Back on the road again

I don’t seem to be able to get a word in edgeways these days; we haven’t been up to anything that exciting since leaving Magnetic Island so I thought I’d just do a recap today and bring you up to date with where we are. Apologies if I go over some of the stuff that Phil may already have mentioned. I enjoyed our time on Magnetic and although my initial reaction was that 4 days too long because of the heavy rainfall in the end I was glad we had the extra 2 days. It made such a difference seeing the island in glorious sun even if we did see some of the effects from the aftermath of the Olga cyclone. Of course, what really made our visit for me was the accommodation that Phil chose. He couldn’t have made a better choice. The Canopy chalets are perfect for couples that are into each although they can accommodate a family.

As Phil said (and again I’m sorry I’m repeating him) we should have taken the car over on the ferry. The mini moke was fun but a motorbike would have been more exciting. I’m not sure what the future holds for Magnetic Island, we stayed in Nelly Bay which is where the new ferry terminal is and seems to me, to be ‘the hub’ with the most rental outlets, resorts and cafes. I can’t decide whether ‘Maggie’ is a ‘has been’ place surviving on the history of its past or an island which is up and coming & ripe for investment. Certainly some investors think the latter, but in my opinion, the flashy harbour apartment blocks look uncomfortable on the harbour side and I see that many are unsold. Either way, if you come to North Queensland, hop on the ferry to Magnetic Island and take a look for yourself.

On Tuesday morning we packed our back-packs, bid farewell to Alan, dropped off the mini moke and walked the short distance to the ferry terminal. Our timing was good and we only waited 10 minutes before boarding the 10.15 back to Townsville. It was a really hot day and we basked in the heat on the top deck, thankfully the journey was only 20 minutes and in no time at all, after jumping in a taxi, we were soon back at the white house. All was okay, no obvious damage from the storms bar a few branches in the garden, pool and yard. Phil noticed that a small tree was down in the front but it was too heavy to lift. I tried to phone Jean to say that we were back but no answer. I know that Graham works on a Tuesday and maybe Jean was at her painting class. I sent her a text to let her know that all was okay and she replied. We want to take Graham & Jean out for a meal before we head to Sydney so will contact them after our visit up north to see when they’re free.

Phil nipped to Woolworth’s to get a few basics (scones, cake & cheap DVD’s in the sale) and then we drove a couple of km’s to have lunch at the West End Hotel on the Ingham Road. This is one of the pubs that Geoff had recommended. The food was very reasonable and not bad at all. Unfortunately Phil forgot to take a picture but actually it was fairly unremarkable on the outside but inside was fairly typical of an Australian pub with beer garden at the back, although perhaps a little more upmarket than some of the other pubs we’ve been in.


It was unbearably hot and humid when we got back, Phil decided to sit inside with the air con and his OU books and I attempted to sunbathe by the pool. I think I only lasted about half an hour then gave up and went and sat on the upper deck under the fan with a novel. Even with the fan the sweat was pouring off me (very attractive I know). It must have been the one of the hottest days we’ve had in Oz since we’ve been here. After the excitement of Magnetic we had a quiet night in front of the telly, watching the cheapie DVD’s that Phil had brought.

Yesterday morning, I repacked the back-packs with clean clothes and some water and set off for Cairns. Actually we programmed the GPS to take us just a few kilometres outside of the city to a place called Trinity Beach. We hadn’t booked anywhere to stay, deciding to just stop and stay when we found a place we liked and when Phil was tired from driving. Once again it was another hot day and the drive was a long one in the heat, even with the air con. We stopped off at a little place called Mission Beach after 3 and a half hours of being on the road. The lonely planet didn’t cite many places for lunch but a restaurant that they did mention which we found, was shut. Never mind there was a little pizza place next door, the owner was pleasant and despite the fact that pizza is not our favourite food choice, we decided to stay. The menu wasn’t vast but we went for a Mexican pizza and the garden salad. It wasn’t cheap but it satisfied our appetites; Phil took a couple of photographs of the beach and we set off on our onward journey.

A good two hours later we were driving through Cairns. I’m not sure that we saw the main drag and I certainly didn’t see the harbour from the highway but what I did see as we made our way through the many traffic lights, I didn’t particularly like. Along our travels we have some people say good things about Cairns and others that seem to hate it with a passion. We decided to head on to Trinity Beach as planned and come back to explore Cairns on another day. As we approached Trinity Beach which isn’t a vast place, we headed to the beach front and parked up. There were quite a few resorts to choose from but I headed for the one that I thought looked the most inviting. I had a feeling that it also might be expensive and I was right. The kind man on reception told me it was a 2 night minimum stay and offered me the discounted stand by rate of 140 bucks a night. This is about 50 bucks more than we would normally & I was just about to turn around when Phil came up behind me and said yes we’d take it for the 2 nights.

It took a while to suss out the underground car park and lug our stuff up the 3 flights of stairs from the basement, but boy, what a great surprise when we opened the door to apartment 46. It was fabulous! Okay, I am a sucker for modern contemporary designs, but I tell you when I’m retired, this is just the sort of apartment that I intend to live in. The place we are staying at is called Coral Sands Beachfront Resort www.coralsands.com.au I haven’t had a chance to check out the website but here is the URL anyway. Our apartment has 2 beds, 2 bathrooms, a separate toilet with laundry room, lounge/full kitchenette and get this, 2 balconies. No 46 even has views across the ocean. How cool is that?? Phil was super delighted that he had a TV in the bedroom even though he has to switch in on yet! Phil has a thing about TV’s; indeed, we have 5 sets in our small modest home. But that’s probably common in all English homes; after all, our weather at home is so bloody terrible at home that we spend most of our time indoors.

Last night was the most humid evening; we tried to sit on the balcony but gave up after 5 minutes. Phil had all the air con units going full speed so it was okay inside and we were able to get showered and dressed in comfort. That all changed once we got down stairs and out on the street. After only a few minutes, I felt like I needed to shower again. It was dark and there were a few restaurants near our resort, a café, an Italian and a Thai restaurant. We didn’t really fancy any of them and in fact, with the humidity we didn’t feel that hungry so we ordered a takeaway from the Thai restaurant and went back our apartment and the air con. The sofas are so comfortable that within minutes of scoffing our curry we were soon fast asleep.


I think the plan today is to publish the blog, have breakfast, take a stroll along Trinity Beach and then drive the 50 odd kilometres to Port Douglas. Hundreds of other travellers (okay slight exaggeration) have told us that Port Douglas is ‘a must’ so we will go and take a look for ourselves. No other solid plans from therein on, so I guess we’ll do the usual and just go with the flow.