Guided Tours >>> Five-Day Ride
(The Complete Tropical North Queensland Ride) |
Quick Index (Click on text links below to quickly access sections of this page) |
|
|
|
|
|
| |
The Ride of Your Life - Guaranteed!
Your Tropical North Queensland riding routes have been exhaustively road-tested by
your host Stephen Rothwell; motorcycling journalist and passionate motorcyclist for
over 25 years.
In the course of road-testing all manner of machines from Aprilias to Yamahas, Stephen's
coverage of Tropical North Queensland's highways and byways has been relentless. Join
Stephen on any of the following hand-picked rides and you will most assuredly enjoy the
most involving, varied and scenic motorcycling of your life.
Day 1: Cairns >>> Cape Tribulation |
|
Cape Tribulation Road
|
Coral Sea Coast, Daintree Rainforest, Port Douglas, Cape Tribulation
Riders thread north out of Cairns on The Captain Cook Highway - a scenic ribbon of road that bursts with vistas of rainforest-smothered peaks stacked atop lush cane fields. The ride then gets phenomenally involving and scenic on Australia's most stunning coastal road, drinking in endless Coral Sea and Great Barrier Reef vistas en route to Port Douglas.
|
Rex Lookout, Captain Cook Highway
|
Just a short ride north of Palm Cove, the highway opens out to reveal sensational views of steep rainforest peaks tumbling down to meet lush strips of sand. One really needs to stop to take in all this riotous beauty, and the best place for this is the Ellis Beach Bar and Grill, a real coastal retreat beside tropic seas sizzling on an ivory carpet beach.
The gogglingly gorgeous views are not over yet though – not by a long shot. Driving north to Port Douglas, the highway really gets into its serpentine and scenic stride – a cliff-hugging, swooping and meandering scribble of road that alternately plunges into tunnels of rainforest and bursts with blinding Coral Sea views. Simply sensational.
Time for a change of pace now, and to exchange excited breathlessness with a breathtaking luxury wilderness experience at Thala Beach Lodge, a snug retreat installed amid the feathery crowns of the coastal rainforest.
Morning tea is served amid the busy flittings of 34 varieties of butterflies including the electric blue Ulysses butterfly and Cairns Birdwing butterfly, as well as a rare parade of 101 species of birds including the White-bellied Sea-Eagle (Thala's mascot) and raucous flocks of exotic Red-tailed Black-Cockatoos. |
Thala Beach Lodge
|
After lunch in Port Douglas, we hit the wide open road north to Mossman, where a dip in the cool, fresh, and deliciously drinkable fresh waters of Mossman Gorge may be in order.
 Heading north into the heart of the World Heritage-Listed Daintree Rainforest now, and a feeling of frontier-exploring as you ride your bike onto the Daintree River Ferry - the gateway to Cape York.
With just enough time on hand to shoot some memorable photos and chat with fellow travellers, it's off at the northern side of the Daintree River - and time to plunge into the dense lushness of the Daintree Rainforest proper.
 The road to Cape Tribulation is undoubtedly THE highlight of any motorcycling journey in Tropical North Queensland.
 Cocooned by riotous growths of rainforest, it twists and winds and dips and climbs around giant buttress roots, thick glossy stands of fan palms, and over 600 varieties of rainforest foliage - a stunning feast for the senses.
 Everything you could ever want in a spectacular bike ride is here:
tight twisty roads,
wide open sweepers,
massive mountain vistas,
dozens of wooden bridges spanning cool clear rivers, ...
 And at the end of it all, the spectacle of Cape Tribulation's ivory carpet beaches and
rainforest-smothered headlands.
Free time - and overnight stay in Cape Tribulation
This trip allows plenty of time for exploring the beaches and rainforest/mangrove boardwalks around Cape Tribulation, and a leisurely dinner before settling into your Cape Tribulation rainforest retreat for the night.
|
Day 2: Cape Tribulation >>> Cooktown |
|
Aprilia Tuono eating up the
Rex Range Road
|
Daintree Rainforest to the Outback:
Riders rejoice, for this is a wildly varied day of motorcyling; starting with the rainforest-tunnelled kinks and curves of the Cape Tribulation Road and then peeling off onto the Rex Range Road, which is regarded by many local motorcyclists as THE most beautiful of the four range roads that when ridden together make up 'The Big M' - the epicentre of scratching activity in Tropical North Queensland.
The Rex Range Road slices through sugar cane paddocks before curling up the flanks of the Lamb Range near Port Douglas (69km north of Cairns.)
The Rex Range is both an immensely twisty and involving ride, and a riot of feathery tropical abundance. 'The Rex' is a truly joyous way to ascend to the cool curves of the Cairns Highlands.
|
At the crest of the Rex, it's time to get the bikes into their stride through a succession of series of sweeping bends, opening out to wide open termite mound-studded plains, red earth hills and eucalypts - and an inimitably Aussie bush experience.
Joining the new Mulligan Highway to historic Cooktown, the riding experience is one of unfettered, wide-horizon freedom. Alternating between high-speed sweepers, galloping straights and twisty mountain roads, the Mulligan climbs steep escarpments overlooking rust-red rocky ampitheatres and tropical savannah woodlands.
Outback roadhouses at Mt Carbine, Palmer River Roadhouse and Lakeland Downs offer an inimitable Aussie bush experience
along with hearty meals and convivial bars, where of course it's essential to spin yarns and tall tales. May he who tells the tallest, funniest yarns win. |
Scratching the Mulligan Highway on the
Aprilia Tuono,
en route to Cooktown |
Cooktown and the Endeavour River
|
Cooktown
Riders are welcomed at day's end to the historic settlement of Cooktown (named after Lieutenant James Cook, who beached HM Bark Endeavour for repairs here after having accidentally struck the Great Barrier Reef off the coast north of Cape Tribulation on 17 June 1770.)
Remote yet easily accessible via the newly sealed Mulligan Highway, Cooktown is widely known as the gateway to the wilderness of Cape York Peninsula
|
A Captain's Triumph
After a celebratory ride up to Grassy Hill (otherwise known as Cook's Lookout - the very same vantage point where Cook spied a safe passage through the Great Barrier Reef into the open Coral Sea) it's back to Cooktown and a welcome chance to brush up, get fed and watered and recount the day's riding adventures.
|
Cooktown, with Grassy Hill at left & Mount Cook behind |
Day 3: Cooktown >>> Cairns Highlands |
|
The National Hotel, Mt Molloy
|
Cooktown to The Cairns Highlands: This ride explores the heart of Tropical North Queensland's Outback country; taking in the historic mining town of Mount Molloy - an honest-to-goodness bush community with a 'fair dinkum' Outback pub at its heart
that offers tasty tucker in generous proportions to match the locals' robust hospitality.
Just as welcome is the opportunity to get the bikes into their stride through a succession of sweeping bends, leading to wide open termite mound-studded plains, red earth hills and eucalypts - and an inimitably Aussie bush experience.
Next port of call (in the April to December Dry Season) is the Mareeba
Tropical Savanna and Wetland Reserve;
a savannahland nature reserve with a staggering diversity of bird life and wildlife that's but a 6km ride off the bitumen road, yet offers a truly authentic Australian experience in the heart of the Outback. |
The Reserve, known locally as the Mareeba Wetlands, protects over 5000 acres of savannas and wetlands, providing a sanctuary for much of tropical Australia's savanna and wetland flora and fauna, and cultural heritage. Nature lovers from the world over come here to view rare birds and exotic Australian wildlife in their natural habitat - and there are many opportunities to do so.
From the Wetlands' Clancy's Lagoon Centre, visitors may follow self-guided interpretive walks around the sanctuary, hire hand crafted timber canoes to paddle amongst the birds and lilies, venture on a Wetlands Walkabout with Wilderness Expedition’s pack donkeys, float through the lilies on the electric boat Buralga, or join the famous Twilight Safari in the company of a Wetlands Guide to see more of the abundant wildlife, experience billy tea in the bush, and enjoy cheese and wine and an outback sunset. |
Clancy's Lagoon at Mareeba Wetlands
|
Camping in Royal style! |
Visitors are invited to stay and enjoy billion-star nights after sundown, in the Five-Star safari tents of Jabiru Camp. Each tent is comfortably furnished and has high quality private en-suite facilities, queen or twin beds and insect screens. Natural materials compliment the warm tones of the safari furniture.
Simple, stylish furnishings and a tropical breakfast, reflect an attention to detail and the warm hospitality of this special bush camp. The safari tents are spacious and light. Each one has a private timber verandah with comfortable chairs and a table, perfect for birdwatching, reading or enjoying a glass of champagne as the sun sets over Clancy's Lagoon.
As Prof David Bellamy said of the Mareeba Wetlands;
“This is Australia…..as it should be!” |
Outback termite mounds, Near Mt Molloy |
Summer Options
During the months Mareeba Wetlands is closed (January to March), riders are treated to a loop of the Central Cairns Highlands' winsome matrix of twisty roads, with opportunities aplenty for diversions and refreshments at Australia's newest coffee and tropical fruit centre.
Overnight accommodation is in a rainforest retreat just outside the highland rainforest town of Kuranda. |
A cocky cockatoo at breakfast |
Day 4: Yarrabah Peninsula >>> Gillies Hwy >>>Southern Cairns Highlands |
|
Yarrabah - the Other, Wilder Side of Cairns: This ride offers a unique opportunity to venture over to the other side of Cairns' mangrove-lined Trinity Inlet, to the secluded beaches and vaulting peaks of the Yarrabah Peninsula.
This ride is incredibly memorable for motorcyclists, nature-lovers and anyone with an adventurous spirit.
It offers rarely-viewed aspects of Trinity Inlet, Cairns City & its rainforested mountain backdrop; deserted sweeping backroads & twisty rainforest-lined mountain passes; and a unique opportunity to venture into Historic Yarrabah Community.
The roads range from lazy curves through cane fields to twisty mountain kinks.
The views are always dramatic; the barely-rippled protected waters of the Coral Sea and the coral cay of Green Island; surf-sizzled beaches; great 2000ft. headlands rising steeply from the sea; sea-eagles sporting for prey; and expansive views of Mission Bay, the beachside village of Yarrabah and its lush rainforested headlands.
|
Enjoying Yarrabah mountain twisties with the
Coral Sea and Lamb Range as backdrop
|
Yarrabah township
|
In Yarrabah Community there is the opportunity to visit the Menmuny Aboriginal Museum to view artifacts, photos, and many historical documents relating to Yarrabah's turbulent 1892 birth. Local Aboriginal people are on hand to take visitors on a boardwalk behind the museum that threads through native trees, revealing ancient bush tucker and medicinal preparations.
Also available are many examples of Aboriginal art to be purchased at source, such as boomerangs, spears, woomeras, didgeridoos, pottery, flower pots, cups, plates, vases, tea tree oil and stocking flowers. |
Above all though, at Yarrabah there are smiling faces, kids fishing in the old traditional ways, deserted beaches without a trace of development and a strongly preserved Aboriginal culture.
All of this is just an hour and a half's ride away from Cairns - and another world altogether. The roads are soaringly satisfying; the views transcendentally beautiful; and the sense of timelessness palpable. |
Teenagers fishing, Yarrabah style
|
|
The Gillies Highway
For a ‘total immersion' Tropical North Queensland experience, just ride into the sky – and the beautiful matrix of rolling country roads that is the Cairns Highlands - on The Gillies Highway as it ascends from dense, moist lowland rainforest to cool, high cloud rainforest – and a natural tropical high.
The Gillies Highway has achieved legendary status – both through its infamy as a tortuous, single-lane goat track in the 1920s, to its current exalted status as Tropical North Queensland's most involving and varied mountain ride.
‘The Gillies', as locals refer to it, sweeps in wide, generous arcs beside the perennial Mulgrave River, flanked by the perfect volcanic cone of 922m (3000ft.) Walsh's Pyramid and the massive flanks of 1258m (4126ft.) Mount Massey.
|
After a pit stop/refreshment stop at the Mountain View Hotel at the base of the Gillies - and perhaps a dip in the adjacent Mulgrave River - the Gillies twists and winds up the steep flanks of Lamb Range, climbing 900 metres (2950ft.) in altitude in 258 turns over 19km (12 miles), affording eagle-eye views of Queensland's highest mountain chain in the Bellenden Ker National Park.
In fact, the lushly rainforested peaks of Bellenden Ker (1593 metres/5225 ft) and Bartle Frere (1622 metres/5320 ft) are the highest free-standing peaks in Australia; rising abruptly as they do from cane fields on the coastal plain.
Nearby Walsh's Pyramid (922 m, 3026 ft), an almost perfect volcanic cone, is the tallest free-standing pyramid in the world. |
Heale's Lookout on the Gillies Highway
|
Lake Barrine
|
The Cairns Highlands and its Crater Lakes
After summiting the Gillies, twisty mountain roads open out to the exhilarating sweepers, cool rainforest tunnels and wide, fast roads of The Cairns Highlands.
Devonshire Tea is served at Lake Barrine, a serene crater lake of some 6 kilometres circumference that almost spills over the lip of the lofty Lamb Range.
Lake Barrine and its nearby neighbour Lake Eacham were formed during a time of colossal geological upheaval some 12,000 years ago when molten magma rose to the earth's surface - super-heating the water table and trapping intensely hot steam underground. Eventually the immense pressure generated was too much for the ground to bear, resulting in immense explosions and tell-tale craters. |
Over hundreds of years, flattened vegetation grew back and rainwater and underground springs filled the lakes, which today maintain a constant water level regardless of drought or monsoonal rainfall. All of this translates to two lakes of uncommon purity and clarity; ideal for swimming, snorkelling, walking around or just admiring; the whole ringed by pristine rainforest that has never seen a logger's axe.
Over 600 species of trees flourish here, while endemic wildlife teems in numbers uncounted - Eastern Water Dragons, Reticulated Pythons, Ospreys and White-Bellied Sea Eagles, Sawshell Turtles, Green Spotted Eels, and waterbirds galore. |
Lake Eacham
|
|
The Cairns Highlands
This vast matrix of rolling country roads presents a feast of touring options, making it possible to take a different route almost every trip.
However, firm favourites among visiting riders include the Millaa Millaa 'waterfall circuit' (pictured at left) ...
|
... and the unfettered sweepers of East Evelyn Road en route to Ravenshoe, which at over 3000 ft is Queensland's highest town. |
|
|
High Times in the Cairns Highlands
There's nothing quite like relaxing in comfort and enjoying a convivial or quiet evening in one of the Cairns Highlands' inspiring B&Bs, in preparation for a final day of enjoyable motorcycle touring.
|
Day 5: Palmerston Hwy >>> Wooroonooran Nat.Park >>> Babinda >>> Cairns |
|
Back down to the coastal plain now, via The Palmerston Highway - a big bike rider's dream ride of great sweeping high-speed bends flanked by rich, dense rainforest. The sensation of pure speed and of gliding effortlessly through space is intoxicating; luxurious; pure motorcycling enrapture.
Energetic riders can take hikes through rainforest trails along the way to access waterfalls, rivers and creeks - where there are ample opportunities to swim in pure sweet tropical streams, in enviable seclusion. |
The Palmerston Highway - crisp sweepers
flanked by virgin rainforest
|
High Peak Country
After the high jinks of the mountain range roads, now it's time to thread along the Bruce Highway alongside the highest mountain flanks in Australia - the 5500ft. rainforest-smothered Bellenden Ker and Bartle Frere mountain ranges in the World Heritage-listed Wooroonooran National Park.
The sheer size of these peaks becomes apparent when reeling them in while riding toward ever-welcome swimming holes at their feet - the crystal-clear rockpools at Josephine Falls and cool calm tranquility of The Boulders at Babinda.
Afternoon tea is served at Babinda while riders and passengers enjoy hearty Aussie hospitality while recounting the day's great riding moments. From Babinda the party rides the remaining 60km (40 miles) along the Bruce Highway to Cairns, flanked on both sides by lush, blinding green rainforested ranges.
|
|
|
What's Included & how much does it cost?
Tour Options and Costs (All in Australian Dollars) |
Option 1 - Inclusive of:
- Choice of our varied fleet of bikes
- Riding gear (helmets, gloves, jackets)
- Fuel
- Guide
- Ferry and transfers
Cost: $1750
|
Option 2 - Inclusive of:
- Choice of our varied fleet of bikes
- Riding gear (helmets, gloves, jackets)
- Fuel
- Guide
- Ferry and transfers
-
Comfortable B&B accommodation
Cost: $2350
|
Please note: (1): Meals/drinks are not included in the above prices, essentially because catering requirements vary so much from one person to another; most notably costings for alcoholic beverages and so forth.
(2): As with all hire vehicles we require a deposit of $2000 - $4000 (depending on the model of bike selected) to be made before departure. This money is refundable upon safe return of the motorcycle. All prices are in Australian (AUD) Dollars and include 10% GST.
When does this tour run?
The tour runs year-round, on demand.
Book online now!
Further enquiries: use our online form, HERE or contact us via the following details:
Cairns Motorcycle Tours
9 Compass Cl, Edge Hill
Cairns 4870
Tropical North Queensland, Australia
Tel: +61 7 4032 1708
Mob: +61 427 774 285
Web: www.bikingaustralia.com
Email: offbeat@iinet.net.au
|
|
Tel. (In Australia): 0427 774 285
Tel. (Outside Australia): (+6142) 7 774 285 |
|
|
