We wake to the sounds of someone’s mobile phone receiving a message , and several reminders later , they may have woken as well . The birds started soon after , just prior to sunrise .
All sorted , off to town , first stop Grassy Hill Lookout for views of the coast , town and Endeavour River .
Next stop Finch Bay and a walk along the beach , it was a bit breezy , but still nice .
A short drive up the road to the Botanic Garden . It also doubles as the tourist information centre , so we quizzed one lady about the Bloomfield Track . She was great and gave us heaps of relevant information on it . This is the centre & gallery .
Off into the gardens to see what we could find , first up a timber python - made from timber - not real !!
Next up was the Vanilla Orchid - it has a zig zagging growth up any host tree - it’s also where most vanilla flavour comes from - and we thought that was the vanilla bean .
There is a palmetum - a palm grove of all different varieties .
Then we found a Temple Tree , nothing special about the tree , but the flowers - very different .
There’s an open woodland type area , a flower & vegetable garden from days gone by , a red ginger plant , and a rainforest section where we saw lot’s of butterfly’s . Here’s the ginger -
Here are 3 of the butterfly’s , the 2nd one just appeared from under a leaf for it’s maiden flight !!
Next we headed down the main street to see monuments for James Cook , Mick the miner , and one to the Chinese settlers . Then on to the wharf area where you could get your fresh fish , or cooked , in one of the many restaurants . There were also tour operators there . Many boats are moored in Endeavour River , there were a couple that were keeping the bottom company as well .
A few of the old buildings stand out .
Time for a short drive out to Endeavour Falls and Isabella Falls - only 38 klms out of town - that’s a short drive after the last week and a bit !!! Endeavour Falls is situated behind the Endeavour Falls Caravan Park , you need to see the owners before wandering through the park . It would be a nice park to stay at , being a fair way out of town , it would be quiet ! The falls are about 3m tall , and similar to the ones we have seen already , but still good to see .
Isabella Falls is also a causeway crossing on the road to Old Laura , where we came through yesterday , it too drops about 3m into another big pool that gets used to cool off in on hotter days .
Back to town to refuel and get out of the ute for a while . Back at the park there is a mural of sorts - a kingfisher painted on a rock near the entrance .
That’s it for today , here’s a map link :- https://drive.google.com/open?id=1wsLoDSfjTAQf3t749ehfY7ad9Yw&usp=sharing
Cooktown to Cape Tribulation
Today we packed again and head further south , but not till we’ve done a couple of stops first . In to town for some butane cartridges , and some hayfever spray .
All sorted and out of town we go , finding the turnoff to Archer Point . The road out is excellent gravel road , smooth as !! Not knowing what to expect , we are very pleasantly surprised with a camp ground beside the beach . The road continued on and took us up a winding track to a lighthouse with views to die for - bloody amazing !!!
It must of had a gun emplacement there during the war judging by the amount of concrete around the lighthouse . The colour of the Coral Sea is amazing .
There’s also a black flowering ground cover growing over the round sides of the hill .
The remains of an old jetty are still in view beside a stone wall used to supply and restock the lighthouse .
The campsite is awesome , with views through the palms onto the beach and bay .
We headed back to the Mulligan Hwy , Black Mountain came into view .
Our next expedition was to Trevethan Falls , a bit further south . The road in was okay , then it went single lane , then rocky and 4wd required . We found what is very loosely called the carpark and stopped . On the ground in front of us was this butterfly , bit plain by the look of it , then it opened it’s wings - that was a surprise !!
The falls could be heard , so we wandered and clambered down a rocky embankment , only to find small cascades through many of the huge granite rocks . Clambering back up , we looked at another track leading uphill , so we headed up that way , traversing a rugged track around the side of the hill untill we arrived at a spectacular setting . A huge plunge pool below a 2 section 35m waterfall crashing onto boulders at the bottom . The temperature had dropped by about 5 degrees as we rounded the corner - a little respite from the heat on the other side .
Here are some pics of the lower cascades .
Back to the hwy again and next stop was the Lion’s Den - a hotel in Helenvale . It was named after a worker in a tin mine across the road - Daniel . He appeared in the opening of the mine tunnel , and it’s owner called out - it’s Daniel in the Lion’s Den - the name has stuck !! The walls are covered in names , writing ,and pictures . It’s a pub that serves meals , doubles as a museum , and also has a camp ground behind it . We had lunch out the front before heading off again .
This part of the drive took us through the World Heritage listed Wet Tropic Rainforest of Daintree National Park . Basically it’s a drive through the rainforest , over several mountains and beside a river and several creeks - words aren’t enough to describe this area !!!
We stopped at Ayton and went down to Weary Bay , a very long stretch of sand & a crescent shaped bay .
We drove beside the Bloomfield River for a while till we got to Wujal Wujal - an aboriginal community - a very tidy one as well - not the usual !!!
The Bloomfield Track was upon us , the road narrowed as we climbed up the first hill in 2nd gear - it was steep and winding - it was also concrete to assist in the wet weather . It went up hill & downhill ,and through several creek crossings . There were glimpses of the sea through some gaps in the trees , untill we got to the top of the last hill , where there is an area you can see through . The view is down to the beach , the rainforest going right to the waters edge and just for good measure , there was also coral reef as well !!
Down the hill and around a few more corners we crossed a creek where there was a sign stating 4wd vehicles only past this point - that was where we had come from ! The road seemed to deteriorate rapidly on the 2wd side . We stopped at a carpark and went for a walk down to Cape Tribulation Beach - yep , stunning !!!
Leaving the carpark , we headed further down and found somewhere to set up the tent for the night . It had a swimming pool that we took advantage off after setting up camp .
That’s a wrap for today , here’s a map link :-
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