11th October 2016 - Departing Punsand Bay to head south

Sadly this morning we packed up camp once again to head back south stopping to see Bamega Airport and then the crash side of a military plane.

Northern Peninsular Airport (Bamaga Airport)

Built in late 1942 and known as Jacky Jacky Field, the airfield was renamed Higgins Field in 1943 in honour of Flight Lieutenant Brian Hartley Higgins. It has one runway and the buildings are as shown in the photo.  

From here we drove to the crash site of a DC3 military aircraft on its way to New Guinea leaving Archerfield airfield in Brisbane late on 4 May 1945 & crashed the next morning near the above airfield killing all 6 on board - 4 RAAF personelle and 2 US military passengers.  We had to drive for some distance through the bush along unsigned tracks to find these sites.

 DC3 Military Aircraft - crashed 5 May 1945

WWII Crash Site

The next crash site was not far away - a Bristol Beaufort Mark VIII which crashed on 10 October 1945 killing the 3 crew.

Tezza next to the wreck of the Bristol Beaufort VIII

Bristol Beaufort VIII

From here we hit the road again heading south heading to Moreton Telegraph Station campground but stopping off at a few place on the way there...........  and once again crossing the Jardine River by ferry.....

Heading south along the main highway

First stop was Fruit Bat Falls on the Eliot Creek for a very refreshing swim - absolutely beautiful and well worth the side trip off the main road which took us through a few creeks and rivers.

River Crossing

Eliot Creek above Fruit Bat Falls

Idyllic Fruit Bat Falls - perfect for a lunch-time swim

Beautiful Clear Water

Linnie enjoying a refreshing swim after a dusty drive

Linnie swimming next to the Falls

After a pleasant swim & lunch we drove back to the highway and headed south again towards the  Moreton Telegraph Station calling for a quick look at Bramwell Station on the way - we had camped at Bramwell Roadhouse on the way up because the Station had closed for the summer.

Bramwell Station

Bramwell Station

Bramwell station

Bramwell Station

A Coldie for the  Driver!

Moreton Telegraph Station - a lovely green oasis to take an overnight break from a long dusty road. Good facilities & friendly staff who told us we could camp wherever we liked.  There were only a couple of other campers so there was plenty of sites to choose from. We opened up the camper and then sat and enjoyed a lovely cold drink.

We are looking forward to a good hot shower but we must remember that the generators which provide power are turned off at 8pm.