Cobourg Peninsula - The greatest place on earth

We left Darwin a later later then anticipated due to a very bad hangover which was the result of a boozy dinner with Lori, Rob and Eva in Darwin City. We spent Saturday night in Jabiru (which is only a few hours drive from Darwin) and enjoyed our last taste of civilization for a while - some pub grub and beers in glass around the resort pool.

Black Cockatoo at Jabiru

We were up bright and early the next day with 2 full fuel tanks, heaps of jerrys and enough beer and food to supply a small country for a month. The first significant obstacle was the infamous Cahills Crossing on the East Alligator River. It was low tide so the Cruiser just ploughed through it without any drama. The drive through the first part of Arnhem Land was amazing; lush green wetlands and lagoons in front of beautiful rock escarpments. Another highlight was a small creek crossing, there was nothing difficult about the crossing, but the creek was choc-a-block full of Barra. Waz got very excited and we nearly drove into the creek because his attention was focused on the Barra and not the concrete road....  I guess he is only human.

As we were nearing our destination, we came across a vehicle pulled over on the side of the road. The young couple were having some difficulties with the strap on their boat, but waved us on as they had the situation under control. Four and half hours later, we arrived at our destination Garig Gunakbarlu National Park aka Cobourg Peninsula. We set up camp after navigating our way across the crocodile crossing and before you could blink we were enjoying a cold beer and a yarn with our new friends who were not grey nomads who we had met on the side of the road earlier that day.

We knew that our trip was off to a good start when we pulled in two good sized coral trouts while trolling along reefs close to the boat ramp. Dave and Janna were kind enough to invite us out on their 5 metre boat the next day and we were able to fish further afield and visit Victoria settlement. We had a great day and caught heaps of fish. Giant Trevally, Giant Herring, Queenies and Mackerel - just to name a few........ We didn't end up doing the 3 hour walk at Victoria Settlement as the fishing was too good. We decided that we would come back and do the touristy thing another day.

mmmm two coral trouts - caught by Belle (not that it matters who caught them of course)

double hook-up

 

80cm  Giant Herring

Waz and his big GT

What a fish..... Jana with her Queenie

 The next few days we were blessed with beautiful weather and we spent the majority of the time fishing and caught loads of good fish. Hooking Cobias on poppers from the back of a giant Manta Ray was definitely one of the highlights - even though we didn't manage to land one of the big beasts.

Waz likes long walks on the beach and poetry....

Got sick of sunset photos so here is a sunrise - what a tough life......

 The only negative of the trip occurred on our second last day when Dave and Janna's boat ran into some mechanical problems. We were 10km from the boat ramp when the engine made a loud boof, started to smoke, and then stopped all together. Luckily Dave was able to start the motor again, and we didn't have to swim back to shore in the croc/shark infested water. We later found out that it was the alternator and it is going to be a very expensive repair job.

Dave's luck didn't improve that day when he managed to impail himself with two hooks right up to the barb while unhooking a barra. Luckily Dr Yowie was able to perform some micro surgery with large pliers and remove the offending hooks. While Dave and Waz were busy removing fishing in the easy topper, Belle and Janna were busy collecting shells and disturbing disgruntled crocodiles on the beach - Never a dull moment at Cobourg!!!!

We know that we have said it about a few other places before, but we really mean it when we say that Cobourg is definitely our favourite place so far!!!! If only you could swim in the crystal clear waters without being taken by a croc it would be perfect!!!!

Caimen Creek

Manta Ray

Hard day at the office

Isamundi strikes again

Our overnight stay in Katherine was fairly uneventful and it's not the sort of place that we really want to visit again. We treated ourselves to a night in a hotel and the woman who ran the joint was a real old bag -that was until Belle paid a few compliments to her pet cat who hung around our motel room. The old bag quickly turned into a sweet old lady who liked to tell us cute stories about her little feline. Katherine had a good tackle shop, and a decent Woolworths, so we were able to stock up on the essentials and make our way to Daly Waters.
There are a whole heap of places to stay on the Daly River, but decided to stay at the Mango Farm as we had heard lots of good stories about this place. We were greeted by a nice young man who was as camp as a row of tents which is quite odd for the NT outback (they are usually pig shooting, beer swilling Red Necks). After being interrogated about our maritial status and future plans for children we were soon setting up camp for the next four days.

some snakes in the dunny - they don't scare us any more.

The next morning we put the boat in and hit the river with Barramundi in mind, as the Daly is renowned as the best spot to hook a Barra in the Territory. It is also (as we soon found out) well known for its extremely high population of large Salt Water Crocodiles (insert scientific name here). Unlike their relatives in the Gulf, these crocs are not boat shy at all and we often found ourselves in close (but safe) proximity to large salties sunning themselves on the bank or cruising up the river very close to our boat. On our first morning out we saw roughly 60 crocodiles and about 10 of those were larger than the boat.

This croc was BIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIG

 But the croc trap is even bigger................

Fishing was a little bit slow, but Isamundi/Barabelle broke the drought with a nice 60cm Barra. Before you could say 'pan-fried barramundi with garlic butter' Waz had dispatched the fish to the ice-box. Unfortunate for Waz he was only able to boat Rat Barra (Belle is going to give him a few pointers before we hit the Cobourg Peninsula).

Isamundi strikes again 

conversion

We had noticed that there were a lot of cherabin (fresh water prawn) pots out and had heard from various people that these were the gun Barra bait (and were good eating). Luckily we had purchased a few pots in Katherine and the next day we were pulling out some pretty decent sized cherabin (tasted delicious with a bit of garlic).

mmmmmm

Waz was super keen to get a legal Barra after the Isamundi event, and this nearly came to fruition on our last day. He loudly lamented the fact that he still hadn't caught a legal Barra on the trip and was admitting defeat when the strike came. A good sized Barra fought all of the way to the boat, jumping all over the place. However one final leap saw it gain its freedom seconds before being netted into the boat. 'Oh Fiddle Sticks' said Waz (or words to that effect) 'what a blasted shame'. The day only got worse when some old codger ran over his trolling line and took all of his braid and favourite lure. When Waz lost two more lures to concealed snags we decided that it was time to get him back to camp and pump some cold beer into him before we had an 'incident'..........

All in all, we had a great time and we will definately go back to the Daly River as it was a top spot but we had to pack up and leave as Litchfield National Park was calling. We decided to tackle the 4WD track into the park, this was a beautiful drive, but was quite challenging in some spots. We navigated a few tricky creek crossings (see below) which were pretty steep and long in places, but we made it through without incident and were back on the 'Black Top' pretty quickly.

ant hills

We passed a shirtless man who must have been in his late sixties wandering aimlessly down the road. We stopped to see if he was ok, but when he asked us where he had parked his car we thought that he may be a little disorientated. We explained that the car park was just down the road and gave him some water and pointed him in the right direction and were on our way. Ordinarily we would have invited him to jump in the back of the car, but we had just finished reading a book about a man who was beaten and dumped in the desert after helping what he thought was a stranded tourist, so we thought that it was best to let him walk the 500 metres down the road instead.

Not long after that we were setting up camp with Lori and Eva at Pethericks which is a privately owned campsite right on Cascade Falls. We didn't do a lot there, but enjoyed swimming in our own private water hole and thermal spring and exploring some of the local attractions (Wangi and Florence Falls). We were unable to secure a campsite in Darwin because the Darwin Cup was held on Monday, so we ended up booking ourselves into the Camp Site at Howard Springs, which is about a half hour drive from the CBD and a pretty good park. We have spent the day organising bits and pieces and spending up big at 4WD and camping shops - we even gave the car a well overdue wash. We will leave Darwin on Friday and make our way to Cobourg Peninsula - we can't wait..............

Wazabel at Wangi Falls

Lori and Eva looking serious (serri)

The Cascades

Emu on the side of the road

Florence Falls

Northern Territory

300 clicks of corrugations later, we took the turn off to 7 Emu Station. As we neared the homestead we gained on an old Land Cruiser that was averaging 40kms per hour, it obviously belonged to one of the station hands so you would expect them to successfully cross the river directly before their own homestead. However, we discovered that this was not the case. After snatching our indigenous friend out of the river, we finally found ourselves at the homestead/ reception area where we were given some very vague directions to the camp. The camp site was amazing - it was on a steep cliff which overlooked the pristine Robinson River Valley, we even had a loo with a view.

Finally made it to the border........

cute camp dog at 7 Emu - reminded me of Tess

we love long drop toilets....



After a few days we noticed that supplies were dwindling so we decided to take a day trip to Boorooloola which is an infamous NT Aboriginal Community. We originally had planned to spend a night here after we departed 7 Emu Station,but very quickly changed our minds. We did our grocery shop at one of the local stores and stocked up on the basics (poxy vegetables, overpriced meat and long life milk) and visited the local art gallery. As takeaway alcohol sales weren't available until 2.30pm we decided to drive the 50kms to a seaside town called King Ash Bay and enjoy a nice lunch by the water. When we arrived in King Ash Bay we were greeted at the Fishing Club by an unwelcoming old bag who informed us that we couldn't get lunch NT style (Not Today, Not Tomorrow, Not Tuesday or Not Thursday). So we filled up with petrol and made our way back to Boorooloola for some surprisingly good takeaway grub. It was now 2.30pm so we made our way to the supermarket to buy ourselves a carton of beer. $65, a breathalyser test and an ID check later we had ourselves a carton of Carlton Midstrenghts - what an ordeal!!!! We do not plan to visit Boorooloola ever again.

We really enjoyed the rest of our time at 7 Emu Station even though we didn't land a decent fish the whole time. Frank (who is the indigenous Station owner) took us on a tour of the property and taught us a lot about his family history, bush tucker and bush medicine. He also told tales about kidneys and ball sacks being ruptured, his father swimming across flooded croc infested rivers and he even pointed out a few of the trees under which his mother had given birth to his 9 siblings.

Sadly we had to leave 7 Emu Station, but we knew that another adventure was just around the corner. We thought that we would treat ourselves to a night in a cabin with some internet access and electricity, so we made our way to Cape Crawford for a night before we arrived at our next 'bush camping' destination. We checked into the 'Heart Break Hotel' which is the only thing in Cape Crawford. It was a lovely little park and we were able to do a few loads of washing, eat a pub meal, play a game of darts, stock up on booze (still overpriced, but no breathalyser was involved) and talk to lots of other travellers about road conditions etc.

The next morning we packed up early and drove to Lorealla Springs where we met our friends Carmen and Kev. We had a quick dip in one of the hot springs (it took away all of our aches and pains) and made our way to Rosie Creek Fishing Camp. The campsite is located 80kms down a dirt 4WD track, and we only got stuck once. We were in awe when we finally arrived (3 hours later) as we were once again able to set up camp directly in front of another beautiful creek. The fishing was pretty awesome, it's not too often you throw back a 39cm Mangrove Jack because your esky is all ready full!!!! We also caught some decent Cod, Trevally (Giant and Golden), QLD Grouper, Queenie, a Sickle Fish and a stinking Baracuda. As we sat around our camp fire of a night we could hear the crocodiles splashing around and would even catcht a glimpse of those creepy red eyes.

carsales.com.au????

Waz and his cuda

Belle and the cod that is bigger than the one Waz got (fishing isn't a competition)

Waz and Jack

 Belle and Jack

After a few days of fishing and relaxing we made our way back to Lorella Springs with a quick stop at 'Nudie Springs', which remains heated at 38 degrees. Luckily we were the only people there so we did not see any 'nudie grey nomads' - what a relief. We stayed overnight at Lorella Springs to soak in the hot springs and wash away all of that dust before heading to Limmen Bight Fishing Camp.

 Springs at Lorella that soothed our aches and pains...

We had heard mixed reports on Limmen Bight from other travellers and weren't sure what to expect. John Hall (who we bought our boat from) raved about the place, but others had complained about the stinky toilets and lack of facilities. We were greeted with a detour sign (spelt detor) at the gates to the camp which was a bit confusing as there was no detour. Through the gate and past the rusted out vehicles we found ourselves at the homestead/reception where we were greeted by the owner and his son, they were pretty rough country Territorians, but both had hearts of gold (as long as you never crossed them).

During our Limmen Bight experience we weren't overly energetic, and enjoyed sleep ins and afternoon fishing sessions for a couple of days. We caught plenty of barras but they were all undersized, we also got a few Jacks and Groupers. We spent some time with Steve the owner and his sons who told us lots of stories about the camp, people who had stayed there and a heap of local information. He had lived in the area for 46 years and had married a local indigenous girl. When Waz noted his interest in a mining proposal in the area he then showed us some awesome maps of the indigenous history of the area which was a real privilege. Although we had no cash on us we bought a book from him on the basis that we leave the money for him at the 5 Star supermarket in Katherine. If we could function on this level of trust on a day to day basis the world would be a much better place.

Rampy the crocodile (a croc as big as our boat who hangs out near the boat ramp)

a shark ate Waza's barra

Another pack up and we were on the corrugated road again - we weren't really sure where to though. We thought about staying at Roper Bar but when we saw the hoards of grey nomads we decided to keep going to Mataranka which is famous for it's natural hot springs. After 3 weeks of bull dust, long drop toilets or shovels, dribbly showers and no phone or internet access we were very happy to arrive at campground with all of the modern amenities. Belle enjoyed an hour long shower and we both enjoyed catching up with family and friends on the phone. We also realized that we had got our first flat tyre of the trip, which is a pretty good effort after 11,000kms of corrugated, dirt, sand and rocky tracks. Waz was able to change the tyre with on a grassy patch with a cold beer in hand - it was awesome.
One of our favourite pass times is to watch other campers set up their tents, and giggle while they fight and swear at each other - we would never do anything like that........ All of the grey nomads even cleared out this morning - we are in heaven. We have even been able to enjoy a restaurant cooked meal which was a real treat. Tomorrow we are going to pack up again and head to Katherine and Daly Waters which should be lots of fun. Then off to Darwin to catch up with Lorimyers and Rob......

Quick dip at Bitter Springs

Barra feeding at the campground

Why can't we catch a barra this big??????

Aye Karumba

We spent a few days in Cairns getting bits and pieces sorted and catching up with SidRock. We took our trailer to a mob called "Cape York Trailers", and they were absolutely fantastic. They were really helpful (the complete opposite of Weipa Auto), so if you ever need any work done on your trailer you should go and see Ted and the boys.

We left Cairns on Thursday and hit the Savanah Way - what a drive. Even though the weather wasn't great the view was amazing, we drove through Atherton and Ravenshoe (pronounced Ravens-Toe). We were going to stop in at Undara and see the caves, but the tours took over two hours and they had no food (it was 2pm and hadn't eaten all day) so we jumped into the big rig and made our way to Georgetown.

Georgetown was a sleepy little town and we booked ourselves into a Motel for the night. We also decided that we would eat at the Motel Restaurant. When our entree (garlic bread) came out microwaved we should have fixed up the bill and made a run for it, but we were famished and lazy so we ordered our mains. I have eaten some pretty terrible meals in my life, but I probably have to say that this meal was one of the worst so far.

Waz found a DTMR branch at Georgetown.... should he transfer????

The next day we departed early (without stopping for breakfast at the Motel Restaurant) and made our way to Normanton. We only stopped in briefly to take a photo of the gigantic crocodile and the purple pub. For those of you who do not know the story of Kris The Savannah King I will tell you now. Back in 1957 a tough bird by the name of Krystina Pawlowski shot dead a 28ft 4in (8.63m) crocodile on the MacArthur Bank of the Norman River just downstream from Normanton. All of the photos were lost in the 1974 floods, but they created a popular tourist attraction with a life-sized cast which sits outside the Normanton Council Chambers.

payback for eating those crocodile springrolls in Cooktown

Waz ate most of the spring rolls

the purple pub



72kms later and we arrived in Karumba. Initially I thought that we may have taken a wrong turn to a retirement village, but quickly realized that we were just seeing the hoards of Grey Nomads who annually visit Karumba with their 20 foot caravans. We also noticed a sign at the entrance of the caravan park which informed us that there had been chlorination issues, and the water was unsafe to drink. Luckily we had stopped in at First Choice in Cairns so we had plenty of beer and spirits, so dehydration would not be a problem (just winding up our parents now).

It was a slow start to our fishing adventure, but on our second day in the water our luck improved. Between the two of us we caught about 20 Grunter, but only one was legal and a nice queenfish. Unlike the GMs (grey nomads) we threw the undersized ones back and were happy to only take back enough fish for our dinner that night. If you feel strongly about sustainable fishing I would urge you not to go to the filleting table of the Karumba Point Tourist Park, it is unbelievable how the GMs disregard bag limits and minimum sizes. When we weren't fishing we were chilling out at the Sunset pub enjoying a cold beer (remember the water was unsafe to drink and it has one of the best aspects to watch the sunset in Queensland if not Oz) or riding our fold up bikes around the town.

sigh............... another sunset....

Waz enjoying the bike..........

After four days of hearing the GMs moan (Waz got chipped by a cranky old fart at the boat ramp while doing nothing wrong) we decided that it was time to leave. The big lesson learnt from our Karumba experience was, do not, under any circumstances visit Karumba between May and mid August unless you like mixing it with gray nomads, packed boat ramps and camps with absolute road frontage. Would be an awesome spot any other time.

might bring a puppy home with us....

The crowded rocks at Karumba

Didn't have a wide lense to capture all of the boats at the ramp....

Our friends Kev and Carm (Kev Carmody) had arrived a few days earlier so we arranged a nice little trip out to Kingfisher Camp (about 100kms from the NT border) on our way further north west towards Boorooloola.

Leichardt Falls

watch out for those angry cows........

The drive to Kingfisher was an interesting one and we were finally back on some dirt - we love corrugations!!! We were flagged down by some German backpackers who had broken down on the side of the road just outside Burketown (what a dump but nice pub - dont expect food though). While Waz and Kev tinkered with the car we learnt that their old petrol 4WD had got stuck in a river crossing at 3pm the previous afternoon. Unfortuantely for them, no cars passed until lunch time the next day so they had to spend 12 hours in the croc infested river until they were rescued. The boys managed to fix the car, and they were on their way again.

Waz got an icebreak in Burketown, but broke his last pair of pluggers

We had planned to stay at Kingfisher Camp for 2 nights, but as soon as we arrived we knew that we would have to extend this by at least another night or two - there wasn't a caravan or grey nomad to be seen. King Fisher Camp was located on a beautiful 5km waterhole on the Nicholson River which happened to be home to squillions of fresh water crocodiles. On a typical day we would get up when it was warm enough, slowly caffeinate and breakfast ourselves and then head out on the river for a bit of croc spotting and fishing and head back to camp for late afternoon snacks and beers followed by dinner around the camp fire. We tried to extract local information from Young Mate (he was temporarily running the camp ground) but he was a couple of B52s short of a tackle box and hadn't been blessed in the brain department, all the same he was a nice bloke but wasn't able to offer us any local knowledge. He also had weird googly eyes and freaked me out a little bit. The fishing was a bit slow, but lots of fun. We caught archer fish, sooty grunter, mouth or mighty, long toms and a big stinking cat fish. There were barra there, we saw them every day and Waz hooked one that was over a metre but was unable to get the mongrel. After four nights at King Fisher it was time to make a move so we hit the road early and headed towards Hell's Gates, our final destination being 7 Emu Station.

fresh water croc - isn't he cute

sooty grunter

waterhole at KingFisher Camp