Rollingstone and Cardwell

From Townsville at 1 in the afternoon, meant that we were not going to travel too far. We have been trying to work in a free camp, so we headed to Balgal Beach where we heard was a good free camp. When we arrived we found the site absolutely packed with campers packed in side by side with no privacy. So onwards towards a park at Rollingstone, on the way we found a free camp also at Rollingstone, it looked great, so we decided to stay there. We enjoyed a night of no power camping, gas hot water and cooking and TV from the battery supply. Easy peesy no problems at all, so good in fact we decided to stay another night. We did not bother to run the generator as the battery coped well, but two days was stretching the battery, and if we do that again we will run the generator during the day to charge the battery.
We went for a walk in the morning and discovered a beautiful little creek flowing beside the park, the water was an azure blue and if it had been a bit warmer would be a good swimming hole. Later in the morning we got a visit from a meter long goanna who wandered around the camp looking for handouts and scraps.
Regretfully we packed the next morning and headed into Cardwell. I would certainly stay at this camp again if possible, so good, so free.
Cardwell adjacent to Hinchenbrook Island is a place that became famous because of the resort that Keith Williams built there. At the time there was heaps of opposition to the development by locals and greenies and conservationists because it is a prime feeding ground for the Dugong. We sensed that locals still resent the development.
We went to the tourist info center and were impressed by the display, its a must see for all tourists, with artistic and informative displays. We had planned to visit Hinchenbrook Island but found that the ferry operated by the Williams Group was not operating on Saturday, contary to advertising we had read. I was totally pissed off and quite happy to move elsewhere, however Judy talked me into staying, so we booked into the Kookaburra Park. We were having a quite drink on our own, when a guy invited us to join a group at the camp kitchen, there we met a man who takes people on fishing trips for $100 a head. Opportunity knocked and we agreed to go at 5 o'clock in the morning. No more drinks and off to bed.
Up early and ready and excited to go. We traveled to the boat ramp with Bob and backpacker Rohan, into the boat and up the channel. It was still dark and we had a moment when Bob started turning out of the channel and got cut off by another boat, missed by at least a foot, very scarey moment.
Boated for 33 k's up an inlet and anchored right beside a barra farm. Judy and I both caught 2 toad fish each, the other two caught heaps including mangrove jack, brim, grunter and others. We got to keep all the fish, we have been eating fish every couple of days ever since (cooked all different ways). The day was very good but we got attacked by a swarm of giant sandflies which bit all the spots we did not have repellent on. Judy had lumps all over the face and neck for days and is now paranoid about getting bit.
This will probably be our only fishing charter, so we made the best of it and really enjoyed ourselves. Another good happy hour and pack up next morning for our next adventure.
P.S. On leaving Cardwell we visited Murray Falls, a camping spot 20 k,s off the Bruce Highway, about 20k North of Cardwell. The falls were very good and as a camping spot it looked really good,well worth a look. I also forgot to mention an area in the hill's above Cardwell that we visited after the fishing trip, the lookout had really good views of the coast and we went on to a park area with a little waterfall and a special little natural spa pool. The water tumbles through rocks forming a little pool you can sit in with the water bubbling and foaming around you. With the azure colored water and tropical forest around it looked very special, pity it was a bit too cool to jump in. Onwards.