CLERMONT TO CAIRNS
6/4/09
This morning we left the dam behind along with Kenny & Wendy as we headed for Mackay. (Why do Queenslanders do things like this – it is not pronounced as it is spelt.) As we headed north east from Clermont the Peak Ranges dominate the landscape which is otherwise flat. We have again travelled through lots more coal mining areas today passing numerous mines. Of course we saw lots more coal trains. There didn’t seem to be a lot to do and see in Mackay – spent two days there having a look around.
Still unsure about where to spend Easter but we left Mackay heading north. We had considered staying at Seaforth until I read in a tourist brochure that it is a popular destination for Mackay residents over Easter and there is an Easter fishing competition on. We also considered Airlie Beach but it will also be full of people for Easter so Proserpine which is 32km inland and on the Bruce Highway seemed quiet enough. The countryside between Mackay and Proserpine is pretty countryside. Lots and lots more sugar cane with houses scattered among the fields and lovely hills in the background.
We settled into a small park with lots of vacant sites but also has quite a number of permanents - nice shady spot, no cement slab though. It started to rain Thursday morning and our first lot of new neighbours arrived in the rain. Tony & Leonie had left Seaforth this morning because the park there had already been booked out for Easter. They, like us, were looking for somewhere quiet to spend Easter. Saturday it was still raining on & off – Ross & Tony had decided to go fishing after lunch (in search of a barra, of course). Leonie had been invited to play Scrabble with one of the park residents, Helen, and invited me along. Gee, Helen & her husband, Doug what a sad case. They have been living in the park for more than 2 years and have been caught up in one of those Nigerian money scams (not that we knew that at the time). They no longer have a car and have been totally sucked into this scam. Helen quickly cottoned on to the fact that I had a computer and conned her way into using it to send an email and then needed the person she was emailing to ring her, so asked if we had a mobile phone that she could tell them to ring her back on. Well, what a huge mistake this was!!! Being nice and helpful to someone isn’t always a good idea. The end result was that I spent a long night being very worried that my computer may have been infected with a virus and then the phone calls started from the supposed “Nigerian Diplomat”. After two days Ross seemed to finally get the message across that they should get lost and not ring our number any more.
Our next drama indeed had us thinking that we were in some way jinxed by this woman. About 8.30pm we suddenly lost the lights in the van. Upon further investigation we found out that anything in the van that could be run on 12V was not working. Our first thought was to switch the fridge to gas but it would not ignite (it needs battery power to ignite automatically – something we did not understand until the following day) so we turned the fridge in the car on and transferred the contents to the car. The following morning we were able to work out that one of sockets on the 240V double power point in the front boot of the van was faulty and by using the other socket we were able to recharge the caravan batteries and life went back to normal.
From Proserpine we did some day trips to Cannonvale, Airlie Beach, Shute Harbour and Conway Beach as well as Bowen. Over 5 days in Proserpine we had 9 ½ inches of rain – how we wish we had the ability to send this down home. When was the last time we saw it rain for 2 consecutive days – let alone had this much rain.
15/04/2009
With Easter over we then headed to Townsville where we spent a few days and visited Reef HQ Aquarium – advertised as the world’s largest living reef aquarium, walked a little along The Strand and saw the water park there. This area is alongside the beach but offers a safe swimming area, BBQ and picnic facilities and the water park is a great family area – the kids were having loads of fun. Magnetic Island, affectionately called ‘Maggie’ by the locals, sits off the coast and is an imposing feature on the landscape. Drove up to the lookout on Castle Hill. Castle Hill is in the middle of the city and affords 360 degree views over the city and out to Magnetic Island.
Leaving Townsville and heading north, we have again travelled through more sugar cane and arrived in Ingham by lunchtime. We booked into the only caravan park in town, which was flooded during the January floods here in Queensland. The office/residence is raised and the water reached the second step. The permanent park residents moved in with the owners for a few days – a total of 10 in the house, I believe. We were told that the water level was up above the toilets in the amenities block. With the rain over Easter the ground is still very soggy in the park. The promotional information about this park, the only park in Ingham, talked about it being a shady tropical park with spacious drive through sites, sparkling clean amenities and conveniently situated close to Ingham. They just forgot to mention that the railway line runs right across the back of the park – something that we found out about 8.30pm. Not too bad for us but not so good for the family with 7 children who had pitched their tent right alongside the fence. For the night I think we heard a further two trains. Isn’t it amazing the things that these parks omit to tell you. We drove out to have a look at Wallaman Falls which are in the Girringun National Park, about 50km out of Ingham. This waterfall has the longest drop (268m) of any waterfall in Australia and was truly a fabulous spectacle. Not only the sight of all that water coming out of the pool and falling 268m into the 20m deep rock pool at the bottom but the sound of the thud of the water was great as was the whole gorge area. The drive there was through rainforest and we saw our first croc warning sign.
20/04/2009
Our destination today is Mission Beach, a small coastal village off the Bruce Highway. After leaving Ingham we crossed the Herbert River and, while it had a good deal of water in it at the moment, you can certainly understand how the surrounding countryside can flood. We found and set up camp in the Shire run caravan park at Mission Beach which is right on the beach. Its amenities are old and reasonably clean but at $18 a night compared with $41 a night in the Top Tourist Park which is right across the road we are more than happy to be so close to the beach. Mission Beach has 14km of golden beaches with a backdrop of World Heritage listed rainforests. It is advertised as being ‘one of the few unspoilt destinations in Far North Queensland’. The next couple of days were spent walking on the beach, checking out the fishing from the jetty and boat ramp areas, exploring this little seaside village and just lazing around. With calm seas and sandy beach where you can walk and not see another sole (well not too many at the right time of day) this is a magical spot. Dunk Island and other smaller islands are just off the shore and one of the activities for the adrenalin junkies is skydiving from 14,000 ft.
Our next stop before arriving in Cairns was at Paronella Park on the Mena Creek at Mena – a short detour inland from the Bruce Highway. Admission to the Park allows you to stay in their small caravan park and take the opportunity to do a further tour of the facility this time with special lighting effects. Very interesting. From here Cairns is only an hour away and our next destination.
Stay tuned …
