South Mission Beach Qld Tuesday 16 Aug 2022 140km

 South Mission Beach Qld Tuesday 16 Aug 2022

Back on our own and back on the road. Strolled does to South Mission beach where we lucked into a good spot in the van park. Lots of roadworks between Cairns and Innisfail, but should be really good when they are done.

Had to restock the van after its 10 days stay in the parking-lot and as I forgot to leave the fridge door open, there was a big mouldy mess to clean up as well. Not to worry, all good now and settled into the beach lifestyle.

South Mission Beach Qld

South Mission Beach Qld

Drove up to town, Mission Beach proper, and it seems more deserted than ever. Had a coffee in a place on the corner that has live music rock and roll and blues. The lady assured us that there was an ‘international star’ coming through tomorrow and that we should book. So we did. We’ll see how that pans out!

 

The Blues Bar and Cafe panned out pretty well actually. The lady’s name was Millie Marx and she was a one woman show, in that she played guitar, sang and tripped the light fantastic on her Floor Drum set. One foot banging up and down on the big drum and various hi-hats, the other pumping away at some scratchy noise thing. But that guitar, a six string, she played like a virtuoso: jazz, rock, blues, slide guitar - and all done with so much passion it was a joy to watch and hear. All her own work too, which is usually a warning, but this was good, really good. Last time we had the privilege to see this sort of live music was when Phil Emmanuel jumped on stage at the pub in Airlie Beach and jammed with his mates.

Blues Bar & Cafe. Mission Beach Qld

To top it of, because we booked when we did we had table 2, one back from the stage. And they did table service and ran a tab for food and drinks. We certainly had a good time. It was a bit weird in one respect: everyone else in the place was obviously a local, and most had jumpers and coats on, even if it were 26ºC.

A few of the shops at Mission Beach are finally open now that its Thursday and Judy had a chance for some retail therapy. We drank coffee in another place with a French theme and watched the world, as it exists, go by along Mission Beach Road. Two Caravans, a 4x4 and a stray dog. Man, is this place hopping!

After all the excitement of the morning we spend a few hours lounging near the pool, with the occasional dip to keep cool. 

Saturday is Parkrun Day. We got up at 530am and drove down to Cardwell, about 60km. What for? Parkrun and breakfast, of course. Had a nice run along the foreshore and a nice breakfast at Seabreeze even though we were expecting muesli and cereal and fruit and stuff like they had last time (2019. Had to settle for bacon and eggs. Tough life, eh?

Sunrise. Cardwell Qld

Overland Telegraph Station. Cardwell Qld

Back at the van park, we settled for a swim and a bit of a read before heading off to find lunch. Which is at Bingal Bay, just where it has been every other time we’ve been here. This is a bit off the tourist track and again seems to be for the locals, albeit of the semi-hippy kind. I had  hamburger, the bun on which was twice the normal size, and Judy had the entree sized calamari. Both were enormous and now its nanna nap time. 

Weipa Qld Tuesday 9Aug2022

 Weipa Qld Tuesday 9Aug2022

An early start and back on the track heading for Weipa, way up the Cape and on the Gulf of Carpentaria side. Our first stop was at the Musgrave Telegraph Station, the only surviving building from the six or seven that made up the Queensland version of the Overland Telegraph, which went from Cardwell to the Tip and via an undersea cable to Batavia. Today the Musgrave Telegraph station is the private residence of the folks who run the busy roadhouse / cafe / camping ground. 

Overland Telegraph Station c1880 Musgrave Qld

ExOverland Telegraph Station. Musgrave Qld

On we pushed along mostly fairly rough dirt road, our mouths watering at the though of our lunch at Archer River Crossing. We had preordered hamburgers the day before and been told they were the-best-in-the-world.  Archer River Crossing is another of the few roadhouses along the Peninsular Development Road and you’d be mad not to pull in and refuel at least. Even if diesel is $2.80 a litre its a long way to anywhere and you can never be sure that they actually have your particular fuel when you arrive. The Crossing is a hive of activity as they are building a bridge, their first one, and all the associated roadworks that go with it. This is largely flat country where it rains half a metre during the wet and all the river just swell to huge proportions as the water races to to the Coral Sea Sea.

Archer River Road House. Qld

Apart from hamburgers, they have hot chips, and a variety of cold drinks, and not a lot else. We hadn’t ordered chips so we had a soggy, bland hamburger and a nice cold drink. 

"World Famous" Archer River Road House soggyburger. Qld
Nice drink though.

From there to Coen (another of the OT station towns) where we stopped at the Heritage House museum for a break and a cup of tea. Main claim to fame in the area these days is the Sexchange Hotel, aka the Exchange Hotel, where some wit of bygone days climbed onto the roof and added an ’S’ in front of the hotels name displayed along the ridge capping. Heritage House and the grounds housed a collection of museum-abila mostly from more recent times that the OT.

Heritage House. Museum and Picnic area. Coen Qld

One half of a twin five-head stamper battery. Heritage House Museum. Coen Qld

They kept going on about this bird -  a Golden Shouldered Parrot
We never saw one so I took a snap of a snap just to amuse the bird-fanciers on the tour
Heritage House. Museum. Coen Qld

Back on the road again and we made it into Weipa at about 3pm after a long day in the truck. Thankfully we were in one of the middle seats halfway between the front and back wheels, which is nowhere near as jarring as the very back or front seats.

Wiepa Qld. Best view from a distance....