Riding Down Under - Tropical Cairns Australia

[MacDoc]

Got the ST1100 back today. Was a slave cylinder that had to be rebuilt....***** of a fairing and exhaust removal job but feels good to get back on tho legs a tad shaky from our trek.
Took a short run to Yabarra the aboriginal community nearby. 130km - some good sweepers and twisties but wicked grades 18 and 20%.
Took it easy as I'm still not used to the ST and I'm tired as well plus it was late in the afternoon so hot out and that motor throws off heat.

Took the bags off the XT to make it easier to put on the tow trailer. Actually like the look.

did not have my camera with me so had to resort to the iPhone.
That's a wrecked boat likely from one of the cyclones. There is another in the same bay.

 

[MacDoc]

One reason I'm looking forward to moving here ...quite a range of environments......and I've had quite enough snow for one lifetime

tottering a bit from sore calves as noted above....in case I left the impression it was not a worthwhile endeavour.
The first part of the jaunt was a wonderful rain forest trek.

Lovely rainforest trees....red beech

and paperbark

a cycad

some of the ancient species....this is actually dwelling on the rock

a pretty native rosella

not a flower as such but bract according to biologist next to me

the flower is below in yellow

called this the gingerbread flower - gf does not know what it is - sure is cute

on to the critters -

This hardworking tregona stingless bee was caught midflight with a full load of pollen - they are threatened by imported honeybees apparently.

almost looks photoshopped due to the use of the 300 mm as a macro lens.

a lovely golden orb spider

which I'm quite sure this lovely skink would like to tackle

tho this might be more his size

 

[MacDoc]

Back in the saddle again

Trying to see if I can handle 6-7 days touring down to Brisbane and points south. Was trying to get in 700k today as a test run.
Best laid plans - did get 550k in lovely start to the morning - low lying fog tho everything I tried to look through also fogged up

- 7-8 hours with numerous breaks including a delightful and totally accidental air show at Mission Beach where I happened to park

really need the throttle control as neck was sore all day. Bike ran like a champ - even nudged up over 150 on a couple of passes. Not so great on gas tho.

Stopped for lunch where hurricane Yazi came ashore in Cardwell - they are still rebuilding more than a year later

According to Tropical Cyclone Advice Number 24 at 11:54pm AEST (13:54 UTC), the large destructive core had commenced to cross the coast between Innisfail and Cardwell with a central pressure of 930 hectopascals and maximum 10-minute sustained winds of 215 km/h. Maximum 3-second gusts are estimated at 285 km/h, with these likely to affect an area spanning from Ingham to Cairns according to the Threat Map [5] for a period of 3–4 hours. The eye crossed the coastline at Mission Beach just before 12:00am AEST (14:00 UTC) and passed over Tully soon after.
The commentary on this data indicates that "models are quite consistent with the forecast motion" and adds "with the expectation of being a large and intense system, cyclone intensity may be maintained further inland than normal." The cyclone was expected to be a Category 3 system near Georgetown, 450 km inland as well as affecting the Mining town of Mount Isa. The storm caused an estimated US$3.6 billion in damage, making it the costliest tropical cyclone to hit Australia on record

last year the rain forest in the area was just plain wrecked....no other word ....this year you can see the damage still but lots of new growth.

I really need to come here in the cooler part of the year .....heat after 1 pm is annoying. I'm tempted very often ( and do ) ride squid on the KLR for short trips.
Too new to the ST1100 but I was peeling off knee pads and gloves in the afternoon.
Fortunately just after the skydivers - overcast moved in and I skirted showers all the way back - much cooler and the bike loved it - nudged 150k passing some trucks....effortless power.

Kookaburra's laughing outside the window just now.

 

[DownUnder]

If you do head to the Brisbane area I can get you the contact details of some great people to head out for a ride with to show you the roads etc. Mature riders, not hot head teens of coarse :lol Good with bikes too if you need some wrenching help. PM me if your interested.

 

[MacDoc]

Excellent thanks....if I do decide....and initially looking at Mar 7 to 13/14.
Was considering riding down to Brisbane and then touring and getting the bike freighted back for $420 as I'd spend that much on overnite stay and gas.

The route naturally splits into 2 x 700 and a half day to relatives in Brisbane. So far it's looking like 500 km a day is a more comfortable pace given the heat and wanting to photo places.

There are a couple nice ideas here

http://www.motowhere.com/listpaths/country/14/region/3/is/Twisty/isnot/Offroad

and the terrain looks great.

This sort is appealing

http://www.motowhere.com/maps/route/PACKRATS-E-O-M-FEBRUARY-2013

This route tagged with: On Road, Scenic, Twisty, Intermediate, Rural, Safe, Good visibility, Good surface

Hopefully the ST1100 will be solid - I'm riding it every day to sort that out and start to ride the bike instead of sitting on it.
Going to put the bags back on - hopefully get the bar risers before I leave and MUST get a throttle control asap. That was bad not being able to stretch my right hand. I have hand problems anyway and the palm throttle is great but can't release it.

Going to try the Beadrider today as well...I think the seat foam is a bit worn just from age. The Sargent seat I got for the KLR was a total treat....I have a DayLong on the 650 Exec which is wonderful.
One thing I don't like on the ST is you cannot really slide around much on the sheepskin cover and the seat set up locks you into a single position. I like to stretch out and change seating positions on long runs.
Think I'll do a shorter run today ( it's late anyway and try see how gas mileage fairs at 90-100 kph as that's a speed I enjoy and good for head swivelling tourist. )

Was a treat winding it out passing trucks....it sure get to 150 + right quick and with no sense of stressing the engine at all.

The other approach is spend $840 ( might cut a deal ) and only base out of Brisbane and not waste the 3 days north of there.
What do think? Is there stuff along the coast south of Townsville?

 

[MacDoc]

Well that was an eye opener - put the touring screen on and much much quieter and drier considering it's pouring.
Pants barely got wet.
Also put the Beadrider on a despite a near miss stall getting over the sidewalk the tiny bit of extra height does not seem to be a problem. Left the choke on and I come out of the gate completely blind to who ever is on the sidewalk - from joggers, to dog walkers to kids and adults on bicycles - so just edging up and over and it stalls - recovered okay so the extra 1/2" seems okay.
Beadrider lets me move around - big plus and its cooler. So two good things today. Tunes on the way home - see if the screen helps

Screen ruins the look of the bike but I'll take the extra protection - easy to change too tho one of the screws pushed in no biggie
good vents on it too so no back pressure.

progress made - have a few pics to come - nothing much new on the that end but apparently going to ride the Mitchell River l/Mount Mulligan track in a few days - the one we got turned back on last year. We will start at the other end make sure we can get across the Mitchell and then go from there.

 

[MacDoc]

Sturm und drang on the way home ....at least I got my cruise control

Bike looks different now - but that taller windscreen made all the difference listening to headphones. Now have to find some new tunes. Rode a bit more aggressively even with all the bags on but damn that is a heavy sucker to haul down on a downhill twist.
It gets to speed so effortlessly that I kept forgetting and then not slowing fast enough. Quieter behind the windscreen made the speed unnoticeable until....oh **** get on the binders moment :biggrin:
That was in this stretch coming back - pavement was mostly dry but a few wet spots and having fun.
Many been there before ......

some have died.... :flowers:

anyone who rides....the Beadrider is incredible

 

[MacDoc]

Sturm und drang on the way home ....at least I got my cruise control

Bike looks different now - but that taller windscreen made all the difference listening to headphones. Now have to find some new tunes. Rode a bit more aggressively even with all the bags on but damn that is a heavy sucker to haul down on a downhill twist.
It gets to speed so effortlessly that I kept forgetting and then not slowing fast enough. Quieter behind the windscreen made the speed unnoticeable until....oh **** get on the binders moment
That was in this stretch coming back - pavement was mostly dry but a few wet spots and having fun.
Many been there before ......

some have died....

anyone who rides....the Beadrider is incredible

 

[MacDoc]

Back on to the dirt bike for a bit - the longer tour on the SThas been shifted to later in the season for weather and family reasons. Found a couple of AirBNB places to stay - hey $30 a night. Will get the risers on and a bit more saddle time.

Riding to the Mitchell/Mount Mulligan tomorrow ( weather permitting ) ....taking it easy as this is what can happen even at 60 kph on those tracks with a slight judgement error. Ken is a very experienced off road rider in his 50s

Haha yeah never too old as you know, I was one of the youngest blokes at 51 out of the 150 at the OCR rally, normally i'd have been sitting on 80 to 90 kph there as the track was fairly good, just didn't make sense why it was washing because the XR normally handles like it is on rails, it was a bit like when you hit the Barron Bridge sand on concrete at Lake Tinaroo that day.
We were all taking it very steady, another rider hurt his shoulder quite bad as he took to the ground the day before when he got railed in a dry clay rut, I nearly ran over him in the dust and I was a good 100 metres behind him just prior to it.

Alas it was me with the split kidney, it happened at the OCR near Cape York and we were only doing 60kph!

I had been having trouble getting in the groove so to speak but it turns out i had a front puncture (didn't know at the time) and it was causing the front to wash out so i was cutting corners fine and a small tree reached out, grabbed my left handlebar and highsided me with a WWF style body slam into my right side handle bar and the ground but I had to hang on to avoid contact with the big tree on the other side of the track that seemed to have a strong gravitational pull, the bike landed on top of me but I must have been knocked out momentarily because my riding pants were severely burned on the outside of my right ankle, all I can remember is terrible pain and thinking I had broken every bone on my right side and my mouth was full of sand and gravel, riders behind me were able to get me clear and help me back on the bike, had it been impossible I would have hit my EPIRB button right away.

Had to ride 170klms back to camp at Bramwell because the Jardine River ferry had already closed but luckily the director of nursing from Bamaga hospital was at the OCR and I placed myself in his hands immediately, I was in a bad way at that stage, he went straight to action stations and arranged travel half way to Wiepa to meet the ambulance and notified the hospital all via satphone and the RFDS.

Tough bastard .....ride 170km through the bush with a split kidney amongst other bangs and bruises.

They all have full motocross gear and bikes tho - my co-rider Ken's son and Ken's 650 Honda.

big advantage over the KLR which does not even have metal pegs...your cannot wear motocross boots ( I tried ) on it and still shift.

Ken has slowed down a bit ...however...( and I should put this into the too old to ride thread )

We don't know the river levels - Ken hit this river and was turned back - the Hodgskin

Yet piece of cake for us on our jaunt - both lovely blue sky days

you can see looking downriver it gets pretty wild there....and no way to tell until we get there.

The Mitchell is the larger river and awkward being at one end so we go there first - if crossable - take our chances with the Hodgkins in the middle of the run ....not a horror to turn back from that one
After that first long out and back to the Mitchell I came in from the highway end a few days later. It was even wider.

Yet the Hodgskin was empty the same day the Mitchell stopped us from the other side..

...go figure.

But we are taking fishing gear, photo gear - even bloody camp chairs..... so no worries

 

[MacDoc]

Damn - frustrated again. Mitchell was barely rideable ( we didn't and my buddy thinks the KLR would have a been a problem because it's lower than his. )
2012 above
2013 - a bit lower but still moving fast.

But the reason we didn't even consider was the next river - the Hodgskin...

THIS piece of cake.....

wasn't ......big time deep - no pics as we didn't get there tho I might go up from the other side tomorrow but diverted to another route and had some fun.
The reason it's erratic is that the two rivers drain completely different watersheds even tho they flow only a few 10s of KM apart.

Looooong day....start off to meetup at 5.30 am ......of COURSE I have no headlights. Just toughed it out as it was getting light. Turned out to be a blown fuse - likely when the battery was changed....no biggie but few moments of being nervous on a rather dark highway mostly unseen ( had brakes and turn signals ) until it got light which is does quickly. Gorgeous morning

13 hours on go - not a lot of stops. Feel surprisingly okay. 400 KM part off road - stayed upright tho a few sideways moments and one water on the faceshield stream crossing I hit a tad too fast Would have been a good pic - felt good on a warm but not hot day. Stunning nice weather. Dry and 32 or so..

Some of the joys of the range roads...8-20% grades ( no snow so who cares ) - and generally the trucks stay in their lanes but not always.
And of course North American's have to to be ultrasharp....you never know what lurks if you look the wrong way. These are the kind of trucks on the range roads.

On the way along the twistiest bit after the the ride one size large truck was a good half meter into my lane and I had to twitch ( no so fun on knobbies ) but in that case little risk - had I been hugging the line tho....different outcome and many corners there are both blind and with elevation changes. They call high accident zones Black spots
http://www.tmr.qld.gov.au/Safety/Road-s ... spots.aspx
And that stretch and all the range roads qualify. The gov undertakes additional signage and road improvements to try and reduce the stats. They put in those speed sensor signs that flash and say "Slow Down".
Ken related one tale he was coming up the Kuranda range road in the rain and going downhill at a good clip in the other lane was a car....facing up hill :think: Scared the hell out of him.

Funny story yesterday at the end of the ride - ran onto reserve after about 280 km which was a bit of a surprise but we were going faster than I usually go on the KLR plus a fair bit of dirt riding in lower gears.
Just at a Tsection at the bottom of the Rex - the shortest and steepest twisty range road where it intersects the James Cook Highway along the Pacific.
There are a couple of other riders under the tree at the tsection taking it easy so Ken heads over there and I hang a left around the island .....oops......luckily it was a rather short island and I really didn't disturb the oncoming traffic...much
So fuel up and get back to the junction and of course gales of laughter.....BUT turns out the laughter was not at the dumb Canuck but because the other riders were also Canadian and done the same thing there!!!!.

Oddly that intersection I'd done it a week earlier turning left heading up the Rex when the flashing of lights in my lane made it clear I was in lalaland.....again.
When there is no reference vehicles and I'm in ride without thinking about it mode then the North American habits kick in.

I told Ken when he would see me hesitate at an intersection or pulling out into traffic it was just a stop and think about it bit of caution. Generally I use the shifter to orient the turn - shifter on the outer edge of the road....but at the Tsection ...in a hurry....didn't stop and think after the KLR had been hiccuping until the reserve kicked in. 21 litre tank. Put in 18.

Saw the same pair of riders on the Cairns bypass road on the way home....did not get a chance to chat Ken said Alberta and somewhere in French speaking Ontario.

 

[MacDoc]

The Quaid Road..shades of dystopia.....one of the treats I was looking forward to yesterday was riding more of the Quaid road ...a two lane highway to nowhere in the middle of the rain forest.

Quaid Road is a 32 km long stretch of private road in Far North Queensland. The road was given corridor approval and completed in early 1989 through rainforest that was later declared Wet Tropics World Heritage Area in late 1989 and links Wangetti, on the coast just north of Cairns, to Southedge, just south of Mount Molloy.

Following the heavy rains of Cyclone Rona in April 1999, parts of the Quaid Road fell into the World Heritage listed Hartley’s Creek. The Southedge Daintree Pastoral Company repaired the cyclone damage to the road and to this day continues to maintain the road.
The section of road from the Peninsula Development Highway turnoff is open to traffic until a locked gate is reached. Past the locked gate the road is in good condition and goes over three big climbs then through the Kuranda Forest Reserve.
The road condition deteriorates after another locked gate prior to the final descent to Wangetti Beach, which is steep with a lot of debris on the road surface. The condition then improves just before the final locked gate at Wangetti is reached.

Controversy

Ever since its construction as a private road to serve a Quaid Real Estate development at Southedge, the road has been a hot issue in Far North Queensland. For years after its construction, the road was suggested as an alternative route to the Atherton Tablelands for everyday traffic as well as evacuations during cyclones. However, in 1997, Transport and Main Roads Minister Vaughan Johnson announced that the state government was no longer considering gazetting Quaid Road as a State-controlled road because it would put additional pressure on the Captain Cook Highway and divert funding away from upgrades of other parts of State road network in Far North Queensland.[1fit]
During Cyclone Larry in 2006, all road access to the major regional city of Cairns was blocked and the city was isolated from surrounding areas for three days. This was caused by flooding south of the city near Innisfail and landslides near Port Douglas and on the Kuranda Range Highway. After this period of isolation, Tablelands MP Rosa Lee Long proposed that Quaid Road be used as another route to truck food into Cairns and evacuate people but the Queensland State Government again rejected the proposal.[2fit] The Cook Shire Council expressed Council's disappointment with this decision by forwarding a letter to the current Minister for Transport and Main Roads, Paul Lucas.[3fit]
After the Cairns's tsunami scare of April 2007, this idea has become more popular with the city's population once again.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quaid_Road

I was a bit doubtful of the gates given the KLR and my still iffy knee as I knew the work arounds were rather rough. The first one in particular.
Lovely ride up to the entrance next to Hartley's croc farm - some place I'm like to visit. Park outside the locked gate barricaded with boulders on either side

hmmmmm now maybe on my Bultaco but the KLR!!!!!

first 3 yards are easy but there is a 40' drop to the left - I let Ken take the KLR past that thank you ....his bloody idea to do this -

at least his fits

this is after a push from me as to complicate matters it's muddy at the base of the rock.

There are no pictures of the KLR transit.....you can fill in with your imagination the grunts and swearing since it was too wide and too low to clear either side let alone get walked through the way Ken's was. Heaving 450 lb of bike over that little stretch of rock was a chore....lucky we were fresh.
But well worth the effort as we climbed this lovely empty road up the range.
Some shots taken on the fly - came out quite nice.

more gates at the top but Ken rode the KLR around. Normally I'd tackle it but did not want a messed knee this early in the ride. Turns out he stalled it a few times getting around this one so figured I made the smart decision and he was fine with it. Bit of a trick up with the heavy KLR and 80/20 tire on the back

lovely cool mist made the gate work arounds worth it and a cooler challenge if slippy.

out the other side successfully on his bike.

Then a half hour of pure delight up over the misty range - riding in and out of fog and mist and sun.

this incredibly rich lacy canopy above us.

This was the gps of the route.

have another jaunt out near the Hodgskin tomorrow from the other side. Some single track so hopefully knee is improved.

 

[MacDoc]

Nother 13 hour day....well worth the effort.

30 or so stream crossings - mostly minor
Ken took on some rougher stuff past here

and I lazed around in a lovely glade.

when you ride with Ken he comes prepared.....tea and bickkies ( biscuits ) in the bush

he was playing Moses when we hit the Hodgkin

This photo does not do justice to the angle of the slope - he had to power up it. Figure how deep that river CAN get.

This was about the deepest it got except of course the major rivers which we did not cross.

One of the streams ( about as deep as above ) had my number as I stalled out on the way across the first time (too fast and too big a bow wave ) so pushed and part motored out...the other couple of deep ones I took slower with no issue. Lucky the KLR tolerates my abuse tho the damn interlock on either kickstand or clutch is being a pain - would not start a couple of times til I bounced on the bike which makes me suspect the kickstand. Really need those decommissioned for off road.

Coming back on the same stream it was lower and I motored across and then managed to get the front wheel in one rut and the back wheel in another and over I went. Bit tired and happy to get across the stream and lost attention on the other side which muddy - there's the little trap just waiting for my return

No harm - was like landing on a down mattress...Kenno lifted and I pushed up with my legs once unpinned to get it upright, then more squirming about with no footing to get on and blasted my way out......muddy bike and rider but washed later by the deluge on the way home. Jacket still is not dry the next morning.

Have to consider getting a new tire on the rear - front 50/50 was fine - rear is now a worn 80/20. 606 50/50 would give me more traction as the front was terrific this trip and rear was squirming in the mud and sand ( Ken was the opposite tho a much more experienced off road rider )
Have a doohickey with me and going to the mechanic shortly to have that done and perhaps a 606 put on the rear...still uncertain as to keeping the ST1100 or selling and rigging the KLR for touring but the distances are daunting in FNQ and it's fun being able to take the bush and forest tracks.
Means getting luggage for the KLR and affects choice of tire.

We disturbed a tiny snake with a strangely coloured head as we wallowed around - was about a foot long and very slender

- I only had the wide angle lens on and did not want to swap lenses knee deep in mud.

The black cockatoos are HUGE and gorgeous - worth the ride alone.

Some roos in the morning on the track and then scampered off and a couple of giant wedgetail eagles that of course turned up after I put the camera away cuz it was starting to rain a bit. But I know where they hang out and Ken got one decent shot tho it does not show their size. Largest eagle in Aus.
Lots of kingfishers, kookaburras, and crazy coloured parrots and doves....I'll go back up next week and do some birding...this ride had a specific goal in mind and took the greater part of the day - we'd still be out there if we stopped for every pretty flash of colour crossing our path.
One yellow headed parrot of a good size I'll have to figure out and some rainbow lorikeets. Lots of ibis including a couple wandering around the bikes as we stopped for tea in the morning.

Was a tired pup but feel okay next morning. Gear crawled it's way on it's own into the laundry - everyone holding their nose. Will post up a few more soon.

Getting serenaded with kookas just now
here's what they sound like
http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/resources/nature/daceloNovaguineae.mp3
They get wound up and it gets real loud

More pics soon - was a tired pup but feel okay next morning. Gear crawled it's way on it's own into the laundry - everyone holding their nose.

 

[MacDoc]

someone wanted wildlife

happened to be sitting in the right place - good Snap shot

up close and personal

dancing salties

My Photo source messed up and set up a new format and it broke the links. Just about lost the entire image set as far as linking goes. Seems okay now.

Risers came in for the ST1100 and expecting rotors this week - had fun on short jaunts today and yesterday.
Will use my 3 day pass to go to the Croc place again tho I might do a longer run on the ST if the weather is good and I get some sleep. Busy at work so means late nights.

 

[RockerGuy]

I'll tell u one thing for sure, I'd hate camping in Oz

Sent from my Phone, dont judge the grammar

 

[MacDoc]

Camping is a big time way of life in Oz especially in the North....you just have to be careful around the coastal areas and watch your water. What do you think would bother you?

•••

revisited the croc farm today taking the ST1100 out for a run ....enjoyed the bike but could not figure why It was so clunky to move around at slow speed. Turned out my swim shorts under the riding pants would not let my legs get wide enough for stability. Last time I do that. KLR is narrower so doesn't affect me.

Got a lucky shot of the sea eagle

adore the 14 mm lens

Hmmmph - still reviewing - in the dumb luck category - was playing macro with the long lens shooting the flower - did not even see the dragon fly

Off to the Daintree tomorrow with the Burgman 650 rider. Will stay well clear of the river edges

 

[MacDoc]

Why we won't be wandering near the streams, rivers and ocean beach edge up at the Daintree. They are out there.

They are amazing animals -

Crocs can go a year without food.
this is of course based on body mass - the bigger the croc the longer it can go without food.They also never stop growing ....the two big crocs here ( and the one on Green Island nearby is the world's largest in captivity ) have run out of replacement teeth. In the wild they would die as that is the limit for them but in captivity no one knows how long they will continue to live.

These are big dangerous animals...this is the head of the local pond....there are two other smaller males and 18 females.
No one argues with this guy and you can see how very easily he could take a human.

these herons are fearless and will take baby gators as fast as they crawl from the nest. This one was robbing the chicken bits

 

[fearlessbob]

Fascinating reading, quite the adventure down under.

Over here, nicer days are around the corner and the bikes will come out soon. Just without that kind of scenery or wildlife...

 

[RockerGuy]

Camping is a big time way of life in Oz especially in the North....you just have to be careful around the coastal areas and watch your water. What do you think would bother you?

•••

I hate snakes especially poisonous ones. I've heard they have some of the world's most poisonous snakes.

They have some other bugs you gotta be careful about too. Not sure if they are poisonous.

In short, there's too much to worry about when sleeping in a tent. But that's just me


Sent from my Phone, dont judge the grammar

 

[Jampy00]

I would move there in a heartbeat, my wife on the other hand....

Either way great reading !!

 

[MacDoc]

Best laid plans....the bridge from hell...

So I email riding buddy for a trip up the across the Daintree to Cape Tribulation. ( this is all named by Captain Cook way back when he had his share of issues on this coast - trapped and holed by the barrier reef ).

Hey look -

no rain and so far it's been a very dry wet season.

I ask him if he thinks this bridge will be an issue.

I'd found it a bit treacherous a couple of weeks ago and of course there is this problem with telephoto lens.
Nah says he - "I'll be fine. Looks" okay. Yeah it does eh......

So we meet up at the little town of Mossman just north of where he is located in the resort community of Port Douglas ( jet set stop over ).
I sort of do a double take as he happens to ride the same year and model of Burgman 650 as I do in Canada. Odd sort of disconnect every time we went to the bikes.

Great temp, mix of cloud and sun and a total treat. Looked up on Trip Advisor a place to have a bite and the reviews were raving about this little hole in the wall.

Now I'd stopped for coffee in Mossman before and think Northern Ontario circa 1960 so I was a tad surprised at the raves.

damn if they were not spot on. Fellow rider Bruce was suitably impressed as well as he's from cafe culture Melbourne where the competition is fierce. Brilliant coffee, poached eggs on ciabatta done just right and served amazingly quick. Be back for sure and lots to try on that menu.

So fed and watered we head out north to the ferry - some showers visible but we seem to be skirting them....radar is not perfect after all. Cross the ferry and Bruce figures he at least will put on his rain pants as he's in jeans. I just get wet then dry off.

He leads so he can set his own pace and he's rocking along quite nicely on the rather rough twisty road - lots of blind corners and steep climbs and descents over the Noah range - the Burgman is great as he never has to shift - I'm busy stirring up and down from 1st through 3rd tho the KLR floats over the speed bumps meant to calm traffic around the cassowary areas. It's dense rain forest on the left continuing on down to the ocean on the right as we head north. It's about 35 twisty km to Cape Tribulation..(you can see some of the road and views earlier in this thread) and it was raining a bit harder so no pics today and I had lots.
BTW it's raining harder and rain forest and warmth = foggy shields.

We wind our way up and I'm thinking that bridge should be soon as we are getting close to the paved end at Cape Tribulation ( it's four wheel drive beyond that and only in the dry season. )

I'm maybe 30 meters behind him as we see the bridge and fighting the fogging and slow right down and he merrily rambles across and realizes just what he is on....no it's NOT just a small bridge a few meters across!!!

The short little bridge that appears in the photo?? Well I took these on the way back.
It's pouring, he has sunglasses on that are fogged and his shield is fogged....this is what he is on .......sans the cones....

Turns out this was the day to begin fixing this nightmare but we got there before the repair guys and before any warning cones were set..
Of course the short little bridge from the telephoto shot.....well tis a tad longer and way more gnarly.
I see Bruces brakelights about 2/3 of the way across as he realized what he had gotten into.
Single lane, huge gaps, the plywood was buckling into the gaps, a 6" high safety barrier and a largish stream about 10' below.!!!!! Of course having been to the croc farm we are mindful of being a snack as well for that which dwells in streams here.

Yikes....!

had he put a front wheel into one of those gaps..........

I was quite impressed that he rode it as far as he did and then paddled the rest of the way. I paddled across entirely as the ruts in the plywood ran all directions and the knobby had no purchase on the slippery wood. Credit to the Burgman and the rider to get mostly across on two wheels.

It's now pouring so with nasty thoughts of having to go BACK across that we soldier on north to the cafe at the end of the pavement.

Totally drenched and cursing the radar.....

Girl says....yeah ...it's only raining here according to the devious sprite running the radar. Some food and decent coffee and bit of a dry off we swing back towards home.

Now the warning cones are up and we discuss best method. Fortunately traffic was light and we let a few vehicles go .....Bruce paddled and I kept the bike steady with the passenger grip so at least he would fall inward - we took the right hand lane....it was even hard to walk and a couple places it was even hard for him to find a spot to put his feet down and who knew when the plywood would fracture more under narrow mcycle tires.

Across okay and the KLR was easy but we did it the same way ....I had a bit more directional control with the knobby so could stay on the left of the plywood giving me better places to footplant.

I imagine there were quite a few bicycles walked carefully across that bridge in the last few weeks as it's a popular destination.
It clearly has been failing as those big gaps were not there last year and there was this large pile of steel on the side of the road.
Could have been a nasty situation but turned out okay. Kudos to my fellow rider in not panicking and getting stopped safely and then across. :clap:

Once across the bridge south bound the weather cleared and we were almost dry. Decided to see what Cow Bay was about ...just a 5 km paved road down to the ocean. Nice little lush agricultural valley with a Robinson Crusoe beach at the end. Lovely spot.

Was pouring again so we parked the bikes under the forest edge

and wandered down to the beach which was complete with croc warnings, stinger warnings ( including the bottle of vinegar ) but otherwise soooo inviting.

and I'm sure it would be in the dry season.

Boogied back up to the main road where it finally stopped raining entirely and had good fun on the twisties on the way back. Bit easies on the other side of the road tho lost the front tire a bit on one still slippy bit.

Crossed the ferry in the sunshine and rode into Daintree Village on some lovely sweepers that were great fun. New and grippy pavement even tho it was still damp.
Very small main street. Hit a cafe and dined on the local widlife and fruits.

Croc burger with mango smoothies

and good time was had by all.....despite the bridge from hell.