14 Days on the Road

DAY 1: Home to Glen Bowen (Collinsville) 517km

After a breakfast with dad, we jumped in the car and headed for Collinsville. Of course as it would happen, our very first stop on the range for some fruit cake and cordial, Kaka was walking down the hill and went nose first into the gravel! 😫 Poor little thing! She settled quickly but the mark on her nose looked terrible and consequently as you will see in the photos, she looked very unloved. 

We stopped again at Glenden for lunch and then made it to Collinsville at around 3 where we met up with Melissa (sister-in-law) and her kids Mia and Darcy at their town house. We then left for their block outside of town called Glen Bowen, where we set up camp for the next two nights. 

DAY 2: Glen Bowen 

 

We spent the day exploring down the river, climbing over rocks and looking all around. Back home for coffee and lunch and then more exploring in the arvo. Such beautiful country. The kids had fun playing with their cousins and it was nice to see Melissa, whom I rarely have the chance to catch up with. 

We really need to get this missy her own horse. 

Kaka looking at Mia as if to say, "what are you doing on my horse"

  

Kaka, Mia and Melissa

DAY 3: Glen Bowen to Gracedale (Richmond) 793km 

So I set my alarm for 5 and packed up camp in the dark. Even unzipping the walls of the tent around the kids as they slept, leaving them for last before throwing them in the car and setting off around 6am. Melissa got up to say goodbye and Mia was very upset not to see us go, but it was very early and very cold. 

We stopped in Ayr for a very quick breakfast and then back in the car. With a couple of wee stops along the way, that was the only time we stopped until 3pm where we finally made it to Richmond to check out the dinosaur place. 

After having a bit of a rest at the dinosaur place, we headed off to Gracedale, following some very elaborate instructions from my friend Karen whom I had not seen for over 15yrs. 

They would not hear of me camping in my tent for the night, so I stayed in the house, which I was very grateful for because it was freezing there and overnight kaka was ill and threw up in her bed. So I was glad to be inside and able to sort it all out in the warm. 

DAY 4: Gracedale 

With both kids a bit under the weather we had a pretty steady morning. Karen and Clay took their kids into Richmond for school and so we had the house to ourselves to chill out and get some washing done. After lunch, Karen returned and we spent the afternoon, going through their killer that she had collected from the butcher! OMG sausages!!!! Was lovely to be able to have a bit of a catch up and in the afternoon we went for a drive around their block. I really enjoy being able to get around someone else's place and seeing different country. These guys are still recovering from the massive floods that swept over the area in the beginning of the year and the stories, just rip your guts out! Truely devastating. It's very eerie to see some the carcasses still remaining that have no been touched by anything, just slowly decomposing, almost fossilised.    

DAY 5: Gracedale to Alehvale (Croydon) 351km

I think Google is a bit unaware of the quality of this road. 

Just like that our stay at Gracedale was over. Was so wonderful to be able to catch up with an old friend and meet her lovely little family. Can't believe how the years have flown past!

As we headed out, I stopped to take this shot! Just amazing how the horizon just goes on and on forever! I would love to have had some time to take some milky-way shots or even been around for some of the spectacular skies that often occur around this time of year. 

Not far from Gracedale we came across this group of camels, which had G-man pretty excited! 

We headed into Croydon for some fuel and a few supplies and a feed at the servo before venturing back to Alehvale which was just outside of town. We took no time in grabbing ourselves a buggy and going for a tour about. Was nice to be able to get out with the kidlets and check out some different country, not to mention the beautiful warm weather! 

The cattle are in such good condition and Karen said they had been fortunate that prior to the floods, they had sent quite a lot of cattle to this block which was untouched by the flooding. 

I would love to have the time to climb some of these beautiful escarpments. 

Proper ant hill country

Alehvale has a number of natural springs that run through it and it was amazing for me to see, I find it so fascinating. 

This was the view from the verandah at Alehvale, where we stayed the night. The caretaker that was staying there has light a log on fire, clearing some of the flat and the kids were happy to sit and watch the fire. 

Day 6: Ahelvale to Chillagoe 408km

With the kids still a bit under the weather, I decided to pack up fairly early and head to see if I could get to see a Dr. Just in case I needed to get some antibiotics into them, I wanted to do that before the weekend came around. 

So we left Alehvale after breakfast and drove to Georgetown which only took an hour. There was a nurse clinic there but fortunately the nurse there said they were on their way up and just to keep doing what I was doing which was panadol and nurofen without needed any antibiotics. So we stopped for smoko and supplies before making our way to Mt Surprise. 

Mum and I had visited Mt Surprise on our trip to the Undara lava tubes, but we were very uninspired by the town. It seems however, that now it is tourist season, that the town comes alive a little, because there seemed to be far more action and people were a lot more friendly. 

From Mt Surprise we took a dirt road to the north, straight to Chillagoe. Was a pretty little drive and I was impressed but the photographic potential of the countryside. Sadly I didn't get out with my camera as much as I would have liked. With the kids being unwell, I didn't want to leave them too long and I did not wish to be dragging them around with me to take photos. 

We set up camp for the night in a little caravan park and I was very surprised that there was hardly anyone there. I thought for this time of year, there would be a lot more people. 

A bigger and and angrier version of a frog rock, compared to ours down here. 

DAY 7: Chillagoe 

I went and booked two cave tours and after a quick stop at the balancing rock, we went to our first cave. The guide was very lovely, but Kaka was pretty determined to do her own thing and wander off the path and touch things she shouldn't have been touch. So the guide insisted that I carry her, which she did not appreciate at all. Let me tell you, inside an echoey cave, a baby crying is extremely loud!! So most embarrassingly I tried to keep her quiet while we completed the tour. G-man seemed to enjoy himself, however, I think we will wait till she is a bit older before our next cave adventure. Needless to say, we gave the second tour that I had booked a miss. 

Absolutely love these formations. I could spend a long time here! 

This particular cave was called the "Donna" cave and the guide said there were two stories as to how it got its name. The first was after a pet goat from a neighbouring property and the second is that one of the rock formations looks like lady Madonna. He believed it was after lady Madonna, I personally (after seeing the "lady Madonna" formation), I'm going with the pet goat! 

This was before he made me carry her!

So instead of the next cave tour, we went to this little weir, which was a nice spot to have some smoko! I bought coffee, which i vowed never to do again as I just couldn't seem to get unburnt coffee! 

Facetime with dad, revealed that our chooks have started to lay!! YAY

G man was getting to be quite the photographer! After a lunch time siesta, we went and visited some archways, which were much better for the kids and they could do as they pleased. 

Miss Kaka, ever the independent one, wanting to do everything herself and climb everywhere herself, was pretty slow going, but they seemed to have fun! Will have to take them to the Caves that we have here. 

DAY 8: Chillagoe to Laura 385km

The weather has been absolutely lovely and this morning after breakfast, we packed up and headed for Laura. The kids stayed in the car and had a driving smoko (I can't even tell you how disgustingly dirty their carseats were by the time we got home and I got to wash and disinfect them). 

This was a lookout an hour out of Lakeland. Very pretty country. 

Just north of Mareeba. Nothing to make you homesick like a paddock full of paragrass. 

We stopped for fuel and lunch in Lakeland and just as we were having a play in the playground there, a text from Leslie said they had just got to Lakeland too. So they called in to see us and we quickly jumped in the car and followed them to their campsite in at the Laura Racecourse. 

Kaka scored herself a new hat from "Nanna Jo"

This was where we set up camp for the next 3 nights and it was such a lovely group of people. Ken and Stef had their two children Alice and Joey, who were a bit older than my two but still good play mates and then Cory also had his two girls there, Mia and Kira. So there were plenty of eyes keeping watch over the children. We had our own little toilet and shower and everyone pitched in when it came to cooking and sharing food. Such a privilege to be a part of this little clan. 

On our first night, we all got to catch up, the crew included Leslie's sister Heidi, brother Ken with his wife Stef and their two kids, Leslie's mum (nanna Jo) and some of their employees were also in the camp. Ken and his wife ran the waste disposal and recycling for the event, which was a mammoth job and kept them very busy. 

DAY 9: Laura Races 

Leslie and I (Master G's photography)

The morning before the races, we headed down to buy miss kaka a cowgirl hat, and had a bit of a look at some of the campdrafting. 

gremlin! 

My little cowgirl, we had to buy her a hat! (still got the price-tag on it!)

I waited until the very last minute to get dressed in an attempt to get myself and the kidlets clean. I thought we all scrubbed up ok for some bush races! 

How damn cute is this little girl?!?

We all got icecreams! And didn't make too much mess! Although I wished I had bought some wet wipes with me! 

See what I mean about her nose!

Such good kids! 

G man, Kaka and Joey

G man once again with his deadly camera skills! Loved that this fella played along! 

kids got talent

I love this one!!! Heidi, Stef, Joey, Alice, Leslie, Nanna Jo, Me and Kaka

These pair got a bit excited about the races. Such a lovely atmosphere. 

Little bookie, Grandpa Eric would be so proud! 

Picking a winner 

DAY 10: Laura Rodeo 

We were all a bit tired after the races, so we had a pretty early night. Bringing us to the Sunday of Rodeo action. I was a bit annoyed that I missed photographing some of the events that I wanted to see. By the time I realised they were on and got my camera, they were either over or I only got the tail end. Not to worry I still got a couple of nice shots. 

 

Love this one!

Some of the cattle were a little hot! 

Leslie and Heidi

DAY 11: Laura - Hope Vale 185km

I'm not too sure whose idea it was to go out and drink on the Sunday night before we had to pack up and head home the next day but I was very grateful that there was someone there to cook me a nice breakfast and keep and extra eye on the kids while I tried to maintain some function and pack up camp. Luckily I peaked a bit early and still managed to be in bed fairly early, so I got a good night sleep. 

We left Laura after smoko and headed to Hope Vale. Leslie called into Ken's place to show me where it was, as I would be staying there the following night. Leslie hoped into the car with me and we went for some supplies at Cooktown before heading to her house. 

I can't tell you how good it was to have a decent shower. I caught up on some washing and we had a bit of a rest for the afternoon. Leslie wouldn't hear of me setting up my camp again, so I stole her bed and she slept on the couch with her sister. The kids were very grateful for some veges after traveling for so long, they were very sick of sausages.

DAY 12: Hope Vale to Cooktown 50km 

After a steady morning we packed up and headed off after smoko. We called in to see Isabella Falls which the kids seemed to like. 

We called into the see this black mountain. These mountains are world heritage listed. They are far more impressive than the photos do them justice. I kinda wished I had my drone, but I wasn't going to lug it all the way up there. 

After the black mountain we went to the little Annan crossing. It's a rather impressive little cut out in the creek. Once again I would have liked my drone for this but probably a bit difficult with the kidlets to keep an eye on everything. 

After the little annan crossing, we went to archer point but it was extremely windy and we did not stay for long as we would have been blown away. 

Could see this boat way out and only just capture this with my zoom lens. 

From Archer point we headed to the Lion's Den for a pub lunch and then headed from there out to Keatings Lagoon for a look. 

I told G man about the crocodiles in the water and he was a little concerned that we should stay away from the water! 

After Keatings Lagoon, we went to the water park in Cooktown for a play and up to the Grassy Hill lookout to have a quick view of the town and the bay. I would have loved to have known what it would look like back when Cook was first there. 

So after all our exploring of the Cooktown and its surrounds, we ventured back to Ken's place where we set up camp and had a bit of a relax on the beach. Ken and Stef had been held up at their job, but it was a lovely place for us to be able to unwind for the afternoon and a lovely hot shower is always a winner. 

DAY 13: Cooktown to Ravenshoe 406km

Having said goodbye to Ken and Stef the night before, we packed up after breakfast and said goodbye to Nanna Jo, Alice and Joey and headed south. I had a rough plan to camp in Atherton a couple of nights. We got to Mareeba and had a bit of an early lunch and then went into Atherton for supplies. I decided to go and have a wander around Tinaroo Dam to see if there was anywhere nice to camp. Unfortunately though, apart from the road being unbelievably rough, taking about an hour to drive 30km, all the campsites required permits and I was thoroughly uninspired by the area! In fact, the trees gave me the creeps and so I decided that I needed to get out of there and go west! Didn't really have a desitination, but it wasn't going to be there. 

I didn't even get any photos of the dam, that's how uninspired I was. Anyhow, we made it to Ravenshoe by late afternoon and I decided to drive until I found somewhere.... anywhere... to camp, as long as I could have a fire I would be happy. Anyhow, fortunately just 1km out of Ravenshoe was the Millstream falls and it was perfect place to stop. We could hear the lovely falls only about 400m from our campsite. 

DAY 14: Ravenshoe to Home 1330km

Unfortunately at 6am, I woke with gentle rain on my tent roof. So I got up and moved my bags out of the weather and climbed back into my tent to check the forecast. It was going to be raining for the next couple of days. Even at Charters Towers where I thought I might get away from it. 

So I packed rather quickly and headed out left camp at about 7:30am. I'm not sure at which point I decided that we would make the trek all the way home. But I can't fault those kids of mine. I thought I would just see how they went. 

We stopped for a 10 min smoko break at the Lynd Junction. I very quick wee break at Charters Towers and a cup of chips each and we kept going. The next time they got out of the car was at Nebo for dinner at 6pm where we stopped for half and hour and then we were back in the car. We made it home at just after 10pm. 

The big fella didn't know we were coming which was a bit of a surprise when some person was crawling into bed with him. "Hey, hey, hey, who's that?".... me giggling, "it's your wife sweetheart". 

Here's a few videos from the trip. 

DAY 15: HOME

So I'm not sure who was more happy, dad to see us, or the kids to see dad... but we were all very happy to be home and I'm glad that we made the big journey and missed out on the miserable weather which only brought us 18mm. 

I had lots and lots of washing to do and unpacking, and I'm still recovering. The day after I returned (Friday) home, Sandy arrived to preg-test our cattle for us. So my weekend was going to be a little busy. 

Saturday morning and it was still rather miserable, so with a late start Bonni and Lou with their girls Ella and Lucy arrived to help with the preg-testing. I quickly threw some scones on and after a  hasty smoko they were into it. 

I remained home to look after kids and keep trying to get onto the massive pile of laundry. 

Sandy phoned to do some shit-stirring and request some potato bake for lunch and I was so pleased to be able to say that it was already cooked and in the oven! 

That evening after the preg testing was done, Bonni and Lou went home with their girls and we had Coolee, Tim and Jenna and their two boys Charlie and Jimmy come to stay. 

They did some fishing and got a pretty good haul. Despite the Saturday night causing a few sore heads, all the fish managed to get filleted.

Miss Kaka was very interested in the goings on! 

So as you can imagine I'm now exhausted. Still chasing my tail. I've spent today doing more washing, cleaning and just generally trying to get back into the swing of things. 

I had such an awesome trip and I've learnt so much and I'm so glad that I did it. So much of the country I had never seen before and I was so lucky to be able to visit and spend time with such lovely, hospitable and wonderful people. 

I will say this though, after all that travelling, there really is no place like home and sometimes I think you have to go away for a while to truely appreciate what you have, and I really do have it all!!! 

Anyhow I'm off to bed people! Time to start planning the next trip!

My trip North

My trip South back home.