Day 12: Archer River to Seisia

We woke up to find it had been a damp night and everything was wet. It was warm overnight, at about 17 degrees, but the dewpoint was 18 degrees, so everything was damp and that made packing up a messy job. We headed north again, not sure what the road would be like and how far we would get today. The one big hurdle is the Jardine River – there is a ferry across the river and it closes at 5pm, so if we are not there by 5 pm, we will have to camp.

We had a mixed morning – Jim hit a kangaroo and that was awful, and when we stopped for smoko and waited for Rick, we realised that he wasn’t right behind us. After a few desperate radio calls, and after checking with other travellers we realised that he hadn’t broken down and wasn’t on the road behind us. A bit of backtracking and we found that he had missed the turnoff. Luckily we all caught up and were able to head off together again.



We stopped for lunch at Moreton Telegraph Station, after crossing the Wenlock River. This must have been an imposing river crossing, but today there is a concrete causeway and it is a simple crossing. We headed onwards, and made it across the Jardine Ferry at around 4.30, and arrived at Seisia Camping Ground at around 5pm. The last section of road between the Jardine River and Bamaga was the worst of the whole trip, and from Bamaga it was bitumen to Seisia.

Our campground is beautiful – it is on the water’s edge and a sandy camp. We originally booked in for 3 nights, but I am sure we will stay longer because it is so beautiful. There are signs about warning of crocodile danger, and I notice that the local kids don’t swim in the water, so I think I will keep my distance too. But it looks so inviting! It’s hard to believe but we are only 30 km from the northern-most tip of mainland Australia and we will go there tomorrow.