Australia has countless miles of dirt roads, some close to civilization and, of course, tons of them in the remotest of wilderness. The government has been talking about paving them all over the years. We hope this never happens as it would take a lot of the adventure away from Down Under. One of these dirt roads meanders roughly 600 miles to the northernmost point of the Australian continent, Cape York. It is often tagged as the road to "the last great wilderness" or "the ultimate adventure." We were not going to miss this excitement although, following a late and unusually rough wet season, we had received contradictory information about the road's accessibility. Even the local authorities were not sure which tracks were open.
After overhauling the XXXpedition rig and stocking up on supplies for about three weeks, we just took our chances and headed out to see how far we would get.
Having left Cairns and civilization behind, we headed up the coast along the scenic Bloomfield Track where dense rainforest meets the ocean. We explored Lakefield Park, an area famous for its wildlife who hang around its countless waterholes during the Wet. This huge national park is indeed just one enormous lake. As soon as we veered off the main track, we found all the paths unmaintained and had to do some navigating to find our way through the wild vegetation and sometimes boggy mess. Back on the Peninsula Development Road, the main drag north, we found several road crews in the process of grading the track, which was in extremely good condition as a result. Infamous for its heavy corrugations and bull dust, it hadn't been this smooth in years according to locals. We had arrived early in the season and encountered very little traffic. After a few days we made it to Bramwell Junction. This is the last roadhouse where you can fill up your tanks before hitting the Old Telegraph Road (OTR). It starts behind the gas station and was the original connection north when it was opened in 1872 to maintain the telegraph line. In the 1960s the Bypass Road was built for access to the north, and since then the OTR had been left unmaintained. This is what four-wheelers come here for!
We had flooded the interior of our truck on an earlier fourfoot water crossing and decided to tape the doors shut for the many creek crossings to come. For the next few days, we'd have to climb in and out the Jeep through the windows! A former national park ranger in his Land Rover joined us to the first river just three miles up the trail "to see the American product go down" as he joked.
We followed the bright yellow Defender to the crossing and prepared our rig. Two-inch wide insulation tape on the outside and beach towels on the inside of our doors were expected to keep the water from clothes, cameras - in short: our home (it's hard to dry out a flooded vehicle while traveling for months).
Meanwhile more bystanders showed up to watch the action. As per the advice of the roadhouse owner, we had winch and straps handy. We slowly eased down the washedout bank into the river and pushed through the current to the other side. We had no issues during the crossing and the interior stayed dry, much to the dismay of the onlookers.
The track ran pretty straight north through dense woods, every once in a while swerving around a fallen tree and the heaviest washouts. It crossed multiple creeks and was flooded in several areas. We walked all rivers to ensure a safe crossing - not a very tempting thing to do considering that crocodiles inhabit these areas. Saltwater crocodiles are aggressive creatures measuring up to twenty feet and have been known to attack humans. They travel upstream for miles and lurk quite happily in freshwater streams where they hunt unsuspecting animals that come for a drink - and occasionally a foolish human looking for a refreshing swim. The last recorded incident of a person taken by such a reptile was in 1993.
Thankfully, the water was usually clear and we checked the banks thoroughly before entering by foot, heart in hand. Each crossing provided a different, fun challenge. One river featured quicksand right at the entrance, one had a hidden exit which was hard to find, and yet another consisted of a flat rock slab but had big, deep holes dug around it.
All this time, we didn't meet another soul and it seemed that not many vehicles had attempted the passage yet this year. We found some wonderful, secluded campsites close to the rivers. It rained on and off and we hoped that none of the recently opened roads would be closed again. The temperatures stayed comfortably warm and though the weather was not great, it was still tempting to swim in some of the crocodile-free pools.
Probably the most infamous obstacle is Gunshot Creek. A steep and slippery decline drops down to the river which in our case was very low with only about two feet of water. Over time, several bypasses down the bank have been created, but all of them are severely washed out and tricky, making this section impassable to most vehicles heading south. Since we were headed north, we maneuvered the rig across without much difficulty and pushed on.
About two-thirds of the way to Cape York, the OTR joins the Bypass Road but then disappears into the bush again a few miles north for more adventures. This northern part of the track is easier and therefore sees more traffic, especially since there are great waterfalls with safe swimming holes.
We finally made it to the ferry crossing the Jardine River. Towards the end of the dry season some daredevils drive through this wide and murky stream, but more than half of these vehicles are pushing their luck and get lost in the current. The river is also famously infested with "salties" (in fact, it was here where the last croc/human feeding accident happened), making a risky attempt even less inviting. This time of year the water depth was over seven feet, so the ferry was our sole option.
A few hours later we stood at the northernmost point of the Australian continent, overlooking dozens of islands in the Torres Strait. We next explored a track to the Somerset beaches which obviously hadn't yet been traveled this year. We had to clear a fallen tree out of the way before pushing on to the beautiful coastline. Plenty of coconut palm trees were too tempting and we plucked a coconut fresh from the tree for a delicious road trip snack.
On our way back south we ran into one unlucky member of a local four-wheel magazine. A team of five vehicles had set out to elect the mag's "Vehicle of the Year" but a Land Rover's air suspension had given in early and this poor guy had been assigned to drive the crippled truck up north via the Bypass Road. We, on the other hand, decided to take the Old Telegraph Road south again since we had enjoyed it so much. Benefitting from our experience with the creeks, the crossings were not quite as nerve-racking, though still challenging. We were surprised to find Gunshot Creek chewed up quite a bit. The drop had been driven by a few vehicles since our last visit and the clayish surface had been turned into an unstable, six inch thick, slimy goo. After a couple of climbing attempts, we decided not to push the luck of our heavily loaded rig and winched it up onto level ground.
Half-way down the peninsula the clouds finally started to clear out, which was especially appreciated by the many motorcyclists we saw, who had been wet for two weeks straight.
By now, the main track was heavily traveled - many people had waited out the rain in civilization and were swarming to the tip. Lucky us that we got to enjoy it in solitude!
Two weeks after our departure we returned to Cairns with a mud-covered truck and many good experiences from one of the best adventure trips in Oz.
Our timing to drive the OTR had been perfect. It's quite possible this off-road track might not exist too much longer. Australia has been in negotiations with Papua New Guinea to import natural gas from them for years and has recently hired Chevron to build a pipeline. Since Aboriginal tribes charged AU$ 1 million per kilometer for access to their lands, Chevron found a better way: The Old Telegraph Road is a public easement and provides easier and cheaper access. To maintain their line, they would improve the track and bridge all the crossings. The great northern adventure might get lost as early as this year.
CAPTIONS
Along the trip we passed many termite mounts. Those little insects build impressive structures.
(left:) The trail consists of mostly clay and dirt. The majority is an easy dirt road but has occasional washouts. (right:) Cockatoo is the most feared river crossing, with deep water and a strong current. When we drove it, it was about four feet in the deepest section. deep stuff on the trail.
It took us a while to find the exit out of this river. We had to follow it along upstream and around the corner to drive out.
(left:) The infamous Gunshot: many vehicles have been rolled on some of these drops. (center:) Throughout our trip we had rain on and off. Because of the warm temperatures, we had to keep the windows and tailgate open while sleeping in the rig. To stay dry we strapped a huge tarp over the truck. (right:) On the way to Somerset we had to move a fallen tree off the trail before we could reach the beautiful beaches.
The ferry over the Jardine River is a hefty AU$88 for the two-minute ride, but there is just no other safe way to cross the deep and wide water.
(left:) The northern beaches are a good place to hang out. However, because of saltwater crocodiles, swimming is not recommended. (right:) In the bay of Seisa, one of the northern settlements, an old fishing vessel was left to rust away on a sandbank.
(left:) We reached the northernmost point of the Australian continent. From here it's only about 100 miles to Indonesia. (right:)Not many vehicles try the Old Telegraph Road. The northern part was easier and featured great crocodile-safe swimming holes, which lured more traffic. Some travelers even brought trailers on their journey.
(left:) On our way back south we faced the challenge of the Gunshot drop. Since our trip north, more vehicles had driven it and changed the clay surface to a slimy goo. We had to winch the rig up. (right:)Yet another creek crossing...
