Stop #6 - Canal Creek (Old Telegraph Track)

This is the part of the trip where all the fun begins, lots of four wheel driving and a load of water crossings. The Old Telegraph Track is now well travelled every year during the dry season, so needless to say there is plenty of traffic, but it is all part of the fun seeing people work their way through some knarly inclines and descents going into and out of creek beds and not to mention taking part in the below footage...

After that excitement we made it to the famous Gunshot which i showed a picture of in a previous blog. We had heard by many different people on the way up that it was not passable and that a lot of people were getting stuck....or worse, but we had to check it out and this is what we were up against....to do or not to do.....lets DO!!!!

And this is the result.....

Ok so glad that is out of the system, now it is on to Canal Creek, which you will just have to take my word for it ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL. (I forgot to take a picture) The water was as clear as glass, and had a stunning clear greenish blue look to it with awesome white sand. Such a great spot...oops on the pictures though, you would think that with three nights here surely I would have remembered at least once!

Stop #4 & 5 - Chili Beach (Iron Range National Park) followed by Weipa

These next two stops were really nice to do. As we came into Iron Range National Park we could clearly see what everybody was talking about. It was absolutely beautiful working our way through some pretty rugged bush terrain and then into very dense rainforest finally ending up on a spectacular white sandy beach that went as far as your eye could see.

We set up camp with a view.

Then it was time to just relax, with a few rain showers every once in a while, we absolutely loved it. Justin had to go off to work so it was just me and the girls for an afternoon, so we had a bit of fun with the camera!!

We made a beautiful Rib Eye Roast with vegies for dinner and the girls were more than excited about our new campoven!

And my little bubba Kodie thought it would be good fun to wake up before the sun had even made an appearance, so i took the opportunity to beat it to the beach!!

Stop #5 - Weipa

In Weipa we were able to stay with a great couple of people, Luke and Jane. This was so nice of them to put up with our crazy kids not to mention Justin and I for a whole 5 nights. We had such a nice time just getting out of the tent for that time, and seeing a bit of the country life, very simple but pleasant. I'm sure that Weipa will be a stop for us in the future for sure....sorry no pictures for this one!

Stop #2 - Archer River Roadhouse

For just a quick stop overnight at Archer River, it was very enjoyable. A short 3 hour drive, with some beautiful country taking us outside of Lakefield. Below is a shot from the car of the Nifold Plain, which is a treeless area and is dotted with tons of giant Magnetic Ant hills.

We decided to stop at the histroic Musgrave Telegraph Station for Lunch and to let the girls stretch thier legs. Tegan got extremely excited about seeing cows come down into the carpark....a bit odd I know but hey she loved it!!

So we took a few quick snapshots of the old queenslander as well as the famous petrol tank and ate some yummy hot chip sandwiches.

Then it was back in the car and on the way to Archer River...

Stop #1 - Lakefield National Park (Hann Crossing)

After a full day Friday consisting of shopping, packing, and last minute thinking...surely I am forgetting something, the car is packed! The house is in shambles and I think i better clean it just a little otherwise i will have a fit coming home to a messy house! Then some great friends come over to wish us well and say goodbye with a few drinks. 10pm and it's off to bed, the excitement is too much for me and i struggle to get to sleep, finally start to dose off and what do you know our neighbours come home...at last they leave again and I drift off into dreamland. Then 4am i hear some duff duff....oh hey it's the neighbours loading who knows what into their ute at this absurd time of night, and then they leave again. By this time there is no way we can get back to sleep so we may as well make a start on this adventure! Shovel in some break-slow and load some last little tid-bits into the car before rounding up the kiddies. Some early morning shots below...

It is 5:45am so we stop for a McCafe coffee and head on up the road towards Mossman for our 4-5 hour trip to Lakefield National park. About 30 minutes into the drive we have an explosion...out of Kodie's tummy. That's right she has spewed all over in the back seat, just what you need in a car full of gear not to mention not having access to things to clean it up properly. So after a quick pit stop and change we get back on the road. 5 hours or so later we reach the below signs...

comforting...... and.....Not so comforting.....

We head down the track to get to Hann crossing as see a few really great things on the way....

The above is a picture of White Lilly Lagoon, with Tegan standing in front of it and a pretty big monitor we saw on the way.

We pick out a campsite right on the bank of the river...on the freshwater side of the crossing, still a little bit weary of crocodilly, but after the first afternoon and night, we realize that there is nothing to be afraid of and we are finally able to relax a little.

That is all for Hann Crossing, Next stop....Archer River Roadhouse ~ See you there!