4/25
We have settled into our little cabin in the campground at Mackay, enjoying 'playing house'. We're
contemplating staying for a couple more nights to truly rest our rears and to get our gear all cleaned,
mended and prepared for the next 700-900km.
Gone are the gorgeous surf beaches, clear water, and wind protected coves that stretched along the
coast from southeast Melbourne to above Brisbane. Replacing these idyllic beaches are mangroves fed
by muddy rivers and tides that recede 500+m to expose rock, smelly sea life and muddy sand. Off the
shores of north eastern Australia lies the Great Barrier Reef, meeting the land mass of Australia at the
closest point near Cairns. Here, off the coast of Mackay the reef lies about 50km away. We have
entered a sub-tropical region, hosting all of the bugs, snakes and reptiles that brings (including pythons
and adders) plus the warmer ocean currents carry jelly fish (stingers) that can be deadly or at least
make one very sick. Swimming now means a pool, man-made lagoon or beaches with stinger nets.
As much as we miss playing in the surf, we are taking to this humid, tropical weather rather well, thank you!
1. Cabin at Campground
2. Stingers
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4-29
We spent several relaxing days in Mackay and took an half day tour to Eungella National Park. Our guide,
Allen, was raised in the Pleasant Valley area and was a cane farmer as he raised his own family. His knowledge
and experience answered many questions we had. Our group of seven hiked up to a great swimming hole at the
bottom of Walua Falls in Finch Hatten Gorge and then drove even higher up into the Great Dividing Range for
a look at a busy little platypus we spotted at Broken River. The Great Dividing Range is the only true mountain
range in Australia and runs from west of Cairns down toward Melbourne. It divides the dry ¾ of the country
from the eastern ¼ of eucalypti forests, grass and bush lands.
Heading from Mackay toward Airley Beach we stopped in Calen and today Proserpine breaking the
distances into smaller segments. It is 30C (about 85), NW/E winds in our face and pools of sweat forming
behind our sunglasses by early morning with the high humidity. The locals are complaining about the cold
since winter is coming! Our campground in Proserpine is operated by the city council and is next to a
huge, Olympic size pool, which we are free to use. One man came up several times a week to swim
from Airley since people can't swim in the sea with the stingers. Imagine!
5/2
We spent two brilliant days in Airley Beach. We arrived early before lunch and after selecting a campground,
headed to town for lunch, shopping and swimming in the lagoon (huge swimming pool made to look natural
with a sand-like bottom, etc.). The next day we went on an all day boat tour to see the Whitsunday Islands.
Whitehaven beach was comprised of pure white, silica sand almost talcum powder fine and not hot to the
touch. The living coral that creates the fringe reefs (reefs found in protected coves on the many islands and
some coastal areas in the Great Barrier Reef area) are huge, so colorful and provided home and refuge for
heaps of exotic reef fishes, all colors and sizes! The sun shinning in rays through the water dappled light
across the schools of fish, the effect not unlike looking through a kaleidoscope.
That night, instead of sleeping, Art and I listened to a Birthday party until at least 2am and Judee's midge bites
began to swell and itch, irritating both of us until much later than 2am. Midges are minute insects (like a sand fly
or mite) whose bite isn't felt at the time, seeming more like salt stinging an open pore, many many at a time.
The full effect of their horrible bite (which we have been told is really an acid burn from their poop) is not
realized for a least one, possible two days, when they swell, turn red and itch red hot for days! The pharmacy
prescribed an antihistamine for people like Judee who have allergic reactions to these midge bites.
Today we rode almost 80 km without any services along the way. Tomorrow we look forward to over 100k's.
Art and I miss having a cold beverage stop to break up the hot travel. It was amazing today to come into forests
of shorter melaluca trees (paper bark) and dry grasses underneath after days of sugar cane fields. Art kept
exclaiming how the area around Airley reminded him of the Shenandoah Valley without the turkeys and sugar
cane instead of corn, but the mountain ranges in the background were the rounded sort like the Blue Ridge
and the weather the same humid, warmth with light winds.
We made arrangements for a shuttle bus to pick us up at our motel for the local club. It turned out to be a really
small and very friendly club, even gave us visors to keep the sun off our faces. These clubs, as we've often written
about, are our favorite place for eats and drinks and socializing with Ozies. Tonight the special was sesame chicken
with all the fresh veggies and salad fixings one could eat, wine $2.40 each and schooner of beer for about $4
(all Aussie $$. Multiply by .8). Good food, reasonable prices, good people equals a fulfilling, great time!
5-3
Today we just couldn't wake up. The bed was wonderful, so we laid around until almost 9am before we rolled
out to make breakfast. Obviously, we weren't going to ride the 100+km today! We went to the Internet in town;
did some sightseeing around Bowen; looked at many of the murals depicting history of the town; wandered
down to see the movie set being constructed for the movie Australia starring Nicole Kidman; went out to
Horseshoe Bay for a swim and lunch; and walked up Rotary Lookout making a totally relaxing day.
1. Bowen Movie Set
2 & 3 Horseshoe Bay
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5/10
I thought I might share some of our less delightful experiences of the last week. While on Magnetic Island we
stayed at a back packer family resort; both camping and cabins with a few mini vans scattered about. The tent
area was limited to a large grassy plot in the middle of the resort, cabins in back of us, pool, restaurant and
reception down in front. The setting is woodsy with lots of wildlife: possums underfoot at the outside dining
areas and birds galore. Mostly young people in the cabins. Our first night after we got into bed in our tent,
reading, we began to hear loud voices less than 15 yards from us. Ten pm some drunken voices - this is a
domestic depute. Lots of foul language. All else is pin drop quiet! This goes on for what feels like forever.
Finally we hear a female voice talking to this pair of campers. They are told to leave the resort around
11:30pm. All is quiet. Later we hear from the head house keeper that two girls in the cabins got into
head butting, splashing blood all around the ladies loo. Two nights later a mother with three or four children
chose to shout at her kids and the kids chose to use foul language in return. On the road camping, all of
our both clean and dirty laundry is hung out to dry in the public sphere. Not pleasant, but only a few
experiences do not sour our outlook or journey.
The sunset over Horseshoe Bay on Magnetic Island along with the full moon and stars were much more
memorable, along with watching the lorakeets being fed, climbing all over the guests bodies. What a hoot!
5/11
Boy, do we hate midges! We both spent last night feeling like we had been put on a spit to slowly roast.
Arms and legs on fire with itching; large splotches that we wanted to scratch until they bled! We acquired
these little wonders while enjoying a wonderful camp ground on the coral sea. A large five star facility that
was practically empty. The afternoon was spent at poolside, a huge new pool with a great waterfall and
chaise lounges. Our tent was across the street from the pool so the waterfall lulled us to sleep.
Today we had our first spoke break. Not on the cassette side, but on the Aria drum brake side. We went
through the loose spokes at the Cardwell Hardware Store only to find them all too long. So on to the back up:
Kevlar spoke. We reviewed the directions carefully and together removed the old spoke and installed the
Kevlar spoke, then put the rear wheel back on. We will see how this works out over the next couple of days.
In addition to the spoke we had our first day of rain to ride in. Yes, we are now in the Wet Tropics. Tully,
our next stop gets 21 feet of rain a year! Tonight we are staying in a small double room ($40) in a caravan park.
Small and not ensuite, with kitchen and bath across the way. Good backpacker kitchen, so we are up for a
salad, bread, pasta and sauce with wine. The a/c will help cool our bitten bodies, so sleep is looking good!
4. Tully's Gum Boot - rain gauge
5. Back packer kitchen
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5/12
We've been moving right along for many days, now. Wind at our back; fairly level roads, pretty nice weather,
average speed of about 20kpm (12mph). We haven't had much interest in side trips, ie: the cane cutters by-way,
an additional 20—20 kilometers of cane roads. Since we have been riding along cane fields for three weeks
we decided to skip that particular sight. There are tours in planes and boats that we have also passed on.
There were boats going to Hinchinbrook Island to view the rarely seen Dugong, a mammal similar to a
Manatee. As much as I would like to see one, sometimes it is enough to know they are there.
The National Parks protect the mangroves and the rain forests, with campsites down dirt roads. I prefer a
bit of luxury (shower, for instance) and enjoy a place devoid of biting insects to spending a night in solitude.
Riding each day to a new place is adventure enough for me. (Judee)
5/15
Seashore to Table lands means only one thing: UP! On our way, we stopped to do a walking loop though
the coastal rain forest: wet, wet, and intense green lush jungle, hunting for the elusive Cassowary. No go,
but the walk was exciting. We were able to see first-hand what cyclone Larry had done to the rain forest
canopy and forest. Many downed trees and those left standing were stripped of their tops and leaves.
Further inland, Larry's destruction was evident throughout the towns and villages: houses and buildings
with the roofs torn off; walls and windows gone. It is now over a year and still many places have yet to
be repaired.
We decide to leave the Bruce Highway and head inland to the Tablelands into Atherton and north on up
to Mossmon back to the coast at Port Douglas then down to Cairns. This route takes us through valleys
of cane slowly climbing to a place called Paronella Park where we decide to spend the night in the campground.
Paronella Park is a tourist attraction: a fallen down villa with out-buildings and thirteen acres of introduced
plants and vegetation. One man and his family started this project in the late 1930's. He had the first
hydro-electric station on the falls up from the house, first indoor plumbing, movie theater, restaurant
and tennis courts. Now this concrete structure has been ravaged by time, fire, floods and cyclones.
We toured the grounds in the afternoon and evening enjoying feeding the turtles and eels in the river and
seeing miniature bats on the tunnel ceiling. We learned about how the aboriginal people lived off this land:
what they ate, how they built huts, canoes, herb medicines for colds and tummy's, what to eat and not,
what to touch and not in the rain forest. All this ended with a demonstration of native dances accompanied by
the digeridoo.
1. The illusive Cassowary
2. Paronella Park
3. Feeding eels
4. Native Dancers
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Today, we boarded Bici to scale the mountains to the Atherton Tablelands. The road had several
kilometers of 8-10% grades, so we arrived in Millaa Millaa soaking wet from an exertion in the humid
weather. The destruction caused by cyclone Larry was visible in the National Park and tropical jungle.
5-17
We are spending an extra day in Atherton to internet and try to get Bici's spoke replaced. He has been
doing great on all the ups and downs through the Tablelands. What a wonderful area this is. The jungle
has all been cleared – back in the late 1800's for farming, dairy cows and beef. This is a really rainy area
and we have ridden in and out of rain for the past couple of days. The weather is fairly cool in the evening,
so the tent is pleasant.
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