The campground behind the ‘Sexchange’ Hotel in Coen was not quite the same as previous nights in Lakefield National Park. Dogs occasionally barked at shadows in the night, neighbours talked well into the evening, then once in bed snored loud enough to wake the dead. Chris noted that the snorer’s partner was one of the first people up in the morning, possibly to escape the noise.
We were all up and enjoying breakfast while others around us stirred, mostly due to the snoring reaching a post-dawn crescendo. With our pack-up routine getting quicker and quicker with practice, we were on our way before all bar one of our overnight camping friends. We did a quick lap of Coen, seeking out the dump point and nearby fresh water supply. Fuel was topped up (at $1.80 per litre) at the general store while Chris exchanged small talk with the attendant. Apparently it hasn’t been a particularly dry season and conditions are average for this time of year. The number of visitors through this tourist season had also been on par with previous years.
A lengthy stretch of sealed road took us north towards the Archer River Roadhouse before returning to the all-familiar dusty corrugated conditions that are the norm on Cape York Peninsula. Roadworks were underway; these had taken the tops off the corrugations and water tankers had been through settling the dust. This did result in a thin coating of red Peninsula mud clinging to the Prado and Tvan, but that couldn’t be helped.
The roadhouse at Archer River hadn’t changed a bit since we were last here in 2011 – even the plastic chairs in the undercover bar / café area looked familiar. Right on 10.00 am a stream of (possibly regular) customers arrived to purchase slabs of beer before heading off somewhere to while away the day while the beer was consumed. We opted for a soft drink to clear the dust from our throats before continuing our journey north to the turnoff to Chilli Beach and Lockhart River.
The road east started well, with recent roadworks making it possible to cruise along at 90 kph, before we entered another lengthy stretch of corrugations and dust made that little bit more challenging by a seeming endless series of potentially life threatening ‘dips’ that needed to be approached with great caution. The drive east passes through the Iron Ranges, resulting in the track being criss-crossed by dry creeks that must be raging torrents in the wet season. As a result, many of the ‘dips’ held a surprise that wasn’t evident until you were right on top of them, with deep rough washouts at their lowest point.
As the coast drew nearer we entered dense rainforest again, for the first time since our time in the Daintree. Familiar signs warning of possible cassowary crossings on the track also appeared. The frequent ‘dips’ became shallow creek crossings that washed a little of the accumulated dust and mud away.
We had decided to head into the Lockhart River indigenous community, a former Anglican mission, to visit the local art gallery. After a quick lap of the township we stopped outside the gallery, only to find it closed with no indication of when it might be opened next. We decided to see if there was anywhere suitable to stop for lunch down by the beach; we were disappointed to find nothing other than unkempt facilities along a small stretch of windswept beach that looked out over a number of Barrier Reef islands.
The decision was taken to continue on our way and have a late lunch once set up at our Chilli Beach campsite. The track into Chilli Beach was slow going, through potholes and further ‘dips’. Just prior to Chilli Beach we diverted via a property selling fresh local seafood. The sign out the front on the fence instructed us to “toot your horn for service”. We tooted, and moments later a wiry local appeared and sauntered up his gravel drive to greet us. We exchanged pleasantries and ended up ordering freshly caught Spanish Mackerel pieces (used in our South Indian curry tonight for dinner), along with large fresh prawns and small cooked prawns.
At Chilli Beach, campsite 19 had been the pick of the crop based on the online research conducted by Wendy. It offered something that most other sites lack – shelter from the incessant south-easterly winds that are common at this time of the year. As we started to set up, a group of five families arrived in the adjoining campsite and asked if we would like to move to another campsite so their group could be together. We declined and continued setting up – a sheltered site here is worth its weight in gold!
We have already explored the coconut-fringed, white sandy beach to the north, with crystal-clear azure coloured waves lapping the beach. It’s all very inviting, but a cautious wade in the shallows was all we were willing to do given the crocodile warning signs everywhere. We did learn that Restoration Island, just off the coast to the north, was the first place Captain William Bligh stepped ashore after the mutiny on the Bounty as he and a handful of others sailed for Batavia in the East Indies.
We have booked in for a seafood platter at a restaurant / café in the Portland Roads township about 12 kms away for dinner tomorrow night. It’s a big night out in this remote corner of Cape York.