Happy Birthday Chris!!!

We celebrated Chris's birthday in Mt Isa. Unfortunately most of the day was spent running arond town trying to sort out how to renew his drivers licence. When you're interstate...these things aren't as simple as they should be! But we enjoyed a yummy dinner and the girls and I made a rocky road, mars bar slice stack for a birthday 'cake'. He loved it!!

Gregory Downs

We stop in at this camp spot at Gregory Downs as it was recommended to us by some friends. It didn't take long to see why. We think this must be the best free camp in Australia!! We parked right along the river and had a relaxing few days. A top spot!

The girls had so much fun here. The river was running very fast and they had a ball floating down it.

Go Claire!!!!! She caught this big fish on her hand reel. She's the only one in the family who can catch fish!! She must take after her Uncle Doug.

Lawn Hill NP

After leaving our van at Gregory Downs we spent 2 days, 1 night at Lawn Hill NP. We spent the first day doing walks. We came across some amazing views. Nothing had come close to the views of the Kimberley for me....until now. You could have sat there all day (except for the heat) soaking in the view!

As an early birthday present, I asked for a canoe trip up Lawn Hill Gorge. This place just blew us away.....and to canoe through it was so special!! We were constantly praising God for His amazing creation and the blessing to be here seeing it! Wow!

We spent 2 hours paddling up the gorge and back. On the way were beautiful waterfalls and breathtaking scenery!! We know why so many people have raved about Lawn Hill NP.

We were literally speechless....paddling through this special part of creation was something we will not forget!!

Sunset over the Gulf

We stay one night at Karumba as we were keen to see the sun set over the Gulf of Carpentaria! It was amazing! We even treated ourselves to fish and chips!! A perfect night!

It was just so beautiful!!! As we sat there the colours just continued to change!! Thank you Lord for your wonderful creation!

Normanton

On our way into Normanton we spot some Brolgas. We stop the car and try to creep up on them. They must have good hearing as they heard us from a long way off and started to move away. Thankfully we still get to see them. In Normanton we see this replica of 'Krys the King Crocodile'. It's the largest crocodile caught on record at over 8m in length!!

From Georgetown we travelled to Haydon Station. We stayed here for 2 nights. We had been given contact details for the people who own this station and knew people who they knew. They were very welcoming and Chris enjoyed a day around the station helping out. One photo here is of their mailbox. Their mail is still delivered by the train each week!

Georgetown

We stopped in Georgetown and helped out Michael and Wendy. They work for Scripture Union. This involves scripture in schools, camps and chaplain in a few schools in the area. Chris was busy for the week knocking out walls and building walls.

Happy 8th Birthday Claire!!!!!

Claire (and her sisters) had a great time celebrating her 8th birthday!! She decided she would have the day off school and did extra yesterday. We love the flexibility of distance education!! It was also lovely to chat to so many friends and family on the phone and on skype!! It made her day extra special.

A Pool Party!!

Claire has always wanted a pool party!! I'd say with an August birthday, this will be her first and her last!! She had a great time though!! And it couldn't have been easier with hot weather and a pool right across the road from where we're staying in Georgetown, Qld.

We were told that the locals here in Georgetown do wood burning as their craft. The girls are given a quick lesson, and off they go!! They did a great job for their first attempt.

At the place where we're staying in Georgetown, the girls were shown a Bower bird nest in the front yard. They have been fascinated by it and are always over there to see what new treasures the bower bird has collected!

Innot Hot Springs

On our way to Georgetown, we stop in at Innot Hot Springs. It's been a long time since the girls have been able to have a bath, so they enjoy laying back and relaxing in here. You just find a hole to lay down in. In some places it was just too hot, you could see the steam coming off the water!!

After about 7 weeks of our van parked at the church in Mareeba, it's time to head off! First stop is only 30 mins away where we catch up with friends that we met in Tully. Helen, Rachel and Erika come up to meet us. It was great to catch up again!!

While there were friends around, we decide to have a cake and have an early celebration for Claire's 8th birthday.

Our Epic Adventure to Cape York!!

We leave Mareeba with our utes packed up and we are ready for one big adventure. We bushcamp all the way up to Cape York and back again. It was wonderful to have our friends The Parkers come with us. Not only was it safer to be travelling with someone else, but it was a whole lot more fun!!

Our first stop is Wonga Beach. The kids were quick to find some rope swings and the fun began!!

We cross the Daintree River and are excited to head up and explore the Daintree and Cape Tribuation.

We camped two nights here at Noah Beach. It was lovely to be right on the beach. We made the most of it with Al and I doing morning runs, playing cricket and enjoying the sunset of an evening. A great start to our trip!

Claire at Cow Bay. This was a must visit as it's in the book 'Are We There Yet?' By Alison Lester. We have been to many of the same places as the family in this book.

There were some cool and interesting things to see up at the Daintree and Cape Tribulation. We did see a cassowary or two and we were amazed at this tree. The rainforests around here constantly reminded us of how creative our God is!! We're told this tree is a strangler fig.

Here we are at Cape Tribulation. It was a stunning day, the sun was shining for us. We found we could never tell what type of day we'd have. It felt like the weather was constantly changing throughout the day.From here, we travel a 4WD track, the Bloomfield track, through to Cooktown.

We stop in at Cooktown for morning tea and to stock up on supplies. Apart from the wind, it was a great little town with loads of history. This photo shows Endeavour River where Captain Cook came to repair damage on The Endeavour from the reef near Cape Tribulation.

Bridget at Isabelle Falls. A great spot to stop for lunch. We spent a couple of days camping through Lakefield NP.