The tropical coast, October 2021

Our adventures so far have taken us from south east Queensland diagonally to north west Queensland, then across almost from the border to the rainforest. The weather has been lovely but it is gradually heating up and now it is time to enjoy the sea!

We left Millaa Millaa on Monday morning, travelling east down the Palmerston Way until we joined the Bruce Highway, leaving it again soon to continue to the coast, reaching the sea at Etty Bay. A small caravan park and surf club is all that is here, but it is a very popular spot and we were glad we had booked a site! We backed in against the rainforest, the beach a short walk away and as soon as we were unpacked we hit the water! It was lovely and refreshing and we knew this wouldn't be our last swim of the day. Many other “grey nomads” are here, particularly from NSW and Victoria, keen to avoid the Covid lockdowns plaguing the southern states. The temperature, under the trees and in the sea, is just perfect, the surroundings are beautiful and there is even a local cassowary taking regular strolls through the park to keep us interested! We took a trip into Innisfail for food, fuel and local prawns, drove down to Mourilyan Harbour to check it out, but spent most of our time here lazing around. It was lovely! 

   

On Wednesday it was time to move again, not far this time, down the road to Mission Beach. This time we were in a slightly busier caravan park, and the beach was across the road, but it’s a place we have enjoyed before and we had a “date”; Yvonne and Andrew on Tranquility Base were anchored at Dunk Island and had invited us over for lunch on Thursday! Andrew very kindly collected us from the shore in their tender and we zoomed across the water to enjoy a special day with them, a delicious lunch, a few sociable drinks and a lovely swim on shore: we are lucky to have such generous friends in the vicinity! They are on their way north, to Lizard Island and beyond and it was great to tell them all about our adventures last year, even if we are a bit envious about their plans!

  

Friday was moving day again, this time north, with a night at peaceful Lake Placid, on the edge of Cairns, and a week at Port Douglas. We had been lucky to secure a spot at the Tropic Breeze, a small caravan park in the heart of the town, just behind Four Mile Beach.

 

The sites were small in this popular park, but with the beach right behind and town just a short walk away, it’s certainly the place to stay. We found lots to do on our week there: we enjoyed many swims at Four Mile Beach and quite a few at the caravan park pool, we walked the headland in both directions, finishing the first with a swim at the beach, the second with a swim in the pool, we bought prawns and pineapple at the Sunday markets, we had drinks, then lunch, then dinner at “The Tin Shed”, on the edge of Dickson inlet, we had lunch at the surf club and breakfast at the cafe across the road, we took at drive to Mossman and walked the street and stopped for coffee, we walked the Marina and admired all the boats, we did lots of walks into town and a little bit of souvenir shopping, and we finally got to visit the courthouse museum, which had been closed by covid last year when we were here! We certainly had a wonderful week.

The following Saturday we packed up and drove out, turning south and continuing past Cairns and Innisfail, turning onto Murdering Point Road and stopping at Kurrimine Beach. It is another beautiful, quiet bay, surrounded by mountain ranges with a caravan park, hotel and swimming pool. We had a pleasant spot looking out over the water, but confined our swims to the pool after looking at the murky water and observing crocodile warning signs nearby! We enjoyed two lovely quiet days in this little oasis.

 

On Monday we packed up again, heading to Murray Falls, via Tully. We had been told about this spot by other travellers, but warned that the March flies could be fierce. Fortunately they were not as bad as we’d expected, but the spot was more beautiful than we’d hoped, with a bountiful waterfall surrounded by lush forest. There was also a lovely deep waterhole for swimming and we enjoyed floating around watching the young kids sliding down the rocks and splashing into the water like they were on a waterslide! Being a National Park, the facilities were basic, with just a cold shower in a tin hut to wash, but with the ambient temperature quite warm it was most enjoyable! That night was quiet and dark as the full moon slowly rose in the sky above the waterfall.

  

On Wednesday we packed up again and headed back to the Bruce Highway, driving 200km south to Townsville. We’d reserved a site at Rowes Bay, looking across the water to Magnetic Island. Townsville was quite a shock after so many peaceful days, with many other vans in the park and road and air traffic making it a lot more noisy! But it gave us a good chance to restock everything and buy a couple of necessities. We also went on a long walk around Kissing Point and enjoyed a swim in the lagoon, and we caught up with Chris, enjoying a meal together on The Strand.

  

After three nights in a busy city we were glad to hit the road again, continuing south along the Bruce Highway, stopping at “The big mango” in Bowen (too early, the season hasn’t started yet🤣) then turning east towards the Gloucester Passage and Hydeaway Bay, a quiet, out of the way spot where we could rest and relax. We earmarked this location for its vicinity to one of our favourite anchorages and we weren’t disappointed by our choice! After enjoying a swim at the beach and a drink at Dingo Beach pub on the Saturday afternoon, we spent the Sunday at Gloucester Eco Lodge, visited several times before, where we enjoyed several swims in both the pool and the ocean, plus a delicious lunch in the restaurant. A beautiful day!

 

Monday saw us on the move again, this time “just down the road” to Cape Hillsborough, north of Mackay. The tourist park is at the end of the National Park, with views and walks for everyone to enjoy and a lovely pool for taking a dip when the tide is out. Midges are very active in this location and liberal use of insect repellant is imperative! We enjoyed a walk along the beachfront in the late afternoon and rose early the next morning, when the tide was low, to tackle “moderately difficult” Andrew’s Point track, crossing the narrow rocky spit to Wedge Island and then climbing the steep and rocky steps to admire the views from the lookouts at the top of the point. We certainly earned our swim that time! Kangaroos roam the park and the beachfront, especially at dawn - but with the sun rising just after 5am we didn't make seeing them a priority; there are a couple that wander the park, nibbling on grass, any time of the day or night, without a need to rise quite so early! We drove around to the other bays in the vicinity on Tuesday, pausing at Smalleys, Ball and Halliday Bays before stopping for a short walk and a relaxing coffee at Seaforth, the largest community in the district, with a golf course, general store and swimming enclosure. There were a few large houses here, but most seemed to be holiday dwellings. We enjoyed lazing around in the peaceful caravan park, under the shade of nearby trees or on a lounger by the pool. It was a very relaxing spot!

  

On Wednesday we packed up to continue south, back on the Bruce Highway, bypassing Mackay. There are very few towns between here and Rockhampton, and the road is not near the coast for most of the journey, so there is not a lot to see! We travelled to a halfway point and the only place where the Bruce meets the coast, pulling into Clairview for a night at the caravan park, enjoying the sea views and sea breezes! We continued along the Bruce on Thursday, reaching the Riverside Caravan Park at Rockhampton, on the banks of the Fitzroy River, just after 11am and setting up in a very shady spot before hitting the pool. We have now reached the Tropic of Capricorn and have completed three quarters of our latest adventure.