The Gulf of Carpentaria

From Katherine we travelled south on the Stuart Highway to Mataranka. Close to here there are a couple of thermal springs where we spent a few nights. Bitter Springs was by far the highlight- a crystal clear stream which runs through a natural water way at about 32 degrees. You float down stream on your noodle (or inflated wine cask bladder), through woodland, and get out at the other end. Then repeat if desired. The kids had a great time and spent plenty of time snorkelling. 

Crystal clear and warm waters of Bitter Springs

From Mataranka we turned left and headed east on the Savannah Way. We stayed on this path for 2,139 km to Cairns, with detours to King Ash Bay, Lorella Springs, Lawn Hill National Park and Karumba. It's been a busy couple of weeks.

Some of the highlights and lowlights of this section of our journey:

-feeling like a complete remote travel amateur by not stocking up when on the highway and assuming one could get supplies in Roper Bar. One could get said supplies but the freshest milk available was already 7 days past it's use by date! We drank it anyway.

-Hugo landing this Queenie on a lure in Limmen National Park. Limmen NP is flat, dusty, with plenty of rivers for fishing. It contains a rough 338km section of the Savannah way going through it. The domain of fisher people. Not recommended for cycling, a memo which a disgruntled group of older people on bikes failed to get..... we came across them about 5km off the bitumen coming from Borroloola. They asked us "is it like this the whole way?" Yes mate, this is a pretty good section. It gets worse. For 330km. "well we're in the shit then" was his reply. I suspect they didn't complete their intended journey. 

Towns River, Limmen National Park

Hugo landing a Queenie on the Towns River, Limmen National Park

-Hanging with the fisher people in King Ash Bay. We stopped at KAB for a night as an alternative to staying in Borroloola. As we pulled up in the unpowered camping area, aptly named "Gennie Flats", we were slightly apprehensive about the beer swilling young people we had camped next to. People come from all over to camp here for weeks or months at a time and go fishing. The campers here were the friendliest, most generous people we have come across yet..... one couple lent Tim their boat 10 minutes after first meeting, and the young guys next door took Hugo out on his boat with him. The fishing however is a bit rubbish this season and we caught nothing.

View from our campsite at King Ash Bay Fishing Club, on the McArthur River.
No swimming here... lots of big crocs and sharks.

-In Lorella Springs we lost the plug to the kitchen sink and around the same time we lost our Mojo. Suddenly I desperately wanted to be at home, sitting on the couch, drinking tea from a china cup. I'd completely had enough of latches, zips and catches, acrylic wine glasses and melamine plates. Of doing the dishes and cooking and living in dust. Of showering in thongs and walking to the toilet in the middle of the night. The kids mirrored my despair. Tim had to hold the ship together. Eventually, things got better. Happy hour helped. 

-Also in Lorella Springs we visited this fantastic swamp..... but we never did find the plug.

Flying Fox Billabong, Lorella Springs Station.  

Flying Fox Billabong, Lorella Springs Station. The last 2 years it has been completely dry.

Monarch Rock, Lorella Springs Station

Some of the 1 million acres of Lorella Springs Station

Crocodile Billabong, Lorella Springs Station

--Spectacular green waters and gorge of Boojamulla (Lawn Hill Gorge) National Park

Lawn Hill Gorge

Indarri Falls, Lawn Hill Gorge

Lawn Hill Gorge

Hike to Indarri Falls, Lawn Hill National Park

Camp at Adels Grove

-The lava tubes of Undara Volcano.....huge underground tunnels left by lava flows from a volcanic eruption 190 million years ago

Lave tube, Undara National Park

Undara was our last stop before getting to Cairns where suddenly everything is different. Dusty bush has suddenly been replaced by lush rainforest and, after not seeing hardly a cloud for 3 months it is overcast and actually raining! The last time we saw rain we were in South Australia. Wide open flat roads and tiny towns are replaced by shopping centres, and traffic. Another difference is we now have company- my parents have joined us again for our assault on Cape York. 

Hugo and Zoe training the Archer fish in Lawn Hill.