Oasis of the Outback part 2

We spent two whole days in Lawn Hill National Park. It was a really gorgeous place and there was not many people to disturb us. Campsite was nice, too, although Rohan told me he saw a huge frog in the toilet. 

You could borrow tubes for the river, and we went down the cascades floating on the tubes. Good fun! There was a warning sign of freshwater crocodiles, but we didn't see any. 

During sunset we did a walk up the hill and had amazing views. In the evening the sky was full of stars and I saw a shooting star!

The next day we did a longer walk up to the Upper Gorge. The views were spectacular, but I had trouble bushwalking in thongs, since I lost my trainers in Cairns. 

Before heading back we went for a swim under the waterfalls again. The waterfalls form a natural spa around the rocks. 

Lawn Hill was definitely one of the highlights of the trip. On the way back we stopped at a World Heritage fossil site to see some very old animal remains. That night we stayed at a tiny town called Camooweal. Camooweal was an interesting place because they had killer mosquitoes! Long sleeves and heaps of DEET that night!

The next day we crossed the border to Northern Territory...

Oasis of the Outback

After a 3-4 hour drive from Mt Isa, for a moment it looked like we would have to turn back because of a deep, strong water crossings on the road. 

We decided to take the risk and went for it. 

Lawn Hill National Park is one of Queensland's most scenic national parks with lush vegetation, spectacular gorges, sandstone ranges and gorgeous views. We were very happy that we took the detour. We camped beside the creek and hired a canoe. 

Around the gorge there are small waterfalls that form an amazing natural spa pool. 

After hours of paddling we did a short walk to see Aboriginal rock art. The national park is an important Aboriginal site. They have been occupying the area for over 35,000 years. The Aboriginal name of the place, Boodjamulla, means the rainbow serpent that created the gorge.

More photos coming up!

Mining town of Mt Isa

The next morning we stopped a tiny Outback town, Cloncurry. We found a small lake close by and went for a dip. After that we FINALLY arrived in a real town, Mt Isa, in North-West Queensland. Smaller than Imatra, with around 20,000 people, it seemed like a big city after all the Outback towns, with McDonald's, supermarkets and bottle shops. 

Helsinki 13,344 km. Long way from home!

We went to see the sunset at a lookout, and camped right in front of Coles supermarket.

Mt Isa

Next morning it was time to stock up and say goodbye to civilization again. We headed towards Lawn Hill National Park. It was a 6-hour detour but we decided to take the risk and hope that it is worth it. After a  long drive on a gravel road we camped close to the National Park.

 Next: The spectacular oasis of Lawn Hill National Park!

Eaten alive by mozzies

No more rainforests, or rain for that matter. The scenery had changed to dry countryside with lots of grass and scattered trees, termite mounds and road trains up to 50m long. We stopped for lunch in a tiny little country town of Georgetown, which turned out to be a 'bit' smaller than we expected. On the map it looked bigger. We were running low in our food supplies and we realised that we should have stocked up back in Cairns. There would be a lot of driving before the next town. 

Around sunset we arrived in another tiny little cattle town, Normanton, mostly populated by indigenous Australians. It is also home to Krys the Savannah King, largest salt water crocodile captured in the world, 8,63m.

We camped by Norman River. Gigantic locusts were everywhere. Also, by the river there were millions and millions of mozzies trying to suck us dry. I'm not exaggerating! I have never seen so many mosquitoes in my life. After some desperate battling against the mosquitoes in the van we put up a tent and slept in there. No mozzies in the tent, however I was a bit worried about crocodiles. 

The battlefield.

In the morning we kept driving towards the Gulf of Carpentaria. 

Waterfall Way

The trip towards the centre of Australia had begun. I felt a little bit alone without the support of my girls. Southwest from Cairns lies Atherton Tablelands, which is a part of the Tropical Tablelands region. World heritage listed rainforests, mountains, rivers, lakes, waterfalls and charming little towns. We had breakfast in the small town of Atherton. After that we took a really winding but scenic drive through the beautiful Misty Mountains. On Waterfall Way we found four big waterfalls within a walking distance from each other. 

Millaa Millaa Falls.

Millaa Millaa Falls is Australia's most photographed. Of course we had to go for a dip, too, after all, it's not often that you get to swim under a waterfall! But the water was freezing. 

Zillie Falls

Ellinjaa Falls

We had lunch in another small town, Ravenshoe, which is the highest town in Queensland. There had been a big change in weather since we left Cairns. Up in the mountains the temperatures were much cooler. 

On the way to our campsite we stopped to check out Australia's widest waterfalls, Millstream Falls. I thought we had seen nicer ones before, but I can imagine that after some heavy rain it would be more impressive. 

We stayed at Innot Hot Springs for the night. We had great expectations of these natural hot springs, but they ended up being just pools. But still, it was a relaxing way of spending an afternoon, hopping from a hot pool to a cooler pool and then into a spa, and then do it all over again. 

The good life. :)

Finally in Cairns

So, after one month of travelling, we finally arrived in our destination, the tropical tourist town of Cairns. So far this had been the best trip of my life. The East Coast really exceeded all my expectations.  Gorgeous long, deserted beaches one after another, a real tropical paradise. Not to mention waterfalls, mountains, rainforests. I was having the time of my life, meeting new people, seeing new places every day, having fun, taking it all in. I was loving my travelling companion, the Jucy girls and Rohan. I loved travelling in a campervan, too. It's such a laid-back way of travelling. Especially when you don't have to drive! 

One month back I was miserable. Now I was in the middle of the tropics without a care in the world, happier than ever. For the past weeks I had been enjoying the feeling of not knowing what would happen when we got to Cairns. All the other girls had a plan. Sabrina would keep travelling, Alix would soon return to France, Stine would look for a job. But the closer we got to Cairns the more I started to worry about my plan. So, when Rohan asked me to keep travelling with him, and return to Melbourne via Alice Springs, I hesitated for one nanosecond before saying OK.

Cairns is a vibrant backpacker town. Lots of hostels, bars, tourists. Me, Rohan, Stine and Mark, who we met on Fraser, spent an evening drinking goon and ended up checking out the local nightlife. We camped right on the side of the street. 

The beaches in Cairns are a fair drive away, but there is a nice big lagoon for swimming. 

We had a little bit of drama in Cairns when I was on my way to a gym and realised I had lost my precious gym shoes. Anyone who knows me, should know that that was a personal disaster. 

It was time to say goodbye to the girls. On our last night we had dinner together and went for a walk at the night market. 

The same evening Rohan and me jumped in the van and drove out of Cairns. Just outside Cairns we stopped the car to see the lights of Cairns at night. Heading to the Outback, it was the last time in a while we would see a bigger town. A new chapter of the trip was beginning. (of my life, too, just didn't realise it yet...)...

A little 5 star luxury

Before returning to Cairns, we stopped in the popular tourist village of Port Douglas for one night. Port Douglas is the nearest town to the Great Barrier Reef and only a short drive north from Cairns. 

The town is Australia's millionaire playground with a number of five star resorts, golf courses and expensive boutiques. We took a break from camping and tasted some 5 star luxury for the night.

We stayed at Sea Temple Resort and Spa. We spent the day splashing around the endless pool surrounding and going around the resort, relaxing on our own little terrace with sunbeds sipping overpriced cocktails, jumping in and out of the big spa, and enjoying the pretty fires in the evening while calling room service for dinner.

Despite my new found love for camping, I have to admit that returning to the campervan wasn't very tempting after a night at a luxury resort. But at least we went back to camping life feeling very relaxed.

Cape Tribulation - a jewel of the Wet Tropics

A 2-hour-drive north from Cairns and a short ferry ride took us to Daintree Rainforest and Cape Tribulation. It is part of the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area. Daintree contains some of the oldest rainforests in the world. It is famous for its beautiful scenery; mountains, beaches, rivers and lagoons surrounded by rainforest.

Once we got to the rainforest, the weather got really foggy and rainy, and we couldn't see far from the lookouts. But I guess it's not called a rainforest for nothing!

The area is home to many species of plants and animals that are only found here. One of these is the cassowary. We saw heaps of signs of cassowaries, because a lot of them die on the roads. But I didn't really think we would get the chance to actually see one, as it is very endangered.

But after some driving along the winding road, we saw lots of cars on the side of the road, and close to them a cassowary and a baby cassowary! Cassowaries are huge flightless birds. They can grow as big as ostriches and emus, and if disturbed, they can be really dangerous, too! So we were happy to stay in the car.

We stayed two nights at Noah Beach and spent one whole day on the beach, just lazing around on the sand. Happy days!

There were lots of warning signs of crocodiles, but unfortunately we didn't see any, despite our crocodile hunting.

The last day before heading off, we went for a walk in the rainforest in Cape Trib. The vegetation is so thick that even though it was raining, we didn't get wet. The plants were like umbrellas.

After one month of travelling we had arrived to the northernmost point of our trip. It was time to start heading back to Cairns, where we would say our goodbyes.

Let's Go Get Lost

By the time we got to Cairns, the Jucy girls were way ahead of us and already on their way to Cape Tribulation, because they had to return the car soon. So we only stopped for some shopping and drove out from the city to find a campsite for the night. We didn't find the campsite we were looking for, but instead we found a nice spot at Lake Placid, World Heritage area of the Barron Gorge National Park. 

That's one of the best thing about road trips. Changes of plans, no real time constraints, finding beautiful places by accident that you would otherwise miss. We stayed at a nice campsite with a pool. The next day before heading to Cape Tribulation, we stopped at one of the beaches close to Cairns, Trinity Beach. 

The East Coast is full of gorgeous beaches one after another. But at this time of year, early May, there were few where you could go swimming without having to worry about marine stingers. Most of the beaches had first aid bottles in case of stings. 

Coming soon: Cape Tribulation

Stay tuned!