Atherton Tablelands – Cairns to Mareeba

Thursday 26^th September 2013

Arrived back in Cairns yesterday well rested after 2 days at sea; now it's time to get back on the bike for another in the series of rides taken from the Lonely Planet Cycling Australia guide; this is a 5 day ride around the Atherton Tablelands. Encouraged by the forecast which suggests that the weather will remain fine over the next few days.

Heading north from Cairns retracing the first part of the route I took 3 weeks ago towards Port Douglas, after about 14km I branched off along the Kennedy Highway which climbed steeply for about 10km. It was a hard slog and I envied the people ascending effortlessly in the cabins of the Skyrail which loomed overhead:

After 27kms I reached Kuranda and stopped for lunch. I took a quick look around the markets for which the town is famous, and saw the wrecked plane (it didn't crash, it's a relic from a film set):

There are a number of impressive fig trees in this attractive village:

                                                          Historic railway station

Nearby are the mighty Barron Falls, viewed from a lookout reached via a scenic walkway through the rainforest:

The route onward continued to climb steadily. I reached Mareeba, the destination for the day, around 5pm, having climbed around 400 metres.

Mareeba was until recently a major tobacco-growing centre and some of the buildings in the town centre reflect this.


Distance today, a hilly 79kms.

From Cape York back to Cairns

I spent 6 days at Loyalty Beach, enjoying a few day rides out to various places of interest nearby, besides the Tip itself, which I've already described earlier, I visited Punsand Bay, another resort close to the Tip, also I took my bike over on the ferry to Thursday Island and spent a few hours exploring there, the island is only 2kms long so it was easy enough to get round all the places of interest:

There's a fort which enjoys good views of the neighbouring islands in the Torres Strait, and over the town:

Also a large cemetery with many graves of Japanese pearl divers:

The Torres Strait Hotel has the distinction of being Australia's most northerly pub:

View of Douglas St, the main street:

It was now time to think about getting back to Cairns. I wasn't too keen on riding all the way back, mainly because it would be against the prevailing wind and therefore even harder than the journey up here. There are daily flights to Cairns from Bamaga and also from nearby Horn Island and that was an option I considered. However I found out that there was a spare space on the cargo vessel MV Trinity Bay leaving shortly, and the idea of 2 days at sea sounded interesting. So I made the booking, which proved to be a good decision.
I was told to be at Seisia Jetty by 8.30am on Monday 23^rd. Seisia is only 4kms from Loyalty Beach so it didn't take long to get there. The boat was already moored there and was unloading its cargo:

Once the unloading was finished, I and the other 30 passengers were allowed to board, at about 9.30. Then the crew began loading all the cargo bound for Cairns onto the ship, by means of the large onboard crane, which was fascinating to watch at close quarters:

This took most of the day, during which time we were able to familiarise ourselves with the ship and get to know our fellow passengers. We had our first meal onboard at lunchtime and it was excellent, as were all the other meals during the voyage.

Finally, around 5pm we got under way and left Seisia:

About an hour later we passed Posssession Island, where Captain Cook first raised the Union Flag and claimed the whole east coast of Australia in the name of King George III. We were close enough to see the plaque that marks the spot where this momentous event took place:

Soon afterwards we witnessed a beautiful sunset over the Torres Strait:

The next morning, soon after breakfast we anchored offshore near Lockhart River, a small Aboriginal community which is the east coast's northernmost settlement, and a supply vessel came close by to exchange some of the cargo:

Later that day we were given a tour of the bridge by the Captain, and shown all the navigation equipment that keeps the ship clear of the Great Barrier Reef and other hazards:

The rest of the voyage passed very quickly and we arrived back in Cairns around 11.30 am the following morning:

It has been a very enjoyable and interesting 2 days at sea, and if I ever do another bike ride to the Tip (which is quite likely!) I will definitely return on the MVTrinity Bay again.

Bamaga to The Tip

Thursday 19^th September 2013

Feeling refreshed after yesterday's rest day I set off for the Tip of Cape York, the northernmost point of the Australian Continent, known to the Aborigines as Pajinka.

Passing through Bamaga I took a brief detour to see a couple of WW2 plane wrecks nearby; first was a DC3 which crashed in May 1945, killing all 6 occupants:

Nearby there was also a Bristol Beaufort bomber, which had a tree growing through its tailfin:

The road up to the Tip was dirt most of the way, but in a reasonable state of repair and it didn't take too long to cover the 35kms up there. On the way I stopped off at the Croc Tent, the northernmost shop on the Australian continent, for the obligatory souvenir T shirt:

During the past 2 weeks I'd heard much talk of the feral pigs that are supposed to be a big nuisance on the Cape York Peninsula, however this little piglet, in an enclosure with a not very lifelike croc, was the only one I saw during my visit:

The final approach to the Tip was through rainforest and the road became quite narrow:

The access road ends abruptly about 500m from the Tip and you have to clamber over an ill-defined path through the rocks to get there. It was quite tricky manoeuvering the bike across these rocks but I had to get a photo with it:

The sign is a bit disappointing, you would think that they could have put something a bit bigger there:

Opposite are Eborac and York Islands, two of the many islands of the Torres Strait. Papua New Guinea is about 180km to the north.

                       
                                        View to the south, along the rocky access path

I then headed in an easterly direction to see the remains of Somerset, which was originally the administrative hub of the Cape York Peninsula but which was abandoned in favour of Thursday Island and subsequently left to fall into ruins. There was very little left to see there apart from some cannons, and a few gravestones along the rather nice beach, which faces east towards Albany Island:

So, mission accomplished, I then headed back to Loyalty Beach where I'm planning to spend a few more days. I want to visit Thursday Island, and am planning to return to Cairns on the freighter ship which runs weekly. Then I'm going on a ride around the Atherton Tablelands and also some rides around Townsville and elsewhere in Queensland, as I work my way back down south. Thanks for reading so far, please visit the blog again for further updates which will be posted in due course.


Distance today was 112kms, giving a final trip total of 1224kms.

Eliot Falls to Bamaga

Tuesday 17^th September 2013

I was pretty well out of food, with about another 55kms to go before any further supplies would be available. While struggling across Cabal Creek, the first crossing of the day just a km or so from Eliot Falls, some kind people gave me some energy bars and an apple, which were most welcome.

There were about 5 or 6 more creeks and rivers to cross before reaching the Jardine River, some 25kms further north. I knew that I wouldn't be able to cross the Jardine where it meets the Track – it's too wide, deep, and full of crocs. If the going had been a bit easier, and if I'd had more food with me, I might have done all the remaining crossings as far as the Jardine and at least taken a look at it before turning back; however by this stage I'd had enough of the old Track, and after the next creek, Sam Creek – another wide one:

... I branched off along another narrow, sandy track, to rejoin the Bamaga Road about 8kms later.

From here it was about another 35kms to the Jardine Ferry crossing. The road was corrugated and extremely bumpy, but at least the surface was reasonably solid, although there were still some stretches where I had to push the bike through sand and loose gravel.

I reached the Jardine Ferry at about 2pm and after enjoying a cold drink, some chips, and an ice cream I was ready to tackle the remaining 45kms to Bamaga. The Jardine Ferry is a cable-driven vessel which has to be one of the most expensive river crossings on earth, $112 per car for a journey taking about 30 seconds. Fortunately the nice man in charge let me and my bicycle ride for free.

Across the other side of the Jardine, the road gradually improved, until at last, on reaching Injinoo, an aboriginal community 3kms from Bamaga, it actually became bitumen. It was such a relief to be able to lock out the front suspension for the first time in days, and enjoy some flat smooth cruising for the last few kilometers:

I reached Bamaga at about 5.30 and had a well-earned cold beer in the tavern there:

The helpful barman advised that there was no campground in Bamaga but a nice place to stay was Loyalty Beach, about 4km further on. This proved to be good advice, I reached Loyalty Beach soon afterwards and found a nice spot on the beach for the tent, just in time to see the sun set over the Torres Strait, with a number of islands visible in the distance:

The campsite had a very nice restaurant and I enjoyed my first decent meal for ages, some really tasty mackerel with salad, followed by a big chocolate dessert.
So – the Tip is now just 35kms away. I'm not going to do any riding tomorrow though, I think I need to take a day off and get a lot of washing done, and try and get a bit of servicing done on the bike. It has put up with a hell of a lot of punishment and performed very well. I haven't had any punctures, the gears are still shifting okay, the wheels are still running true without any damaged spokes, and the hydraulic disc brakes are working fine. But I want to get the chain cleaned up, and remove as much of the fine red dust as possible, get it relubed, and generally check that all the bolts holding the rack and other parts on, are still tight.


Distance today 103kms, total so far 1112kms

Gunshot Creek to Eliot Falls

Monday 16^th September 2013

The Track didn't get any easier. Every so often there would be a long sandy stretch which was impossible to ride through. Numerous times through the day I was told by 4WD drivers that they had been following my footprints in the sand and could tell how much I had been pushing the bike!

The next ford was across Cockatoo Creek; it was quite wide, and thigh deep. With a computer, kindle, and camera in my bike panniers I had to be very careful not to get them wet, so I had to carry them across one at a time, separate from the bike. So I often had to cross each creek 5 times.

Sailor Creek, a bit further on, had lots of small turtles:

Just after Sailor Creek, the Telegraph Track joins up with the newer Bamaga Road for about 10kms. This is a wide road like the Telegraph and Peninsula Development Roads, but the surface is very corrugated and its also sandy in places. After 10km the roads separate again, and I continued along the Old Track, branching off shortly afterwards to Fruit Bat Falls, one of the Track's most scenic spots.

It was a beautiful place to have a swim and cool off in the clear, emerald green pool, followed by lunch at the picnic tables nearby.

But less than a kilometre after rejoining the track, having got nice and clean, I got all dirty again wading through this unnamed deep, muddy ford:

The sand continued to get deeper and deeper, and I was progressing at less than 5km/hour:

10kms north of Fruit Bat Falls are Eliot and Twin Falls, and since there was a camp site there I decided to stop for the night, after first enjoying another swim:

                                                                   Eliot Falls

                                                                  Twin Falls


Distance today 47kms, total so far 1009kms