With Rocky still laid up at the dealership waiting for a new cylinder head, Volkswagen had agreed to upgrade our rental car to one with a tow bar. We swapped the Kluger for a Pajero, and started getting ready to hit the road again. The only problem was that the new car didn't have electric trailer brakes fitted, so the solution was to fit a brake controller to the trailer. It took a couple of hours to fit, the extra time being due to the fact I wanted to make sure we could unplug it quickly when we get Rocky back.
Installing brake controller
The following morning, we hitched up the Pajero and started making tracks north. It was a great feeling to be on our way again, but we missed the comfort of Rocky, and our extra creature comforts that having a massive storage area also brings. The Pajero towed Matilda easily - but the rear door was difficult to open with the trailer hitched on - and despite our best efforts, the rear of the car soon became a jumble of camping gear and food.
Our first stop on the Atherton Tablelands was at Coffee Works in Mareeba. We went straight for the Coffee World tour - meaning we could sample all the coffee, tea and chocolate we could. The museum housed an amazing collection of coffee and tea memorabilia from around the world
- some of it absolutely fascinating. It seems when coffee came to Europe, the Europeans started drinking it in the same size vessels that they had been using to drink their alcoholic beverage of choice. This is why the short black is favoured in the Mediterranean where coffee replaced Uzo, whilst further north larger mugs were used where coffee replaced beer.
Whilst Mum and the kids don't drink coffee, chocolate is very much a favourite of theirs. Generous (read help yourself) samples saw us trying chocolate of all flavours. The Little Fisherman was especially fond of the Lemon Myrtle flavoured chocolate, whilst The Little Helper loved the Milk Chocolate. I am a drinker of coffee, and really liked the home grown Queensland Blue coffee, with the Swiss Water Decaf coming a close second.
Suitably recharged, we pulled out of Mareeba and headed north on the Kennedy Highway. We were keen to visit a couple of the sights we had missed out on due to our unfortunate breakdown a couple of weeks earlier.
We set up camp at Lakelands, a small community at the junction of the Peninsula Development Road to Cape York and the sealed road to Cooktown. The park was spacious, quiet and grassy, so we decided to base ourselves here for the next couple of nights. It was great to open up Matilda again.
The following morning we headed north west on the he Peninsula Development Road towards Laura. The purpose of our trip was to see Split Rock Art Gallery, part of the Quinkan Rock Art - listed in the top ten of significant rock art sites in the world. The Split Rock gallery is the only site accessible on a self guided walk, and is just one of nearly 2500 sites in the area.
The art work was spectacular, and we spent quite a bit of time at the gallery admiring the various figures on the wall. There were petroglyphs (engravings) with ochre animals, good spirits (Quinkan) and bad spirits (Immjimn). It was fascinating, and we decided that for our next visit we would organise a guided tour. You can take photos of the art, for your own use, and I figured that included blogs too. You'll just have to come and see it for yourselves!
The next best thing to a guided tour was a visit to the Quinkan and Regional Cultural Centre at Laura. This small centre housed an excellent series of displays depicting life in the Cape from before European Contact through to the present day. It was a fitting conclusion to our day, and we returned to Lakelands in the afternoon well pleased.
The next day we set off early for another entirely different historic part of Australia. Cooktown. Whilst James Cook didn't 'discover' Australia, he was one of the first to chart the east coast with incredible accuracy. On board his ship, the ENDEAVOUR, he carried one of the first copies of Harrison's Chronometer - enabling him to determine his longitude - previously determined by little more than educated guesses.
Perhaps Cook was one of the first people who was able to determine exactly where he was lost. As he sailed north, he soon became aware that his ship was sailing into dangerous waters. Cape Tribulation was where his problems really began, and a few days later the ENDEAVOUR came aground on what is now known as Endeavour Reef. After four desperate days, the crew were able to bring the ship into a sheltered bay for repairs at what is now known as Cooktown.
Cook's interactions with the Aboriginal people living here was friendly, with much curiosity exhibited on both sides. The people of this area gave Banks the name Gungaroo for the animal we now know as the Kangaroo. Unfortunately the friendly start of contact with Cook was not repeated with subsequent visitors.
Banks and Solander collected many samples of plants here, and the Cooktown Botanic Gardens has a special section dedicated to showcasing these plants. We enjoyed a checking out the Natures Powerhouse display at the nearby Visitors Centre before we took a stroll through the gardens and then on to Finch Bay.
We decided to continue our walk along the coast from Finch Bay north to Cherry Tree Bay. It was rather warm, but the gusts of sea breeze that made it through the rainforest was much appreciated. The scenery here is similar to Hinchinbrook or Magnetic Island - it was simply beautiful.
We then turned towards town to climb Grassy Hill. Cook and Banks had climbed this hill to find a safe passage out of the reef - however the came out on a saddle short of the summit. Coming onto a road, the sun was in full fury, and we elected to abort our mission to the peak, and retire to the shady foreshore for lunch and an ice-cream. Here he found a giant musical instrument in the form of a ship which kept the kids amused for ages.
James Cook was an amazing fellow, and there are statues commemorating him, his charts and achievements in many parts of the world. His voyages were so important that the French allowed his ships free passage despite the fact they were often at war with England during this time. A brilliant fellow, his interactions with many of the indigenous people he met worldwide were conducted with dignity and curiosity. I have enormous respect for who he was and what he achieved.
Cook was obviously impressed with what he saw of the east coast of New Holland - so much so that his report led ultimately to the colonisation of Australia.
Cooktown at one point was Queensland's second busiest port after gold was discovered inland on the Palmer River. The port was a influx of many nationalities and would have been incredible to see in its hey day. Today it is a quiet town, but it obviously holds a grudge. Nearby a massive monument to Captain Cook is an old cannon. In 1885, fearing a Russian invasion, the shire of Cooktown sent a wire to Brisbane requesting supplies to defend the town. Brisbane sent this old cannon - forged in 1803, three cannonballs, two rifles and one officer. I gather Cooktown wasn't impressed!
After lunch - and a well deserved ice-cream, we did make it up to Grassy Hill - in air-conditioned comfort. It didn't take away from the view at all!
It had been an incredible couple of days, from seeing ancient rock art that felt as old as the hills themselves, before touching the very ground trodden by a man who set off a chain of events that lead to this wonderful modern nation we call Australia. I was very pleased we had made the effort to return at least a little way north to see these sites.
We haven't seen everything we wanted in this area - but with a shiny hire car, there are some places that are off limits. Lakefield National Park, Cape Melville, Maytown and Elim Beach area on our list of places to visit next time we venture up this way. For now though we were returning south to check out some of the best the Atherton Tablelands has to offer.
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