On the road again

[Justinf]

Forgot to say that if I was doing this trip by myself, I absolutely would have gone to Longreach, an hour west of Barcaldine, for the Qantas museum.
next time.
we left Charters Towers at about 8.30am for the 5.5 hour drive to Cairns.
the drive to Townsville is spectacular.

 

[Justinf]

Wifi is bad and my mobile data is even worse.
may have to post the of today from the Qantas club tomorrow.

 

[Justinf]

Once we bypassed Townsville, we headed up to Ingham.

 

[Justinf]

From Ingham to Cardwell it was slow going with multiple slow moving vans and up into the mountains.
it was also quite wet with some rain.

 

[Justinf]

Coverage much better now so let’s keep rolling.
we saw banana plantations and we also saw a snake carrying a frog in its mouth across the road.
unfortunately I was unable to swerve and ran over it. It didn’t look in a good way from the rear view mirror.

 

[Justinf]

Through Tully and Innisfail which lived up to their reputations as being the wettest part of this huge country.

 

[Justinf]

We timed our run to perfection.
we arrived at my hotel, the Coral Tree Inn, at 2.10pm.
my daughter’s mate Tahlia flew in from Weipa and asked if she could be picked up from Cairns Airport at 2.20pm.
from there they both drove down to Tahlia’s grandparents at Mareeba and are making the journey to Weipa tomorrow.
to say I was an emotional mess when we said goodbye would be an understatement. i know I am biased, but my daughter is a wonderful young person. Good, kind and always giving to others.
i had enjoyed the past six days with her so much that the thought of not knowing when I would see her again was too much.
i also fell in love with Cotton the kitten and was devastated to say goodbye to her.
here she is during the trip today.

 

[Justinf]

Despite a check in time of 3pm I was allowed to check in at 2.15pm and the place is quite decent.

 

[Justinf]

I was a bit of a mess and only eventually headed out at around 5pm…hahahahahhaa.
apologies to those who live in Cairns, but I’m not a huge fan.
i love the hinterland and the northern beaches, but the city itself does very little for me.
i actually prefer Townsville which is a bit more ‘real’ and less touristy.
anyway, I had a pint at an Irish pub that lacked any soul whatsoever.


I then went to another bar that is big on pool, but that too wasn’t my style.

 

[Justinf]

I decided to call it quits. Not really in the mood and got takeaway from Cairns Burger Cafe, which is a bit of an institution here.
have to say, it was very nice.
short walk back to the room.



i enquired about a later check out seeing as i have a 1.45pm flight tomorrow and was told the latest they could do was 11am, which was perfect.
i should get to the Qantas Club at noon when the bar opens.
with no car to drive at the other end, why not hey?
checked in for my flight in seat 4K on QF703 on an A330.

 

[Austman]

my flight in seat 4K on QF703 on an A330

Thank you for the trip report so far.

And may the force to substitute it to a 737, be not with you.

 

[Justinf]

Thank you for the trip report so far.

And may the force to substitute it to a 737, be not with you.

I’m dreading it.
J looks fairly well loaded so fingers crossed.
will report back tomorrow with J meal etc.

 

[jastel]

A caravan that will let you pass easily???

Never heard of such a thing...there are rumored mythical places called "Overtaking Lanes" where this is supposed to happen but in my experience, they magically go faster in these areas.

The rain has nearly gone now and the annual Mexican Caravan Infestation has started.

 

[drron]

When I first moved to the Sunshine Coast 32 years ago I listened to the local talkback radio. A truckie rang in and said when I retire I am going to buy a very big caravan and drive all around Victoria very slowly.

 

[jastel]

He must have got a lot of mates to do the same all over Australia....

 

[Justinf]

He must have got a lot of mates to do the same all over Australia....

going from the dead straight outback roads where I was cranking it up to 120-130km/h it was hard going once on the Bruce Highway.

 

[Justinf]

I have really enjoyed this trip report @Justinf . I'm an atypical AFF reader who exclusively uses his FF points for family trips to Europe in Y. As such the TRs covering J and F travel are of less interest to me than something like this which is a much more realistic future endeavour. I'm also a relative newcomer to this great southern land and love exploring regional Australia. You have highlighted some really interesting places in this TR. Finally, I'm a dad of two daughters and your final post made me feel somewhat emotional. I hope that both you and your daughter have many happy memories of this road trip. Best of luck to her and her partner in Weipa.

Really kind of you to say. I have enjoyed writing this to be honest.

 

[drron]

Well @Justinf here is another who enjoyed your report. In the Past we did many long Road trips but since Covid 2 to western QLD and one getting towards FNQ. Well Airlie beach anyway.
I hopefully can manage quite a few more in the future.
There is something in your writing style that I just really like. Experience perhaps.

 

[Justinf]

Had a good sleep which cleared my head.
in a much better mind space now.
had a coffee on the balcony.

 

[Justinf]

Checked out at 11am and the airport is super close.
only cost $18 in an Uber.
the airport check in was very quiet.
Thankfully still in seat 4K.