30.7.17

Bramwell Station and a look at Palm Creek

The entrance to Bramwell Station
Leaving Weipa, we took the Batavia Downs track, which was shorter and much easier on the vehicles.  We stopped for morning tea at Moreton Telegraph Station, which looked like a good place to stay, with big open GREEN grassy areas.  Haven't seen a lot of that!

We had all made the decision to leave our caravans at Bramwell Station, and do the northern part of the cape in our tents.  A very brave move, as we haven't been camping in tents for quite some time.  So, we arrived at Bramwell and booked in for 2 nights so we could reorganise our vehicles for a camping trip rather than a caravan trip.

Oh, the agony of deciding how everything we needed was going to fit into just one car; what to take, what to leave behind, what goes in the car, what goes on the roof, what clothes/shoes we needed, how can all our food fit into one fridge instead of two.... it was nerve-wracking!  But we got there!

On our first evening at Bramwell we booked in for the dinner and entertainment package at $35 per head.  The meal was;  steaks, sausages, rissoles, baked potatoes, several vegetable bakes, salads, gravy, sauces.  It was delicious, and once everyone was fed, you could get a second helping if you wished.  Dessert was apple crumble and custard, but that was very small, the only criticism we had.  

Ken, the manager, gave us a very interesting talk about the history and operation of Bramwell Station.  Our entertainment for the evening was 'The Bagman' - he was excellent, a singer, musician, raconteur, poet and comedian.  A good all-round entertainer.  We all had a great night. 

I forgot to mention:  earlier in the day we had noticed a group coming in, and one of the faces looked familiar.  It was Pat Callinan and his crew from Pat Callinan's (Mr 4x4) 4WD Adventures - those who read 4WD magazines will be familiar with the name.  He and his family were at the dinner that evening, so Trevor and I introduced ourselves and had a photo taken with him.  I mentioned to him that, as a female,  I really enjoy his magazine, as all the other magazines that Trevor has bought have become too 'blokey', and I like the articles and LOVE the photography. He was quite impressed with that comment and thanked me for the feedback.  I hadn't realised until then that I was a 4x4 Adventures groupie!


Next day, we took a short trip up the road to Bramwell Roadhouse to refuel, then ducked into Palm Creek to check out one of the crossings.  Well, that was entertaining. When we arrived there was a 4WD almost vertical trying to get out of the crossing - the exit was pretty close to 90 degrees, and he was well and truly stuck.  There were people at the top of exit with a winch, but I didn't think anything was going to get those vehicles out.  Tyres were spinning, smoke was coming from the front of the 4WD, it looked hopeless - but, after we watched for about 30 minutes, it finally crept up the side and was out.  A big scream of relief from the owner and his friends, as  they reached the top. 

Further on, we watched several vehicles do another of the crossings - it is amazing what you can do with 4WD vehicles, but only if you're not too bothered about damaging them.
Trev towed this one out!
Bill and Lorraine returned to Bramwell, and we continued with Danny and Margaret through some of the tracks around Palm Creek - we went through a couple of interesting crossings, then Trevor had the pleasure of towing a Toyota and trailer out of one of the creeks.  He was a happy man!
Sad goodbye to our vans... 

The rest of the afternoon/evening was spent fine-tuning our packing for the camping trip ahead.  In the morning we moved the vans to the side of the huge camping area where we would leave them (at no charge) until our return from The Tip.   It was sad to wave goodbye to our little van - but we do want to keep it in one piece for the rest of our trip.

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