Millaa Millaa Falls

As I mentioned in the entry on Annan River Gorge, I have kind of a thing for waterfalls. But I think most people do. There is something both elegant and powerful about water gushing over a drop of whatever depth, from short rushes to long, sinuous falls. So, with time in Queensland drawing to a [...]

Lake Barrine

Unlike neighboring New Zealand, Australia is well away from the “Ring of Fire,” but that wasn’t always the case; the east coast of Australia was at one time one of the world’s most extensive volcanic zones. However, there hasn’t been any volcanic activity there in about 5,000 years. Australia’s volcanoes are dormant (though not [...]

Kuranada Train Station

When I visited Kuranada, I arrived by bus and returned by train. Until World War II, however, the train was the only way to reach Kuranada. The road was built to help handle the dramatically increased traffic caused by supplying the many troops stationed on the Atherton Tablelands during the war. (Almost all of coastal [...]

Annan River Gorge

Like the river in Scotland, the Annan River in Queensland is a destination for fishing enthusiasts. Unlike the river in Scotland, however, the Annan in Queensland has crocodiles, at least in the broad, salty estuaries near the ocean. You need to find out how far inland you are before you think about swimming in this [...]

Lions Den Hotel

When they use the word “pub,” most Americans are thinking of a bar. However, in British and Australian use, “pub” is short for “public house,” a place where the community could and still does gather. Now granted, a pub inevitably has a bar, and may even be used primarily for its bar, but pub does [...]

Captain James Cook

Before we leave Cooktown behind, I want to say a few words about Captain Cook. I cover his life story in my book, but there are lots of things that got left out. Cook was a remarkable man, and I could probably write a whole book on him. (Actually, I have written a kids’ book [...]

Rough Road

In the book, I mention how rough the road is from Cooktown to Cairns. I would learn, later in this trip and during subsequent trips, that there were roads that were worse, from wildly rugged to barely discernible, but this first track was still impressively rough. Yet the roughness was part of what appealed to [...]

Prawn Trawlers

Cooktown was a delight on many levels, with intriguing history, exotic natural beauty, and lots of sensory input—light, fragrance, heat, color. I already included a book excerpt about Cooktown on March 20, and on May 17, I showed you one of my favorite photos of Cooktown, so you’ve gotten a little taste of the town. [...]