Borroloola to Karumba Point (via Lawn Hill)

Hello all
After stocking up in Borroloola, I headed towards Hells Gate.

The first 150 or so kilometres was a fairly good gravel road, but like all roads up here, when you see a DIP sign, it is both feet on the brake as a lot of the dips up here are like half a loop on a roller coaster with a rough bottom, usually filled with water.

DIP

 Some of the crossings were deceptively deep as well further adding to the excitement.

This one was over 500mm deep

 The last 70 or 80km to the Queensland border was a lot rougher and slower due to the road heading through some hilly country. I was saddened at Echo Gorge to come around a corner to be confronted with a sign saying "CONTAMINATED WATER NO DRINKING OR SWIMMING" this was a left over from the close by, now disused Redbank Mine............Why was it allowed to be contaminated and why wasn't it fixed? I guess it was a "way out there no one will notice attitude....NOT GOOD ENOUGH GOVERNMENT..........fix it!

another deep crossing

 I pushed on to Hell's Gate Roadhouse, after a run of about 320km on gravel, watching constantly for animals, potholes, bulldust holes and dips, I was stuffed and had an early night. 320km on a good road is a long day for me now, so on gravel it was massive, and in retrospect I should have broken it into 2 days.

Next morning I headed off towards Doomagee (Community) Roadhouse and my first taste of mobile reception since Borroloola. Just past Doomagee I took the back road shortcut to Lawn Hill National Park. NOTE TO SELF.............after Lorella and this road through station tracks, find myself a gate opener........It get bloody annoying, stop vehicle, open gate, drive through, stop vehicle, shut gate only to find another gate is only a couple of hundred metres ahead when you travel solo.
 Queensland now has a National Park booking system, meaning you cant just rock up.............I asked at Adels Grove, a National Park Booking Office "what is the Park Campground like?"
Only to be told, "terrible, no shade, barren, long grass etc" so I stayed at Adels Grove.

Adels  Grove

 I learnt later that this is a mexican standoff between the Park and Adels. A few weeks ago apparently Adels were telling visitors that the Park was full, when it wasn't so that people would stay there for $17/ person instead of the Park for $5/ person.

camp at Adels Grove

Personally I preferred the National Park Campsite (Telstra coverage at Park none at Adels) which was on par with most Parks I have stayed in across Australia. The other downside of Adels is full shade only campsites...........combined with no solar input at Hell's Gate and no solar at Adels, and running the Waeco Freezer and 3 way Fridge my battery was bouncing along the bottom of charge, with the Waeco Freezer cutting out on "low voltage" at night.

Lawn Hill National Park

Lawn Hill

With the battery still low I decided to make tracks to Burketown and plug in for the night...........wrong......the only Caravan Park was overflowing, so I kept going, ending up at Leichhart Falls for the night. Although the Falls were dry it was an amazing sight as i stood in awe at the power this river must have when angry.

Leichhart Falls

Leichhart Falls

the road across Leichhart Falls

After spending a couple of hours in the morning trying to get some charge into the battery I headed off to Normanton to plug in.

Upon learning it was "Rodeo weekend" I couldn't get out of town quick enough, which brings me now to Karumba Point. It is after 10.00pm it is 24c and raining for the first time since Alice. I wanted to ride on the Gulflander train to Croydon but it only runs on Wednesdays unfortunately, so tomorrow I will probably head towards Croydon area.
To be honest, after several years of dreaming of Lorella Springs and the "Gulf Country" I have found the whole area a bit underwhelming...........Scenery wise. If you were a mad keen fisherman it would probably be paradise, subsequently I have travelled the area faster than I antisipated, which brings another dilemma. It is still only early June and I am only about 500-600km from Cairns.
My thoughts, at this stage, are my nephew and his family leave Victoria in a week or so to do Cape York Telegraph Track. I am thinking that I could do the Development Road and meet them at campsites at night and at the Tip.....hmmmm food for thought.
Bye for now........