That night we enjoyed fish and chips at the Loyalty beach restaurant and prepared for our trip to Thursday Island and Horn Island the next day. The caravan park provides a courtesy bus for the trip down to the Seisia wharf.
The trip over allowed us to see quite a few of the Torres Strait islands. The video and commentary on the boat was great.
The tour which takes in both islands gives a good insight into the history and culture of the area. I would love to come back and spend a few days exploring as there is much to see.
Horn Island has a lot of World War 2 sites to visit. The museum at the resort is well worth the visit.
It was great to sit back and relax after a great day and enjoy a Loyalty Beach sunset.
2004,GXL V6 Auto. ARB bullbar,IPF 900 spotlights, Milford cargo barrier, GME TX3400UHF, Coupler Tec, Cooper AT3's, Safari Snorkel, Dual batteries, King Springs and Bilsteins.
Our original plan was to spend a few days at Loyalty Beach and then head south and go to Chilli Beach via the Frenchman's Track. I tried to get a replacement bung in Bamaga and Seisia without success. There wasn't a wrecked Prado in any of the workshops, that must be a good endorsement! I made up a cardboard plug for the hole but I wasn't prepared to try any more water crossings. Alan felt the same.
We bade farewell to the two 200 series and the GU and agreed to meet them at Laura in a couple of days.
We then moved up to the Punsand Bay Resort for a couple of days, which allowed us to celebrate Chris's birthday in style.
We spent a few days exploring the area including Somerset and some of the tracks around Punsand Bay using the map given to us by the resort.
The airport was right at our doorstep!
We managed to find the remains of the building where the overland telegraph line finished and was linked to the under sea cable. This meant that we had really done the OTT!
2004,GXL V6 Auto. ARB bullbar,IPF 900 spotlights, Milford cargo barrier, GME TX3400UHF, Coupler Tec, Cooper AT3's, Safari Snorkel, Dual batteries, King Springs and Bilsteins.
Jim,
Would be interested to know how and why Alan got into trouble at Nolans.
Seems to be a lot of people suffering a similar fate and we may learn something
Which line did he take?
What speed did he take into the water? as it seems some that go to fast, tend to lift the front up quickly and have issues.
Any pictures?
Enjoy Fraser!
Cheers
Robert
[B]Robert
[URL="http://www.pradopoint.com/showthread.php?32134-Gumboot-s-120-D4D-GXL"]2007 D4D GXL Prado[/URL][/B]
[I]"The true measure of a man is how he treats someone who can do him absolutely no good."[/I]
[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
I think Jim took the best line. Dodge the hole by going right as close to the tree as possible then head for the exit. Worked for our group a couple of yrs ago
Greg - 08 D4D Prado,
Some trips done - Cape York, Fraser Island, Simpson Desert / Central Aust, Vic High Country.
After spending a few days exploring the tip it was time to head south and meet up with the rest of the group at Laura.
Unfortunately the starter motor in Alan's vehicle had been affected by the water and was playing up. There was a one week waiting time at Bamaga for repairs so the sensible decision was made that Alan's vehicle would be sent by barge to Cairns for an insurance assessment. We bade farewell to our friends and started our journey down to Laura. It felt so strange and a little intimidating to be on our own after having travelled with our group for so far.
The road south of the Jardine River ferry was still very corrugated, there are sandy stretches either side of the road that offer some respite from the corrugations and there was very little traffic so I made use of what was available and shifted from one side to another. The noise that the vehicle makes going over the corrugations and the accompanying vibrations is very daunting. There are plenty of less polite words that I was using.
We ducked in for a look at Fruit Bat Falls.
We passed the exit that we had come out of when completing the southern section of the OTT and headed into unknown territory.
The road conditions change so much, one minute you are skipping over deep corrugations, then the road flattens out, next thing it is sandy and then out of nowhere there is a section of bitumen and everything is so quiet. When on the bitumen we listened carefully for any new squeaks or other noises but thankfully the old girl kept powering on.
We passed the tow truck from the RACQ at Bamaga that had picked up a broken down 80 series and hoped we wouldn't suffer the same fate.
Sights like this are a stark reminder of what can happen. The note on the side mirror said that the occupants had been taken to the hospital at Bamaga.
Exhausted but relieved we made it to the Archer River Roadhouse, grabbed a bite to eat and collapsed.
Looks great pradogang, love the water shot, looks like the old jack is a bit worse for wear (rollover)....Done any figures on fuel usage in the petrol one yet (L's per 100) or havnt bothered ??.....Cheers Steve
We had 4 nights at Loyalty Beach.....1 day over at TI, one day doing the Cape and 1 day doing bugger all than sleeping and drinking XXXX Gold....tough life but someone has to do it!!
150 Silver Diesel GXL Auto with ECB Bullbar, Toyota Factory towbar, Black Widow Drawer system with Fridge slide and cargo barrier, GME UHF 3340 Radio, Waeco 50 Litre Fridge, Rhino Racks and Rhino Basket, ARB Awning, IPF XS Spotties, ABR Sidewinder Dual Battery system,Airtec Snorkel, Bilstien Shockies, King Springs, Poly Airbags and BFG A/T''s. Now towing a semi offroad Lotus Freelander 18.6 Van, with all the bells and whistles.
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