Survivor Hinchinbrook

After making it around the bay a week before, it was time to take up the second physical challenge for the year - completing the 4 day Thorsborne Trail walk along the east coast of Hinchinbrook Island. The island itself is uninhabited by humans and with no mobile phone coverage we were really thrown into the wilderness....along with its other inhabitants.

The journey begins: 3 hr flight to Townsville followed by a 2 hr drive to our last night in civillisation at Lucinda - a small country town whose main claim to fame is the 5 km long jetty (below) used to transport the locally grown raw sugar out to boats

....and finally a 1 hr boat trip from Lucinda to Hinchinbrook Is, seen in the background (below). The team (from L to R): Bonnie, Terrie, Dr Dopey, Andrew, Kristen and Paul ("The Terminator")

The Beginning: the boat dropped us off at George Point on the southern end of the island and we set out along the beach with our tents, clothes, food and water packed on our backs

It wasn't long before the boys found a distraction

The Dopey sisters

After walking about 2 hrs along the beach, the track into the rainforest began and it was a welcome change after being out in the hot sun. An hour later we had reached our first camp site, Mulligans Falls. It was a beautiful spot and the waterhole which the falls runs into was great for cooling off and washing away the sweat and dirt. We spent most of the afternoon by the falls, swimming with the fish and sleeping in the sun, it was perfect.

Andrew and Kristen drying off in the sun (above) and Terrie having a mid afternoon snooze (below)

Heaps of time for a game of cards before starting the evening meal of tomoto-based pasta with onion, mushroom and salami

Plus we had a friendly lace monitor at the capsite

It was all going well, we were clean, well fed and rested, piece of cake. Unfortunately Mulligan's Falls had lured us into a false sense of security, we had no idea what Hinchinbrook Is had in store for us ......to be continued