Hopping To Hull Heads

After a reasonably nice week in Cardwell and the weather not looking like it was going to improve too much Team Turtle decided to, once again, head further north.  And yes, there is still a lot of coastline to go!

Our first option was a river about 20klms north of Cardwell.  Unfortunately, the boat ramp that we would have had to use was just a little bit steep - even for The Rav - so we kept going to another river - The Hull - just south of Tully.  To make things even better, there was a lovely little camping area right at one of two boat ramps.  No power but there were flushing toilets and hot showers and the very reasonable fee was split between council and the local Coast Guard.  Win, win for everyone!  Even so, there were a few people that did call in (its a 50klm round trip from the highway and back) and felt that the fee was far too exorbitant so they left.  If nothing else, this trip has certainly opened our eyes a bit more to some very strange attitudes of fellow travellers.  The only drawback to this lovely spot was that there was a limit of four nights stay and the boat ramp at the campground was covered in sand and only suitable for light vehicles.

The Sandy Boat Ramp and Breakfast View

Never mind, the other boat ramp was an all weather double ramp with pontoons.  Much more civilised and one doesn't have to worry too much about being attacked by crocodiles when you are knee deep in water.

The Civilised Boat Ramp

We were exhausted after our long trip but we managed to revive ourselves enough to go for a walk along the beachfront and chat to the neighbours who were fishing near the boat ramp.  The neighbours were having a little success so we pulled out the fishing rods, stuck some prawns on the hooks and waited.  Well, The Deckie didn't have to wait for long before she managed to catch the first fish from Hull Heads.

The Deckie and The Little Grunter

Poor little Grunter had managed to swallow the hook totally so instead of tossing him back to be shark food he was going to be bait for the crab traps the next day!

The next day was one of the best days weather wise that we have had for quite some weeks and we were up and at it reasonably early.  There is always a little bit of trepidation when you are on a new river for the first time - not really knowing where the deep holes are (although the electronic sounder is a help) or how finicky the fish are.  Always a bit if trail and error.  We started off with bait - just a few little nibbles - and then went back to our favourite lures.

The Captain got lucky - again - had a little bit of a tussle with a very nice Sooty Grunter and won!

Another Sooty Grunter

Unfortunately, The Deckie was unable to catch anything - except sandfly bites - but it was still nice to be out in the sunshine and on the water.

The Captain did hook a reasonable sized Barramundi, but there is now a Barramundi swimming in the Hull River with a very nice lure still in its mouth.

Saw our first saltwater crocodile.  It was only about 45cms long and was having a swim in the river until Tuf Tinnie frightened it.  On our way back home, we did see another couple of Salties having a rest on the mudbanks but these one were a little bit bigger.  The second one had to be at least five metres long - thank goodness they were having a lazy afternoon!

The Smaller, Cranky Salty

The Very Big Salty

Closer to the boat ramp, we found a small side creek that we felt was suitable to set our crab traps in.  Once that was done it was time to go home.

Off bright and early again the next morning to take advantage of the weather before the predicated change came through.  First job was to check the crab traps.

Number one trap - one very nice male, but angry, mudcrab.  Although, once the crab spat off his big claws, he didn't look quite as menacing!

Clawless Crab

The next trap came out empty but the third trap, well, that was an effort.  Because it was filled with crabs?  No, it had become entangled in the mangroves.  Which is very unusual as The Captain is very careful where he places these traps and we didn't think that the tidal movement had been that rough.  Without too much more thought, The Captain then reaches over the side of Tuf Tinnie, nearly up to his shoulders in the water in an attempt to retrieve the trap.  This eventually happened and then The Captain realised why the trap and its attached rope had become entwined in mangrove roots.  Crocodile attack!!!!!

Mangled Crab Trap

What had transpired was that the fish had managed to get into the trap to eat the bait and had become trapped (because it was a trap).  The crocodile had been alerted to the thrashings of the drowning fish and felt it was going to be an easy dinner.  Not to be!!  That crocodile must have had a wonderful time pushing and pulling that trap thru the mangroves and creating havoc for The Captain as well.

Nobody won in that battle - the crocodile went away worn out, hungry and very annoyed, the fish drowned and the crab trap went to crab trap heaven.  It was only much later when The Captain was thinking about things that he realised that the annoyed and hungry crocodile could have been lying just under Tuf Tinnie when he had his arms in the water and that he The Captain) could have been breakfast for him!  Makes one shudder just thinking about it.

The rest of the day wasn't much better as the fishing was non existent but the day itself was very nice - well, almost most of the day.

After we returned back to our campground, the predicted bad weather arrived - very windy and overcast - so it was pack up time.  Not a huge task as we were only planning to drive a short distance and therefore we would be driving both vehicles.

Hull Heads and Islands of The Great Barrier Reef

Tuesday was "move on" day - first to Tully for supplies and then a little bit further north to Conway Beach.  The caravan park at Conway Beach is right on the beach, the boatramp for Liverpool Creek is less than two klms away and the boatramp for a quick trip to the Great Barrier Reef is right at the front gate - not too bad at all!!