Marooned - Hinchinbrook Island by Kayak by Andrea Ferris

Marooned

Hinchinbrook Island by kayak Words and images: Andrea Ferris ‘Just sit right back and you’ll hear a tale, a tale of a fateful trip, that started from this tropic port, aboard this tiny ship…’

ver since I set eyes on the clouds gently hugging the peaks of the majestic Jurassic-like crags of Hinchinbrook Island in Far North Queensland more than 15 years ago I’ve dreamt of being marooned there – Gilliganstyle. What did mum always say? ‘Be careful what you wish for …’ After a frustrated foot-stomping semi-tantrum, which went along the lines of: ‘Why have we got these (bleep) kayaks and all this (bleep) equipment if all we ever do with them is paddle the (bleeping) local river …’, the other half (TOH) felt obliged to agree to a paddling adventure outside the confines of our postcode. ‘How about Hinchinbrook?’ I ventured meekly. ‘I’ve had an itch to go there and walking the Thorsborne Trail lugging 20 kg on my back just isn’t my thing – let’s paddle it instead.’ TOH: ‘When?’ Me: ‘Has to be next month; that’s when it’s the least windy according to my research.’ TOH: ‘That’s four weeks.’ Me: ‘So. Let’s get cracking!’ Which is how, four weeks later, we loaded two kayaks and a couple of boxes of camping equipment into the station wagon and headed north to Lucinda – 1406 km and 17 hours’ drive time. Those four weeks, however, involved some serious fact finding and preparation. One of the Queensland Sea Kayak Club members generously shared knowledge of his similar trip. We also talked to the folk at the Cardwell Visitors Centre, the local Coastguard, read every trip report online and purchased an EPIRB, VHF marine radio, and hired a satellite phone from a company in Townsville. We had a waterproof folder with emergency numbers, maps, tide charts and weather forecasts, plus all the usual safety equipment such as first aid kit, tow lines, paddle floats, spare paddles, PFDs and flares. We weren’t just prepared, we were armed! First overnight stop was behind the pub at Marlborough 100 km north of Rockhampton.

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Five bucks a night, hot showers and toilet, cold beer, meals if required. Second stop was the Horseshoe Bay Resort & Caravan Park at Bowen. Far from five bucks, we paid $35 for a gravel tent site with ocean glimpse. Final destination, Lucinda, home of the world’s largest bulk sugar loading jetty at 5.76 km long and the Wanderer’s Holiday Village Caravan Park, which has front row seats to Hinchinbrook Island; Australia’s largest island national park of 393 square kilometres. The local store also has the best fish and chips according to my favourite travel app WikiCamps. Indeed it did as we had our last ‘proper’ feed and ice-cream for eight days. The western side of Hinchinbrook is wild crocinfested mangrove swamps, hence paddlers and hikers stick to a one-way east side trek, which necessitates a pre-expedition car shuffle. TOH had arranged to get the car to Port Hinchinbrook (46 km north) and be dropped back at Lucinda by the Mission Beach Taxi (two hours and $110 later …) Then, finally, it was launch time for the anticipated short four-kilometre paddle to the southern tip of Hinchinbrook. Not so short as it turned out. Paddling into a stiff 15 knot midafternoon sea breeze and one metre swell was wet and windy and we were more than happy to land and set up camp at George Point. Thank goodness for the kayak trolley is all I can say. Admittedly I was reluctant to include it in the already overstretched inventory, but it proved an absolute godsend as when the tide went out there was often up to 200 metres to get the boats to a campsite above high tide mark. As the wind dropped and the sun set on a glorious tropical Far North Queensland day I got to scratch my Hinchinbrook itch – literally! The triple ‘M’ jackpot of mozzies, midges and march flies. Of course we were prepared with long sleeves and pants and socks and RID and mozzie coils and citronella candles, but it only takes a matter of minutes, even seconds, to bear the brunt of an attack and we’d left it just that little too late to cover up on our first evening.

Clockwise from top: The perfect calm paddle northward to Nina Beach.  Our view from the Nina Beach ‘fancy’ camp.  Last day sunrise.  The view from Nina Peak was worth the effort.  Marooned! Shipwrecked on Ramsay Bay beach.  Sunken Reef Bay kayak camp.

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What did we eat? Eight days with no refrigeration and limited space is a bit of a logistical exercise. I bought an Excalibur 9-tray dehydrator and dried a lot of food then vacuum-sealed. We ate as well as we do at home! Clockwise from left: Paradise found – Mulligan Falls.  Camping behind the dunes to escape the wild, windy weather.  A camp that Gilligan would be proud of.

Our menu included: n Dehydrated savoury kangaroo (less fat) mince with pre-cooked and dried rice or spaghetti n Dehydrated savoury fried rice n Dehydrated sweet rice (cooked in almond and vanilla milk) with dried apple and custard n Spaghetti with bottled Barilla Pesto Alla Genovese n Pancakes with honey and maple syrup (in a squeeze bottle) n Dried pineapple n Muesli n Staples: milk powder, Nestlé condensed milk tube, coffee bags, chocolate ripple biscuits, muesli bars, Salada biscuits, peanut butter, vegetable oil, tuna in foil pouches

The next morning we paddled to Mulligan Bay and walked for an hour on the Thorsborne Trail to Mulligan Falls, which is a fresh water paradise of cascading waterfalls and rock pools to swim in. I’ll digress slightly here to explain that Hinchinbrook Island is accessible only for walkers of the famed Thorsborne Trail, paddlers, and some boats. The Queensland Department of National Parks, Recreation, Sport and Racing provides 13 bush campsites, only four with toilets. Sites have limited stay times and must be booked prior to landing. Only 40 walkers are allowed on the island at any one time and, because they’re staggered along the trail, you may not see a single soul for the entire time you’re there – bliss. Reluctantly leaving Mulligan Falls we paddled to the kayak-only campsite at Sunken Reef Bay where we met Peter and Alan who were sailing a small Hobie-type catamaran up the coast. We shared some tide and weather information (bit of a blow coming for the weekend) and learned that a group of volunteers had just left after collecting several hundred kilograms of marine debris from the beach. The pile contained a staggering array of stuff that belied imagination as to how it got there. The next day, after a delightful paddle to Zoe Bay, we caught up with a group of energetic, dedicated volunteers from the Conservation Volunteers and the Tangaroa Blue Foundation, a not-for-profit that coordinates the Australian Marine Debris Initiative. I can’t say how impressed 42 |

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I was at the work these organisations do and how gob-smacked TOH and I were when confronted with the statistics of marine debris and beach litter the group gave us. Half an hour’s walk into the ‘jungle’ is Zoe Falls, another spectacular fresh water swimming hole and waterfall (probably ultra-spectacular when it hasn’t been such a dry season), which we had all to ourselves and were kept amused when sitting in the water by the fish that literally jump out of the water and catch march flies as they land on you. Camping on Hinchinbrook is just gorgeous – once you wise up to the insect management! The sea is vivid aqua blue, the beach fringed with thick, lush tropical vegetation, and the backdrop is dramatic, rugged, soaring, rocky escarpments (the tallest being 1100 metres). The next day was the best paddle of the trip in calm conditions where we felt insignificant against the rugged terrain onshore and overjoyed by the presence of sea turtles and sea birds, such as the brahminy kite and white-breasted sea eagle. Nina Bay was where we planned to hole-up for a couple of days to wait out the expected windy weekend and take the opportunity to climb Nina Peak, so we set up a ‘fancy’ camp under a grove of coconut palms where TOH fiddled around for the afternoon creating an oasis that Gilligan and the Skipper would have been proud of!

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The view from the peak was worth the strenuous climb and it was here we got a bar of mobile phone reception and could let the folks know we were safe and sound. On the descent the wind picked up and our peaceful paradise was no more … It blew and then it blew harder and then it blew all night. The seas rose, the waves angrily pounded the shore and sand blasted our ankles – we weren’t going anywhere. Never mind, there was a trail to discover, which we did for five hours the next day as we trekked across to Ramsay Bay, to find the start of the trail where the hikers are deposited by boat, and back to camp. We chatted to some walkers, explored the creek for fresh water and made a satellite phone call home to get a weather check (winds decreasing over the next four days). With the dawn it appeared the wind had indeed dropped a little overnight and the conditions rated on the borderline of our comfort zone – so we loaded up, paddled through some gnarly breakers and turned north into an ocean that clearly wasn’t kayak friendly. The next 90 minutes saw both of us keep cool heads and deploy some skills learned through club training exercises to manage a potentially disastrous situation. Soaked and chagrined we were eventually dumped unceremoniously and literally onto Ramsay Bay beach with only the loss of a hat, a tent peg, and some pride. Marooned. GO CA MPING AUSTR A LI A

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reminding each other that we’d still enjoyed eight days on Hinchinbrook, just not exactly where we’d planned to be! After photographing a spectacular sunrise, that was it. The barge came, the gear was loaded (quickly to escape the midges) and 45 minutes later we were unloading back in civilisation. Hinchinbrook Island is what I’d wished for and more. It’s wild: untamed and unpredictable. 2000 Its grandeur is humbling, which is why the walk or the paddle should be arduous because the experience needs to reflect the environment for the reward to be earned. TOH says this trip was merely a recon exercise! We’ll be heading north again in 2015 to pick up where we left off and explore the Family Islands National Park to the north. And, John assures us he’ll come and get us wherever we land … G R‘No phone, no lights, no motor car E notAa single luxury T like Robinson Crusoe, it’s primitive as can be…’  up

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