Diannemurray's travel blogs:
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Leave Undara lava tubes, heading for Cobbold gorge
Entry 3 of 6 | show all | print this entry |
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Friday 20th July Undara Lava tubes- Georgetown
Pack up all our gear, have breakfast, normally takes about a hour. Decide we have seen what has to be seen, so head out back to the highway, and west, along road which is tarred, but often only single lane. The edges of the tar are reasonably smooth, so it isn't too much hassle getting off every time a vehicle comes the other way. Even so, picked up a small stone chip in the windscreen from a passing 3-trailer road train. These are up to 50 metres long, weigh 60 to 100 tonnes, and travel around 100 kph, so are treated with a certain amount of respect.
Stop for petrol at the BP station in Mt Surprise. MP fills and get to look at the excellent free display of gems and minerals, DP goes looking for food, but finds instead an interesting display of native birds. A fair few of these are endangered. The tiny, colourful finches look more like toys than living creatures.
Look at the historic display at the station, photos of railway cuttings made by pick and shovel, information on the WW2 radar installation, photocopies of wartime records and regulations. The rail line is still in operation, at least once a week, all the way from Cairns to the terminus at Forsayth.
The truck wash to prevent the spread of weed seeds West isn't working, so the car misses out on a wash.
We cross the Einasleigh River on a long, low level, narrow bridge. The river bed is wide and sandy, with trees in it, but there are several strongly flowing streams of clean water.
The bridge at the entry to Georgetown, over the Etheridge River is similar, but the river bed is all sand, with no surface water. We have arranged to meet Mike and Bev here, so check out the whole town, decide against the motel on the western outskirts, and book into an ancient cabin with no bathroom ($64 per night) at the Midway Caravan Park. We book Mike and Bev into a powered site. The park fills up more quickly than we expect, so are pleased when they turn up before the last site is taken.
We walk around the town with them, checking out the colonial architecture on the public buildings, mining equipment displays, and the breeze-block style of the only pub.
There must have been a classic Queensland pub here at some time, but can't find any history to prove this. Maybe it was just knocked down in the urge to modernise in the '70s.
Not impressed by the menu at the pub, so decide to eat in, after nibbles and beers on our verandah.
Saturday 21st July Georgetown - Forsayth - Cobbold Gorge
Set off about 10, after Mike dust-proofs their caravan with duct tape and plastic covers, as we have about 80 kms of gravel road today. We follow for a while, then go ahead, taking the short side trip into Forsayth, stopping at the historic railway terminus,
taking photos of the old Royal Mail truck, railway and mining equipment.
We talk at length to the ganger of the rail maintenance gang, by the name of Loudon. His family has been in the North a long time, so he can tell us a lot of history, and is able to advise on the roads Mike and Bev will be taking through Einasleigh and The Lynd on their way out. Talks of railway history, relations with the aboriginal, and the murder of a governess and possible spy on one of the properties. Recommends we take a short trip up the hill to look at the remains of the old gold plant, but all we find is an abandoned, but current bush technology jig plant for gravity separation of ore. Find some interesting minerals, then head for Cobbold Gorge which is on private property.
Can't find a lunch spot suitable for getting a caravan off the road, so go all the way to Cobbold.
They have our booking, ($14 per night campsite) and have Mike in a powered site between a caravan, a fireplace, and a motor home. We can stop wherever we can find a spot. The smells from the restaurant are pretty good, and the price is reasonable, but we are disappointed to find it is booked out.
We set up next to a fire place, right in the middle of the campground, on grass, and under trees. The campground is on a river flat below the main complex and the dam wall, and is quite pretty. While we are setting up, we are visited by Annie, the 4-year-old daughter of the camp operators, who is full of questions and information.
Mike and Bev don't like the spot they are booked into, so forego the power, and set up in the middle near us.
After an hour, we are set up, and head up to find the bird spotting list and map for the walking trails. The trail starts out OK, with numbered trees and arrows, but becomes pretty cryptic. and we have to head cross country for a while before picking up the creek and the numbered trees again. The walk, a couple of km, is interesting enough,and we see some new birds, but it is nothing special.
We have a fire place, but no firewood, so just cook on the gas burner, MP doing an instant pasta meal and coffee heated precariously in the steel mug balanced on the burner.
We eat under the caravan annex, but it is bitterly cold, so move into Mike's somewhat cramped caravan to talk and drink wine till late. We get surprisingly warm showers from the combination electric and wood fired "donkey" heating system. The night is cold and windy, but we are snug with both the thick sleeping bags spread as covers.
Sunday 22 July &a mp;a mp;n bsp; Cobbold Gorge
It is a fairly busy night for the improvised chamber pots, and are woken early by the team of diamond drillers who are exploring the property for gold. Still bitter when we breakfast, with a brisk wind, but has improved by the time we load into the 1987 converted landcruiser bus, with over 300,000 kms on the clock, for the day tour ($110 per person).
You are not allowed to explore on your own, so this is the only way you can get to see anything. There are twelve of us, with a woman guide, her mother, the elder sister of yesterday's inquisitor, the four of us, a couple from the Cairns caravan park, and sundry others, including a keen kayaker of the Franklin River in Tasmania.
Not far from the camp ground we encounter a large, banded snake with a black head which is stretched right across the road. The consensus is that it is a Taipan (later find out it was probably a black-headed python )
so we are prepared to wait till it gets off the road.
The road is quite good, but has a lot of steep creek crossings, and the Toyota handles these without problems in low gear. We stop on a bluff above the Robertson River for an overview,
then cross the 200m wide sandy river bed, before climbing onto the bench on the far side and heading upstream. Stop to look at bower bird nests (these collect white things, rather than the more usual blue) ,
and a variety of special local plants and trees,
then carried on to Agate Creek for a walk up the escarpment to look at Aboriginal art and plant types, and a small spring. Took photos of groups of iridescent stink bugs,
rock formations, vegetation types. Carried on to the creek bed for morning tea, and a chance to fossick for agate and other gemstones.
MP turned up a pocketful of agate, some of it quite pretty.
After, went to look at a wet area at Stoneyard, where cattle had been traditionally yarded in a natural rocky enclosure. A spring had formed a watercourse, dammed into pools and terraces by melalucea trees (paperbarks).
At the top of the watercourse. there was a native well, a cave with water pools at three levels, filtering through the conglomerate, with crystal clear water.
Oil from the paperbark makes it look polluted, but is of excellent drinking quality.
DP wants to keep following the watercourse beyond the well, but we are under strict orders to keep to the game plan.
Back at the Robertson, we see a freshwater crocodile on the sand at the junction of the Cobbold Creek, but continue up the creek to the lunch shelter and boat depot. There are a lot of crocodiles on the bank, and MP gets a lot of photos after we stop.
The creek is running over rock shelves and paperbark terraces, and is quite pretty.
At the lunch spot, the gorge waterhole proper begins, and is impressively deep and clear.
There are other tour groups, and we lunch while we wait, on steak and sausage bbq, beer and wine, and salad bento boxes. Quite good.
MP isn't thinking clearly enough to get the front seats in the rectangular electric aluminium barge,
but does OK, and is able to get reasonably clear shots of the gorge, which is particularly good, as we progress up it.
The barge has an electric outboard each end, and is quite silent. The batteries are recharged by a battery bank and solar panel at the depot.
The gorge narrows down to less than 2 metres, only just a bit wider than the barge, but the guide manages to get through with only a little help from the passengers.
We go about 600 metres, but are stopped from going further (it goes about 9 kms) by a large fallen rock. It would be interesting to get out and explore around here, but in typical fashion with these tours (probably due to the age of some of the people, plus insurance worries), we only do very safe things.
The gorge is mostly fine conglomerate, and is polished and glazed where the wet season current comes through. There are pot holes and curved indentations, above and below the water line, which is held constant in the dry season by the dam of paperbark roots at the bottom end.
After returning, we take a climb up the escarpment to a view point above the gorge, and get (just) to photograph another boat going through it.
The guide has trouble keeping the more unruly tourists from wandering beyond her limits. Afterwards, head back to the lodge for a beer in the bar before another chunky soup and drink in the caravan. The weather has warmed up a fair bit, and can cook tea in shirtsleeves, but it gets colder later. More wind in the night, but less disruption from the drillers.
Monday 23rd July &a mp;a mp;n bsp; Cobbold Gorge - Normanton
Pack in the morning, and say goodbye to Mike and Bev (Bev's brother has now had a possible heart attack on top of the stroke a couple of weeks ago, so they have to head for home). Mike gets away first, while we stop to have a look at the agate collection in the shop. Some rare colours we put down to artistic license. Don't feel the need to buy a polished rock for $6.
Get behind two caravans, pass Mike on the roadside before passing the vans and heading on to Georgetown. Mike and Bev will be heading through Forsayth toward Einasleigh and further south.
In Georgetown, MP drops DP at the TerrEstrial Centre internet, then fills with fuel, checks out the riverside park and 5 head stamper, then waits forever for the oil to heat so we can have some of the legendary Georgetown chips at Midway. Well worth the wait - tasty, heavily salted, and plentiful. Eat them most of the way to the Cumberland Chimney and wetlands , after crossing the Etheridge River at Georgetown.
Crossed the Gilbert River,
and decided against taking a minor road to Esmeralda, showing no petrol for 375 kms! Travel through flat, timbered country all the way to Croydon, another small town (pop 300) which used to be much larger. We check out the town, particularly the mining equipment at the Council Chamber,
and the restored historic buildings.
Get a lot of info from the kiosk in the old police residence, then head for Normanton, mostly beside the Gulflander railway line. The land is getting flatter, into true savannah. Cross some large rivers, particularly the Norman, befor arriving at Normanton about 4pm, where we check most of the streets before deciding it is too late to carry on to Karumba, particularly as we're now pretty tired.
The caravan Park is pretty full, but DP checks out a non-ensuite cabin, and a room in the "donga". Settle for the latter for $45 per night. It has a fridge, A/C, TV, and a very bouncy bed with only a sheet, and definitely NOT enough room to swing a cat, and we have to use the communal toilets.
The fridge isn't working, so report this on the way out to check out the baker, and the supermarket. Prices are pretty steep (e.g 600 ml coke is $3), so only buy essentials, then back for a shower in hot bore water, and a soak in the hot spa. Forego a swim in the pool, which is freezing. Talk to a family who are about to take over running the supermarket. Wish them the best of British luck.
Over to the Purple Pub for a very ordinary, expensive dinner.
Still walking around in sandals when the sun goes down ( a definite first), and we have our first night when it is not freezing.
Latest Comments (1)
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Hello (reply)
Jul 26, 2007 20:30 EST by texas
Dear Di & Murray,
It sounds like fun, wish I was there instead of working. Hope to see you at the wedding.
Love & laugh,
Annette & Trevor
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