Cape York to Portland Roads, Top End Road Trip - October 1997

Peak hour on the Old Telegraph Track.

With visiting the tip of Cape York Peninsula now ticked off our thoughts turned to where to go next. Our first plan was to slowly make our way back to Cairns and then reassess the situation when we got there. Having come up the Old Telegraph Track Sam and I were planning to head south along the easier but boring Bypass Roads, before cutting across to check out the Iron Range National Park. Our plans changed a little over dinner last night though. As I eluded to at the tail end of the last post Sam and I had met up with a young couple who were up here for their honeymoon. Lani and Ollie were travelling around in an old 45 series Land cruiser and hadn't felt confident enough to tackle the OTT on their own on the journey north. So to cut a long story short over the course of dinner and a few drinks we decided to head south along the OTT to give Lana and Ollie a chance to experience it. 

During our stay at Pajinka we are lucky enough to see a big Scrub Python up in the trees.

Scrubbies can get pretty big, this one was a medium sized specimen.

So leaving Pajinka we now headed south as a little convoy of two. After crossing the Jardine River on the ferry we travelled a bit further south along the Bypass Road befor hooking east to re-join the OTT again. We were now revisiting spots that we'd been to a few days before so we had a bit of an idea what was in store for us as each water crossing approached, although having shaken my compressor to bits on the journey north I was now heading south with no diff locks so there was still a bit of trepidation involved. Thankfully we successfully negotiated both the deep Nolans Brook and the dodgy bridge over Cypress Creek without needing the diff locks or resorting to the winch, although Ollie did have to winch up one steep slippery section. After numerous photo and swimming stops it was late afternoon when we pulled into Twin Falls Camp for the night after a fun day.

Waiting to cross the Wenlock River on our journey south.

Nolans Brook

Giddy up.

Back on the OTT Ollie got to use his winch.

Cypress Creek

The Troppie suffered a battle scar on this crossing.

Leaving Twin Falls Camp next morning we headed off south along the OTT again. Today was stinking hot day and even more than normal we found ourselves stopping at the creeks to get out of the trucks and soak in the water. At one stage we were heading south along the sandy, rutted track when I noticed something big lying in the ruts ahead, getting closer I could see it was a motorbike with his rider laying in the dust beside the bike. Jumping out of the 4wd we soon established that he was alive as he tried to sit up. After giving him some cold water out of the fridge he recovered enough that we could move him under the shade of a nearby tree. Our motorbike rider was Japanese and his English was as good as my Japanese so we were having a little difficulty communicating with him however it appears that he'd come off the bike in the soft sand and was so exhausted that he couldn't get up again. After sitting him under the tree with some cool water Ollie and I managed to move his loaded bike off the track and after ensuring that everything was OK with him and his bike we set off south again.

Heading south on the OTT.

Each creek crossing provided it's own issues.

I was having to push a little harder without the diff locks.

Lunch, literally on the OTT.

Just like on the journey north Gunshot Creek was the crux of our journey south along the OTT. Where as when heading north Gunshot was tough heading south was going to be crazy hard I was thinking. Arriving at Gunshot my fears were quickly confirmed today, the best option was going to be the creek traverse that I'd used on the way north, however even on this easy option the climb out of Gunshot looked dubious, especially as I was now travelling without diff locks. Well I did manage to negotiate the water and mud OK and I also managed to get the front wheels onto flat ground above the creek bank, however after two or three goes at getting the Troopie all the way up that resulted in a lot of pig rooting and flying dust and sand I had to admit that it wasn't going to happen and deploy the winch. After winching Ollie up too we continued on down the OTT again through the late afternoon heat. Arriving at a sheet of corrugated iron leaning on a tree beside the track that had Frenchman daubed in paint on it we left the OTT and swung east along the rough Frenchmans Track towards the Iron Range National Park and the east coast. We didn't make the Iron Range that day though, arriving at the Wenlock River crossing we found ourselves a nice shady and sandy camp beside the clear river and settled into another beautiful Cape York camp.

Back at Gunshot.

This was the easy bit.

This bit proved to be the problem....in the end I winched up the last bit.

Ollie had his go but had to winch too.

Heading south again on the OTT.

Exploring one of the many creeks.

This crossing was shallow enough, so long as we avoided the pot holes of which we were swimming in one!

Our Wenlock River camp on Frenchmans Track was another Cape York classic.

Wenlock River

Chilling out in the Wenlock River after another hard day on the cape.

Setting off next morning we continued heading east along Frenchmans Track. Like the OTT the crux of Frenchmans Track was another water crossing, this time it was the Pascoe River. It was only an hour or so after leaving camp this morning when we suddenly started a steep descent... I guess this'll be the Pascoe. Arriving at the river we jumped out of the vehicles and went to suss out the ford. The Pascoe River was fairly wide and fast flowing on the ford itself, however both upstream and downstream looked a bit dodgy as far as Saltwater Crocodiles go. I had to walk the crossing though as I knew that the bed of the river here consisted of big sharp rocks and with the water fairly deep I wanted to know where the sump crushing rocks were at. After convincing ourselves that salties don't tend to hang out in fast flowing water we waded into the river, I say we as even Sam and Lana waded the river so they could give us directions from the far bank to help us avoid the rocks. Thankfully with plenty of team work we managed to get both 4wd's across the river safely, I even braved a quick dip on the ford after getting across to wash the sweat off! Once across the Pascoe River, Fenchmans Track was all pretty good and we soon found ourselves turning left off Frenchmans Track and heading through the lush rainforest of Iron Range National Park to meet the ideal tropical coast at Portland Roads. 

The Pascoe River crossing is the crux of Frenchmans Track I think.

The ford itself was reasonably deep and fast flowing over a bed of large uneven rocks.

The Dirt.

I've already waffled on about the Old Telegraph Track so I won't go into too much detail again suffice to say it's tough. Frenchmans Track is also fairly hard, although travelling late in the dry season meant that at least it wasn't super boggy. The Wenlock River crossing was fairly long and sandy crossing on Frenchman's - but not too bad, the Pascoe River was deep, reasonably wide and fast flowing so it needed a little caution. We mostly used Hema paper maps on this trip.

Relevant Posts.

Wenlock River to Cape York, 1997.

Frenchmans Track approaching the Iron Range and Iron Range National Park.

The idyllic Portland Roads... have I ever mentioned that I love Australia?

Wenlock River to Cape York, Top End Road Trip - October 1997

Late afternoon at Twin Falls.

Just as the Overland Track is a must do for most Australian bushwalkers, the Old Telegraph Track holds the same sway for most 4wd enthusiasts. Like the Overland Track the OTT also travels some stunningly beautiful and wild country, although instead of the alpine lakes, rivers and mountains of Tasmania the OTT crosses wild tropical rivers and creeks, and passes through tropical rainforest and the savannah of far North Queensland (although there is less tropical rainforest than you may imagine). 

It was getting close to the end of October by now and the weather was getting super hot and sticky, heading north towards Bramwell Junction it seemed we were the only ones still up here. When we did see another vehicle they were inevitably rattling their way south so it all felt a little foreboding as we turned off the Southern Bypass Road and started up the OTT. As soon as we motored away from Bramwell Junction we are into it today as the OTT arrowed its way north. Palm, Ducie, South and North Alice Creeks all came and went with little trouble, well actually there was a problem... yes, the problem was keeping me in the driving seat and not wanting to stop all the time to enjoy the superb wild swimming! Luckily for me when we arrived at the Dulhunty River the temptation for a swim was even too much for Sam. With no one else around it was just a matter of parking on the ford and then finding a deep enough pool to soak in for awhile, the cool crystal clear water being very refreshing in the tropical heat.

When I think of the OTT I think of creek crossings.

There is quite often choices when it comes to the water crossings.

The Dalhunty River.

The Dalhunty River was my first swim of the day.

Suitably refreshed after our nice dip we jumped back into the Troopie and continued bumping our way north. First Bertie and then Cholmondeley Creek were negotiated without too many issues, however then we arrived at what is arguably the crux of the OTT, Gunshot Creek. Now anyone who has been around 4wd's for awhile will have no doubt seen photos and video of Gunshot (yes, like the Murray or the Yarra it's first name only for Gunshot). There was a fairly substantial detour around Gunshot that headed east towards Heathlands Rangers Station before re-joining the OTT a few kilometres north of Gunshot however I decided to head up and check things out. Jumping out of the Troopie at Gunshot things didn't immediately look that promising, there were two entry points and both were near vertical two metre drops into mud and water, not something I was keen on tackling on my own. Looking around I noticed another entry point a little further along the creek and while this one was steep it also looked doable, the problem with this one was that once in the creek I had to drive down it for awhile before I could exit. Still after walking the creek and finding that the creek bed was reasonably good and that the water was only thigh deep we headed through, making it without any real problems.

Gunshot

There was an easier entry into Gunshot but I had to drive through here.

With Gunshot out of the way we continued north again, crossing Cockatoo and Sailor Creeks before meeting the Bypass Road again. The next section of the OTT up to the Fruit Bat Falls turn off is shared with the Bypass Road so it was all pretty easy going today. Arriving at the turn off to Fruit Bat Falls the Northern Bypass Road hands off west, the OTT goes north and Fruit Bat Falls is off to the east, so east it was. Fruit Bat Falls is a stunning waterfall and swimming hole on Eliot Creek and once again Sam and I were lucky enough to have this beautiful spot to ourselves today. Downstream of the falls there is a nice swimming hole while up stream there is a wide rock bed that the water flows over, however after exploring upstream a little further I found some nice one metre plus deep spa sized holes that are perfect for soaking in, sweet! Actually when I think back to this area, which is now in the Jardine River National Park, it's calling me back to explore a little more although next time I'm thinking that it'll be on foot with my pack.

I'm thinking that this might I've been Cockatoo Creek....second swim of the day!

The swimming below Fruit Bat Falls is very good.

Fruit Bat Falls

Fruit Bat Falls

Up stream of Fruit Bat Falls there are some deep holes to soak in.

Fruit Bat Falls

Fruit Bat Falls is a day use only area so after spending a few hours here we jumped back into the Troopie and followed the OTT north for a few kilometres to the Twin Falls Camp. Now I'm not exactly sure what the name of this camping spot is because apart from Twin Falls there is also Eliot Falls and Indian Head Falls all within a couple of minutes walk from the camp, anyway I'll go with Twin Falls. This is another of those magic Cape York spots, so nice that Sam and I spent two nights here. Like I mentioned there is no shortage of waterfalls to cool off in here so it was nice to spend some time alternating between basking on the rocks reading and then cooling off in my choice of pristine waterholes. 

On the short drive between Fruit Bat Falls and Twin Falls we still had one water crossing to negotiate.

It pays to be very careful where you swim up here.

Twin Falls.

Twin Falls

Twin Falls... hmmm.

Twin Falls

Spending a couple of nights at Twin Falls meant that I could break out the camp oven. Check out the size of my old headlamp!

Dinners ready.

After a couple nights at Twin Falls Sam and I set off again north on the OTT. While the southern section of the OTT has Gunshot to contend with, apart from that the creek crossings aren't too bad, the northern section of the OTT ramps things up a bit with a series of tricky crossings. Sam, Mistake, and Cannibal Creeks all required different approaches however it was Cypress Creek that really focused my mind. Cypress Creek actually had a bridge...of sorts! The bridge was a collection of loose logs spanning a deep gully however I had a 90˚ turn off a steep sandy single lane track to get on it which meant that getting both the front and back wheel aligned on the logs was pretty tricky. Still, with copious amounts of sweat trickling into my eyes we did indeed safely manage to negotiate the bridge at Cypress Creek and after negotiating a few more un-named creeks we arrived at the deep Nolan's Brook, it was time for a swim! Actually I'd argue that Nolan's Brooke is more suitable for swimming than driving a 4wd through it because it is deep, really deep... with steep slippery banks.... apart from that it was all pretty good! 

The bridge at Cypress Creek focused my mind a bit.

The real issue with this crossing was the right angle turn onto the bridge.

Nolans Brook, good for swimming - pretty deep for driving!

After safely negotiating Nolans Brook we took the track out to meet the Northern Bypass before heading off north to cross the Jardine River on the ferry. Now you can actually cross the Jardine River at a long and deep ford on the OTT however it's not something I'd consider on my own, especially as the river is home to a large population of Saltwater Crocodiles. Safely across the Jardine we made our way north through Bamaga and up to Pajinka Wilderness Lodge, this lodge is long gone now I think but back in the day it was a good spot to spend a couple of nights, it also made the perfect spot to head up to the tip of Cape York Peninsula the next day. To get to the tip of the cape involved a short walk out along a rocky point with some nice views down to Frangipani Beach below. Arriving at the end of the rocky point it was a little surreal, when I'd thought of standing on the northern tip of  the Australian mainland I'd imagined that we'd by staring out into a vast ocean however in reality the view from the tip is of islands just off the mainland. After taking a few happy snaps at the tip Sam and I returned back to Pajinka and enjoyed a nice celebratory BBQ with some of the locals along with a young couple on their honeymoon who were about the only other travellers still up on the cape, couple that we'd get to know a lot better over the coming weeks.

We made it.

The tip of Cape York Peninsula.

When I'd imagined standing on the northern most point of the mainland I thought that I'd be gazing out over an empty ocean.

The Dirt.

The Old Telegraph Track is rough, really rough in spots. Thankfully the old Troopie had diff locks, a winch and snorkel and while I didn't use the winch I used everything else I had at my disposal. The camping and swimming, along with the adventurous driving make this a memorable adventure I think, one of my favourite trips actually. Now having said that I'd hate to be up here in the busy season as I'm thinking that it would be a bit of a conga line of 4wd vehicles, especially now days when it seems that every one of my cashed up bogan brothers has a shiny new 4wd. As I mentioned we stayed at a place called the Pajinka Wilderness Lodge on this visit which was quite a pleasant spot to spend a couple of nights, unfortunately the lodge had a fire and fell into disrepair a few years later. We mostly used Hema paper maps on this trip.

Relevant Posts.

Carnarvon National Park to the Wenlock River, 1997.

Heading back to Pajinka - that's Frangipani Beach behind us.

Frangipani Beach must be the most northerly beach in Australia - It looks beautiful however I wouldn't recommend swimming here!