Trekkin

Day 56 – Monday 13 September 2021 – 380 Km

Off to Wallaman Falls this morning via Ingham, the highway was not too busy, but we were stopped at roadworks twice. As we got close to Ingham the sugar cane fields became plentiful then the drive out to the foot of the ranges had a lot more cane fields before the country changed to beef cattle grazing. The roads from Ingham to the foot of the ranges were all very flat & mainly straight. The road on the drive up the ranges is another story very narrow & very windy, enclosed by gum trees to start with then as we got higher we were enclosed by wet tropical forest with entangled vines hanging from trees. The Wet Tropics Rainforest is on the World Heritage List as they are the longest continually surviving rainforests on earth.  Many plants & animals of the wet tropics are found nowhere else in the world.  Lots of Cassowary signs out but the elusive bird did not appear anywhere, we so wanted to see at least one. After we reached the top of the range & headed west the landscape changed to a dry scattered gum forest, such a huge change in a very short distance. The turnoff to Wallaman Falls had a very good road into it with a small parking area & a nice picnic area. The drive on the very windy road was worth just for the sheer pleasure of the rainforest before we got to the water fall.

Wallaman Falls are spectacular, wow, it was well worth the long drive. The lookout gave an impressive view of the 269 metre drop into the pool far below. These falls are the longest single drop falls in Australia.  The vast plume of spray at the base of the falls were lit up by a beautiful rainbow in the sunshine. We spoke to a young couple who were there yesterday & it was all clouded in, they could not see any of the falls, we picked a great day.  We then walked the 300 metres to the Gorge Lookout, not as spectacular but still a good view. The walk back out was steep & made us work a bit harder. We decided not to walk the 2km to the base of the falls, a sign warned of the steepness of the track & the difficulty of climbing the 2km back out. There have been deaths, serious injuries & heart attacks.  We had a nice picnic lunch at the tables then a last look at the falls before watching a mass of butterflies on the bottlebrush trees in flower nearby.

The drive back was just as beautiful, the scenery is stunning.

Our next stop, on the way back to Townsville, was Big Crystal Creek & the Sapphire Pools. It is a pretty spot with a nice big pool with crystal clear water with big fish swimming around. Around 20 people were enjoying the water. The temperature was 31C, the water was very inviting but we had more to see & it was after 3pm.  We drove further on along a very narrow road until we got to the closed gates looking for the Rock Slides part of the creek. There were no signs & no obvious track, so we turned around & headed for Little Crystal Creek.

Little Crystal Creek is around 15km away up a steep mountain range along another very narrow & windy road. Again beautiful scenery & trees enclosing the road as we drove up slowly, very wary of oncoming traffic because of the sharp bends. Little Crystal Creek is stunningly beautiful, we walk down the stone steps next to the stone arch bridge (the only one that still remains in Queensland). to the creek & gasp in awe at the beauty of it all. There are a few brush turkeys wandering around. We walk under the bridge & look at the rock pools & falls on the other side, again, stunningly beautiful.

Back down the winding road for the 66km drive to Bushland Beach (Willy & Marlene’s place), not too much traffic & we are back in time for a shower & change before heading out to dinner. This time we go to a Chinese restaurant on the western end of The Strand for dinner with Willy & Marlene, Rob & Sandra & are lucky enough to get a park right in front. The food is a fixed menu chef special with entrees & mains for a fixed price. We have a few drinks & a good chat, the food is very tasty & just enough. No wonder it is so popular.  Outside we are greeted by a pair of curlews wandering on The Strand of a night looking for food. These birds are fairly large with long legs & move in short darting steps, we are very taken by them & their cuteness.

Back to Bushland Beach for a coffee & chocolate before a late bedtime, around midnight. Another great day.

Day 55 – Sunday 12 September 2021 –? Km

This morning we all went to the Townsville street markets after breakfast.  The markets are held in a closed off section of Flinders Street. The satellite navigation in the car took us straight there, thank goodness, with a parking spot very close by.  We walked along the street looking at all the different stalls & admiring the handiwork on display. On the other side of the street we visited 3 charity shops that were side-by-side, then continued walking amongst the other market stalls. We found a few items, including a butter knife from a charity shop as we only have sharp pointy knives in the Karavan & they are not that good for spreading butter nor getting jam out of jars.

We stopped for a chat with Willy, Marlene and some other sailing friends at a coffee shop before wandering off to the shop where we picked up some milk, bread & a roast chook for lunch. An art place caught our eye on the way to the market so we stopped in to have a look. We walked around the gallery looking at the art on display when we heard someone calling out Tereza a couple of times. We both thought it was someone else in the shop called Tereza, but as we turned to look it was Renata with Laura, our daughter-in-law’s mother and sister with children in tow. Laura also lives in Townsville & they just happened to walk into the art store for a browse & spotted us. What an amazing coincidence. We had a nice chat with them.  We made a purchase of some nice sculptures before heading back to the house.

Today 8 of us graced our lunch table. Bob and Lyn, the other sailing friends stayed for a while and helped as well.  We had a nice lunch and chat before it was back to work for all.

I painted the other front door with two coats of paint this afternoon.  While waiting for the paint to dry, Tereza and I went for a nice walk on the beach.  My goodness, they have very low tides here, we walked out a long way and our feet never got wet. On this huge beach we only saw a family waking their dog.  We did see some nice birds and I found a whistling duck’s feather to add to my many feathers on my hat. It was a lovely walk.  Will and Marlene look very tired.  None of us are hungry after a big lunch.  For sundowners only a glass of wine. Will and I hang the door back.  With the new paint the door looks a treat.  Now there is the outside of these doors to paint.

None of us wanted dinner tonight.  After showers we came back to the Karavan, checked up on emails, the news, blog and bills paying – unfortunately bills don’t disappear when you are not at home.  Tonight Will, Marlene and I watched the Aragon Moto GP. Wat an exciting race it was. 

Another great day.

Day 54 – Saturday 11 September 2021 –? Km

This morning we decided not to go anywhere, too much to do. I started by taking off one of the front doors, removed the locks, then sanded & gave it one coat of paint. Slow job.  It was already lunchtime and more delicious toasted sandwiches, chats & laughter – a welcome break, everyone is tired.  Rob, Sandra, Will & Marlene concentrated on painting upstairs.  Tereza cleaned louvre windows down stairs & watered the garden. After lunch I gave the door a light sand & another coat of paint then put the door back on as we were heading out for dinner.

A quick shower & dressed in some warmer clothes, the breeze is cool, I think we have already acclimatised to the warmer climate because the thermometer showed 25C.  We went to The Strand in town, C-Bar for dinner. Rob & Sandra were waiting for us, we were going to sit outside and looking over the ocean towards Magnetic Island to watch the sunset, but the wind was strong & the wind chill made it fairly cool, (nothing but sooks) so we ended up inside, a good choice. Dinner was amazing.  Tereza had grilled barramundi & salad, delicious. I had a seafood platter for one & when it arrived I did not think I could eat it, it was so large. Grilled barramundi, 3 oyster Kilpatrick, 2 scallops, 3 garlic/chili prawns, 5 calamari pieces, a small pot of chilli mussels, a large pile of sweet potato chips plus a garden salad, but I managed with Tereza’s help thank goodness ( she had one meezly sweet potato chip, one mussel & one oyster Kilpatrick), it was all delicious. Willy & Marlene very generously shouted dinner for us all, it was very nice of them. Another great day.

Day 53 – Friday 10 September 2021 –? Km

Finally we found a Post Office close by this morning to send some books we had collected for the grandchildren. Then into Coles to stock up on some groceries after our trip away to Magnetic Island. Next we went to Bunnings to pick up some more paint supplies & shiny screws then back to the house for lunch. Toasted sangers for lunch with Rob, Sandra, Will & Marlene and a nice chat.

 The afternoon was spent putting the two back doors back on then masking up the glass on the front doors for painting plus painting a coat on the front door frame. Drinks & nibblies for sundowners then a simple meal for dinner, sausage & onion sandwiches. Everyone was exhausted.

Day 52 – Thursday 9 September 2021 –? Km

Our last walk this morning along Horseshoe Bay was very pleasant, but sad that our few days on this beautiful island was ending.  We returned to our apartment & packed the car for departure. We drove down to the hamlet of Arcadia & turned down the road besides Geoffrey Bay towards the old ferry terminal. The carpark looks over Geoffrey Bay & there were a few people hand feeding the population of tame & small Allied rock wallabies that live in the rocks there. We enjoyed watching for a while before turning to walk out the old road to the old wharf under a huge boulder hanging over the roadway. I felt a bit of nostalgia because around 40 years ago I was here & parked my car under this arch. The roadway has been too badly damaged by some cyclones to be able to replicate that. The old wharf is no longer there, only a few remnants of concrete & steel.

We chat to a few people then drive to the other end of Geoffrey Bay & park at the start of the walkway over the cliff towards Nelly Bay. The walkway has been built really well, with a nice even planking plus it is wide, they have even taken into account the needs of wheelchairs. The views are spectacular & get even better as we climb higher. At the end of the 750 metre walkway we turn & head back, downhill is a lot easier and the views just as good. At the start of the walkway there is a senior’ s exercise station & we give it a tryout, it is hard work – they must have put it there to entice oldies to keep fit or die trying. There is also a beautiful curtain fig tree we have a closer look at.

Next is a short drive to Picnic bay where we stay in our car, it is very windy. We have a slow drive around the hamlet & have a look at the difference in all the houses here, from the very old to the modern, it could be suburbia anywhere, just the vegetation is lush & jungle like.

Back to Nelly Bay & Stuffed-on-Seafood for lunch again. We tried a different selection of seafood today, with garlic prawn skewers, scallops, Moreton Bay bugs, calamari & grilled fish, with a garden salad, plus barramundi & chips. Again it did not disappoint, the seafood was delicious. The restaurant doesn’t look flash, people may pass it by, but their seafood is the best. Very close by we came across a small art shop. It had some locally made pottery, jewellery & some photographs mounted on canvas, the photographer is an artist, capturing some local scenery & birds.

We then drove out to Bright Point on Nelly Bay, the entrance to Nelly Bay boat harbour. It is a nice walk, though very windy and we come across a large beautiful & interesting bird sculpture made from stainless steel. A little further on is the bow section of an old sailing ship that was sunk near here, a ship called the “Presto”, built in Holland. There is a very interesting storyboard on the history of the ship & how it came to be sunk here. Across from this little park is the ferry terminal, reminding us that we have to start heading back there for our departure.

As we were walking back I noticed a dark shape floating in the water & zoomed the camera in on it. The dark shape was a seabird that looked very weak, but had its head up looking around. Next a large sea eagle swooped down & plucked the bird out of the water. The sea eagle flew around 10 metres into the air before dropping the bird back into the water. A second sea eagle came along to see what the fuss was about.  I zoomed in on the seabird again & this time its head was laying on the water. Next thing, the sea eagle plucked the bird out of the water again & I was lucky enough to get some photos of this happening, amazing. A little further along a few Allied rock wallabies were peeking their heads out of their rock hideaways along the break wall, they are very cute little wallabies.

We drove out & a little further along Nelly Bay stopped near a fig tree that had some chairs in the shade. These chairs & seats were handmade from driftwood & some were very good to sit on. We then walked along the beach for a little, looking at the large pieces of coral that had been washed up. Today our drives & walks were a farewell to the island where we had a lovely few days.

Back to the ferry terminal as it was time to leave. The wind was very strong & the waves large as we headed out to sea. About half-way across to Townsville the waves moderated a little & it was less rough and as we moved into the harbour everything was smooth again. Back out to Bushland Beach & our friends again. We had a delicious dinner that Marlene cooked & chatted with some boating friends of theirs that had travelled up from Brisbane. These friends will come back to help with painting & repairing the house. Another great day.

Day 50 – Tuesday 7 September 2021 –? Km

This morning we decide to walk to the forts built during World War 2 on the mountains overlooking the approaches to Townsville Harbour. This is a 2km walk mostly uphill over some roads then lots of steps. The scenery is amazing with massive granite boulders of all shapes & sizes jumbled together with fig trees clinging to them. The trees are a mix of yellow flowering kapok, gums, hoop pines & figs clinging on to life amongst the jumble of rocks. We come across two small koalas nestled asleep in some trees, undisturbed by our camera clicking.  We continuing upwards.

The two gun emplacements have great views over the sea with the range-finder site even better views over this beautiful island. Now the going gets steep & we walk up many rough stone steps to the base of the concrete command post. Now a steep ladder to get to the top of the command post and more sensational views over this beautiful island. It is very windy and we get buffeted.  A sailing boat heading to Townsville is making heavy going of it against the big seas. Tereza has done very well walking all this way & climbing the ladders with her dodgy knees.

Next is the Communications Post on a knoll about 100 metres away, more ladders & even more amazing views. Even more wind on the open top platform. Tereza gets a phone call from her surgeon here with some very good news regarding the tests Tereza had before we left home. It is such a relief.  We decided to have morning tea at this place & enjoy the beautiful view. The 2km walk back down is a lot easier & we stop to see the koalas again, they are still asleep in the same place.

Lunch is again at SOS (Stuffed on Seafood), the waitress even remembers what we ordered yesterday, amazing.  The seafood is just as good, though the wind seems that it is just as strong on sea level. On the way back to Horseshoe Beach we took a drive through some of the back streets & stop to have a quick look at the beach on the northern end of Horseshoe Bay. The moored boats in the distance dance in the wind. Back to the apartment & our weary legs are crying out for a rest. We only wander out to the front to watch the boats bobbing & later the beautiful sun set. We watched TV, something we haven’t done for at least 50 days.

Tereza cooks a great meal & we eat looking out at the dancing fairy lights on all the moored boats, it is very pretty. Another great day.

Day 49 – Monday 6 September 2021 –? Km

Packing this morning as we are leaving the Karavan with our friends at their house and travelling over to Magnetic Island for a few days. We packed some food stuff, clothes & toiletries then shut the Karavan down & locked it up. It seems sad & lonely sitting on the driveway.  It is strange to leave the Karavan, our home for the last 49 days. We drove into Townsville early so that we could find the ferry terminal, just as well, I drove past the entrance twice & got lost before eventually finding it. The signposting is not very good (my excuse anyway).

We were first car onto the ferry so we had a front row view heading out to Magnetic Island. The sea was relatively calm and we could see lots of yachts competing in the Magnetic Island Race Week in the distance. As we got close the island revealed its rugged beauty to us, it is covered in giant granite boulders & trees with a skirt of white sand in the bays. The island is only 8Km off Townsville so did not take that long to travel by ferry. Disembarkation was easy & we were very close to the best seafood restaurant SOS (“Stuffed on Seafood”) on the island so stopped & enjoyed a delicious seafood lunch.

Alma Bay was only a little further on & is very pretty. Alma Bay does get direct wind & the water is a little choppy, however that did not deter a few hardy swimmers. Horseshoe Bay is another 4km & is our destination today with our apartment right on the bay overlooking the water & the multitude of sailboats at anchor. We unpacked our goods & chattels into the apartment then had a quite sit down & a gentle snooze before Tereza made me a coffee & we walked over to the park bench & watched the sailboats swinging in the breeze.  The tide was low & we walked along the beach all the way to the rocks before turning back & walking a few kilometres along the beach the other way. We found a few nice sea shells as the tide was turning. The sunset over the bobbing boats in the bay looked very pretty. Dinner tonight is at the Marlin Bar, along the street about 200 metres. We order a seafood pizza & some Corona beer & are interrupted by a beach curlew walking into the bar & looking for food. It is the first time I have seen one of these birds up so close. As we walk back the sea of lights from all the boats at anchor is mesmerising. Another great day.

Day 48 – Sunday 5 September 2021 –? Km

Father’s Day.  The highlight of today is a chat on the phone with our son.  He sent us a photo of the two cherubs in knee high grass in our back yard. The little sweetheart boy trying to figure out how they could get their mower over to mow our grass. We told James that our mower is in the garage but he didn’t seem to worry about the mowing like his son did. James keeps on telling us not to come home yet. We would have to isolate for 14 days & it is still lock down in Canberra. We do miss them all. Monica & Family are still in Abu Dhabi, James & family in Canberra.  We are ready to go home, but to a normal situation with no Covid. There are many beautiful places in Queensland to visit so we are extending our holidays. Today is a stay at home day with Will & Marlene. More painting & fixing bits & pieces.   As it is fathers day Will & I cooked tonight, simple but good. Another great day.

Day 47 – Saturday 4 September 2021 –? Km

This morning I took the back doors off then sanded & painted them. Then it was off into town to have lunch at C-Bar with our son’s parents-in-law. I used the sat-nav to find The Strand then looked for a parking spot. I found one & parked, this was a Saturday & the parking spot is right on the beach. We had a delightful & very long walk to C-Bar, I had parked at the wrong end of The Strand. Approximately a 30 minute walk to C-Bar, a little windy but a nice day for a walk.

The path is packed with families walking, cycling, scootering & jogging. We pass a small market. There are a nice collection of sculptures along the way. The view out over the water to Magnetic Island is enchanting. We eventually reach C-Bar with Joe & Renata already securing a table for us overlooking the water at this popular & busy restaurant. We spend 4 hours chatting about family, holidays, grandchildren & fixing the world before we are kicked out as the restaurant begins to close. The walk back to our car is just as enjoyable & we sit for a little while watching surf-lifesaving nippers training on the sand & in the water.

Back to the house & I put a second coat of paint on the doors before sundowners & then another great meal for us all that my mate Willy whipped up this time. Another great day.

Day 46 – Friday 3 September 2021 –? Km

Today was a sanding, repairing & painting day of some door frames, with the screen doors removed & loose paint scraped off. The taping off took a fair bit of time but by the end of the day both frames had been painted. Our friends were very busy with painting & replacing broken bits & pieces. We are getting quite used to sun downers & enjoying it very much, even Tereza is enjoying a tipple of mango wine. That only added to the great dinner that Tereza made for us tonight.  Another great day with good friends.