When you are living in a small camper bad weather removes all the fun. We found paying for a powered site, hiding in bed, watching movies a decent way to go, but as we had just been released into the world of exploration, we didn't stay for long!
We got out of Yeppoon and back to Rockhampton for a night and then on the 30th of May we decided to head further north, our destination being Stanage Bay.
We decided we'd camp at one of a bunch of locations on the way, however the free camps were packed to the brim, so we decided to keep on to Stanage Bay.
Just before the turn off at Kunwarara there's a little fruit shop we stopped at, mistaking it for a servo, but what a gem it was! Gorgeous fresh fruit and it seemed everything cost 2 bucks, whether that be a pineapple or a punnet of tomatoes, all the grub was good!
As we turned off toward Stanage, over the cattle grids and down the sealed road at around 5:30 pm. This ride seems alright. Then the road became unsealed, potholes, corrugated, full of flood plains and giant puddles.
Was the roughest road we had hit yet, but thankfully we were behind the wheel of a Landcruiser!
The road to Stanage is about 100ks and mostly unsealed, a lot of the driving is through cow paddocks, so gotta watch out for them. At about 6:30 pm the sun had disappeared, this was about the time I realised the stock cruiser lights really aren't that great for the Aussie outback, dropped down the speed and did our best to avoid the potholes and skippys. One Wallaby in particular was very fortunate that the bullbar of the troopy came to a halt less than a foot from it's head.
We made the decision to slow down and camp for a few days despite the lack of showers and flushing toilets. It's actually surprising how clean you feel from a dip in the ocean and a quick wipe off with baby wipes!
We pulled out our collection of tarps and fabrics we received with the troopy and set up our rear annex. Life is good in Stanage. Chilling on the beach, laying about in the hammock or killing braincells up the pub was how most our time was spent.
Sunrise cruising through the ocean |
It was an amazing morning, cruising through the waves, seeing all the stars in a crystal clear sky, even saw a shooting star. Bouncing through the waves between the islands is a truly amazing way to watch the sunrise.
South Sail Rock |
After pulling it in I was pretty shocked, don't think I've seen such a huge fish, even the sharks I've seen have been smaller than this thing! D grabs a pickaxe handle and clubs the fish in the head a few times to make it docile and then finishes the job with the knife "Alright, next one is yours". Crikey, the biggest fish I've pulled out has been a foot long Longtom, this was exciting me!
Eagerly waiting for my chance to shine and "BZZZZZZ" another bite! With D shouting in my ear what to do "Pull up and reel, pull up and reel, spread the spool while you reel!" after about 15 minutes this huge Spanish Mackerel surfaces. D took over to land the fish, but man, no wonder they consider fishing a sport, I always thought it was about sitting around getting drunk!
D offered me a beer as the bites seemed to slow down as we got further from the turn of the tide. D asked if I'd like to check out Middle Percy Island, an international sailing stop-off.
What an island, as we head into the bay on the north side, it looks like that exotic island people get stranded on in movies. The most beautiful little beach (Almost as good as Whitehaven Beach). There was a Beach Hut which was full of bits and pieces left from people's yachts as if it was there way of signing "We've been here".
Further up the track and the sand slowly changes to dirt through a bushy forest and opens up to show a river which flows through Middle Percy Island.
After I finished exploring the north side of the island, I jumped back in the boat and tried our luck at the north side of the island where we caught up with J jigging with a local Stanage pro fisherman. They were pulling in a good feed of a variety of mackerel, however our trolling was unfruitful, so back to South Sail Rock.
We didn't get back to Stanage Bay until around abouts 7. When we arrive I'm asked how well I am at backing trailers, again, never done it! However after a few re-alignments I get the trailer down the ramp.
As I get back to camp I jump into the ocean to clean myself off and hide in the troopy - slept real well that night!
Just another Sunset at camp |
Lazing about in the hammock or sitting on the beach reading really was the extent of our stay! But come Origin night we were up the pub for Pie 'n' Mash with a few New's to wash it down and sticking it to the QLDers with a NSW win of the first game of 2012! Woohoo!
We originally intended on leaving after Origin, but after hearing of a long weekend coming up, we decided we'd hold our little piece of paradise for the long weekend! We made friends with a bunch of people staying in the park, in particular our neighbours A&G and their gorgeous staffys!
I pulled out Jen's ukulele and even gave that a crack! Might have to start a ukelee band soon!
On Monday we were running out of a lot of stock and whilst grabbing stuff from the Plumtree Store was very handy, it was a little bit expensive. So we packed up our little piece of paradise and decided before hitting the road to cut some laps of Stanage Bay.
A few quick happy snaps and we cruised back down the hill and headed around the other side of Stanage to try and find some crocodiles down the river.
Despite being back in civilisation, being stocked up on necessities and enjoying my first hot shower in 11 days I miss Stanage Bay and really look forward to visiting again one day down the track!
- Cameron
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