Cairns to Townsville

THURSDAY, 1 SEPTEMBER 2016

As spring arrives, our time at Cairns comes to an end.  Our final few days were spent stocking the freezer and cupboards, cleaning up and packing away the furniture under the awning, a final walk along the beautiful and peaceful Freshwater Creek, visiting the hairdresser, afternoon teas with the neighbours and a final visit to the Esplanade.  Our final evening was spent enjoying a farewell dinner and then a final visit (for this year) to Movenpick for an ice cream.  The nice young lady took pity on us and piled about four scoops into each of our cones!  It was very enjoyable but we probably wont be eating much for the next few days.  We also stopped at the Cairns Library to watch the light display, which is part of the Cairns Festival.  It was great, with geckos, vines, fungi, flowers, butterflies, flowers, cassowaries and the reef being projected onto the front of the building.

After a very hot night, saying goodbye and hitching up, we were on the road south shortly after 8.30 am.  The most exciting part of leaving Cairns (we were still in the suburbs at the time!) was the very large scrub python which forgot to look both ways before crossing the road!  We also came across his mate on the outskirts of Townsville – he had a similar problem.  The drive to Townsville was uneventful – lots of traffic and roadworks, although we weren’t really held up.  We stopped at Cardwell for lunch beside the sea, looking towards Hinchinbrook Island.  With the temperature at 30 degrees, it was far too hot to sit outside.

We are spending the night at the Big4 Walkabout Palms Caravan Park, which is very conveniently located on the highway and were surprised to discover a couple we knew from Devonport parked behind us and another couple we meet each year in Cairns were beside us.  The Air Force have also kept us entertained with some low level flights by their fighter jets.