Chilling without the chill! Cape York That describes winter on Cape York well. Comfortable balmy weather, occasionally a bit windy, but still warm enough to go for a swim in the crocodile-free spots, such as Twin and Fruit Bat falls at the top of the Jardine River National Park. Locals start reaching for their jumpers here once the minimum temperature …
Read More »Wild wet season on Cape York
When I first came to live on the Cape over 30 years ago, the seasons definitely seemed to be more predictable. Wild Cape York While the actual times of the start and end of the wet did vary from year to year, the sequence of events that marked the transitions were much more defined. Wild Cape York As the dry …
Read More »East coast reef smorgasbord
You spend your whole life discovering new fishing gems, and living in the middle of the Cape provides plenty of options if you take the opportunity to explore that bit further. East coast reef Even after 30 years up here, I’ve only scratched the surface – much of that due to the fact that many areas are still extremely difficult …
Read More »Cape winding down for wet
Well, it’s certainly been an up-and-down year on the Cape! After the best wet the place had seen in a decade, the tourists arrived in droves as the water started to run off the many river and creek crossings along the Peninsula Development Rd. Cape winding down wet By mid-July, vehicle traffic had exceeded previous record numbers by around 30 …
Read More »The Cape’s classic weekend
Not even a 25 knot southeast trade wind could blow away the fishing fever that infuses the community when the Weipa Fishing Classic weekend comes around! Just as the hugely successful Weipa Bullride that ran two weeks earlier, the event attracted a massive crowd intent on having a great time and possibly catching a few fish or three! This year …
Read More »Busiest Cape season ever
WELL, my prediction that 2021 would see a record numbers of visitors heading this way has proven to be spot on! Unprecedented numbers of vehicles have been traversing the Peninsula Development Rd and most of the major offshoots. From Cooktown all the way through to the northern peninsula area – Bamaga, Seisia and such – almost all of the various …
Read More »Run-off goodies in Cape York
WITH the Cape’s wet season finishing abruptly after a last burst of heavy rain at the end of April, the southeast trade winds took over from the northerly flow and were soon pumping at 20 knots or better by mid-May. This time of year is known in the north as ‘the run-off’, signified by the typically tannin stained waters pushing …
Read More »Cape York in top fishing condition
THE Cape has experienced its biggest wet season in over a decade, with heavy rainfalls at the end of April cutting the Peninsula Development Rd in many places, including the Hann, Archer and Wenlock rivers. Weipa copped over 2m of rain in a prolonged wet that extended from early December to the above April event, an above-average total. Cape York …
Read More »Cape York is definitely open
SENSATIONALIST reporting by the Courier Mail, Cairns Post and other Murdoch rags saw the media blanketed with stories by people claiming to be traditional owners of the area indicating the tip of Cape York had been closed to tourists. It was shoddy journalism at best, with reporters failing to check facts and choosing instead to run half-truths and innuendo in …
Read More »QLD fishing licence debate
WOULD you be prepared to pay for better fishing? I’ll bet that as soon as most fishers are asked that question, they immediately think of a fishing licence imposed by the government, then imagine the funds for that licence disappearing into government coffers as per most of our other taxes. QLD fishing licence Well, what if we were guaranteed that …
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