Cape York Explored

Itinerary

Day 1 Cairns

Gateway to the Great Barrier Reef, tropical Cairns is the best place for ocean exploration.

Day 2 Torres Strait Camp

Fly from Cairns to Cape York over the famous Great Barrier Reef, watching the water and coral glisten in the morning sunlight. From a beachside camp, visit the Asian-style monsoon rainforest at Lockerbie Scrub. Then take an excitement-charged journey to Cape York, the northernmost tip of Australia.

Day 3 Moreton

Enjoy a leisurely picnic lunch and a refreshing dip at Fruit Bat Falls, then drive on through marvellous Cape York landscapes to tonight's campsite.

Day 4 Chili Beach

In the wet season the Wenlock and Pascoe Rivers become raging torrents, but conditions are right at this time of year to cross over into the vast stretch of tropical lowland rainforest that comprises Iron Range National Park. Enjoy the fresh sea breezes at tonight's camp on Chili Beach.

Day 5 Archer River

After a morning spent scouting for exotic birds and colourful butterflies in the Iron Range rainforest, depart the park through Tozers Gap to historic Batavia goldfields, where nuggets were unearthed as recently as 1986. From tonight's camp, watch fruit bats hunt for nectar in the melaleuca trees lining Archer River.

Day 6 Jowalbinna

Heading south through the frontier town of Coen, camp at Jowalbinna within easy reach of astonishing galleries of 30,000-year-old rock paintings depicting the 'Quinkans', mischievous Aboriginal spirit figures.

Day 7 Cooktown

Walk through forested sandstone valleys to marvel at the unique Quinkan artworks. Now learn about their role in Aboriginal legend and traditions on a morning rock art exploration. Travel to Cooktown and wander through the heritage buildings of Australia's first recorded European settlement, which attracted adventurous people from across the world during the 19th-century gold boom.

Day 8 Cairns

Drop in at the quirky Lion's Den Hotel and thrill to the eerie atmosphere of Black Mountain National Park before tackling the rainforest-lined Bloomfield Track to Cape Tribulation. Gaze on the unforgettable Daintree rainforest before letting your hair down with your fellow travellers in Cairns.