The end process of our previous sit had left us both a little shellshocked. In addition to this, we had spent the final few days coming to terms with the passing of my father. A tough time helped greatly by wonderful family in the UK who did all they could to take us through Dad’s final days with him in ways which made such a significant loss as positive as it possibly could have been. Something I will always be very grateful for. Our new hosts had arranged for us to spend a couple of days with them prior to them leaving for a fishing holiday elsewhere on the Cape. So here we were living closely with relative strangers, & processing & dealing with our heads full of all sorts.
Our interactions prior to getting to their home had been very positive, & as expected we found ourselves in a comfortable space with accommodating folk. We were allowed the personal space we needed & managed to work through our ‘stuff’ without it feeling like we were burdening them.
Upon arrival we were very pleasantly surprised to discover that they expected/intended to provide all our food for the duration of our stay. Not something which has ever been offered during past sits. We felt their generosity was more than a little special. In fact there was a great deal here to appreciate. In addition to the genuinely warm welcome, the property location, & the beautiful house were the two lovely dogs Rastus, & Biscuit, who once over their initial guardedness stole our hearts. And they didn’t take long to do so. We have always loved big dogs, & these two fitted the bill.
But things didn’t end up going to plan. Neale & Mim had everything prepared & were fully packed & ready to leave ……… and then the rain returned in unexpected but spectacular fashion. The monsoon trough came south for a final show of the season – bringing extensive rain lasting 5 days. The departure was delayed by the rising of rivers, making driving out of the area impossible. For the next few days it rained as much as it didn’t, & we were all regularly monitoring online resources showing water levels for the Pascoe River with fingers crossed. The height at the monitoring station at its peak showed a river depth of 12 metres. For the concrete crossing to be safe to drive across towing boats that level needed to be 2.6metres or less. The graph went up and down with each rain event, but it soon became clear that the rate of fall overall was going to be far slower than each rise. After a few days on tenterhooks the decision was reluctantly made to cancel the fishing trip. It was a good call because as it transpired the Pascoe did not become crossable until it was time for us to leave.
A situation which could have become quite awkward for us all, with nowhere else for us to go until our plane back to Cairns at the end of the two week period. But despite our concerns, it was a situation which never became awkward in the slightest. As ‘unexpected guests’ instead of ‘house sitters’ our welcome was extended. We all just accepted the situation & mucked in together with chores, cooking, gardening, dog care, etc etc. We ate together, relaxed together as well as providing space & time for each other. They were good people, salt of the earth. We felt they responded to the situation just as we would have done were the roles reversed.
Neale, a keen fisherman & hunter, preserves & cures most of the meat & fish they eat. Previously I made comment upon the better than supermarket quality meat that we had had sent up to the Cape in a frozen order. Well that couldn’t hold a candle to the meat & fish we ate here, which without any hint of exaggeration or hyperbole, was the best tasting , best textured, just the best I’ve eaten in my life. He is an accomplished craftsman in many ways, someone who strives for and achieves quality in whatever he turns his hand to. My favourite were ‘dried sausages’, not unlike jerky to eat but far tastier than any jerky I’ve ever tried – a south African recipe we were told, & a common delicacy in that part of the world. A close second – a fish we had never eaten nor heard of – Nannygai. We feasted well.
Mim was a warm & bubbly lady, she & MrsTea hit it off & did a fair bit together. But then I introduced her to one of the photographic competition social media sites I contribute to. Well that was it, both she & MrsTea joined up & the whole affair became a group obsession between us for the rest of our stay. 🙂
The beautiful & meticulously constructed self built house was positioned on it’s cleared bush block surrounded by thoughtful gardens with it’s wide veranda overlooking the ocean, & the property’s own small mangrove lined beach. Sounds like I’m quoting from a real estate ad, but this place positioned as it is on a small peninsula , with no immediate neighbours is a dream property. It is remote, but with all the home comforts. It is simple but eminently liveable, with every aspect of it’s design both pleasing to the eye & completely practical. We loved it.
The view over the ocean & way the living space exploited this meant that the ocean was always the focus. Always there & always changing & with similar qualities to a camp fire. Something to just stare contentedly at, but often with something to grab interest. In the distance visible coral islands came & went with the weather & the tides. Between us & the horizon was a fairly busy shipping channel carrying quite a variety of vessels, bauxite loaded bulk carriers, international container ships, military style border force ships, smaller private & fishing boats, to powered & tug pulled barges servicing the cape communities. Some days were busier than others , but never a ship free day. Bird life over the water sometimes distracted our gaze. The binoculars a permanent ready to use fixture on the large handcrafted Ironwood table out on the building’s main room – the veranda. On occasions we saw turtles & sharks, including quite a reasonable sized hammerhead at the edge of the reef , chasing baitfish at low tide. Almost the entire fish was exposed, with it looking to be at risk of beaching itself, but it knew what it was doing & avoided getting stuck – just! We were told that passing crocodiles were also a fairly common sight, so we were always on the lookout in the hope of seeing one, and had almost given up on them until seeing one at high tide during our last few days. It swam along the shoreline no more than a metre from where the garden meets the sea! Not huge, probably around 2.5 metres.
The property was also just a stone’s throw from Chilli Beach, allowing for us to ride a quad bike to, & along the beach. We had a very enjoyable trundle all the way down to Chilli Creek again, this time without the walking. Weather & high tides had changed the beach, making what had previously been soft fluffy sand, draining to walk on, now smooth & hard packed. Far more plastic rubbish had also been deposited at the high tide line – an ongoing issue for Chilli Beach, the complete opposite to the small beach just on the other side of the headland where we were staying. Mainly to do with wind rather than tides we think. More visits to Chilli Beach at night still failed to find us an elusive Green Tree python although the four of us still turned up a few other critters, & enjoyed the ‘hunt’.
We did however all go out for a second night again on the hunt for a Green tree Python, this time going further afield down to the Iron Range forest. After lots of looking, but finding only a rather feisty & well rounded spotted python we were becoming a little despondent when MrsTea spotted it. A real highlight of our time on the Cape. They are so stunning to look at and incredibly docile. After spending a short time with it, it took off, back up the tree in no particular hurry. Perhaps it was as interested in us as we were in it.
Keeping dogs in areas of bush like this can be problematic. No fences, dogs going off & getting lost, injured by pigs, goannas etc, bitten by snakes & so on. Rastus & Biscuit have had their own little ‘adventures’ previously, but experience & understanding has resulted in a simple but effective means of keeping them safe. When not with an owner, one of them remains on a long chain, whilst the other is let off. They are rotated regularly throughout the day . Neither wants to leave the other for long, but if both are off together the tendency is for one to egg the other on & get into mischief. The tethering works well & the dogs are happy. At mealtime Biscuit checks to see if we are going to feed them soon, reminding us just in case. When feeding time arrives Rastus fetches his bowl to be filled. Rastus is a laid back bundle of energy with the softest coat, the sort that makes touching him a pleasure. Biscuit was very stand offish initially but as soon as she worked out that we were allowed to be there she softened & her friendship, harder won, was valued because of that. Watching the two of them get onto the back of the quad for an outing off the property was a treat. Like children that could hardly contain their excitement.
Mostly we all chilled & enjoyed our surroundings & each other. Thanks Neale, Thanks Mim.
And so to bring us up to date.
The flight back to Cairns was uneventful, which is less than can be said for the journey back from Cairns to the farm at Mutchilba where we had left our Tvan! Going inland from Cairns takes you up onto the Tablelands, with Mutchilba on the north western side. Any trip up into the tablelands involves steep, twisting & narrow roads, & the Kuranda Range Road is no exception, tight , twisty & very busy. Not a good place to break down, which is precisely what happened. One moment nothing was amiss, next moment the engine was still running, but with absolutely no drive to the wheels. We coasted to a stop close as we could to the side of the road between two corners. The long & short of it , is that it was a very dangerous place to be stranded, quite scary, & we were there for two hours expecting to be smashed by oncoming trucks coming fast & wide around the corner toward us, or to be a cause of a head on smash between other vehicles going around us heading into the corner. The RACQ patrolman who eventually arrived to tow us to a safer spot told us it was probably the second most dangerous spot he had ever had to recover someone from. We probably should have asked the details of the recovery which beat it, but he just wanted to get out of there asap.
Once in a safe spot further recovery arrangements were made & the car eventually taken to Mareeba on the back of a tow truck, dropping us outside a by now closed for the day Mechanical services recommended to us by folk we knew locally. The RACV arranged taxis & accommodation for us to stay in town overnight. So near yet so far, we were just 30kms from the farm. Two possibilities as to the problem, a failed clutch or failed clutch hydraulics, the latter the easier & far cheaper to fix. We were well looked after by Mareeba Heavy Diesel, & the problem sorted quickly & efficiently, with both the clutch slave & master hydraulic cylinders being replaced. We arrived ‘home’ to the farm just 24 hours later than planned.
We are now in the process of ‘re-commissioning’ the Patrol & Tvan in preparation for an extended drive up & around Cape York probably for the duration of the dry season. A lot to be done, It is quite some time since we last did any extended travel with the Tvan, & during that time it has gradually been emptied & extra ‘stuff’ accumulated Getting ready now is a similar process of discarding, re-stocking & re-packing to when we left home in Victoria 3 years ago, only now we have a better idea of what we need ….. I hope!
With the Cape being the size of England, but with the total population of a small town, services are few & far between. In particular mobile phone services needed for internet connectivity are only available in a handful of locations, a situation to reacquaint ourselves with after 14 months of having broadband internet available, So a long winded way (what me!) of saying see you when I see you next time, don’t know where , don’t know when, but it’ll be up the Cape somewhere.
Thanks for reading.
Cuppa.
