Crossing the log bridge over Cypress Creek.
John (aka: Campdog) is a regular on our Cape Yorker Forums and has a lot of personal information and experience on the cape and with four wheel driving in general. When approached to write this article, John was more than happy to share some of his travels with us. As you will see, he is pretty keen for adventure. Why not jump on the forum and say G’day to ‘campdog’ at www.capeyorker.com or better still, send us in your adventures.
Since watching my mates go to the Cape year after year on fishing trips and the stories of river crossings and broken down four wheel drives and all the corrugations, my wife and I set a date to head to Cape York. That date was June 2004. We read everything we could about the Cape and watched every video and DVD we could find. It took about eighteen months of planning and preparation to get to a point where we could say “we’re ready’. I think the amount of money we spent in getting the gear we needed and vehicle preparation and the cost of the trip we could have taken a fair slice of our mortgage, or was it we put a fair slice on our mortgage. It’s amazing how much time you can find to get ready for a trip, but can’t find time to mow the lawn. Just leaving on a trip to the Cape is a feeling of relaxation and adventure. Nothing else seems to matter. That’s probably why I always keep bringing the departure dates forward.
Tough going heading into Virilya.
On the first trip (In June, 2004) we traveled with a mate and his family. Owen has had a lot of Cape trips and is an experienced traveler and handyman. A good person to have along on our first trip with my wife Sandra, 2 teenage daughters Rebekah and Kimberley, and a very full Nissan Patrol and a trailer that was bulging at the seams with tools and equipment to carry out any repairs to the Patrol or trailer.
From Cairns, we headed up through the Daintree and the Bloomfield track up to the Lions Den Hotel and then on to Cooktown. From Cooktown we ventured across to Hopevale and then down to Elim Beach to have a look at the spectacular colored sands. A stop over at Isabella Falls on Battlecamp Road for the night gave me the urge to sleep under the stars. That was short lived with a downpour during the night. I spent the next few hours under a blue plastic doona. Lesson number one: don’t trust the weather.
The next day saw us travel through Lakefield National Park and onto Musgrave (see photo of happy wife). Then it was on to a relaxing few days at Foxes waterhole on the Archer River (cleaning out the dust in the patrol). Before heading into Iron Range National Park and Chile Beach.
Crossing Nolans Brook led to a drowned vehicle.
Dust in the Patrol. We pulled up well before Coen, as there was a need for a break. My wife also got something out of the back of the patrol. As we headed into Coen, everyone was complaining about the dust but put it down to the window being down. On arrival to Coen, we found out that the back door had been left open. We had gear packed in that tight that nothing fell out. (At least if it did, we haven’t missed it yet.) Only about half the Cape dirt got in.
The drive through Iron Range was not uneventful with recent rain turning the hills into red muddy slippery slides. I tried to get Sandra (my wife) to video but all she could do was scream. I suppose being jackknifed with a camp trailer in tow at 40ks an hour down hill isn’t the easiest ride to video. The only way to correct this situation is to go against all instincts and plant the right boot and try and get the trailer behind you and gain some sort of control of the situation. I think I lost control but managed to get away without damages.
That night was spent at Chille Beach and again I slept out side, this time with a barrier of chairs and tables, to protect me from the wild pigs wandering around our camp eating coconuts all night.
The sunrise was spectacular and I have vowed to return there again for a longer stay.
From there, we had a quick trip to Portland Roads, and Lockhart River, for supplies and fuel. To avoid doubling back through Iron Range National Park, we decided to head north via the Frenchman road across to the telegraph Track. The only risk could be the Pascoe River with its steep banks, which can become slippery after a few vehicles cross.
Crystal Creek on the way into Virilya.
We walked the River, talked about it and looked at it. Owen thought I wanted to cross and I thought he wanted to cross, but really, both of us wanted to turn around. After walking the river, Owen took the lead to cross the river in his Toyota Surf and trailer. He disappointed the spectators on the other side by climbing out of the river and up the steep bank without a problem. I, on the other hand stumbled my way across the river only to get hung up on the bank on the other side and managed to please the onlookers waiting for me to get stuck. A quick back down in the water and a lot of right boot got us up the bank and on our way again after a few attempts. (I knew I put a turbo on for some reason).
The rough exit over the rocks (and previous few days’ corrugations) took its toll on the trailer and it was only a short time later the spring U bolts worked loose and in the process the axle moved back and the grease-able shackle pin destroyed a new tyre. A few repairs and a tyre change had us soon camping on the Wenlock River for the night. We camped on the edge of the river but our companions were a little croc shy and ventured further away from the water to camp, only to hear raised voices in the dark as they became bogged in the dry river bed.
Next morning with the Tele track just in sight, our plans for that day were put on hold as we ground to a stop as our trailer refused to proceed. This time it was a broken spring. The only thing I didn’t carry was a spare spring.
We unhooked the trailer and set up a shade camp for the families and headed off across Batavia Downs and into Weipa and around to Weipa Welding where a spring pack was purchased from Bruce Wolf. A few supplies were purchased and we headed back to camp where the spring was replaced and back on the road before dark. To add salt to the wound we found out the next day that we could have got a spring at Morton Station about half an hour away.
Our trailer parted company with the vehicle and broke at the drawbar.
From then on it was a fairly uneventful trip to the Tip via a Captain Billy Landing stopover. After a few days at Punsand Bay it was over to Virilya Point then down the Tele track and on to Weipa.
We arrived in Weipa on Friday with the plan to do some shopping at woolies and head off to Janie Creek. Apparently it was Cairns show day so everything was closed. We enjoyed a night at the Caravan Park then off to Janie Creek after shopping. I can’t believe how much women are drawn to shops. The usual “we need a few more things” and return with a trolley full of groceries with nowhere to put them.
That afternoon we hit the beach at Mapoon and traveled about 5 km and the little Toyota in front was overheating so we pulled up to let it cool down. As soon as I stopped, the old patrol was bogged again. The Little Toyota extracted our patrol and trailer with the aid of a snatch strap. We could have got out ourselves, but you know what Toyota drivers are like, always got something to prove.
Janie Creek was a highlight of the trip as it is such a beautiful place to camp and relax.
On leaving Janie Creek, the run up the beach felt a bit like a roller coaster ride as we could feel the trailer lurching as we crossed each sand dune. As we turned off the beach and onto the track to the main road we heard a loud crash behind us, and for some reason I thought the trailer hitch had come undone. We pulled up and looked back and saw the trailer nose down in the sand, only the back half, the draw bar was still attached to the back of the Patrol, well what could I do, except laugh, and then think about what we can do to fix the situation. No one else could see the funny side of the situation. My wife’s comment is not printable.
After discussing our options, we pulled the front bit of the trailer a few hundred meters to the main road, then dragged the back bit out and set it up on level ground. We drove around to the Mapoon Aboriginal Office but they were not able to help us with the purchase of some steel. A quick call to RACQ was answered by someone in Melbourne who wanted to get the trailer towed to Weipa, As I explained nicely, if it was tow-able I would not be asking for help. Mental note: first thing on list to do when we get home is to cancel trailer cover on trailer as it is only good if the car breaks down.
What a journey. We made it to the tip and were still smiling.
A trip to Weipa and around to Weipa welding and greeted by Bruce-”what did you break now”. After he stopped laughing he cut and bent some angle steel for us. Then around to Mitre 10 for some welding rods and goggle lenses. On the way back we called into the Mapoon tip for a few blocks of wood to prop up the trailer. After propping up the trailer into the shape it should be, it was out with the deep cycle batteries and sets of jumper leads and a welding helmet made out of a piece of cardboard and Owen set about welding the trailer back together.
We were back on the road before dark and drove well into the night. The Corrugation between Musgrave and Lakeland took their toll and the old trailer started to sag in the middle and we did some temporary bracing at Lakeland. Our plan to head to the Lions Den Hotel and to Cairns via the Bloomfield were canned, much to my disgust, so it was decided to rest up in Cairns then head home in a few days time.
By John Waters
Read more in the 2008 Cape Yorker magazine- available online.