The Savannah Way, Queensland

(Magyar összefoglaló a végén)


We left Cairns and climbed through the Atherton Tablelands to Ravenshoe, and from then on, we reached the Savannah Way. The climate and the vegetation changed quickly. Up on the Tableland the air cooled down to around 18-20 degrees, the sky was cloudy and threatening. Then from Ravenshoe the clouds started to thin out and gradually disappeared, and the thick rainforest was replaced by more open eucalyptus forest and grassland - the savannah. 


We reached Undara resort by the first evening (15 May), and stayed there for the night. There was an open communal fireplace where people gathered after dinner with a "cuppa" and a local guide gave a talk about the fauna of the region: camels, dingoes, bats, birds, etc... It was interesting but quite cold, no more than 15-16 degrees after sunset - a big change after the warm evenings along the coast.

Undara - The Arch Lava Tube

Next morning (16 May) we went on a 2-hour tour of the Undara lava tubes, a fantastic experience. These are unique geological formations indeed, and the surrounding scenery is just as beautiful. We visited 3 different lava tube sections, and listened to the very enjoyable commentary of a local guide. On the way in and out to the tubes we saw many wallabies, wallaroos and kangaroos jumping around near the road. I never heard of wallaroos before, but our guide said it is a sub-species of kangaroos, she said "they are like kangaroos on steroids" - although she was not a biologist, I believe her... (Note that you can double-click the small pictures to see them in full size).

View from the rim of Kalkani Crater

After leaving Undara, we made a side-trip to the Kalkani crater, a few km-s on a dirt road. It is a 600 m circular crater of an old volcano. We left the car and van at the picnic area, and climbed up to and walked around the rim of the crater. Beautiful views inside and out, to several other old volcanic peaks in the area. After lunch we continued Westward to Georgetown, where we turned South to Forsayth, our stop for the night. 

The road to Goergetown was variable quality, all sealed but some sections only one lane wide, others two-lane. 

We met the first few road trains, quite scary, but we'll have to get used to them I guess. From Georgetown down to Forsayth we met the first sections of gravel road.

Cattle country

On Thursday 17 May, we left the van at the park in Forsayth, and visited Cobbold Gorge with an organised tour. It's a 45 km drive each way on gravel road, there is also a campsite there, but it was much easier without the van. 

The Cobbold Gorge tour included a walk around the gorge up to the escarpment with wonderful views down and around, and a boat tour along a 500 m section of the gorge, the only navigable section as the rest is too narrow even for these small electric boats. It was a unique environment indeed. 

Cobbold Gorge

We also saw several freshwater crocs in the gorge. 

By the time we got back to Forsayth, had lunch and packed up, not much time left from the day. We drove back to Georgetown, stopped to send a few messages as this was the first place with mobile coverage in the last two days. Then we continued Westward for another 20 km, and made up camp at the free campsite at Cumberland Chimney and Dam. The chimney is a relic from a crushing plant built by Cornish miners, and the lagoon is full of waterlilies and birds, ducks, herons, etc... A very nice spot for the night.

The lagoon at Cumberland Chimney

It seems we are becoming too confident in hitching up the van, and often forget something from the long to-do list. Our biggest blunder so far was to drive about 20 km's with the van's handbrake left on. I did not notice any difference while driving, we only realised that it was on at the next stop. I am not sure what it means, whether my car is soo powerful, or the handbrake is not soo powerful...:)) In any case, it was a good reminder to be more careful.


Now that we started to drive longer distances on gravel road, we also noticed a problem with our van: the air vent at the bottom of the door lets all the dust in as we drive. Not sure what we could do to avoid it. We tried to cover it with a plastic bag fixed with tape, but it did not work, the wind is stronger than the tape. We'll have to find some other solution to keep the inside reasonably dust-free...

In the Courthouse, Croydon

On Friday 18 May we woke up to a beautiful sunrise, the lagoon looked idyllic in the early light with all the birds and lilies. After breakfast we drove to Croydon. It is another of the late gold rush towns, which once were big and full of life, but now with only about 200 people remaining. Still, it is a very well maintained little town, proud of its history. We walked around and visited the old historic buildings that are open to the public. In the old courthouse we could even listen to a re-enactment of a typical court case from the hayday of the town. In the public library we also had free internet access thanks to a local government program, broadband for people over 50...


After lunch we drove another 130 km and stopped for the night at the Leichardt Lagoons. It is a very popular campsite, lots of people, very few facilities and no power, which meant that instead of a quiet evening close to nature we had to enjoy the noise and smell of the generators of the campers around us. Not the best choice but too late to go elsewhere. 

Saturday, 19 May - We drove into Normanton, only 20 km away. Another spacious, quiet, small and sleepy township that lost its early importance as a port and supply centre long time ago. Its most famous feature now is "Krys the Croc", a real size replica of the largest ever (8.63 m long, more than 2 tonnes) crocodile shot in 1957 by Krystina Pawlowski a famous female crocodile hunter. 

Normanton

There are a few old historical buildings and stores, extremely wide streets and very few people around. 

We booked into a small tourist park, which turned out to be much better than it looked from the outside. It has a nice big 25 m long swimming pool and spa (the "Normanton Riviera"), supplied by artesial hot water. We had a good swim in the pool, very refreshing in the hottest day so far, 32-34 degrees. 

In the afternoon we went out to Karumba, a small village at the mouth of the Norman river, looking over the Gulf of Carpentaria. The village itself is not interesting, but its setting and surroundings are remarkable. Following the advice from our park owners, we stayed until sunset at the terrace of the aptly named Sunset Tavern, with a glass of champagne watching the sun going down into the sea - an unforgettable sight. 








Sunday, 20 May - We decided to stay in Normanton for another day, as this is a nice place with good mobile reception, and we have some housekeeping to do (washing, cleaning, cooking, shopping, etc). Also, we need a bit of rest before starting the next, more difficult part of the trip. Until now we were travelling on sealed roads, apart from the side-trips to Undara and Cobbold Gorge, mostly very good quality with some sections narrowing to one lane only. From now on it is gravel and dirt, only navigable with high clearance 4WD. So we will spend the day with preparations, including another attempt to seal the air vent on the door...


Our itinerary can be seen at the following Google Map:
http://g.co/maps/wcwv8 
(Note that to see the route after Bowen, you need to move down to the bottom of the right panel, and click next page!)

(Ha esetleg nem jöttél volna rá, katints a kis képekre ha nagyobban akarod látni!)
Cairns után nyugat felé fordultunk az ún. Savannah Way úton, ami Cairns-tõl keresztül szeli az egész országot Broome-ig. Nagyjából ezen az útvonalon fogunk haladni a következõ hetekben. Az eddigi szakasz volt a könnyebb része, végig burkolt út, általában jó minõségû, de idõnként csak egy sáv burkolat, kétoldalt széles padkával. Kicsi a forgalom, csak ritkán fordul elõ, hogy szembejön egy autó, akkor le kell húzódni a padkára, fõleg amikor egy ún. "road train" jön, nagy nyerges-vontató három pótkocsival, vagy 50 m hosszú, és megy mint az õrült, az nem áll félre senkinek. Találkoztunk már egy párral, de nem volt semmi baj. 


Két igazi érdekességet láttunk az eddigi szakaszon. Az elsõ az Undara láva alagut volt. Ez egy vulkáni képzõdmény, az Undara nevû vulkán 190 ezer évvel ezelõtti kitörésekor rengeteg láva folyt ki több irányban, ami sokáig tartott, a láva-folyó külsõ kérge lehûlt és megkeményedett, a belsejében tovább folyt a forró láva. A külsõ kéreg megmaradt, a belseje üres, így alakult ki ez a többszáz km hosszú láva-alagút rendszer. Nagy része a föld alatt van és feltáratlan, de sok helyen beszakadt, így találták meg egyes szakaszait. Több szakaszát meglátogattuk, az egyikben lábközépig érõ jéghideg vízben kellett végigmenni, nagyon érdekes volt. Az odavezetõ úton meg rengeteg kengurut és "wallaroo"-t láttunk (ez is egy kenguru-fajta).


Másnap meg elmentünk a Cobbold Gorge-hoz, egy 80 km-es földúton, de a lakókocsit leállítottuk útközben egy Frosayth nevû kis faluban. De az a feleút is elég volt ahhoz, hogy a lakókocsi teljesen telelegyen porral. Az ajtó alján van egy szellõzõrács, ami nagyon hasznos amikor állunk, de menet közben beengedi az összes port. Azóta kísérletezünk hogy hogy lehetne lezárni, de eddig nem sok sikerrel. Cobbold Gorge egy sziklába mélyen bevájt hosszú és nagyon szûk szakadék, az alján víz van, nem folyik, a föld alól jön föl, mindig egy magasságban. Elõször felmásztunk a szakadék peremére, onnan nagyon szép a kilátás be- és kifelé is. Aztán elektro-motorral hajtott, teljesen hangtalan kis csónakokon vittek végig egy kb fél km-es szakaszon, csak annyi a hajózható, a többi része még keskenyebb. Fantasztikus látvány belülrõl, nagyon érdekes élmény volt. Közben láttunk néhány édesvizi krokodilt is a partján meg a vízben.


Több kisebb városon is átutaztunk, Georgetown, Croydon, és most Normanton. Mindegyikben megálltunk sétálni, a történelmi emlékeket lefényképezni. Ezek nagyrészt a 19 szd. második felében keletkeztek, amikor aranyat találtak a környéken, akkor élték a fénykorukat, azóta elsorvadtak, csak párszáz ember lakik bennük, de nagyon szépen karbantartott és rendezett kisvárosok.


Tegnap (szombaton) érkeztünk Normanton-ba, és egy nagyon kellemes kis kempingben szálltunk meg, amine remek 25 m-es úszómedencéje van, és spa is, úgy hívják hogy "Normanton Riviera". Jót úsztunk benne, jólesett, mert nagyon meleg van 32-34 fok déltájban. Délután kirándultunk Karumba-ba, kb 70 km-re, egy kis falu a Carpentaria öböl partján a Norman folyó torkolatánál. A falu teljesen érdektelen, de a környezete és fekvése nagyon szép, és gyönyörû naplementét láttunk a vízpartról, a Sunset Tavern teraszán pezsgõt szopogatva. Ma (vasárnap, május 20) is ittmaradunk kicsit pihenni, háztartási munkákat elvégezni és felkészülni az út tovább részére.


Most jön majd a nehezebb szakasz, innentõl a következõ kb 800 km-t földuton, sok patak-átkeléssel kell majd megtenni, ezért kellett a terepjáró autó és lakókocsi, remélem, jól fogják bírni és mi is.

Az útvonalunk a következo Google Map-on látható:
http://g.co/maps/wcwv8
(A Bowen utáni szakaszokhoz le kell menni a jobboldali panel aljára, és a következo oldalakra kattintani!!)