruins. The stream is abundant with fish, eels and turtles that come to the water's edge to be fed. At 6.15 we did a guided night tour that was stunning. The ruins and falls are lit up and look spectacular. We walked with torches through the network of pathways to hidden, moss-covered stairways and bridges, watching the Flying Foxes come alive with the night and learning about all manner of things relating to the history and environment.
We left Paronella Park in the mist and rain Friday to travel a little under 100 km North to Cairns, passing through Innisfail then on to the Bruce Highway. We drove through lush cane country with rainforest-covered mountains rising steeply to the West. Queensland's highest peaks, Bartle Frere at 1600 metres and Bellenden Ker at 1557 metres formed part of the range, making for some stunning scenery.
There was no free camping (that we were aware of) within 20 km or so of Cairns CBD so we'd booked at Cool Waters Caravan Park, about 7km West of the city. As it turned out we had chosen well. It was tropical and spacious and backed onto a creek at the base of the ranges fringing Cairns. We were allocated a site at the rear of the park facing right onto the crystal clear stream and rainforest, which was just perfect. James bounced out of the Beast and immediately assumed his 'Murray River' position, sitting on the bank overlooking the water. He was very happy, especially given the privacy of our spot meant he could go without a lead, as no-one could see him.
There's a river down there...
Our site was beside a 'permanent' dwelling occupied by a young man who filled us in on some local knowledge as we were setting up. The creek is home to lots of fish, turtles, water snakes and some very large eels - up to two meters in length. He sees the odd Brown Tree Snake, but while they are venomous they can't bite. Occasionally a large python will slither out of the rainforest, but the park owner removes them so they don't eat people's small dogs (shudder!). A Bandicoot named George comes to visit at night. He likes peanut butter sandwiches. Beside the creek there is a track that goes to a lovely park where dogs can have lead free time. There is also a great spot for them to swim in the river. Excellent info!
James and I went walking up to the park in the afternoon while Brian did some work. Around 4pm we all hopped in the Beast to have a look around. We drove into the city and along the Esplanade, where we parked. The Esplanade is no-where near as pretty as Townsville's Strand. There's a boardwalk, trees and a strip of lawn with a wall to hold back the sea. The tide was out, exposing huge mud flats. A temporary enclosure and stage had been erected around the water pools that are a feature of the esplanade. It was a hive of activity with people everywhere putting the final touches to a huge, beautifully set up, open-air dinner function. We found out it was Cairns Amateur Racing Carnival and the function was the Gala Dinner. The band practicing on the stage sounded great. You wouldn't believe it, but as we walked past the skies opened up and it began to pour. What a nightmare for the organizers!
We crossed the road to the restaurant side of the Esplanade. At 5pm on a Friday night it was alive. We walked along through the dozens of bars and eateries of all types that extended out onto the well-covered footpath. They were interspersed with tour operators displaying racks of colorful brochures for reef dives, sky jumps....heaps and heaps of touristy things to do. We grabbed an outdoor table at one of the big bars, had drinks and people-watched. There were tourists from all parts of the globe, old grey nomads (older than us!), young people, families, workers, race-goers, all wandering along or sitting at dining tables - just keeping out of the rain, which was bucketing down. It was still raining when we got back to the van after dark, and it was quite cool. We donned longs. With the Federal Election Saturday we got the TV out from under the bed and set it up so we could track results. Our first night in Cairns we spent in the van, watching TV. Too wet and cold for anything else. Can you believe that!
Saturday, September 7th. 2013 - Federal Election Day. From the get go it looked like Abbott would win...and he did! We had cast our absentee votes a few days before, whilst in Townsville, so we'd both had our say.
The showers of the previous few days continued to persist - sometimes heavily. Brian leapt out of bed at daylight realizing he had left the awning level when we set up, which meant no way for the water to run off. Sure enough we had a big sag in the middle of the vinyl. He dropped one corner and it sounded like a fire hydrant had burst. Gallons of water gushed onto the garden. It could have been a painful and costly mistake, but there was no damage - thank goodness!.
We both have to laugh at our geriatric moments - you know - brain fades, when things that you would normally do automatically, don't happen. We both have daily occurrences; the gas not turned off for travel, the bathroom door not snibbed, the fridge not turned over, the car not locked, the specs lost - it goes on and on. We give each other heaps about it and laugh. The joys of getting old! One thing we both love about this time in our lives is that it has presented us both with the opportunity to do what we are doing. We really couldn't have been Grey Nomads at any earlier stage. When I was younger I feared getting old and retiring. Now I love it.
Despite the showers, Cairns wasn't humid. The temperature was dropping to around 18 at night and up to 25 by day. It was quite comfortable. We had until Wednesday to explore the region. Thursday we'd be flying down to Melbourne for a week. There was a lot we wanted to see before then so we started the day by driving up to check out the northern beaches, just 10 minutes away. We had a look at Machan's (basically a residential pocket), Yorkey's Knob (a bit more upmarket residential) and Trinity Beach, which was full of attractive, low-rise, beachfront tourist apartments. Unlike Cairns city which fronts onto mudflats, the northern beaches are sandy. Trinity's waterfront was pretty with Palm trees and colorful tropical plants landscaped into the pathway along the beach. There were a few quaint, shabby-chic cafes opposite, so we had morning coffee.
From the coast we headed inland, driving up through the ranges behind Cairns to Kuranda, 25 km from the CBD and nestled into dense tropical rainforest. At a couple of spots on the way the road went under the Skyrail Cableway. It carries 114 suspended gondolas over 7.5 kilometers of rainforest and gorges to Kuranda. Apparently the scenery is spectacular. Kuranda is famous for its extensive markets, local arts and crafts, cafes and sanctuaries. It has a sort of 'hippy, alternative' feel. We wandered around, James receiving lots of attention, browsing the colorful array of merchandise. Brian had a Chinese massage to relieve lower back pain before we sat down for a gourmet pizza lunch and glass of chardy at shabby cafe. The three of us were intrigued by some large lizards that inhabited the restaurant and its surrounds.
Beside our table
Above our table
Just up the road from Kuranda is Barron Falls. It's a spectacular gorge cut by the Barron River as it makes its descent from the Atherton Tablelands to the coast. It only has big water flows in the Wet. Access to the viewing platform is via a walkway that runs, in places, several meters above the forest floor. It's a beautiful walk. The falls are stunning, with water cascading over the rugged rock face to deep pools and on to the gorge floor.
Barron Gorge with its 'Dry' flow
View from the tablelands - vis was not great
We stopped at a couple of lookouts while up on the tablelands to enjoy the views over Cairns and the northern beaches. Unfortunately visibility wasn't all that good, so my photos were a bit disappointing. James was a bit on the green side by the time we arrived back at the van. The very windy descent from Kuranda got to him. Poor bugger!
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