Cooktown

Carmen Friend
May 28, 2018
2 min read

Well we are both super excited to have made it to Cooktown! This one was on the top of our list and finally after almost 8 months on the road we have made it! What a cute wee place it is too. Captain James Cook arrived here 17 June 1770 as he needed to complete some repairs on his boat. Whilst the town didn't exist then, some 100 years later it became a gold mining area with gold struck in the Palmer River.

The town has some amazing old historic buildings dating back to the late 1800's. There is also a 'Mount Cook' 484 metres high, yes kiwi's I can hear you, it's not a real mountain but it does sit overlooking Cooktown. We took in a drive up the Grassy Hill - a twisting winding steep hill to the most magic views over the Cooktown area and back out to the open ocean. Here stands a lighthouse dating back to the late 1800's. Unfortunately it was blowing a gale so the sea was a bit stirred up, but the view was amazing!

We were told the Museum and gardens are also well worth a look but decided to take a road trip and head to the start of the Bloomfield track. The Bloomfield track goes from Bloomfield through to the Daintree - approximately 45km with 40km on dirt. We first stopped into Weary Beach for a look , keeping a close eye on the croc situation!! We saw a number of people coming off the track as we headed up to the lookout. OMG what a view down the Bloomfield River - beautiful lush green tropical bush, barramundi in the river (not pulling your leg we could see them), and 'Big Daddy' himself sunbaking!! We were both super excited as we have never seen a croc in the wild even though we have been on many tours to see them!

On the way back we stopped into the Lions Den - a historic pub where the miners used to come and leave their pay packet writing on the walls how much they had left behind the bar! We had been told about a secret local waterfall - Trevethan Falls. We were given a dodgy map to follow and off we went. The road is a bit rough and the walking track dodgy but OMG they were stunning plus the added bonus we could have our first swim in the Top End!