Cape York

We made it to the Top!

One of our adventure "must do's", was  to stand on the northern most tip of Australia. Well folks it has been done, and what a great day we had getting there.

The top of Cape York is over 1000km's from Cairns on a dusty red road full of corrugations, rocks, river crossings and sand traps. Fuel gets up to $2.30 per litre, and food costs sky rocket. If you average 40km per hour you are lucky. Five people have already been killed this year on what is a dangerous road. Add to that 3 tonne of caravan, and the task is daunting. Thankfully, we talked ourselves out of a lot of pain, suffering and cost, and took to the air, on what is the longest scenic flight in the world!

Boarding our scenic flight to the Cape.

We were at Cairns airport at 6.45 am with 11 other intrepid adventurers to board the two twin engined Piper Comanche aircraft of Daintree Air Services. Under the command of Captains Greg and Marty, the 10 minute briefing was enough to let us know that we were in for a long, fun filled day. Everyone was excited, and stayed that way until we touched back down in Cairns again at 6.45 pm.

We were with Capt. Greg. Carol was immediately promoted to 1st Officer and sat up front next to the Captain. Ever since Top Gun, she just can't resist a man in uniform! John, quickly dubbed "Big Fella" by the Capt. was assigned the seat directly behind the 1st Officer, as this was the furthermost spot away from the lunch!

Vast areas of Silica sand dunes.

We were soon airborne, headsets on, for the Captains witty commentary,and flying along the coast at low level, varying between 1500 and 2000 feet, getting the most amazing views. The first thing that struck us was all the bush fires and smoke. Capt. Greg told us that this was a phenomenon that had been going on for millions of years. They are slow burning and flare up during the dry season, die down at night, and get going again the next day. As soon as the wet season starts, they all get put out. Capt. Greg does a great job of dodging the smoke. One minute we were out over the Great Barrier Reef, and the next we were over the World Heritage Daintree Rain forest. We soon passed the rain forest, and it was like someone had drawn a line, as the rain forest gave way to savannah. We passed over Cooktown, Cape Bedford and Cape Flattery, went back out over the reef to look at some of the beautiful reefs and small islands. The land and sea scapes, constantly changing. We flew over the vast Silica Sand Mining leases operated by the Aboriginals. The sand is some of the purest on earth, and sought after by the Japanese for making lenses. Morning tea was served. The person in the back of the plane played hostee, and opened the esky to get the box of muffins, which were duly passed around with a juice!

We saw the remains of the many airstrips that were built by the Yanks during WW11, and  we even saw the remains of aircraft left on the beaches after the war ended. Apparently, the area is littered with plane wrecks, many of which are only now being discovered, due to the remoteness of this place. Past Cape Melville, with another reminder from Capt. Greg that it is a long way to the top! At Lockhart River, we ran into traffic! Another plane was landing, and Capt. Greg got quite excited as we flew low over the top of this guy landing at Lockhart River. From here we tracked passed Captain Billy Landing and headed on to Bamaga, where we would land, on the newly sealed airstrip, and be met by our guide for the 34 km drive to the tip, plus a tour of the area and a picnic lunch. During WWII, this landing strip was one of the longest in the world at 3,000 metres.The land part of the tour is operated by the local native people, and Capt. Greg has warned us to expect anything!

The land of the Cape York region, was handed back to the traditional owners, the Injanoo people, following the Mabo Native Title decision. Prior to that, the area had been owned and operated as a cattle property, by the Jardine family, who in addition to the cattle had tried their hand at a number of crops, including Mangoes, Cashew Nuts and Rubber,as well as a few other things I can't remember! None of it has been kept up by the local people, and we only saw  the remains of a few buildings and overgrown plantations.

Our guide for the day is Brett, and we learn that this is his last day, after two years in the job.

The red dust road to the tip.

Now Brett, came to the Cape in the '70's when the telegraph lines were being put through. He is a white man, and speaks with that typically slow drawl you only find in the outback, from people who have spent their whole life there. The humour is so dry. My only regret was not having a tape recorder! We climbed into the new, air conditioned bus, which was a blessing in the heat and humidity, so different to Cairns, and headed down the 4kms of new bitumen road, before  hitting the red dirt road to Pajinka, the tip of Cape York.

The lady in the front seat up next to the driver, was full of questions. " What kind of wild life do you get up here?" "What you see is what you get, I guess", came the reply. "Is there anything unique to the area?" "Well there is a kind of cockatoo that only happens north of the Jardine River." " What does it look like?" "Well, it's a black, boof headed ugly bastard, with rosy cheeks." Will we get to see any?" "Maybe, yep there's one over there." As he points to the sign with a painted black cockatoo with rosy cheeks garishly staring down at us, advertising a Fishing Resort!

We drove past a sign to Somerset, which Brett informed us was a settlement set up by the British in the mid 19th century. "Them Brits had been having a few shipwrecks around the cape, and a few of the local headhunters had been gnawing on the survivors. Anyway they sent out a few troops and built a hospital, which the termites ate, so they gave up! Just left a few ruins."

Off to the top of Australia.

We soon reached a sandy beach, which we thought was our destination, but Brett informed us we had about a one km walk up over the rocks. "Yous look like you should make it!" So off we went. I wasn't sure what to expect at the top of Australia. I felt it should be a tropical beach. Instead here we were climbing over rocks and down the other side, to a sign saying here you are! It was quite a thrill as we all stood next to that sign, with Brett doing the expert photographer thing. We dipped our toes in the water, and took in the remoteness of the ocean, the small rocky islands and the long secluded beach.

Picnic lunch at the top of Australia

Back to the bus, and what an idyllic spot to have our picnic lunch. By now, the tide has gone out around 100 metres, leaving nothing but white sand and beautiful turquoise water.
We all enjoy the rest, the salad lunch and a cold drink, before back on the bus for a look around town.

The remains of one of
the resort buildings

I was surprised by Brett's reaction to the local people. There was no doubting his honesty. We drove back past a resort that had been built by Reg Ansett back in the '70's. "It used to be well supported back in them days. But after Mabo, every thing went to the native people. They wanted it, but didn't know what to do with it. Staff wouldn't turn up, the place ran down and people stopped coming. Who's gunna pay top dollar for rubbish? There was a fire in the generator room. Never got fixed, so they stripped everything worth money out of the place, and walked away."

Souvenirs and red dust!

Back on the road, we had a stop at The Croc Tent, the only souvenir shop at the tip of Cape York, and the only place you can buy "official" souvenirs to say you made it. A young couple own the tent. They drag it, and all the stuff inside, up to the Tip  each dry season, then pack it all up and head back to Cairns for the wet season. They deserve every cent they make! I can't imagine how they cope with all that dust. Everything is in plastic bags and signs ask not to handle the T-Shirts. How do they keep it clean?

From here it is a tour around town and a brief, one man's history of life at the top of Australia. The entire area is part of The Injanoo Aboriginal Land Trust. It is home to 4 different tribes, put together by the whites for ease of administration, and who don't get on well. Consequently, they live in separate settlements called Injinoo, New Mapoon, Bamaga and Umagico. In the middle is the seaside town and port of Seisia (pronounced Saysha.)

Bamaga, named after the king who founded the settlement, is home to the Torres Strait Islanders. These were first brought to the area by The Yanks during WWII, to help build things. Our guide, Brett, described the Torres Strait Islanders as good, hard working, and keen to be educated. Following the war, after a huge cyclone almost destroyed their island, King Bamaga brought his people to the mainland. They got on OK with the Injinoo, but then when the other two tribes were moved into the area, things went a bit pear shaped. Brett described the Mapoon as a bunch of thieving mongrels! "If anything goes missing, the cops go straight to New Mapoon to find it!" When asked if the locals do any business like agriculture, Brett told us that any attempts, usually by the Torres Strait Islanders, ended up with all the proceeds being stolen before they could be harvested, so they gave up. They did set up an abattoir, and brought up live cattle to be fattened and slaughtered as required, but all that resulted in was some days with no meat at all, and very high prices, with the cheapest cuts being $16 -18 per Kg.

Mayor's house

The biggest and newest buildings in town, are the Police Station, Court House and Centrelink. The pub was described as a slaughter house, and looked like a dump, but the supermarket looked quite new and well kept. Beer is now $65 per carton for XXXX Gold, almost double Cairns prices.The only ones who look after their houses are the Torres Straight Islanders, many of whom even have a kept garden. Otherwise the houses are a mess, all surrounded by broken furniture, bikes, cars and junk, sitting in the dust.

On the way back to the airport, we stopped at a wreck of an old DC-3 that had crashed soon after take-off during WWII, killing all six on board. It was just off the main road, and Brett thought it would be pretty funny to show us just before we all got back on board! He confirmed that the bush around here is full of old wrecks. So Brett left us at the airport, having successfully completed his last day as a tour guide. The future will be driving road trains around Charters Towers. "The missus says 2 years with all these black fellas is enough, and 2 wet seasons here, is 2 too many! The temperature doesn't get below 30 day or night, and the humidity is always 90% plus. It's bloody awful!"

Palm fringed beaches west Cape York

Back on the planes we set course for Weipa, on the west coast of the cape, and home to Comalco's vast bauxite reserves. The low level flight along the coast is breathtaking. Miles of palm fringed sandy beaches, lots of rivers, the occasional fishing boat, and not a house or person to be seen. Capt. Greg reminds us that the land below is "crocodile central" so no resorts here! We finally see a sign of civilisation, Skardon River Mine and airstrip, where fine talc is mined, and soon the red earth of the bauxite mines are visible. Flying into Weipa we see a well laid out town with modern houses, and a thriving port area. Capt. Greg tells us that houses sell from $500,000 up, which is met with gasps of surprise! Who wants to live here?

Weipa port from the air

We quickly have a look around the airport, whilst the planes are refuelled. We are surprised to hear a jet landing, and find that it is one of the Federal Government fleet. Capt. Greg tells us to keep an eye out for someone famous, but we didn't recognise anyone! More wasted taxpayer dollars at work! Why don't they drive and learn a little about the country.

Back in the air we are told it will be a smooth, high level instrument flight back to Cairns. So once Capt. Greg has the course set with air traffic control in Brisbane, he is relaxed and ready for a chat. Carol asks him a question, which he lifts his headphone to hear, as we all can only hear, not speak. He tells us all the question and launches into a long winded reply. Now Carol was finding the headset uncomfortable and hadn't put it back on at Weipa. Ten minutes later Capt. Greg notices a little snickering coming from others on the plane, and breaks his long answer, looks straight at Carol, and says "and why am I talking to you. You haven't even got a bloody headset on!" The plane was filled with laughter. All the way home we were given a series of terrific stories of Capt. Greg's 30 plus years visiting the cape.

We landed back in Cairns just after sunset, all singing the praises of Daintree Air Services, after one of the best days sightseeing we had ever had.