Day 389 | Cooks Hut, Iron Range, NP: but been out and around
62 km | zzOz total: 11,132 km
It’s 120 km from the Development Road to Portland Roads, a picturesque cove from which a few fishing boats operate. They catch fish live for export to places further to the north, I passed the tanks on the back of a truck heading off to the airport for export.
Down the end of the alternative road fork 6 km from the end is the occasionally pretty, but currently immensely windswept, tourist Mecca of Chilli Beach. There’s 18 campsites there and often 50 4WDs all wanting to stay.
I went down to Portland Roads, on the sheltered side of the hill, not least because it has what would be one of the most inaccessible cafes in Australia, a lovely timber deck overlooking the water, with, as I found out delectably yummy food, not unlike the unexpected pleasure of that splendid eating house on Stewart Island, that’s NZ.
At both you get the feeling you’ve arrived at the edge of the universe and while the weather can be inclement the company can be interesting, today I chatted to the owner of a yacht seeking shelter of a kind in the lee of Cape Weymouth, his boat oscillating washing machine style. He’s been here 5 days, is staying another 3 weeks to test his soon to arrive crew who will all then sail around to The Kimberley. He revealed one interesting fact in these days where he carries 3 separate GPS devices: Captain Cook sailed these waters at night, maybe the winds were more favourable.
The food was so scrummy, maybe anything would be after my porridge and pasta diet, it reminded me how much I used to take eating out, usually for special occasions, for granted back in the day.
I’ve been out of circulation so long I’ve really forgotten how the rest of the world lives.