It's all happening in FNQ

Wow.
Our usual monthly update is long overdue. We have travelled across the dusty roads underneath the Gulf of Carpentaria, through the beautiful tropical rainforests north of Cairns, camped next to rivers teeming with saltwater crocs, and made it to the top of the Australian mainland!
Some unpredictable events have spiced up the adventure and we are still loving every minute of it. Sadly, our adventure is reaching its final stages. Boo.

Another amazing lunch stop. Next to the Stuart Highway, 2km south of Katherine. Truck fumes really add to the taste of 3 day old flat breads.

Driving east, we passed through the Lost City in Limmen National Park.

Just before the QLD border, we went to an amazing property called Lorella Springs. Lots of tracks to explore and hot springs to swim in. When in Rome...

The remote and stunning Lawn Hill (Boodjamulla) national park. An oasis in the middle of a dust bowl.

More bird watching. The next blog is going to be completely dedicated to rare and exciting birds.

Karumba. A beautiful spot on the Gulf of Carpentaria. Unfortunately, it has been taken over by grey nomads. Apparently, walking to a toilet at night is too much effort so they use 'night buckets.' Yuck.

Not always being able to access shops, one has to improvise. Here is James using Min's deodorant (an added bonus was it gave him the perfect amount of feminine confidence to start each day).

Getting used to the flat, red dust of the Queensland outback, it was wonderful to hit the wet tropics of FNQ. This is Millaa Millaa falls, in the Atherton Tablelands.

We headed straight up the coast to Palm Cove. Heard good things about Palm Cove. How good was our view? We declined the ocean views for the carpark view. Enchanting.

The Daintree rainforest.

James enjoying some peaceful contemplation. Enya would have been perfect.

Camping at the Lions Den, Helenvale. We met Bruce and Michelle, camped next door. They insisted we wear one of their Hawaiian shirts as nothing says 'fun' like Hawaiian shirts. We waited till the dark of night and quitely relocated.

The unique Lions Den Hotel. Built in 1875. It sits in the rainforest and is a very unique place.

We thought one of the central themes of this blog could be our food. Proving that camping is no limitation to great food. Here is James preparing Breakfast at the 'Breakfast Bar'.

Pineapple cake done in the camp oven.

Min's lunch Mezze plate.

The benefit of being in FNQ, you have access to great tropical fruit such as this tangelo.

Muesli topped with star apple and an assortment of berries.

Us with 'Cookie' in Cooktown. James spent a significant amount of time in the James Cook Museum (while Min chose to spend it in the souvenir shop).

Coastline near Cooktown

The world famous Giant Gumboot at Tully. Holds the Australian record for amount of Rainfall in 1 year. 7.9m in 1950 (the height of the gumboot).

We met up with our friends Sam and Steph to go up in convoy to Cape York.

We met another couple, Mark and Laura, and made it a party of 6.

Out on the Eastern side of the Cape at Lockhart River.

Sunset at Bramwell station.

4km along the Old Telegraph Track, we came to the first creek crossing, Palm Creek. A little bit too challenging for us (and we wanted to return back to Sydney alive).

This guy put us to shame.

The beautiful Fruit Bat Falls. At this point, Sam had started to develop some abdominal pain. Hmmm.

By the next morning, Sam had some concerning signs that suggested appendicitis. To Bamaga hospital we went. Within, a few hours, Sam had been choppered to Thursday Island and was awaiting a plane to Cairns to get his appendix out. He was only 36km from reaching the top but didn't get there! But he can say he was admitted to the northern most hospital on the Australian mainland.

Steph soildered on in the Troopie and we tackled the 'shortcut' to the tip of Australia.

James was mildly excited.

We did it!

Poor Sam... he and his appendix didn't.

The corrugated roads up to the Cape are a killer. People warned us that we wouldn't escape unscathed.

We didn't. Our boot decided it didn't want to close when we were still 1000km north of Cairns. The latch was stuck. We got it unstuck with the help of the local Seisia mechanic. We then closed the boot... and couldn't open it again. Slight problem as our entire life is in the back of the car.

We had to access the boot from the inside. This meant unpacking the entire car, unbolting and removing the cargo barrier, and Min crawling between the space between the fridge and the drawers to open it from the inside.

Under vehicle check. The car was making some sort of unusually loud noise. Mechanic Min's diagnosis: "the front resi is gone". She's a keeper.

We did a day trip across to Thursday Island. The hub of the Torres Strait. A place that feels very much like a different country. It was like we were in Fiji. Only 200km from PNG.

Sam's helipad, Thursday Island.

Not wanting to feel left out, James thought he should have an interaction with the Queensland health system too. He crushed his finger in the rear door and ripped the nail off.

So we are back in Cairns, waiting for some car repairs and planning our last leg of the journey. We still can't believe what an incredible year we've had.
Australia is a wonderful place.